Seen to be: ambiguous?

Hi,

Anonymousa. She was seen to be his friends.
b. He was seen to be obnoxious.
I'd interpret the meaning of "seen" here as "viewed" or "considered". I am not sure if this is a common collocation among natives.

Thank you for your reply.

Is it possible to interpret the sentences in the sense of "understand"?

I understood that she was his friends.

I understood that he was obnoxious.

Thank you.

a. She was seen to be his friend.

b. He was seen to be obnoxious.

To me, 'was seen to be' only means 'was observed to be' or 'appeared to be'.

Thank you for your reply.

My dictionary says that I saw him to be obnoxious means "I saw(in the sense of "understand") that he was obnoxious."and I saw her to be his friend "I saw that she was his friend."

Do you agree with this opinion?

I can imagine that meaning, but the phrase then sounds stilted and awkward.

Mister MicawberI can imagine that meaning, but the phrase then sounds stilted and awkward.

If stilted adn awkward, how do you intepret the sentences below?

Would you give me any paraphrases?

1. I saw him to be obnoxious

2. I saw her to be his friend

1. I saw him to be obnoxious -- I think he's obnoxious.

2. I saw her to be his friend -- He must be her friend.

Thank you for your reply.

How about these sentences?

What is the best word to paraphrase the meaning of "see"?

He saw the children to be eating their lunch.

The children were seen to be eating their lunch.

Anonymous
He saw the children to be eating their lunch.
The children were seen to be eating their lunch.

I am not even sure how to approach or evaluate your sentences because they are not something a native or someone with good English back ground would say. If I have to guess their meaning, I would say this:

He saw the children eating lunch.

He saw the children eating their lunch.

The children were seen eating their lunch.

Yes, they are very awkward and would normally read as above. They refer to visual observation.