in which sense?

[ripley]

Hi,
I' d like to know if it is possible to say "In which sense?" if you didn't understand what someone is telling you. I mean, you want to ask him/her to explain what they are saying, and not just to reapeat the sentence they have uttered.
I'm imagining the following situation:
the teacher asks a question to a student and the student doe not completely understand the question, that is, he is not sure what the teacher wants him to answer. Can he ask " In which sense"? as an alternative to "What do you mean?" ?
If not, in which similar context would the question "In which sense?" be acceptable? And is "What do you mean (by that)?" a good alternative to it?

Thanks.
Rip.

[Marylin]

Originally Posted by ripley

Hi,
I' d like to know if it is possible to say "In which sense?" if you didn't understand what someone is telling you. I mean, you want to ask him/her to explain what they are saying, and not just to reapeat the sentence they have uttered.
I'm imagining the following situation:
the teacher asks a question to a student and the student doe not completely understand the question, that is, he is not sure what the teacher wants him to answer. Can he ask " In which sense"? as an alternative to "What do you mean?" ?
If not, in which similar context would the question "In which sense?" be acceptable? And is "What do you mean (by that)?" a good alternative to it?

Thanks.
Rip.

"In which sense" doesn't sound right. I would just say:
"Would you, please, rephrase your question?", "I don't think I understand the question", " Would you, please, elaborate on what you mean", " I think I have lost you", " I think I am a little confused, would you reword your question for me, please", etc.etc.