了 le — (modal particle intensifying preceding clause); (completed action marker); to know; to understand; to know; clear
我吃完饭了。Wǒ chī wán fàn le.I have finished eating.
Common words: 为了 (wèi le)、了解 (liǎo jiě)、极了 (jí le)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "to understand"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "to understand", including 了 (le), 明 (míng), 懂 (dǒng). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "to understand" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 了 (le), 明 (míng), 懂 (dǒng) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span le, míng, dǒng — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 了 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 了 le(modal particle intensifying preceding clause); (completed action marker); to know; to understand; to know; clearUseful words: 为了, 了解
- 明 míngclear; bright; to understand; next; the Ming dynastyUseful words: 明天, 明白
- 懂 dǒngto understand; to knowUseful words: 懂得, 懂事
Common words for these 3 "to understand" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 了 (le) — so "to understand" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
为了wèi lefor; for the purpose of; in order to了解liǎo jiěto understand; to realize; to find out极了jí leextremely; exceedingly明天míng tiāntomorrow明白míng baiclear; obvious; unequivocal; sensible明年míng niánnext year懂得dǒng deto understand; to know; to comprehend懂事dǒng shìto grow beyond the naivete of childhood; to be aware of what is going on in the world; (esp. of a child) sensible; thoughtful懂行dǒng hángto know the ropes
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 3 ways to say "to understand".
明 míng — clear; bright; to understand; next; the Ming dynasty
明天是个晴天。Míng tiān shì ge qíng tiān.Tomorrow will be a sunny day.
Common words: 明天 (míng tiān)、明白 (míng bai)、明年 (míng nián)
懂 dǒng — to understand; to know
老师讲的内容我都听懂了。Lǎo shī jiǎng de nèi róng wǒ dōu tīng dǒng le.I understood everything the teacher explained.
Common words: 懂得 (dǒng de)、懂事 (dǒng shì)、懂行 (dǒng háng)
All 3 characters
Open 了、明、懂 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.