וָאֵרָ֗א אֶל־אַבְרָהָ֛ם אֶל־יִצְחָ֥ק וְאֶֽל־יַעֲקֹ֖ב בְּאֵ֣ל שַׁדָּ֑י וּשְׁמִ֣י יְהֹוָ֔ה לֹ֥א נוֹדַ֖עְתִּי לָהֶֽם׃
I appeared to* Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as El Shaddai, but I did not make Myself known to them by My name GOD [יהוה].
*appeared to Or “communicated with.”
(The above rendering—and footnote—come from the RJPS translation, an adaptation of the NJPS translation.)
The root of the highlighted verb וָאֵרָא is ראה with a Niphal stem. On the meaning of this verb when applied to a persona, and on its best rendering in English, see my comment at Gen 12:7.