What should you do when you misunderstand the meaning of Chinese characters in Korea?

Question

Hello! It's been a year since I came to Korea, and recently I encountered the word '뇌물' for the first time. At first, I thought it was related to the brain ('뇌' in Korean), but it turns out '뇌물' means 'bribery' ㅠㅠ

I live in Hongdae, Seoul, and knowing Chinese characters has been really helpful in studying Korean. However, sometimes misunderstandings like this happen... How do native Korean speakers understand the meaning in such cases?

Has anyone had a similar experience? I've looked it up in dictionaries and asked friends several times, but it's not easy to grasp the exact meaning every time.

I would appreciate any advice! If there's a better way to study Korean, I would be really grateful!