The word 了解 is formed by combining two characters, each contributing a core idea to create a new, composite meaning. The first character, 了, carries the sense of "to perceive" or "to finish", implying a completion of observation. The second character, 解, means "to untie", "to loosen", or "to resolve". Together, they metaphorically convey the idea of "understanding" as the process of perceiving something until its complexities are mentally unraveled, resolved, and made clear, as if untying a knot to see its full structure.