Common Phrases and Expressions

Greetings

salom - hi, hello

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**xanti** - hello ("peace")

**bonsoba** - good morning

**bonnuru** - good day/afternoon

**bonaxam** - good evening

**bonnoce** - good evening ("good night")

Farewells

weda - (good)bye

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**xanti** - bye ("peace")

**finfe (rioko)** - see you

**finfe xaya** - see you later

**finfe ner xaya** - see you soon

**bon soba** - good morning

**bon nuru** - good day/afternoon

**bon axam** - good evening

**bon noce** - good night

Other Well Wishes

Note: As seen above, greetings with bon (good, well) are expressed as compounds, whereas farewells are expressed as two-word phrases. In the following expressions, compounds are used when the speaker and listener remain together. Hence, the two root words are together, combined into one word. In contrast, two-word phrases are used if either the speaker or the listener departs. Hence, the root words are apart.

bonata or bon ata - welcome

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**bonxanse** _or_ **bon xanse** - good luck

**bonyam** _or_ **bon yam** - bon appetit ("good meal")

**bonglu** _or_ **bon glu** - cheers ("good drink")

**bonturi** _or_ **bon turi** - bon voyage, safe travels

Being Polite

fe lutuf - please

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**xukra** - thank you

**multi xukra** - many thanks, thank you much

**no hay seba** - you're welcome ("there's no reason")

**asif** - sorry

**mafu** - excuse me, pardon

Other Interjections

daybon - great, excellent

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**melibon** - nice, sweet

**suprem** - cool, great, excellent

**otima** - awesome

**afarin** - well done, good job ("applause")

**hura** - hooray, hoorah, hurrah, woo-hoo, yay

**ay** - ouch

**wao** - wow

Dialogue Fillers

o - oh

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**a** - ah

**nun** - well (then), so, now

**fe folo** - so, therefore, consequently

**fe fato** - in fact, actually

**fe fini** - finally

**fe bonxanse** - luckily, fortunately

**fe asif** - regretfully, unfortunately

**fe onxala** - hopefully

**fe misal** - for example

**fe xugwan** - usually

**fe benji** - in essence, basically

**fe moy kaso** - in any case, at any rate, anyway

**fe alo kaso** - otherwise

**maxpul** - moreover, furthermore

**pia** - also

**abruto** - suddenly

**e** _or_ **em** - uh

**aham** - I see, understood ("understand")

**yakin** - certainly, surely

**totalyakin** _or_ **pulyakin** - absolutely, totally

**mimbay** - obviously, of course

**sipul** - indeed

**okey** - okay, all right

**ible** - maybe, perhaps, possibly

**dayible** - probably

**sahi** - correct, right

**mal** - incorrect, wrong, not so

**sati** - true

**falso** - false, not true

**samaijen** - agreed ("same opinion")

Kam sati? - Really?

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**Kam jidi?** - Seriously? Are you serious?

**Kam yakin?** - Are you sure?

**Kam bon?** - Are you well? Are you good? Is it good?

**Kam okey?** - Is that okay? Is everything all right?

Common Questions/Replies

Yu sen kepul? or Yu kepul?
How are you?

Daymo bon, ji yu?
Very well, and you?

semibon
Not too bad

semi semi
so-so

Yu name keto? or Yusu name sen keto?
What is your name?

Mi name... or Misu name sen...
My name is...

(To sen) yukwe, na xorkone yu. or Yukwe.
It's nice (pleasant) meeting you. or It's pleasant.

(To sen) furaha, na xorkone yu. or Furaha.
It's a pleasure to meet you. or It's a pleasure.

(Mi sen) hox na xorkone yu. or Mi sen hox.
(I am) happy to meet you. or I am happy.

Yu ogar keloka?
Where do you live?

Mi ogar in...
I live in...

Yu sen of keloka?
Where are you from?

Mi sen of...
I'm from...

Yu sen kemo lao? or Yu sen fe ke nyan?
How old are you?

Mi sen lao fe... (nyan). or Mi sen fe... (nyan).
I am... years old.

Kam yu (pala) Globasa?
Do you speak Globasa?

Si, xosu.
Yes, a (little) bit.

Yu pala ke basa?
What language(s) do you speak?

Mi pala...
I speak...

Kam yu aham?
Do you understand?

(Si,) mi aham.
(Yes,) I understand.

(No,) mi no aham.
(No,) I don't understand.

Ren loga... kemaner (in Globasa)?
How do you say... (in Globasa)?

In Globasa, ren loga...
(In Globasa), you say...

Common Statements

Mi jixi.
I know.

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Mi no jixi.
I don't know.

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Mi lubi yu.
I love you.

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