"understandable by" or "understandable to" ?

Question

1. This is understandable by the Animal2. This is understandable to the AnimalWhich one is correct ? And if you can explain why. Thanks!

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

BoSsSy
1. This is understandable by the ~~Animal~~ animal.
2. This is understandable to the ~~Animal~~ animal.

Which one is correct ? And if you can explain why. Thanks!

You need to the animal.

by the animal suggests that the animal is the agent of an action. But that can't be in this case because the animal hasn't actually done anything. The following kind of sentence is more appropriate with 'by':

The ball was kicked by the animal.

Also, 'by' doesn't usually follow adjectives.

CJ

"understandable by" or "understandable to" ?

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