提问 · Asking & not getting it
5 of 7
听不懂
tīngbudǒng
I don’t understand (what I heard)
Sounds roughly like teeng boo dong
Literal meaning
听
tīng
to listen / hear
不
bu
not
懂
dǒng
to understand
hear · not · understand
How to pronounce it
- 听
tīng
ting1
11st · hight has a puff of air + “eeng”, high and level. This is about hearing, not reading.
- 不
bu
bu5
·neutralIn potential complements (V 不 V), 不 is usually light.
- 懂
dǒng
dong3
33rd · dippingd (no puff) + “ong”. Dip. 听不懂 is the honest line when speech is too fast.
In real life
对不起，我听不懂。请说慢一点。
Duìbuqǐ, wǒ tīng bu dǒng. Qǐng shuō màn yìdiǎn.
Sorry, I don’t understand. Please speak a little slower.