似懂非懂
sì dǒng fēi dǒng
to half understand
Character by character
似sì
seem
seem
懂dǒng
understand
understand
非fēi
not
not
懂dǒng
understand
understand
Example
听了奶奶讲的道理，孩子似懂非懂地点了点头。
The child nodded at Grandma’s little lecture, only half understanding it.
Tone: neutral.
Usage and origin
Often with 地 before 点头 or 听着. 一知半解 criticises shallow knowledge; 似懂非懂 just describes the hazy feeling of half grasping something.
Learn this in Lesson 225 · HSK 9+: 新诗一百年 (A century of modern poetry)
A dialogue, a reading, word cards with audio and a drill that uses it, in Learn Chinese with Bao. The first lessons of every level are free.
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