Traditional Chinese - Clarifying What You Heard

我聽不懂

Wǒ tīng bù dǒng.

I don't understand.

Meaning: 我聽不懂 (Wǒ tīng bù dǒng) means “I don’t understand.”

When to use: Use it when you did not understand what someone said, especially after hearing fast speech.

Tip: Don’t worry about sounding rude. Add 不好意思 (bù hǎoyìsi) before 我聽不懂 (Wǒ tīng bù dǒng) to sound softer.

你可以再說一次嗎？

Nǐ kěyǐ zài shuō yí cì ma?

Can you repeat that?

Meaning: 你可以再說一次嗎？ (Nǐ kěyǐ zài shuō yí cì ma?) means “Can you repeat that?”

When to use: Use it when you missed what someone said and want to hear it again.

你可以說慢一點嗎？

Nǐ kěyǐ shuō màn yìdiǎn ma?

Can you speak more slowly?

Meaning: 你可以說慢一點嗎？ (Nǐ kěyǐ shuō màn yìdiǎn ma?) means “Can you speak more slowly?”

When to use: Use it when you can understand some words, but the speed is too fast.

Tip: 慢一點 (màn yìdiǎn) means “a little slower,” not “a little slow” as a description.

___是什麼意思？

___ shì shénme yìsi?

What does ___ mean?

Meaning: ___是什麼意思？ (___ shì shénme yìsi?) means “What does ___ mean?”

When to use: Use it to ask the meaning of a word or phrase you heard or saw.

___用英文怎麼說？

___ yòng Yīngwén zěnme shuō?

How do you say ___ in English?

Meaning: ___用英文怎麼說？ (___ yòng Yīngwén zěnme shuō?) means “How do you say ___ in English?”

When to use: Use it when you know a Mandarin word or phrase but want the English expression.

可以幫我寫下來嗎？

Kěyǐ bāng wǒ xiě xiàlái ma?

Can you write it down?

Meaning: 可以幫我寫下來嗎？ (Kěyǐ bāng wǒ xiě xiàlái ma?) means “Can you write it down?”

When to use: Use it when you need someone to write a name, address, word, or detail for you.

Tip: 幫我 (bāng wǒ) makes the request feel more helpful and polite in Taiwan Mandarin.

是___還是___？

Shì ___ háishì ___?

Is it ___ or ___?

Meaning: 是___還是___？ (Shì ___ háishì ___?) means “Is it ___ or ___?”

When to use: Use it when you are checking between two possible words, names, or answers.

你的意思是___嗎？

Nǐ de yìsi shì ___ ma?

Do you mean ___?

Meaning: 你的意思是___嗎？ (Nǐ de yìsi shì ___ ma?) means “Do you mean ___?”

When to use: Use it to check if you understood someone correctly.

請用簡單一點的字。

Qǐng yòng jiǎndān yìdiǎn de zì.

Please use simple words.

Meaning: 請用簡單一點的字 (Qǐng yòng jiǎndān yìdiǎn de zì) means “Please use simple words.”

When to use: Use it when someone’s explanation has too many difficult words.

我只懂一點

Wǒ zhǐ dǒng yìdiǎn.

I only understand a little.

Meaning: 我只懂一點 (Wǒ zhǐ dǒng yìdiǎn) means “I only understand a little.”

When to use: Use it when you understand some Mandarin, but not enough to follow everything.

我不懂這個字

Wǒ bù dǒng zhège zì.

I don't know that word.

Meaning: 我不懂這個字 (Wǒ bù dǒng zhège zì) means “I don’t know that word.”

When to use: Use it when one specific written character or word is unfamiliar.

Tip: 字 (zì) often means a written character or word in everyday speech, especially when you are looking at text.

可以解釋一下___嗎？

Kěyǐ jiěshì yíxià ___ ma?

Can you explain ___?

Meaning: 可以解釋一下___嗎？ (Kěyǐ jiěshì yíxià ___ ma?) means “Can you explain ___?”

When to use: Use it when you want a simple explanation of a word, phrase, or situation.

可以拼給我聽嗎？

Kěyǐ pīn gěi wǒ tīng ma?

Can you spell that?

Meaning: 可以拼給我聽嗎？ (Kěyǐ pīn gěi wǒ tīng ma?) means “Can you spell that?”

When to use: Use it for alphabetic words, English names, emails, or foreign terms.