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Not able to make head or tail of Meaning in English

expression

NAHT AY-buhl TOO/TUH/TIH MAYK HED OR/ER TAYL UH-v
NOT AY-buhl TOO MAYK HED AW TAYL OV

Definition

If you are not able to make head or tail of something, it means you cannot understand it at all—it seems confusing or impossible to figure out.

Usage & Nuances

This is an informal, idiomatic phrase. It typically refers to text, speech, or a situation that is confusing. Commonly collocates with 'of this', 'of the instructions', etc. Do not use in formal writing. Similar to 'can't make sense of'.

Spanish: no poder entender - no entender nadaPortuguese (BR): não conseguir entender - não entender nadaPortuguese (PT): não conseguir perceber - não perceber nadaChinese (Simplified): 完全不明白 - 搞不懂Chinese (Traditional): 完全不明白 - 搞不懂Hindi: कुछ भी समझ में न आनाArabic: لا يستطيع أن يفهم شيئًاBengali: বুঝতে পারা যায় না - কোনো মাথামুন্ডু খুঁজে পাওয়া যায় নাRussian: ничего не понять - не могу разобратьсяJapanese: さっぱり分からない - 全く理解できないVietnamese: không hiểu gì cả - không thể hiểu nổiKorean: 전혀 이해할 수 없다 - 도무지 알 수 없다Turkish: hiçbir şey anlamamak - hiçbir anlam çıkaramamakUrdu: کچھ سمجھ میں نہیں آنا - بالکل نہیں سمجھناIndonesian: tidak mengerti sama sekali - tidak paham apa-apa

Example Sentences

I am not able to make head or tail of these instructions.

basic

She was not able to make head or tail of the map.

basic

The math problem was so hard that I was not able to make head or tail of it.

basic

Honestly, I was not able to make head or tail of what he was saying.

natural

After reading that technical report, I'm not able to make head or tail of it.

natural

I've looked at this code for an hour and I'm still not able to make head or tail of it.

natural