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What is understanding? I have two definitions:
1. Understanding is the condition of knowing the explanation of something
The first meaning of understanding has to do with explanation. For example, to have understanding of a cloud is to know the reasons why it floats, why it's white, what it's made out of, etc. A caveman who sees a cloud will not understand this phenomena because they will not have an explanation for what they are witnessing.
Another example, to have understanding of Chinese history means to have a clear interpretation of the events that have occurred in China. A person with a deep understanding would know many details about Chinese history and how these details relate to each other. If somebody asked them for an explanation of a historical event in China, they could provide a clear description of the event. By providing a good explanation, this person would be demonstrating their understanding.
2. Understanding is the condition of having competent knowledge in something
The second meaning has to do with competence. For example, to understand the Spanish language means to be competent at using Spanish. This has nothing to do with an explanation of the Spanish language. Here is another example: to understand the rules of baseball is to know what is going on in a baseball game. Somebody who doesn't understand the rules of baseball will be confused watching baseball. This has nothing to do with the explanation of why baseball rules were invented a certain way.
What is understanding? I have two definitions:
1. Understanding is the condition of knowing the explanation of something
2. Understanding is the condition of having competent knowledge in somethingThe rest of this post is an explanation of each definition.
1. Understanding is the condition of knowing the explanation of something
The first meaning of understanding has to do with explanation. For example, to have understanding of a cloud is to know the reasons why it floats, why it's white, what it's made out of, etc. A caveman who sees a cloud will not understand this phenomena because they will not have an explanation for what they are witnessing.
Another example, to have understanding of Chinese history means to have a clear interpretation of the events that have occurred in China. A person with a deep understanding would know many details about Chinese history and how these details relate to each other. If somebody asked them for an explanation of a historical event in China, they could provide a clear description of the event. By providing a good explanation, this person would be demonstrating their understanding.
2. Understanding is the condition of having competent knowledge in something
The second meaning has to do with competence. For example, to understand the Spanish language means to be competent at using Spanish. This has nothing to do with an explanation of the Spanish language. Here is another example: to understand the rules of baseball is to know what is going on in a baseball game. Somebody who doesn't understand the rules of baseball will be confused watching baseball. This has nothing to do with the explanation of why baseball rules were invented a certain way.
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