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How to Say ‘I don't understand.’ in Simplified Chinese

我不懂。

wǒ bù dǒng

[wǒ boo dǒng]

🇨🇳 In China: When you can't understand someone speaking Chinese, 我听不懂 "I can't understand what I'm hearing" is the more natural thing to say.

Phrase Breakdown

我

wǒ

[wǒ]

Refers to oneself.

Example

我是老师。

I am a teacher.

不

bù

[boo]

not

A negative word meaning no or not.

Example

我不忙。

I am not busy.

懂

dǒng

[dǒng]

understand

To comprehend or grasp information.

Example

我不懂这个句子。

I don't understand this sentence.

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