אני לא מבין
“אני לא מבין” (ани ло мэвин) — I don't understand in Hebrew. Phrase, level A0, topic — phrases that save you. A woman says ani lo mevina. The negation lo stands right before the verb. In a live sentence: “סליחה, אני לא מבין.” — Excuse me, I don't understand. Written with the characters א, נ, י, ל, א, מ, ב, י. One of 17 words in the set “phrases that save you” in the Hebrew course.
In short
| Written in Hebrew | אני לא מבין |
| Read in Latin letters | ани ло мэвин |
| Translation | I don't understand |
| Part of speech | phrase |
| Level | A0 |
Why it looks that way
A woman says ani lo mevina. The negation lo stands right before the verb
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.
- סליחה, אני לא מבין.слиха, ани ло мэвин.Excuse me, 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.
- לאטлеатslowlyThe most useful word of the first week: leat, bevakasha — slower, please
- תחזרו בבקשהтахзеру бевакашаrepeat, pleaseFrom the root ch-z-r, to repeat. To one person — tachzor bevakasha
- אתם מדברים אנגלית?атем медабрим англит?do you speak English?About a woman they ask at medaberet anglit? The word order matches English here
- הצילו!хацилу!help!Literally "save us" — the cry for real danger. The calm request is efshar lizror li? — could you help me?
- אבדתיавадтиI'm lostFrom leaved, to lose. I got lost and my thing went missing — one word
- לא עובדло оведnot workingAbout machines and about people alike: hamaalit lo ovedet — the elevator does not work. About a woman — lo ovedet
- רגע, בבקשהрега, бевакашаwait a momentRega — an instant: Israelis count not minutes but regas. The most frequent pause-word of a conversation
- אני לא יכול לפתוחани ло яхоль лифтохI cannot open itYachol — can, from the root y-ch-l. A woman says ani lo yechola. The reason is your own: the key, the strength or the permission
- אמבולנסамбулансambulanceAn international word; the service is called Magen David Adom — the Red Star of David. The single number is 101
- אני צריך רופאани царих рофэI need a doctorLiterally "I need of a doctor": tzarich is both need and must. A woman says ani tzricha rofe
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 Hebrew?
A woman says ani lo mevina. The negation lo stands right before the verb
- How do you say “wait a moment” in Hebrew?
Rega — an instant: Israelis count not minutes but regas. The most frequent pause-word of a conversation
- How do you say “do you speak English?” in Hebrew?
About a woman they ask at medaberet anglit? The word order matches English here
- How do you say “I need a doctor” in Hebrew?
Literally "I need of a doctor": tzarich is both need and must. A woman says ani tzricha rofe
- How do you say “not working” in Hebrew?
About machines and about people alike: hamaalit lo ovedet — the elevator does not work. About a woman — lo ovedet
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 Hebrew?
«אני לא מבין», read “ани ло мэвин”. In a live sentence: “סליחה, אני לא מבין.” — Excuse me, I don't understand. Phrase, level A0, from the set “phrases that save you”; written with the characters א, נ, י, ל, א, מ, ב, י.
How is “אני לא מבין” written in Latin letters?
ани ло мэвин. 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?
A woman says ani lo mevina. The negation lo stands right before the verb. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.