27 Comments
Very confused. I thought to understand was Savoir or even connaitre was to know. Now they say Saisir is? How many verbs mean "to know" in the french language.
To know and to understand are two different things entirely. But yes, saisir is a synonym of comprendre in this case. Just like to comprehend is a synonym of to understand.
saisir means to understand, to grasp the outline of the main features of something by your intuition.
768
wicdh6
In English, perhaps something like ...I get it...as in I get what you are saying in your posted comment about saisir.
Actually, saisis translates pretty much to seize. The idiom is the same, you are saying you grasp the words the other person is saying.
Wait a minute! Just back the truck up a bit here. What is the difference between "saisis" and "comprends"? How does one know when to use one or the other?
- 768
There is a slight difference between grasp and understand in English, even though they are often interchangeable. The suggestion is that this it the same situation with saisir and comprendre.
The last sentence "saisis" was used in it meant to grab...why is it now understand???
saisir = to grab/seize/grasp
From what I understand, the use of "saisir" has the same flexibility as the English use of "to grab/seize/grasp" such as grabbing something physical or grasping something intangible such as a theoretical concept. Grasping a concept = understanding a concept.
It's not really changing meaning, it's just figurative when used with "tes mots." I grasp your words. Obviously, you cannot literally grasp words, but when said figuratively, it pretty much means "understand/catch the drift of".
so, this is a different verb from savior... because the je form of savior is sais... je ne sais pas.
In most situations, the French for "I understand your words" would be "Je comprends tes mots" (from the verb "comprendre"). "Je saisis" (from the verb "saisir") is most often translated as "I catch", either literally as in "I catch the ball" or figuratively as in the past tense expression "I did not catch what he said" meaning "I could not hear what he said". If you use "comprendre" as "to understand" and "saisir" as "to catch" you will not go wrong. Accept occasional confusion or meaningless statements in what I assume are computer generated sentences in duolingo. For more, see http://french.about.com/od/vocabulary/g/saisir.htm
- 768
Yes, if you believe it is a common phrase in English to grab some words and run off with them.
I LOVE this word. I wish English had a verb "to grasp the meaning of". I'm guessing, in French, it perfectly captures that moment of illumination when you "get" something that was unclear before.
Saisir also means 'to grab' though?? It seems various french verbs carry multiple meanings, is deciding which one is correct entirely dependent on context?
the first dictionary suggestion for saisis should be to seize. the second should be to understand, not understood or understand!
I know that "saisis" can mean "to physically grab" or to understand a concept. I understood "mots" to mean "words" or "notes". I translated this as "I grab your notes" and was marked incorrect. If, for example, one student takes the handwritten notes (pieces of paper) of another student, how would I write that?
Meu Deus...! Entendre não é entender Saisir não é saber Ouvrir não é ouvir
Isso já é difícil e pensar em duas línguas... pior ainda.
Francês para Português please... :(
