Looking for practical Jawi (جاوي) to Amharic (አማርኛ) phrases? This free guide lists 100 essential sentences for travel, study, work, and everyday conversation. Each line shows the Jawi phrase first, then the Amharic translation (አማርኛ) — 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 Amharic.
Tip: when a Amharic phrase looks unfamiliar, compare it with the Jawi wording — noticing word order differences helps you understand grammar naturally.
Bookmark this page for offline review, share it with a travel buddy, or open the Jawi (جاوي) to Amharic (አማርኛ) 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.
هلا
ሰላም(Selam)
ترما كاسي
እናመሰግናለን(Enamesegenalew)
سلamat pagi
ደህና መልካም ጡዋት(Dehna melkam t'uwat)
سلamat tengahري
ደህና መልካም ከረባ(Dehna melkam kereba)
سلamat سوري
ደህና መልካም እለት(Dehna melkam elet)
سلamat مالام
ደህና ምሽት(Dehna mishiht)
جمبا لاغي
በኋላ እንገናኝ(Behwala engegnay)
سلامت
ደህና ሁን(Dehna hun)
سيا بربا ناما؟
ስምህ ምንድነው?(Simeh mindnew?)
ناما سياه جان
ስሜ ጆን ነው(Sime Jon new)
بغاي مان؟
እንዴት ነህ/ነሽ?(Endet neh/nesh?)
سنغار بربا سياه
እንኳን ወደ ተገናኝነት ደስ ይበልህ/በልሽ(Enkwan wede tegegnanet des yibelih/belish)
Useful phrases for travellers
Airport, hotel, tickets, and transport phrases for getting around on a trip.