Looking for practical Amharic (አማርኛ) to Lingala phrases? This free guide lists 100 essential sentences for travel, study, work, and everyday conversation. Each line shows the Amharic phrase first, then the Lingala translation (Lingala) — so you can scan quickly before a trip, class, or video call.
The phrases are grouped into eight topics: greetings and pleasantries, useful phrases for travellers, everyday conversation, directions and getting around, shopping and dining, emergencies and health, work and business, and time, days and numbers. Use the table of contents to jump straight to greetings, directions, dining, emergencies, or numbers. You do not need perfect grammar to start — short, clear sentences often work better than silence when you are learning Lingala.
Tip: focus on one section per day (travel Monday, dining Tuesday, and so on) if you are preparing for a Lingala-speaking trip in a few weeks.
Bookmark this page for offline review, share it with a travel buddy, or open the Amharic (አማርኛ) to Lingala translator to paste your own messages and get an instant translation.
Greetings and pleasantries
Hello, goodbye, please, thank you, and polite introductions for meeting new people.
ሰላም
Mbote(Selam)
እናመሰግናለን
Melesi(Enamesegenalew)
ደህና መልካም ጡዋት
Mbote na ntango ya mokolo(Dehna melkam t'uwat)
ደህና መልካም ከረባ
Mbote na ntango ya midi(Dehna melkam kereba)
ደህና መልካም እለት
Mbote na ntango ya soir(Dehna melkam elet)
ደህና ምሽት
Malamu na butu(Dehna mishiht)
በኋላ እንገናኝ
Tala yo nsima(Behwala engegnay)
ደህና ሁን
Kende malamu(Dehna hun)
ስምህ ምንድነው?
Nkombo na yo nani?(Simeh mindnew?)
ስሜ ጆን ነው
Nkombo na ngai ezali John(Sime Jon new)
እንዴት ነህ/ነሽ?
Ozalaki malamu?(Endet neh/nesh?)
እንኳን ወደ ተገናኝነት ደስ ይበልህ/በልሽ
Nayoki malamu na yo(Enkwan wede tegegnanet des yibelih/belish)
Useful phrases for travellers
Airport, hotel, tickets, and transport phrases for getting around on a trip.
እንግሊዝኛ ትናገራለህ?
Ozali koloba lingala?(ozali koloba lingala)
ሂንዲ ደህና አልናገርም
Nasalaka hindi malamu te(nasalaka hindi malamu te)