Have you tried immersion-based learning? Even over here, some classes instead of being translation-based are immersion-based, where things like 100% of the class is in the language, you don't learn new vocabulary except by using it, whether spoken, written, read. (And then you have context to figure out meaning, just like English. In my class like this we then could look it up in a translated dictionary, but would have to define it in language to the class if we did so.)

I know that worked better for me, I know it works better for language learning in general, and I think with the "I can hear and understand but it doesn't click"; it really strongly suggests that its something to try.

(My biggest issue with languages was spoken. I have enough issues with English, speaking another language at all? Not going to happen.)