Meaning and origin of 'Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof'?

Question

What does the following sentence mean and what is its origin?> Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof.I've heard this expression from some friends – I guess it's what you say when you don't really understand what's going on.

Answer 1

"Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof" essentially means "I don't have a clue." Bahnhof is the German word for train station. For people only passing through, not needing any real understanding of the language, finding their way back to the train station was all they needed. The idiom locked in as an indicator of someone with no knowledge and no interest in developing any, but usually in the third person, e.g. er versteht nur Bahnhof -- he doesn't have a clue. And yes, it IS a micro aggression!

Answer 2

Literally: I only understand train station. Comes from WW1 when soldiers wanted nothing but to leave and go home. It became an idiom for "I don't understand anything".