This lesson suits intermediate learners. After listening, test your knowledge with our quiz.
Learning notes
Language objective:
How to express yourself when you don’t understand what someone is saying.
Different phrases to use when you don’t understand because you can’t hear:
- I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that.
- Could you say it again?
- Sorry, I think we lost connection there.
- Can you hear me now?
Different phrases to use when you want to say you don’t understand something:
- I’m afraid I’m not sure.
- I’m afraid I don’t know.
- What do you mean?
Different phrases to use when you want someone to repeat something:
- I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that.
- Could you say it again?
- Could you go over that again?
- Please repeat a little more slowly.
- Please repeat one more time.
- Come again?
Different phrases to use when you are checking if you are being understood:
- Is everything crystal clear?
- Does that make sense?
Different phrases to use when you already understand something:
- I got it.
- That’s crystal clear.
- Gotcha!
Colloquial expressions:
Crystal clear is when something is understood completely with no need for any more explanation.
Gotcha is a shortened way of saying ‘I got you’. This is a casual expression to say you understand.
I didn’t quite catch that means you didn't fully understand or hear what someone said.
To clear up means to make something less confusing or easier to understand.
To go over again means to repeat something.
Vocabulary:
Repeat means to do or say something over again.
Transcript:
(Note: This is not a word-for-word transcript)
SBS acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country and their connections and continuous care for the skies, lands, and waterways throughout Australia.
Have you ever had the experience where you are talking to someone but find that you can’t fully understand what they are saying?
And then you don’t know how to get them to explain what they mean in another way so that you can understand?
My name is TJ, and, just like you, I’ve been in those kinds of situations too.
There are a lot of reasons why you may have difficulty understanding someone. It can be because of their accent, because they use slang words, or there are cultural differences that make it difficult to understand what they are saying, or maybe because they are talking too fast.
You might feel embarrassed or be unsure of what to do or say. That is what happened to Ivan Aristiguieta, a comedian and the host of the new SBS podcast 'Bad English'. Later, he will share his funny story.
That’s why it’s useful to know some simple phrases you can use to clear things up.
'To clear something up' is when you ask someone to explain something that you don’t understand.
So, in this episode, let’s practise phrases that we can use in those moments when we don’t understand what’s being said.
Imagine Claire is buying supplies for the small restaurant she is working for, and she receives a call from her supervisor, Allan.
Claire
Hi Allan.
Allan
Hello Claire, are you already in the supermarket?
Claire
Yes, I’m here.
Allan
Can you add some onions and potatoes and ... (phone call gets distorted due to network issues)
Claire
I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that. Could you please say it again?
Allan
Sorry, I think we lost connection there. Can you hear me now, Claire? (speaking fast) Can you buy some onions, some potatoes and a capsicum?
Claire
Ah yes. I could hear you that time, but could you please repeat one more time, just a bit more slowly.
Allan
No worries, (speaking slowly enough) please grab some onions, some potatoes and a capsicum. Does that make sense?
Claire
I’m afraid, I’m not sure what a capsicum is ... do you mean a bell pepper?
Allan
Yeah, capsicum is bell pepper ... like a big chilli, but not hot. Is everything crystal clear?
Claire
Yep, got it! Thanks. I’ll see you back at the restaurant soon.
What a confusing conversation! But it contained lots of phrases that you can use in so many situations.
Let’s hear them again.
Allan
Hello Claire, are you already in the supermarket? Can you add some onions and potatoes and ... (phone call gets distorted due to network issues)
In this situation, Allan’s mobile network has a poor signal so Claire cannot fully hear what Allan is saying.
I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that. Could you please say it again?Claire
Claire said, “I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that", which meant that Claire was politely saying that she missed part of the information or did not hear it clearly.
You might know the word "catch" when used with real items or things, like a ball. But it can also be used for ideas, concepts or information, like in this situation. If you want to check someone understands what you are saying, you could say "Did you catch that?"
Claire also asks Allan if he could repeat what he said using the phrase,
Could you please say it again?
You can also use the informal word “can” instead of "could". This is just a little bit more casual.
Now this phrase - "Can you please say that again?" - is so simple and useful I sometimes want to say it again and again!
Sorry, I think we lost connection there. Can you hear me now, Claire?Allan
In this situation, a "connection" is the audio in a phone call. It is also often used when talking about video chats or online meetings.
When someone says, "Sorry, I think we lost connection there. Can you hear me now?" they're checking if the other person can hear them after a technical problem.
I could hear you that time, but could you please repeat one more time, just a bit more slowly?Claire
"Could you please repeat one more time?" is another simple phrase you can use, which is the same as "Could you say that again?".
Both of these can be used in informal or formal situations. If you want to be really casual, you could also just say,
Come again?
Claire also asked Allan to please repeat a little more slowly.
This time, Claire can hear Allan but finds it difficult to understand because he speaks fast.
I know you can relate to this because when you are learning a new language, it can feel like everyone is talking too fast, right? And it’s usually when they are talking about something particularly interesting or exciting.
Allan
No worries, please grab some onions, some potatoes and a capsicum.
Does that make sense?Allan
If someone asks, “Does that make sense?", they are checking that you understand. In this case, Allan asks if Claire could understand what vegetables he has asked her to buy for him.
I’m afraid I’m not sure what a capsicum is ... Do you mean a bell pepper?Claire
Okay, I know what onions and potatoes are, and also chillies. I cook with them all the time. But when I first came to Australia, I also didn’t know what a capsicum was!
That’s because, in The Philippines, we call them bell peppers. To be honest, I still discover fruit and vegetables that I don’t know the names of, even now.
The hardest thing about saying the phrase “I’m afraid, I’m not sure” or “I’m afraid, I don’t know” is not the meaning of the words but being confident enough to admit that you don’t know or are not sure of something.
I used to be a bit shy about saying this but it’s one of the best ways to keep your conversation going and so improve your English.
If you let people know that you don’t know something, you give yourself an opportunity to learn something new.
And most people will respond by explaining or adding information like Allan does,
Allan
Yeah, capsicum is bell pepper, like a big chilli, but not hot.
Is everything crystal clear?Allan
Crystals are solid rocks like diamonds and known for their transparency and clarity, so when someone says, "Is everything crystal clear?" they want to make sure you understand clearly and easily and have no questions left.
If someone asks you if you understand something, you can also say “That’s crystal clear.”
Which Claire replied with...
Yep, I got it.Claire
When someone says, “I get it!” they mean they understand and agree. It’s like you are saying you have received the message and don’t need more explanation.
You can also say “gotcha” which is much more casual. “Gotcha” is a shortened way of saying “I’ve got you” > “I’ve got ya” > “I’ve gotcha” > “Gotcha!”
Have you got it? Is everything crystal clear?
To check that we understand Allan and Claire’s phrases, let’s listen again to their whole conversation.
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TJ
And now we have our special guest, an amazing Venezuelan-born comedian, and the host of the new SBS Audio podcast 'Bad English', Ivan Aristeguieta. Hi Ivan. How are you?
Ivan
Hello TJ. Thank you very much for having me ... and also for pronouncing my surname correctly. You're one of the few people who have done it without even asking me.
TJ
Oh, thank you. Before we talk about the podcast, I'm just going to ask you about our topic today. How to say or how to express yourself if you don't understand someone or if you don't understand something.
Do you have any experience of when you could not understand someone?
IVAN
I have a very funny anecdote of misunderstanding the pronunciation and a bit of cultural misunderstanding as well.
There is a thing in Australia called the 'tall poppy syndrome'. When I heard about the 'tall poppy syndrome' for the first time, and they explained it to me ... yeah, a 'tall poppy syndrome' that means they were ... the person who explained to me was like poppies, the taller (one) gets cut off, and so everybody's this same level.
And I didn't understand well because I didn't know there was a flower named poppy, and I thought they were talking about little dogs like puppies and for years.
I've been explaining (to) my fellow immigrant friends about the 'tall poppy syndrome' on how they, in Australia, this thing, it's about, you have a dog or a box full of puppies and if like, Labrador puppies, and if they will cut the head off the puppy so all the dogs are the same size so that puppy learns to know how not to stick its head out of the box which in analysis is the same principle of the 'tall poppy syndrome'.
So I was telling that story for ages. All my friends were like, really?! That's a very weird cultural thing, like cutting the heads of puppies!
I'm like, it's true. I’ve been hearing the 'tall poppy syndrome' everywhere; that's what they have, that's what they do.
And then I went to a flower festival in Canberra with a friend, and she was like, oh, those flowers are poppies. Have you heard about the 'tall poppy syndrome'?
And that's when everything dropped; the coin was dropped. And I was like, oh my god, I've been telling (people) these are puppies.
The thing that has helped me as an English as a second language speaker, don't be shy to stop a conversation when you don't understand something.
That's the main thing for me. And people are ... because we think, oh, we're interrupting the conversation, we are being a nuisance, and it's the complete opposite.
Actually, people like to be understood. So, when you show that you care to understand what they're saying, people are going to, 98 per cent of the time, they're gonna take their time to explain to you the word.
TJ
Yeah, (This happens) sometimes because of the accent, slang words, cultural differences and others (we don't understand). It can be fun looking back, right?
But what's more fun is the new podcast 'Bad English'. Can you tell us more about it?
Ivan
We recorded beautiful stories of immigrants from all over the world and their journey learning and adapting to a culture where the English language is the main spoken language.
It's a beautiful podcast; it has very funny moments and also a lot of heartfelt, beautiful moments of immigrant stories.
I totally recommend it, we have so much fun recording it. Yeah, if anyone wants to follow me on Instagram @ivancomedy and go listen to my new podcast, 'Bad English', on SBS On Demand and SBS Audio.
TJ
Thank you so much, Ivan.
A big thank you to our educational consultant, Professor Lynda Yates.
Paul Nicholson and Lily O'Sullivan voiced the characters of Allan and Claire.
Sound effects credit: Pixabay
