In an ideal world, we would understand everything in any language!
Unfortunately, we are only human and that cannot always be the case. This is why it is important to know how to express our confusion when we didn’t quite get the message!
There are two common phrases to say ‘I don’t know’ or ‘I don’t understand’ in Japanese: wakarimasen and shirimasen.
The difference depends on what it is you don’t know. Whether you are not sure of the answer, or even unsure of the question being asked of you!
Don’t fret if you mix up the two in any given situation, you will be understood.
It just might sound a bit funny to the native ear, but that only shows that you really do not understand and from there they can better help you comprehend!
Wakarimasen
分かりません
I don’t understand
The first phase we are going to talk about comes from the verb wakarimasu (分かります / わかります), which means ‘to understand’.
When we put this in the negative form we get wakarimasen (分かりません / わかりません) which is of course the expression we are focusing on in today’s lesson: ‘I don’t understand’.
Wakarimasen is the more polite form, while wakaranai (分からない / わからない) is the more casual, plain form.
You may also hear people saying wakannai (分かんない / わかんない), an even more casual, shorter version of the phrase.
Wakarimasen can mean ‘I don’t understand’ or ‘I don’t know’, and would be used in situations where we do not physically understand what is being asked of us.
It’s as if you have gone through all of the information available to you in your mind, but the answer is beyond your scope of knowledge. It is also used when you just can’t make sense of something or are confused!
An example of this could be a difficult maths question where you don’t know the answer, or when you don’t understand someone’s feelings/behaviour: both are beyond your scope of understanding.
Example:
kare no kimochi ga wakaranai
彼の気持ちが分からない
かれのきもちがわからない
I don’t understand his feelings
It is also a key phrase for smooth communication in Japanese. Particularly if you need to tell someone who is chatting away to you in Japanese that you either don’t speak Japanese at all, or that you need them to slow down so that you can understand!
Example:
nihongo ga wakarimasen
日本語が分かりません
にほんごがわかりまさん
I don’t understand Japanese
If you want to indicate to someone to slow down or repeat themselves, you can say:
sumimasen, chotto wakaranai no de, mou ichi do onegaishimasu
すみません、ちょっと分からないので、もう一度お願いします
すみません、ちょっとわからないので、もういちどおねがいします
Excuse me, as I don’t quite understand, could you say it one more time please.
As wakaranai is about mental clarity and whether you can figure out something in your head, you can also use it to express that you haven’t decided something yet.
If someone asks you what are you doing on the weekend? You can say mada wakaranai (まだ分からない). Mada paired with a negative verb means ‘not yet…’ in Japanese, leaving us with the phrase ‘I don’t know yet’.
It doesn’t mean that we don’t understand what we will do for the weekend but that you are yet to be clear on your plans.
Shirimasen
知りません
I don’t know
On the other hand, let’s look at the verb shirimasu (知ります / しります) which means ‘to know’ or ‘to be aware of something’.
We are of course interested in its negative form, shirimasen (知りません / しりません) or its more casual counterpart, shiranai (知らない / しならい).
Similarly to English, we use both ‘I don’t understand’ and ‘I don’t know’ to express our doubt in clarity or knowledge.
The nuances between the two phrases can be subtle, though it is good to know which phrase is most suitable for a given situation.
This is particularly true as shiranai can also be used to mean ‘I don’t care’, which can come off as rude if used in the wrong setting!
While wakaranai expresses lack of understanding/clarity, shiranai expresses the lack of information to answer the question.
A perfect example of this would be if someone asked you ‘do you know Tanaka-san?’ Since you aren’t acquainted with the subject, you physically don’t have knowledge of such a person in your brain, so you would say shiranai.
Example:
Q: sakura cafe to iu mise wo shiteiru?
桜カフェという店を知っている？
さくらかふぇというみせをしっている？
Do you know the shop called sakura cafe?
A: 知らない！= I don’t know (I’ve never heard of it)
An example of a situation that can come off as rude could be if you did know a person called Tanaka-san and someone asked you ‘hey, where is Tanaka-san?’ Answering with shiranai would translate as ‘I don’t care’, rather than ‘I don’t know’.
Though it’s true that the location of Tanaka-san could be considered information, we would opt for shiranai for stored facts and wakanai for situational unknowns.
In Japanese, Tanaka-san’s whereabouts is not considered knowledge that you posses, but something you must try to think about and figure out, much like a math question.
The nuance between the two can be a bit tricky to get to grips with. The more you speak and listen in Japanese it will get easier.
Don’t be worried to make mistakes, but if in doubt, remember: wakaranai is the safer default!
There is less chance of seeming cold and uncaring, and you will still be able to get your sentiments across.
So, don’t be ashamed if you can’t understand something in Japanese, it just gives you a chance to show off your new phrases, wakaranai and shiranai!
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Hannah is a half Irish/half Japanese girl living in Ireland. Her love for Japan and the Japanese language led her to studying languages and translation in university where she specialised in Japanese. She spent a year studying abroad at Rikkyo University in Tokyo. In her free time, Hannah enjoys using her sewing machine to upcycle clothes and create new pieces!