Etymology

understanding

un·der·stand·ing
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Today it means: The act of one that understands or comprehends; the mental process of discernment of meaning. Full definition →

Middle English understandinge ← Old English understanding ← Proto-West Germanic *undarstandingu
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understanding · noun1

  1. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*understandingō
  2. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*undarstandingu
  3. Old English · inherited fromunderstanding“intelligence, understanding”
  4. Middle English · inherited fromunderstandinge
  5. English todayunderstanding

From Middle English understandinge, understondinge, from Old English understanding (“intelligence, understanding”), from Proto-West Germanic *undarstandingu, from Proto-Germanic *understandingō, equivalent to understand + -ing (gerund ending). Cognate with Middle Dutch onderstaninge, Middle Low German understandinge, Middle High German understandunge.

understanding · adjective, verb2

  1. Proto-Germanic · derived from*understandaną“to stand between, intercede, understand”
  2. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*understandandz
  3. Proto-West Germanic · inherited from*undarstandandī
  4. Old English · inherited fromunderstandende
  5. Middle English · inherited fromunderstandyng
  6. English todayunderstanding

From Middle English understandyng, understondynge, understondinde, undirstondend, understandande, from Old English understandende, from Proto-West Germanic *undarstandandī, from Proto-Germanic *understandandz, present participle of Proto-Germanic *understandaną (“to stand between, intercede, understand”), equivalent to understand + -ing (present participle ending).

Words from the same roots

Proto-Germanic*understandaną all →

understand

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.