Translation guide
The English verb "understand" covers a wide range of meanings, from basic comprehension to empathy and agreement. Japanese uses different words and structures depending on the nuance. This guide breaks down the most common uses for learners.
Expressing that you grasp the content or meaning of something, such as a language, explanation, or situation.
The most common and versatile verb for 'understand'. It is intransitive and often used with the particle が. It can mean 'to be clear', 'to comprehend', or 'to grasp'.
日本語がわかりますか。
Do you understand Japanese?
説明を聞いて、やっとわかった。
After listening to the explanation, I finally understood.
A more formal and transitive verb meaning 'to comprehend' or 'to understand deeply'. Often used in academic or serious contexts.
彼の理論を理解するのは難しい。
It's difficult to understand his theory.
Means 'to grasp' or 'to have a firm understanding of a situation or facts'. Often used in business or when talking about understanding the big picture.
状況を把握していますか。
Do you understand the situation?
Expressing that you sympathize with or grasp someone's emotional state or personal circumstances.
Also used for emotional understanding. Often with the particle が and a phrase like 気持ち (feeling).
あなたの気持ちがわかります。
I understand how you feel.
彼が怒るのもわかる。
I can understand why he gets angry.
A more explicit way to say 'understand someone's feelings'. Slightly more formal than わかる.
相手の気持ちを理解することが大切です。
It's important to understand the other person's feelings.
Means 'to empathize' or 'to sympathize'. Stronger than just understanding; implies sharing the feeling.
彼女の悲しみに共感した。
I empathized with her sadness.
Specifically referring to linguistic comprehension, such as understanding spoken or written language.
The default verb for understanding language. Use with が.
英語がわかりますか。
Do you understand English?
彼の言っていることがわからない。
I don't understand what he's saying.
Means 'to catch' or 'to make out' what someone says, focusing on auditory comprehension. Often used when you can't hear clearly.
Means 'to read and understand', often implying reading between the lines or deciphering written information.
Expressing a thorough or intellectual grasp of a subject, theory, or abstract idea.
The standard verb for deep understanding. Transitive, takes を.
この概念を理解するのに時間がかかった。
It took time to understand this concept.
Can also be used for deep understanding, but 理解する is more precise for intellectual comprehension.
微分積分がわかるようになりたい。
I want to be able to understand calculus.
Used when you have a firm grasp of the overall structure or key points of a complex topic.
プロジェクトの全体像を把握している。
I understand the overall picture of the project.
Comprehending a process, method, or set of directions.
Works for understanding instructions or methods. Often used with やり方 (way of doing) or 方法 (method).
使い方がわからない。
I don't understand how to use it.
説明書を読んでもわからなかった。
Even after reading the manual, I didn't understand.
More formal, suitable for written instructions or complex procedures.
手順を理解してから作業を始めてください。
Please understand the procedure before starting the work.
Grasping why something happened or why someone acted a certain way.
Commonly used with 理由 (reason) or なぜ (why).
なぜ彼が辞めたのかわからない。
I don't understand why he quit.
その理由がわかった。
I understood the reason.
Used when you intellectually analyze the reason.
彼の行動の理由を理解するのは難しい。
It's hard to understand the reason for his actions.
Showing that you have received and processed information, often in conversation.
An interjection meaning 'I see' or 'I understand'. Used when you learn something new or realize something.
なるほど、そういうことだったのか。
I see, so that's how it was.
Polite past form of わかる, used to acknowledge instructions or information. Equivalent to 'Understood' or 'I understand'.
明日までに提出してください。ーわかりました。
Please submit it by tomorrow. — Understood.
Means 'Roger' or 'Understood'. Common in casual and business settings, but can sound blunt if used with superiors.
Can be too casual for formal situations. Use 承知しました (しょうちしました) for very polite business contexts.
Indicating that you are already aware of something, not just comprehending it.
Means 'I know' in the sense of having knowledge or being aware. Not exactly 'understand', but often used where English speakers might say 'I understand' to mean 'I am aware'.
Do not use わかる for factual knowledge. わかる is about comprehension, 知っている is about knowledge.
彼が忙しいのは知っている。
I know (I understand) that he's busy.
わかる means 'to understand' through reasoning or intuition. 知っている means 'to know' as a fact. If you say 日本語がわかる, it means you can comprehend Japanese. If you say 日本語を知っている, it means you know about the Japanese language (but may not understand it).
彼の電話番号を知っていますか。
Do you know his phone number?
この問題の答えがわかりますか。
Do you understand the answer to this problem?
English speakers often say 'I understand' to show empathy or acknowledgment. In Japanese, directly translating to 私は理解する can sound unnatural or overly formal. Use わかる or set phrases like なるほど or わかりました depending on context.
わかる is intransitive and typically takes が. However, in some cases を is used when the object is a nominalized phrase or when emphasizing the object of understanding. For beginners, sticking with が is safer.
言っている意味がわかりません。
I don't understand what you mean.
彼女は私の気持ちをわかってくれている。
She understands my feelings.
指示がわかりますか。
Do you understand the instructions?
His English was too fast and I couldn't understand (catch) it.
It's difficult to understand the author's intention from this text.
集合は5時だ。ー了解！
We meet at 5. — Got it!