Δεν καταλαβαίνω
“Δεν καταλαβαίνω” (den katalavéno) — I don't understand in Greek. Phrase, level A0, topic — phrases that save you. negation is a separate word, den, placed before the verb — no prefixes here. Remove den and you get I understand. In a live sentence: “Συγγνώμη, δεν καταλαβαίνω” — Sorry, I don't understand. You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters Δ, ε, ν, κ, α, τ, α, λ, α, β, α, ν.
In short
| Written in Greek | Δεν καταλαβαίνω |
| Read in Latin letters | den katalavéno |
| Translation | I don't understand |
| Part of speech | phrase |
| Level | A0 |
- Δεν καταλαβαίνωden katalavénoI don't understand
Why it looks that way
negation is a separate word, den, placed before the verb — no prefixes here. Remove den and you get I understand
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- Συγγνώμη, δεν καταλαβαίνωsignómi, den katalavénoSorry, I don't understand
Nearby words: phrases that save you
“I don't understand”, “say that again”, “slower, please”, “help”. They are learned first for a reason: they bring back a conversation that has already gone wrong.
- Επαναλάβετε, παρακαλώepanalávete, parakalóplease repeatthe polite plural imperative of 'repeat'. In conversation people more often say Páli, parakaló — again, please
- αργάargáslowlyboth 'slowly' and 'late': argá to vrádi — late in the evening. The classic request: pio argá, parakaló — more slowly, please
- Βοήθεια!voíthiahelp!shouted as a noun — help! — not as a verb. The β reads v: vo-EE-thia
- ΧάθηκαkháthikaI'm lostfrom chánome, to get lost, about a person. About a thing you say it differently: ékhasa to klidí — I lost the key
- Περιμένετε λίγοperiménete lígowait a minuteliterally 'wait a little'. To your own people: perímene lígo
- Δεν μπορώ να ανοίξωden boró na aníksoI can't open itGreek has no infinitive: after boró comes na plus a personal form
- Χρειάζομαι γιατρόkhriázome yatróI need a doctorkhriázome means to need; the accusative follows straight away, with no preposition
- Προσοχή!prosokhí!cautionprinted on signs and announced in the metro. Literally 'attention'
- επικίνδυνοepikíndinodangerfrom kíndynos, danger. On signs it stands in the neuter
- Καλέστε την αστυνομίαkaléste tin astinomíacall the policethe police number is 100. Astinomía is from ásty, city, and nómos, law
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “phrases that save you”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “I don't understand” in Greek?
negation is a separate word, den, placed before the verb — no prefixes here. Remove den and you get I understand
- How do you say “I need a doctor” in Greek?
khriázome means to need; the accusative follows straight away, with no preposition
- How do you say “help!” in Greek?
shouted as a noun — help! — not as a verb. The β reads v: vo-EE-thia
- How do you say “call the police” in Greek?
the police number is 100. Astinomía is from ásty, city, and nómos, law
- How do you say “I can't open it” in Greek?
Greek has no infinitive: after boró comes na plus a personal form
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “I don't understand” in Greek?
«Δεν καταλαβαίνω», read “den katalavéno”. In a live sentence: “Συγγνώμη, δεν καταλαβαίνω” — Sorry, I don't understand. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Phrase, level A0, from the set “phrases that save you”; written with the characters Δ, ε, ν, κ, α, τ, α, λ, α, β, α, ν.
How is “Δεν καταλαβαίνω” written in Latin letters?
den katalavéno. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.
Why does this word look the way it does?
negation is a separate word, den, placed before the verb — no prefixes here. Remove den and you get I understand. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
Can I hear how it sounds?
Yes, right on this page: click the word and it will play. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.