Learn English – How to ask someone to get another person’s attention for me

Most native speakers of English will only ask for a repeat once or twice, and after that will pretend they understood, so as not to appear rude. I don't mind if people ask me more than twice, but from observing people - twice seems to be a social norm.

I would usually say:

What?

What was that?

Sorry, what?

I didn't get that.

I didn't catch that.

I missed that.

Say that again.

Remember that it takes a fair bit of skill to say "What?" without sounding rude, so if you are worried about sounding rude, don't use "What?" and don't forget to add please and thank you. Native speakers, however, will often just say "What?".

If you are asking a second time you can add "still" or some other modifier:

I still didn't get that.

I still didn't catch that.

I missed that again.

Sorry, one more time.

When asking multiple times "What?" sounds rude very quickly.

In my experience (AmE) the two most common expressions are

Give me a boost.

and

Give me a leg up.

Either of these can also be used figuratively - Job re-training programs for the unemployed are designed to give them a leg up in life. If you are looking for ways to improve your English, regular conversations with native speakers can give you a boost.

When used figuratively, giving a leg up may imply a little more help and impact on the recipient than giving them a boost. In the literal usage that you described, they seem equivalent to my ear.

Another difference between the literal and figurative uses is that in literal uses, the implication is that the assistor is at the level of the person being assisted and is helping them get to some higher level. In figurative uses, the assistor may start at a higher status and give someone a boost/leg up to help them catch up.