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Useful Khmer Words and Phrases

Greetings / Address / Personal Pronouns

Greetings
hello——————————–joohm ree-up soo-a
how are you?———————–sok-sa bai jee-a tay?
goodbye—————————-joohm ree-up lea [formal] / lee-hai [informal]
see you again!———————-joo-up k’neer dee-ut!
what is your name?—————–laok ch’moo-ah a-vwai?
my name is————————-k’nyom ch’moo-ah

Polite Forms of Address
loak ——————————–when speaking to a man
loak-da—————————–when speaking to an old man or monk
nay-uk srey————————when speaking to a younger / unmarried woman
om-srey—————————-when speaking to an older woman
nee-ung—————————-when speaking to a younger person

People
me———————————knyom
you——————————–nee-uk / loak
we———————————yeung
them——————————-poo-kay
him/her—————————quot
my/mine————————–roboh-k’nyom
yours——————————roboh-nee-uk

Basic Words / Phrases / Questions

Basic Words and Phrases
please—————————–soam-un-jern
thank you————————-arkun
sorry——————————som-dtoah
yes——————————–baat
no———————————a-dtay
no thank you———————-a-dtay arkun
good——————————-la-or
bad / no good———————-ot la-or
please speak slowly—————-soam ni-yay yeut-yeut
do you understand me?————ta nee-uk yoo-ul knyom tay?
do you understand what I say?—-ta nee-uk yoo-ul knyom nih-yay tay?
do you speak English ?————-ta neak nee-yay pee-a-sah ong-klay tay?

Questions Words
what’s this?————————a-vwai nih?
what’s this called?—————–nih ch’moo-ah a-vwai?
how much?————————bpon maan?
where?—————————-ai-naa?
where is the market?————–psar noo ai-naa?
where is the toilet?—————-bong-goo-ung noo ai-naa?
where are you going?————–ta nee-uk dtao naa?

Emergency / Health / Medicine

Emergency
emergency————————kree-a ason
help me!————————–joo-ay k’nyom!
doctor—————————-bpairt
I want to see a doctor————-k’nyom chong dtao bpairt
I’m sick—————————k’nyom cheu
I hurt here————————k’nyom cheu tee-nih
ambulance————————roo-ut yoo-un song-kroo-ah
hospital—————————moo-un dtee bpairt
dentist—————————-bpairt t’meun

Health Conditions
I am diabetic———————-k’nyom mee-un chum ngoo dteuk nom pha-em
cold / flu————————–krun p’daah-sai
cough—————————–k’ok
diarrhea————————–roak ree-uhk
fever—————————–krun
ill / sick—————————cheu
vomit—————————–ga-oo-ut
headache————————-cheu-k’bahl
sanitary towel——————–tawmpong / sawmluh-ee tro-ap

Medicine
insulin—————————-angsuleen
medicine————————-t’num bpairt
pill——————————-t’num kroa-up
injection————————–kah jah!k t’nahm
prescription———————-som bot dtinh t’nahm
penicillin————————-payniseelin
I’m allergic to penicillin———–k’nyom mee-un pbroah-te-kam ch’muoy t’nam payniseelin
aspirin—————————ah!-spia-rihn
plaster / band aid—————-bawng rum
bandage————————–bawng rum roh-boou!s
antiseptic————————-teuk t’num sawmlap may roak

Transport / Accommodation

Transport
airport—————————jom-nort yoo-un hoh
bicycle—————————gong
boat—————————–kanoe / touk
bus——————————laan krong
bus station———————–suh-ta nee laan-krong
car——————————-laan
cyclo—————————–sih-kloa
ferry—————————–sah-laan
motorcycle taxi——————-motodup
plane—————————–g’bul hoh
railway station——————-suh-ta nee ra-dtayh plerng
taxi——————————laan ch’nool
train—————————–ra-dtayh plerng
tourist office———————gah-ree-ah-lai dtay-sa-jor

Accommodation
hotel—————————–oat-el / son-ta-gee-a
guesthouse———————–p’dia som-nak
room—————————–baan-dtoop———————–[double ‘o’ as in look]
a/c room————————-baan-dtoop marsan tra-chee-uk
cheap room———————-baan-dtoop tauk
single room———————-baan-dtoop moy kreh-moy
double room———————baan-dtoop moy kreh-pee
do you have a room vacant?—–mee-un baan-dtoop dtum-neh tay?
could I see the room?————k’nyom soam merl baan-dtoop baan tay?
how much per night?————moy yuhp t’lay bpon-maan?

Places / Directions / Distances

Places
cinema————————–roang-gon
hotel—————————-oat-el / son-ta-gee-a
bank—————————-tor-nee-a-gee-a
market————————-psar
post office———————-bprai-sa-nee-ya-taan
shop—————————-hang
restaurant———————hang-bai
station————————-s’taa-nee
toilet—————————bong-goo-ung
temple————————-woa-ut
embassy———————–s’taan dtoot

Directions
where is (place/name)———noo ai-na?
I want to go to—————–k’nyom jong dtao…
stop here———————-chop tee-nih
turn left———————–bot ch’wayng
turn right———————bot s’dum
go straight on—————–dtao dtrong ra-hoat

inside————————-kang k’nong
outside————————kang krau
in front of———————kang meuk / tuel meuk
behind————————kang k’rao-ee
up—————————-krauk
down————————-joh—————————————-[’o ‘ as in hot]
next to———————–bpun-too-up bpee
near————————–jeut
over/on———————–leu-a
under————————-kang kraum
get through——————-kat dam
across————————ch’long kat

Distance

distance———————–chom ngai / ch’ngai
how far is it?——————Ta veer chom ngai pbon-maan na?
how far from SR to PP?——-Ta pbee SR dtao PP, chom ngai bpon-maan na?
it [is] about 500m———— Veer proh-hael brahm roi met.
it is about half a kilometer—–Veer proh-hael kon-la kilomet.
half—————————-kon-la

Food / Drink /Dining

Food

Meat and Seafood
meat————————–saich
beef—————————saich-koh
pork—————————saich-chrook
chicken————————saich-moa-un
fish—————————-dt’ray
seafood————————m’hohp sa-mot
crab—————————k’daam
shrimp / prawns————–bong-gorng
lobster————————bong-kong sa-mot

Fruit————————-plai cher
mango————————-svai
papaya————————l’hong
durian————————-too-ree-an
mangosteen——————-morng-khut
rambutan———————sau- mau
custard apple——————dt’iap
starfruit———————–spue
jack-fruit———————-k’nol / k’nau
lychee————————-ku-lehn
banana————————jeuk
orange————————groach [bpoa-sut]
pineapple———————m’noa-ah
coconut———————–doang
lime————————–graoch-ch’mah
watermelon——————-oa-leuk

Vegetables——————–bon-lai
tomato————————bpayng boh
onion————————-k’dteum baa-rung
potato————————dom-loang
garlic————————-k’dteum sor
cabbage———————-spay-ee k’daop
chilli————————-m’tayh

Basics
rice————————–bai
bread————————nom-pang
egg————————–bporng
butter———————–beu
cheese———————–froh-mah

Drink

Drinks
beer————————bee-yair
water———————–dteuk
coffee———————–gah-fay g’dao
ice coffee——————–gah-fay dteuk-gork
milk————————dteuk doh
tea————————-dteuk dtai g’dao
ice tea———————-dteuk dtai dteuk-gork
fruit juice——————-dteuk plai cher

Dining

Condiments and Sauces
sugar———————–s’gor
salt————————-om-beul
pepper———————m’rehj
chilli sauce——————dteuk m’tayh
soy sauce——————-dteuk seeve
fish sauce——————-dteuk dt’ray

Adjectives Related to Food
sweet———————-p’aym
salty———————–brai
sour———————–ju
bitter———————-lving / jo!t
tasty———————-ch’ngang
tasteless——————-k’mee-un jee-ut
hot————————heul
cold———————–tra-cheak

Cooking
bake———————-doh!t
boil———————–s’ngau
deep fry——————boh!n doa
grill———————–ah’ng
raw———————–chao
well done—————–cheun
medium——————moouy dtro lop
steam——————–jom-hoy

Eating Implements
knife———————kahm-beut
fork———————-sorm
spoon——————–slab s’laap bpree-a
chopsticks—————jong-geugh
toothpick—————-cher juk t’maynh

Shopping
buy———————d’ting
need——————–trau
want——————–chong
very expensive———t’lai na
cheap——————-tauk
what do you need?——Ta loak trau avwai?
what do you want?——Ta loak chong baan avwai?
shoes——————-s’baik cheung
shirt——————–au
short-sleeved/T-shirt—au dai clai
trousers—————–cau
clothes——————cau-au

I want to buy something———–Knyom chong dting roboh moi jam noo-un.
I want to buy a shirt————– Knyom chong dting au moi.
it’s expensive!———————Veer t’lai na!
can you discount?—————–Joh baan tik baan tay?
how much is it?——————-Ta veer t’lai pbon-maan?
what colour?———————-Bpoa-a avwai?
it costs—————————-Veer t’lai

Numbers / Days of the Week / Time Periods

Numbers
1 moy
2 pee
3 bay
4 boo-un
5 bram
6 bram-moy
7 bram-pee
8 bram-bay
9 bram-boo-un
10 dop
11 dop-moy
15 dop-bram
20 m’pay
21 m’pay moy
25 m’pay bram
30 saam seup
40 sai-seup
50 ha-seup
60 hok seup
70 jeut seup
80 bpait seup
90 gao seup
100 moy roy
200 pee roy
500 bram roy
1000 moy bpoa-un

Days of the Week
Monday—————————t’ngai jahn
Tuesday————————–t’ngai ong-gee-a
Wednesday———————–t’ngai pbu!t
Thursday————————-t’ngai bprah-hoa!s
Friday—————————-t’ngai soa!k
Saturday————————-t’ngai sao!w
Sunday—————————t’ngai aa-dteut

Periods of Time
day——————————-t’ngai
week—————————–aa-dteut
month—————————-kai
year——————————ch’nam

yesterday————————m’serl-meign
tomorrow————————sa-aik
last week————————aa-dteut moohn
next week———————–aa-dteut grao-ee

morning————————-bpayl-bpreuk
afternoon————————roh-see-ul
evening————————–bpayl l’ngee-ij
night—————————–bpayl yuhp
tonight—————————yuhp-nih

Some Useful Verbs
go——————————-dtao
visit—————————–dtao-leng
come—————————-moak
come from———————-moak-pee
want—————————-jong / jong baan
like—————————–joal-jet
know (s/b)———————-squahl
know (s/th)———————dung
have—————————-mee-un
not have————————ot mee-un
speak—————————nee-yay
eat——————————n’yam / pbi-saa / hoap
drink—————————peuk
sick—————————–cheu
help—————————-joo-ay