I do not understand.
Ne and pas make the statement negative. You will also hear je comprends pas in casual speech.
FREE BEGINNER LESSON 6 · FRENCH
French: When you do not understand
Learn to use when you do not understand in a practical conversation and understand a natural reply.
Polite · asking for understanding. Learn the meaning, listen to the pronunciation, then practise in the interactive lesson.
Practise this lessonOpening vocabulary referenceUseful French phrases and their meanings
Do you speak English?
Vous is useful with a stranger. Spoken questions often keep statement order and use rising intonation.
More slowly, please.
Lentement means slowly. Plus adds more in this request.
Could you repeat that?
Pouvez is the vous form of pouvoir, can. Répéter means to repeat.
How the sentence works
Ne ... pas surrounds the verb in a standard negative statement: je ne comprends pas. In everyday speech ne is often left out, but learn the complete pattern first. Pouvez-vous is a polite question using vous; plus lentement asks for a slower pace.
A short conversation in French
Do you speak English?
A little.
More slowly, please.
Words to recognise
English
slowly
to repeat
a little
Listen to the whole phrase before focusing on each word. You can replay as often as you like, and the interactive lesson uses pictures and a short exchange to put the meaning in context.
Open the interactive lessonThe opening six teaching lessons are free, including the mini-tests after lessons three and six. A test accepts any answer and shows the score and corrections at the end. No typing or speaking aloud is required.
Keep learning French
Free five-minute audio lesson and MP3 · Language learning games
The pronunciation uses prepared synthetic voices. Credits and licences explain the free voice models. Independent native-speaker certification is not claimed.