Amharic, the official language of Ethiopia, is a Semitic language rich in history and culture. Learning Amharic can open doors to understanding Ethiopia’s unique heritage and facilitate communication with its people. This lesson covers essential conversational phrases and questions in Amharic, complete with transliterations for pronunciation guidance.

Greetings

• Hello – “ሰላም” (Selam)
• Good morning – “እንደምን ነሽ/ነህ?” (Endemen nesh/nih?)
• Good afternoon – “እንደምን ዋሉ?” (Endemen walwu?)
• Good evening – “እንደምን እኩለ ሌሊት ነሽ/ነህ?” (Endemen ikul lelit nesh/nih?)
• How are you? (formal) – “እንዴት ነሽ/ነህ?” (Endet nesh/nih?)
• I’m fine, thank you. And you? – “ደኅና ነኝ፣ አመሰግናለሁ። እስከአንተ/አንቺ?” (Dehna neng, amsugenalehu. Eskeante/eskenchi?)

Introducing Yourself or Others

• My name is [name]. – “ስሜ [ስም] ነው።” (Sime [sim] new.)
• This is [name]. – “ይህ/ይህት [ስም] ነው።” (Yih/yihet [sim] new.)
• I am from [country]. – “ከ[ሀገር] ነኝ።” (Ke[hager] neng.)
• I live in [city/place]. – “[ከተማ/ቦታ] ላይ እኖራለሁ።” ([Ketema/bota] lay enoralhu.)

Asking for Directions or People

• Where is the [place]? – “[ቦታ] ወዴት ነው?” ([Bota] wedet new?)
• How do I get to [place]? – “ወደ [ቦታ] እንዴት ልሂድ?” (Wede [bota] endet lihid?)
• Is this the way to [place]? – “ይህ ወደ [ቦታ] መንገድ ነው?” (Yih wede [bota] menged new?)
• Can you show me on the map? – “በካርታ ማሳየት ይቻላል?” (BeKarta masayet yichalal?)

Solving a Misunderstanding

• Sorry, I don’t understand. – “ይቅርታ, አልገባኝም።” (Yik’rta, algebagnim.)
• Can you please repeat that? – “እባኮትን እንደገና መናገር ይቻላል?” (Ibakoten endegna menager yichalal?)
• I mean… – “እኔ ማለቴ…” (Ene malet’e…)
• What does [word] mean? – “[ቃል] ምን ማለት ነው?” ([Kal] min malet new?)

Farewell Expressions

• Goodbye – “ታታ” (Tata) or “ጤና ይስጥልኝ” (Tena yistilign)
• See you later – “እንደሌላ እናይ” (Ende lela enay)
• Take care – “ተንከባከብ” (Tenkobekb)
• Have a good day – “መልካም ቀን እንድትሆን” (Melkam ken endihon)

Travel and Dining

• I would like to book a room. – “ክፍል መክራት እፈልጋለሁ።” (Kifil mekrat efelgalehu.)
• Can I see the menu, please? – “እባኮትን ምናምንን ማየት እችላለሁ?” (Ibakoten menamenen mayet ichilalehu?)
• I am vegetarian. – “እኔ ተክል አሰሚ ነኝ።” (Ene tekl asami neng.)
• The bill, please. – “ቢሊን እባኮትን።” (Bilin ibakoten.)

Shopping

• How much does this cost? – “ይህ ስንት ነው?” (Yih sint new?)
• Do you have this in another size? – “ይህን በሌላ መጠን አለኝ?” (Yihin be lela meten aleng?)
• I’m just looking, thanks. – “እኔ ብቻ እነቅፋለሁ፣ አመሰግናለሁ።” (Ene bicha enek’falehu, amsugenalehu.)
• Can I pay by card? – “በካርታ መክፈያ ማድረግ ይቻላል?” (BeKarta mekfiya maderg yichalal?)

Dating and Love

• You look beautiful. – “አንቺ ውብ ነሽ።” (Anchi wub nesh.)
• I miss you. – “አንቺን እየተወሰንኩ ነው።” (Anchin eyetewesenehu new.)
• I love you. – “እኔ አንቺን እወድሻለሁ።” (Ene anchin ewedeshalehu.)
• Would you like to go out with me? – “ከእኔ ጋር መውጣት ትፈልጊያለሽ?” (Ke’ene gar mewtat tefeligiyalesh?)

Emergencies

• Help! – “እገዛ!” (Egza!)
• Call the police! – “ፖሊስ ይደውሉ!” (Polis yidewilu!)
• I need a doctor. – “ዶክተር እስክዳለሁ።” (Dokter eskedalehu.)
• Where is the nearest hospital? – “አቅራቢያ ሆስፒታል ወዴት ነው?” (Akirabiya hospital wedet new?)

Practice Sentences

• Excuse me, can you show me on the map how to get to the nearest hospital? I need a doctor. – “እባክዎ በካርታ አቅራቢያ ሆስፒታል እንዴት እንደምሄድ ማሳየት ይቻላል? ዶክተር እስክዳለሁ።” (Ibakwo beKarta akirabiya hospital endet endemihed masayet yichalal? Dokter eskedalehu.)
• Hello, my name is [name], and I am from [country]. It’s nice to meet you. Can I see the menu, please? I am vegetarian. – “ሰላም, ስሜ [ስም] ነው እና ከ[ሀገር] ነኝ። መገናኘትህ/ሽ ደስ አለኝ። እባክዎን መነሻውን ማየት እችላለሁ? እኔ ተክል አሰሚ ነኝ።” (Selam, sime [sim] new ena ke[hager] neng. Megena’etih/sh des alegn. Ibakwon meneshawin mayet ichilalehu? Ene tekl asami neng.)
• Goodbye, take care. I hope to see you later. – “ታታ, ተንከባከብ። እስከ ሌላ እናይሃለሁ ተስፋ አደርጋለሁ።” (Tata, tenkobekb. Eske lela enayihalehu tesfa adergalehu.)

By incorporating these phrases into your practice, you will gradually improve your ability to communicate in Amharic. Remember, consistency is key in language learning. Engage in regular conversations with native speakers, if possible, and immerse yourself in the language through music, films, and literature to enhance your proficiency.