The I Understand It Now meme is a comedic TikTok trend where users show the various ways they’ve gained an understanding of something previously unknown. This can be anything from dating to tossing a basketball into a hoop.
What is the I Understand It Now trend on TikTok?
I Understand It Now is a catchphrase that became popular after content creator Chris “Lethal Shooter” Matthews (@lethalshooter) made a fancy trick shot in a video posted on June 6, 2024. In the TikTok, he shows how the basketball only has two inches of space for error to get in the basket, which has been decked out with layers of point guards.
A mistake in tossing the ball leads to a pierced basketball, after which he says repeatedly, “I understand it now” while hitting shot after shot while avoiding the spikes.
@lethalshooter Double rim was to easy!! I added the POINT GUARD!!⚔️🤯 -Stay locked in! – #NBA #Viral #Basketball #NBA #RedBull #LethalShooter ♬ original sound – Lethal Shooter
Some TikTokers shared their confusion about the phrase, such as @1billzm, who asked his viewers, “What does this mean 😭” He added in the video, “Can someone elaborate? Can somebody please explain? Every single second: ‘I understand it now, I understand it now.’ What are you talking about? What do you understand, because I want to understand too.”
@1billzm What does this mean 😭#billzm #imbillzm #phrase #phrases #phrasesaday #fy #fyp #forupage ♬ original sound – 1billzm
Some people joked with the content creator in the comments, while others were more helpful.
“It’s a meme where this guy will do impossible challenges like getting a basketball through a spiked hoop where he fails the first time but says “I understand it now” and succeeds every other time,” one person explained to @1billzm.
Others joked with him or simply commented, “I understand it now.”
When did the I Understand It Now meme gain popularity on TikTok?
The TikTok trend gained traction a few months after its initial posting, and spiked in popularity (pun intended) in early November 2024. People started posting funny takes where they “understand it now” about various topics such as video games, their social lives, or sports.
Lethal Shooter has certainly aided in the catchphrase’s spread by commenting “I understand it now” on several videos related to the meme, including @1billzm’s video, to the point that people are commenting when they get to a video before Lethal Shooter does.
He posted a follow-up video to his TikTok page, back on the basketball court, while his friend Andrew films him. He says in the video, ‘People think they understand now. Like I do. You think I’m crazy, Andrew?” To which Andrew replies, “Uh, you are a little crazy.” He then proceeds to do a trick shot tossing a gummy bear backwards into a water bottle—missing the first shot, he says, “I understand it now,” and makes the second shot.
Lethal Shooter then walks toward the camera, saying, “I told y’all I’m not playing.”
Meme examples
@giannaabul ♬ original sound – Asher Glean
@12tiger15 I understand it now I understand it now meme i understand it now original video #iunderstanditnow #fyp #foruyou ♬ original sound – THE BAD MANJI🖤
@hamilt0njr I understand it now…. 😏 @Tatyana Joseph ♬ original sound – Asher Glean
@overtime7 Kayden understands it now 🤝 @sghuncho🤯🥋®. #iunderstanditnow #lethalshooter #materdei #onehandedcatch #football #d1 #highschool ♬ original sound – Asher Glean
@collegegameday Daniel understands it now 😤 @Pat McAfee Show Clips (🔊 @Lethal Shooter) #CollegeGameDay #iunderstanditnow #cfb ♬ original sound – College GameDay
@itz_m03 #greenscreen #rezero #subaru #anime #iunderstanditnow ♬ original sound – ITz_mo3
@huncho619 #lethalshooter #iunderstanditnow #ultrainstinct #goku #huncho619 #nba #basketball ♬ original sound – HUNCHO
More TikTok trends:
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- The Blue Friendship Bracelet Movement on TikTok is making people feel hope, anger, and 2016 whiplash
- Disturbing ‘Time Travelers Interrupting’ memes are freaking TikTok out
- What does ‘Face Card Never Declines’ mean?
- What is an Emerald Birthday? A Golden Birthday? A Crown Birthday?
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