 #3 (permalink) Thu Mar 29, 2007 8:24 am perfect aspect of "understand" |
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Hi LS
Generally there is a point at which you understand something and it's logical to assume that once something is understood, the understanding will continue. Whether or not you use the present perfect, however, depends a great deal on the context. It may also depend on the nature of the thing you understood. For example, was it a word you understood or was it a concept? It's difficult to answer your question without more context.
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| I've understood it |
does it mean that I understand it now and I understood it all the time before? |
Without any context, I can only say that it probably means 'I understand it now and my understanding began at some point in the past.' (When it began is unknown -- it could be 5 minutes ago or it could be 5 years ago. It depends on the broader context.)
Using the word 'now', I'd prefer the simple present tense if the situation is simply the fact that you didn't understand before, but you do now. The focus is on the fact that you understand.
I understand it now.
(However, this doesn't necessarily mean that your understanding arrived just a minute ago.)
If you want to stress that your understanding has just arrived (i.e. the focus is less on the understanding itself and more on the timing of it), then you might say something like this:
I have just now understood what he was trying to tell me yesterday.
I hope that helps.
Maybe someone else will have some additional input for you.
Amy
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