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Essential Khmer phrases
for travellers (printable)
how to say hello in khmer
សួស្តី — soo-oh-SDAY — is how you say hello in Khmer. It works at any hour, anywhere the language is spoken, with anyone. Pair it with អរគុណ (or-KOON) for thank you and you already have the two words you will use most.
Below are 36 phrases worth knowing before you land, grouped by the situation you will need them in. Every one has a plain-English respelling — stressed syllable in capitals; the respelling is approximate — because IPA is no use to anyone standing at a pharmacy counter. Cambodia — around 17 million speakers, written in a script descended from the same Indian source as Thai but with no tones at all. Also searched as Cambodia, Cambodian, Angkor.
take it with you
The whole card, on one page
All 36 phrases on a single sheet — print it, fold it into a passport, or keep it on your phone. Free, no signup, no watermark.
The essentials
The six words that carry most of a trip.
| English | Khmer |
|---|---|
| Hello | សួស្តីsoo-oh-SDAYOften said with the sampeah, palms pressed together. Returning it is good manners. |
| Goodbye | លាហើយlee-ah HAOY |
| Please | សូមsoamGoes at the front of a request, not the end. |
| Thank you | អរគុណor-KOONអរគុណច្រើន (or-koon chraan) is thank you very much. |
| Yes / No | បាទ / ចាស … ទេbaat (man) / jaa (woman) … teyYes is gendered. See the note above — this is the one to get right. |
| Excuse me / Sorry | សុំទោសsom-TOH |
Getting by
What to say when the conversation outruns you.
| English | Khmer |
|---|---|
| Do you speak English? | អ្នកចេះនិយាយភាសាអង់គ្លេសទេ?neak jeh ni-YAY pee-a-sa ong-GLEH tey |
| I don't understand | ខ្ញុំមិនយល់ទេknyom min YOAL tey |
| Could you repeat that? | សូមនិយាយម្តងទៀតsoam ni-YAY m-dong TI-et |
| Please speak slowly | សូមនិយាយយឺតៗsoam ni-YAY yeut-yeutThe ៗ mark doubles the preceding word. |
| My name is… | ខ្ញុំឈ្មោះ…knyom CHMUAH |
| Nice to meet you | រីករាយដែលបានជួបreek-REAY dael baan JUOP |
Getting around
Streets, stations and the one question everyone needs.
| English | Khmer |
|---|---|
| Where is…? | …នៅឯណា?… nov ae-NA |
| How do I get to…? | តើខ្ញុំទៅ…យ៉ាងម៉េច?tae knyom tov … yang MEJ |
| Where is the toilet? | បន្ទប់ទឹកនៅឯណា?bon-TUOP tuk nov ae-NA |
| Left / Right | ឆ្វេង / ស្តាំchveng / sdam |
| Straight ahead | ត្រង់ទៅមុខtrong tov MUKH |
| Is it far? | ឆ្ងាយទេ?chngay tey |
Food and drink
Ordering, allergies, and asking for the bill.
| English | Khmer |
|---|---|
| A table for two, please | សូមតុសម្រាប់ពីរនាក់soam tok som-RAB pi neak |
| The menu, please | សូមម៉ឺនុយsoam MEU-nuy |
| I would like… | ខ្ញុំចង់បាន…knyom jong BAAN |
| Water, please | សូមទឹកsoam tukAsk for bottled water: ទឹកដប (tuk dop). |
| I am allergic to… | ខ្ញុំមានអាឡែស៊ីនឹង…knyom mean a-lay-SEE nungShow the allergy written down as well. This is one to prepare in advance. |
| The bill, please | សូមគិតលុយsoam kit LUY |
Shopping and money
Prices, cards, and politely not buying anything.
| English | Khmer |
|---|---|
| How much is it? | ថ្លៃប៉ុន្មាន?t-lai pon-MAAN |
| That's too expensive | ថ្លៃពេកt-lai PAYK |
| Do you take cards? | យកកាតបានទេ?yok kaat baan teyUS dollars circulate alongside riel; small change comes back in riel. |
| I am just looking | ខ្ញុំគ្រាន់តែមើលknyom kroan tae MEUL |
| Do you have…? | មាន…ទេ?mean … tey |
| A receipt, please | សូមវិក្កយបត្រsoam vik-ka-yak-BAT |
Emergencies
Worth reading once before you need them.
| English | Khmer |
|---|---|
| Help! | ជួយផង!juoy PONG |
| Call the police | ហៅប៉ូលីសhav po-LEEEmergency numbers: police 117, ambulance 119, fire 118. |
| Call an ambulance | ហៅឡានពេទ្យhav laan PET |
| I need a doctor | ខ្ញុំត្រូវការគ្រូពេទ្យknyom trov kaa kru PET |
| I am lost | ខ្ញុំវង្វេងផ្លូវknyom vong-VENG plov |
| Where is the hospital? | មន្ទីរពេទ្យនៅឯណា?mon-TIR pet nov ae-NA |
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Four things that fix
most of the accent
Yes is different for men and women
A man says បាទ (baat), a woman says ចាស (jaa). Both mean yes, and using the wrong one is the single most noticeable slip a visitor makes. No is ទេ (tey) for everyone.
Khmer is not tonal
Unlike Thai, Vietnamese and Lao, pitch does not change meaning. You can say a word with the wrong intonation and still be understood, which makes Khmer far more forgiving than its neighbours.
ខ្ញុំ (knyom) starts most sentences
It means "I", and it is one syllable: a k, then "nyom" as in canyon. It appears in half the phrases below, so it is worth 10 seconds of practice.
The script does not put spaces between words
Spaces separate phrases and clauses instead, which is why a line of Khmer looks like one very long word. Camera translation apps have to segment it before they can translate it.
Spotted a mistake in the Khmer? Tell us and we will fix it.
You will not remember
all 36
Nobody does. OmniTalk speaks Khmer for you in real time — point the camera at a menu, or put the phone between you and let it translate both sides of the conversation as you talk. It works offline once you download the language, so it keeps going when your roaming does not.