German Phrase
Ich verstehe, was du meinst.
Meaning
Literally ‘I understand what you mean.’ It signals that the speaker has grasped the other person’s point or intention.
When to use
Use this phrase after someone has explained an idea, opinion, or feeling and you want to confirm that you follow them. It works in both casual chats and more formal discussions.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Ichverstehe,wasdumeinst.
Verb conjugation – verstehen
‘verstehen’ is a regular verb in the present tense; the first‑person singular form is ‘ich verstehe’.
Relative clause with ‘was’
‘was’ introduces a subordinate clause meaning ‘what’; the verb in that clause moves to the end (du meinst).
Comma rule
In German a comma separates the main clause from the subordinate clause, so a comma is required before ‘was’.
🗨In Conversation
Ich verstehe, was du meinst.
I understand what you mean.
Gut, dann lass uns weitermachen.
Great, then let’s continue.
✕Common Mistakes
Verstehst, was du meinst.
‘verstehst’ is second‑person singular; the sentence is spoken by the speaker, so it must be ‘ich verstehe’.
Ich verstehe was du meinst.
German requires a comma before the subordinate clause introduced by ‘was’.
Ich verstehe, was du meinst?
Adding a question mark turns the statement into a question; the intended meaning is a declarative confirmation.
↔Alternatives
Ich verstehe, was du sagst.
I understand what you say.
Ich verstehe dich.
I understand you.
Ich habe verstanden, was du meinst.
I have understood what you mean.
Cultural Tip
German speakers often prefer a full subordinate clause (was du meinst) over a short ‘du meinst’ after ‘verstehen’. Avoid mixing ‘verstehen’ with an infinitive construction like ‘zu verstehen’, which sounds unnatural in this context. Also, remember that the comma before the subordinate clause is mandatory in written German.