When my husband says the food I've cooked is "interesting," I understand him to mean he doesn't like it. I understood John to be in Fiji, but I had it completely wrong; he was in Venezuela.
understand [sth]vtr
(accept with tolerance)
rozumieć ndk.
zrozumieć dk.
Although I don't agree with him, I understand his point of view.
Why Janet stayed with her cheating husband is beyond all understanding.
beyond understandingadj
(impossible to understand)
niezrozumiały przym.
Quantum theory was beyond Simon's understanding.
gain an understanding of [sth]v expr
(learn about)
zrozumieć, pojąć dk.
After playing he began to gain an understanding of the game.
have an understandingvi
(have an informal agreement)
mieć porozumienie dk. + n
My wife and I have an understanding: she does the cooking and I do the washing up.
mutual understandingn
(appreciation of one another's feelings)
wzajemne zrozumienie przym. + n
We argued at first, but came to a mutual understanding eventually. We did not have a written contract, but we had a mutual understanding that she would pay me when the job was finished.