understanding

Universal Words noun, adjective noun 1 [U,sing.] ~ (of sth) the knowledge that sb has about a particular subject or situation: The committee has little or no understanding of the problem. * The existence of God is beyond human understanding (= humans cannot know whether God exists or not). * Most of the students have a sound understanding of English grammar. 2 [C,usually sing.] an informal agreement: We finally came to an understanding about what hours we would work. * We have this understanding that nobody talks about work over lunch. 3 [U,sing.] the ability to understand why people behave in a particular way and the willingness to forgive them when they do sth wrong: We must tackle the problem with sympathy and understanding. * We are looking for a better understanding between the two nations. * Try to show a little more understanding. 4 [U,C] ~ (of sth) the particular way in which sb understands sth SYNINTERPRETATION: My understanding of the situation is... * The statement is open to various understandings. IDIOMS on the understanding that... (formal) used to introduce a condition that must be agreed before sth else can happen: They agreed to the changes on the understanding that they would be introduced gradually. adjective showing sympathy for other people's problems and being willing to forgive them when they do sth wrong SYNSYMPATHETIC: She has very understanding parents.