Я прекрасно понимаю это правило.

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Breakdown of Я прекрасно понимаю это правило.

• понимать: to understand
• правило: the rule
• этот: this

Questions & Answers about Я прекрасно понимаю это правило.

Why is it это правило and not этот правило?

Because правило is a neuter noun.

Russian demonstratives must agree with the noun in gender, number, and case:

• этот = masculine
• эта = feminine
• это = neuter
• эти = plural

Since правило is neuter singular, the correct form is это правило.

Also, in this sentence правило is the direct object, so it is in the accusative case. But because правило is inanimate neuter singular, its accusative form is the same as the nominative form:

• nominative: это правило
• accusative: это правило

So the form does not change here.

Why is правило in the accusative case?

Because it is the thing being understood — the direct object of понимать.

In Russian, the verb понимать usually takes a direct object in the accusative case:

• понимать слово = to understand a word
• понимать вопрос = to understand a question
• понимать правило = to understand a rule

So in Я прекрасно понимаю это правило, это правило is what the speaker understands, so it appears in the accusative.

Why is the verb понимаю and not понимает or some other form?