What to say when you don’t understand

When you’re having a conversation, it’s common to not understand everything you hear, no matter how focused you are. You need to express this to the other person in a way that is appropriate to the situation. There are many ways to do this, and here we’ll look at some of the ways you can do just that.

Simple ways

You can just express your lack of understanding, in a few words.
Here are some examples:

1. Pardon?
2. Pardon me?
3. (I) Beg your pardon!
4. Excuse me?
5. What did you say?
6. What was that?
7. Sorry?
8. Huh? (informal)
9. What? (informal and sometimes rude)

Slang

1. Come again?
2. Say what?
3. Pass that by me again?

Slightly longer ways

Quite often, you might want to say it with a few more words.
Examples:

1. I’m afraid I don’t get your idea.
2. I’m sorry, I don’t understand what you just said.
3. Sorry. I can’t follow what you’re saying to me.
4. Unfortunately, I can’t clearly make sense of what you’re telling me.
5. I’m a bit confused. Do you mind explaining it again?
6. I’m afraid I’m unclear about what you mean.
7. Would you mind clarifying what you said? I’m afraid I don’t follow.
8. I simply don’t catch what you’re saying. Sorry.

Using idioms

There are many idioms that express the idea that you don’t understand. Using idioms can also add colour and interest to your communication. Just make sure that you know how to use them!
Examples:

1. I’m afraid that it’s as clear as mud to me.
2. It’s all Greek to me, I’m afraid.
3. I’m sorry. I can’t make head or tail of what you’re saying.

We hope you have a better idea about what to say, when you don’t understand what you hear. Of course, there are many more ways to express the same thing. You’re welcome to add the other ways of expressing this, through the comments section. Good luck!