native

How do I say 'I don't get it'?

A broad, natural way to say that an idea, reason, or situation does not make sense to you.

我不明白

wǒ bù míngbai

I don't get it / I don't understand.

LITERAL

I do not understand clearly.

WHAT IT REALLY MEANS

I don't get it / I don't understand.

WHEN IT FITS

Not understanding an explanation or reasonQuestioning a decision or situationNeutral everyday clarification

Chinese often names the channel of failed understanding. The broad 我不明白 works when the issue is not limited to hearing or reading.

If someone explained the logic and it still does not make sense, 我不明白 is natural. If the problem is that you literally did not catch the sounds, 没听懂 is better. If the issue is written text or handwriting, 看不懂 is more precise.

That split matters because English hides too much inside “I don’t get it.” Chinese often asks you to be more specific about what failed: hearing, reading, or understanding the reason itself.

HOW PEOPLE ACTUALLY SAY IT

我不明白你为什么这么做。

Wǒ bù míngbai nǐ wèishénme zhème zuò.

I don't understand why you did this.

Questioning a reason

这里我还是不太明白。

Zhèlǐ wǒ háishi bú tài míngbai.

I still don't quite get this part.

Asking for clarification

CHOOSE BY SITUATION

我没听懂

wǒ méi tīng dǒng

I didn't understand what I heard.

The problem is a spoken sentence or explanation.

我看不懂

wǒ kàn bù dǒng

I can't understand what I'm reading or looking at.

The problem is written text, subtitles, handwriting, or something visual.