Informal question: Other colloquial meanings of the verb "=?KOI8-R?Q?=D0=CF=CE=C9=CD=C1=D4=D8=22_?=(ponimat' - to understand) as an affirmation?

[Paul B. Gallagher]

Stephanie Briggs wrote:

> Dear SEELANGers,
>
> For personal interest, can anyone please explain to me, or point me
> to some reading materials, about any colloquial meanings of the verb
> "понимать" (ponimat'  - "to understand")? For instance, is it ever
> used in place of indicating agreement with another person or
> situation? Can it be used as another way of  saying "да" ("da")?
>
> I've included typing in English in case the Cyrillic doesn't go
> through the system; sometimes the encoding doesn't cooperate.

I haven't encountered the imperfective verb used this way, but of course 
you're aware of the everyday use of "понятно" as "I see," "I get it," 
etc. This isn't really agreement or consent so much as acceptance or 
acknowledgement (verging on "yes, that's so"), but at a pragmatic level, 
we might sometimes indicate agreement or consent in these contexts. The 
boundary between agreement and acceptance can be fuzzy.

Not much help, I'm afraid.

-- 
War doesn't determine who's right, just who's left.
--
Paul B. Gallagher
pbg translations, inc.
"Russian Translations That Read Like Originals"
http://pbg-translations.com

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Use your web browser to search the archives, control your subscription
  options, and more.  Visit and bookmark the SEELANGS Web Interface at:
                    http://seelangs.home.comcast.net/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------