system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: If dogs can understand a select amount of human speech, then to what extent are they able to comprehend the idea of conversation?

Everytime I have a conversation with my family and the dog is sitting there, I wonder if she actually knows what's happening. I read somewhere that dogs are able to understand around 200 words of human speech, but how far does that go in terms of a conversation? Do they just think we're sitting there making a bunch of noises like a dog barking or a monkey yelling, or do they actually understand that we're discussing something and just not know the actual meaning of what is being said?
gpt
None. Dogs may learn to associate certain sounds with certain objects or actions, but they show no evidence of being able to comprehend grammar, and are therefore unable to process the meanings of novel word combinations.

Humans are the only creatures demonstrated to have the capacity to learn language, as we seem to be the only ones that evolved the ability to process grammar. Even Koko, the gorilla who famously "learned sign language," was pretty thoroughly debunked by Steven Pinker, in *The Language Instinct.* Which is, incidentally, an excellent book to read if you're interested in how language works.