懂

dǒng
忄 + 董
HSK 2.0Level 2
HSK 3.0Level 2

Definitions

dǒng (verb) to understand; to comprehend

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 忄 represents the meaning and 董 represents the sound.

Semantic: 忄 Phonetic: 董

About

懂 is a phonosemantic compound. Its left side, 忄, is the vertical form of 心 (heart/mind), indicating that the character pertains to mental states or cognitive processes. The right side, 董 (dǒng), provides the sound and originally referred to supervising or directing. The combination was created to represent the psychological act of understanding something thoroughly, the meaning, mechanics, or reasoning behind a subject, language, or interaction. Unlike characters rooted in concrete objects, 懂 was coined to capture the abstract sense of mental clarity when one processes complex information. It is now universally used to indicate that someone has understood what was communicated or observed.

Example Sentences Hide

我懂你的意思。

Wǒ dǒng nǐ de yìsi.

I understand what you mean.

他懂很多知识。

Tā dǒng hěn duō zhīshi.

He knows a lot of knowledge.

我们要懂得分享。

Wǒmen yào dǒngde fēnxiǎng.

We should know how to share.

你不懂我的心。

Nǐ bù dǒng wǒ de xīn.

You don't understand my heart.

你懂这个故事吗？

Nǐ dǒng zhège gùshì ma?

Do you understand this story?

她完全懂我的想法。

Tā wánquán dǒng wǒ de xiǎngfǎ.

She completely understands my thoughts.

如果你懂英语，就能看懂这本书。

Rúguǒ nǐ dǒng Yīngyǔ, jiù néng kàn dǒng zhè běn shū.

If you understand English, you can understand this book.

尽管他解释了很久，但我还是不懂。

Jǐnguǎn tā jiěshìle hěn jiǔ, dàn wǒ háishì bù dǒng.

Even though he explained for a long time, I still don't understand.

Related Characters

Component: 忄

情 性 快 怕 惊 怀 怪 慢 忙 惯 恨 恰 忆 恢

Example Words

懂事 懂得 看懂 似懂非懂 半懂不懂 弄懂 懂行 懵懂 懵懵懂懂 易懂 听懂 读懂 难懂