Lao phrases for a short visit
ການຢາມສັ້ນ
The lines a visitor actually uses, and the ones you will hear back. Romanized first so you can say them today. Every phrase is recorded — open it in Bhasaly to hear it.
Hear these phrases →First words
Hello, thanks & no problem
sabaidee works from dawn to midnight. baw pen nyang — no problem — answers thanks, apologies and mishaps alike.
| sabaidee | hello | ສະບາຍດີ |
| khop jai | thank you | ຂອບໃຈ |
| baw pen nyang | no problem · you are welcome | ບໍ່ເປັນຫຍັງ |
| kho thot | sorry · excuse me | ຂໍໂທດ |
| maen | yes (it is) | ແມ່ນ |
| baw maen | no (it is not) | ບໍ່ແມ່ນ |
| jao | yes (polite) — also: you | ເຈົ້າ |
| laa kawn | goodbye | ລາກ່ອນ |
| phop kan mai | see you again | ພົບກັນໃໝ່ |
Being polite
Soft words, soft country
Requests end in dae and invitations start with sern. Nothing here is urgent — matching the pace is the politest thing a visitor can do.
| kho | may I have … (starts a request) | ຂໍ |
| dae | …please (ends a request) | ແດ່ |
| kalunaa | please (formal) | ກະລຸນາ |
| sern | please (inviting) | ເຊີນ |
| nyin dii | glad · with pleasure | ຍິນດີ |
| pho | enough | ພໍ |
Meeting someone
Introductions
khoi seu … — my name is …. huu noi neung — I know a little — is the honest, welcome answer about your Lao.
| khoi seu | my name is … | ຂ້ອຍຊື່ |
| jao seu nyang | what is your name? | ເຈົ້າຊື່ຫຍັງ |
| baw khao jai | I do not understand | ບໍ່ເຂົ້າໃຈ |
| vao saa saa | speak slowly | ເວົ້າຊ້າໆ |
| vao kheun | say it again | ເວົ້າຄືນ |
| huu noi neung | I know a little | ຮູ້ໜ້ອຍໜຶ່ງ |
| maa jaak | (I) come from … | ມາຈາກ |
Sentence patterns
Four frames that do the work
Four frames cover most of what you need. Tap a word, hear the whole sentence.
What you will hear
Greetings & invitations
pai sai? — where are you off to — and kin khao laew baw? — eaten yet — are greetings, not questions. Answer vaguely, smile, walk on.
| pai sai | where are you off to? (a greeting) | ໄປໃສ |
| kin khao laew baw | eaten yet? (a greeting) | ກິນເຂົ້າແລ້ວບໍ່ |
| sern khao maa | please come in | ເຊີນເຂົ້າມາ |
| sern nang | please sit | ເຊີນນັ່ງ |
| maa lin | come visit! | ມາຫຼິ້ນ |
| sok dii | good luck! | ໂຊກດີ |
Numbers
Kip come in thousands
Everything is thousands of kip: water around haa phan, noodle soup meun and up, a guesthouse in saen. The banknotes carry the same numbers, which makes paying easy.
| neung | 1 | ໜຶ່ງ |
| song | 2 | ສອງ |
| haa | 5 | ຫ້າ |
| sip | 10 | ສິບ |
| hoi | 100 | ຮ້ອຍ |
| phan | 1,000 | ພັນ |
| haa phan | 5,000 | ຫ້າພັນ |
| meun | 10,000 | ໝື່ນ |
| saen | 100,000 | ແສນ |
| kip | kip | ກີບ |
Getting around
Agree the price, enjoy the pace
Tuk-tuks and songthaews run on agreed prices — settle before you sit. jot yuu nii stops the driver where you need.
| lot tuk tuk | tuk-tuk | ລົດຕຸກຕຸກ |
| lot me | bus | ລົດເມ |
| pii | ticket | ປີ້ |
| jot yuu nii | stop here | ຈອດຢູ່ນີ້ |
| yut | stop! | ຢຸດ |
Directions
Catch one word of the answer
Ask with the yuu sai frame above, then listen for these.
| saai | left | ຊ້າຍ |
| khwaa | right | ຂວາ |
| kai | far | ໄກ |
| kai (short) | near | ໃກ້ |
| yuu nii | right here | ຢູ່ນີ້ |
Sticky rice
The national staple
khao niao comes in a lidded basket: roll a ball with your RIGHT hand, dip, eat — never put rice back. saep! is the compliment every cook wants.
| khao niao | sticky rice | ເຂົ້າໜຽວ |
| khao | rice · a meal | ເຂົ້າ |
| nam | water | ນ້ຳ |
| kaafe | coffee | ກາເຟ |
| saep | delicious! | ແຊບ |
| phet | spicy | ເຜັດ |
| kho menu dae | menu, please | ຂໍເມນູແດ່ |
| khit ngen | the bill, please | ຄິດເງິນ |
| iik | more | ອີກ |
| mot | all gone | ໝົດ |
Shopping
Gentle bargaining
Morning markets are the real Laos. phaeng phot opens the negotiation; it stays gentle — a few thousand kip either way, never a battle.
| ta-laat | the market | ຕະຫຼາດ |
| laakhaa | price | ລາຄາ |
| phaeng | expensive | ແພງ |
| phaeng phot | too expensive | ແພງໂພດ |
| thuuk | cheap | ຖືກ |
| ao | I will take it | ເອົາ |
| ngen | money | ເງິນ |
Staying somewhere
Guesthouse basics
hong nam is the bathroom — worth locating early. Power cuts happen in the provinces, so keep a torch by the bed.
| hong haem | hotel | ໂຮງແຮມ |
| hong | room | ຫ້ອງ |
| kajae | the key | ກະແຈ |
| hong nam | bathroom | ຫ້ອງນ້ຳ |
Getting help
Serious words, hopefully unused
suay duay! is the urgent cry for help; suay dae is the calm request. lavang — careful — is what friends will call after you.
| suay duay | help! (urgent) | ຊ່ວຍດ້ວຍ |
| suay dae | please help | ຊ່ວຍແດ່ |
| tamluat | police | ຕຳຫຼວດ |
| hong maw | hospital | ໂຮງໝໍ |
| maw | doctor | ໝໍ |
| yaa | medicine | ຢາ |
| lavang | be careful! | ລະວັງ |
Staying in touch
Phone, wifi & photos
Guesthouse wifi is common but slow. SIMs are cheap with a passport. thaai huup dai baw? asks before the camera comes out — always ask in villages.
| tholasap | telephone | ໂທລະສັບ |
| ber | number | ເບີ |
| thaai huup dai baw | may I take a photo? | ຖ່າຍຮູບໄດ້ບໍ່ |
Ask where anything is
Where is the ___?
| ta-laat yuu sai? | Where is the market? | ຕະຫຼາດຢູ່ໃສ |
| hong haem yuu sai? | Where is the hotel? | ໂຮງແຮມຢູ່ໃສ |
| hong nam yuu sai? | Where is the bathroom? | ຫ້ອງນ້ຳຢູ່ໃສ |
| hong maw yuu sai? | Where is the hospital? | ໂຮງໝໍຢູ່ໃສ |
| lot me yuu sai? | Where is the bus? | ລົດເມຢູ່ໃສ |
Ask if something is there
Do you have ___?
| nam mii baw? | Do you have water? | ນ້ຳມີບໍ່ |
| kaafe mii baw? | Do you have coffee? | ກາເຟມີບໍ່ |
| khao niao mii baw? | Do you have sticky rice? | ເຂົ້າໜຽວມີບໍ່ |
| hong mii baw? | Do you have a room? | ຫ້ອງມີບໍ່ |
| pii mii baw? | Do you have a ticket? | ປີ້ມີບໍ່ |
Ask for something politely
___, please.
| kho nam dae | water, please. | ຂໍນ້ຳແດ່ |
| kho kaafe dae | coffee, please. | ຂໍກາເຟແດ່ |
| kho khao niao dae | sticky rice, please. | ຂໍເຂົ້າໜຽວແດ່ |
| kho an nii dae | this one, please. | ຂໍອັນນີ້ແດ່ |
| kho kajae dae | the key, please. | ຂໍກະແຈແດ່ |
Ask any price
How much is ___?
| an nii thao dai? | How much is this one? | ອັນນີ້ເທົ່າໃດ |
| hong thao dai? | How much is the room? | ຫ້ອງເທົ່າໃດ |
| kaafe thao dai? | How much is the coffee? | ກາເຟເທົ່າໃດ |
| pii thao dai? | How much is the ticket? | ປີ້ເທົ່າໃດ |
Common questions
How do you say hello in Lao?
Sabaidee. The greetings section above has the full set, including the reply you are likely to hear back.
Do I need an account to use these Lao phrases?
No. Every phrase on this page is open to read, and you can hear all of them in Bhasaly without signing up.
Do I need to read the Lao script to use these?
No. Every line is romanized first, so you can say it straight away. The script is there alongside if you want to start reading it.
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