Bhasaly › Learn Mongolian › Phrases
Mongolian phrases for a short visit
Богино аялал
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
sain baina uu both ways
sain baina uu greets and asks how you are at once — answer sain and hand it straight back. zugeer smooths over everything; za closes any deal.
| sain baina uu | hello · how are you? | Сайн байна уу |
| bayarlalaa | thank you | Баярлалаа |
| uuchlaarai | sorry · excuse me | уучлаарай |
| tiim | yes | тийм |
| ugui | no | үгүй |
| za | OK · alright | за |
| zugeer | it is fine · no problem | зүгээр |
| tavtai morilno uu | welcome! | Тавтай морилно уу |
| bayartai | goodbye | Баяртай |
Being polite
akh, egch and gentle endings
akh and egch — older brother, older sister — address strangers warmly. The -aarai endings turn any verb into a gentle request.
| akh | older brother — any man a bit older | ах |
| egch | older sister — any woman a bit older | эгч |
| duu | younger sibling | дүү |
| suugaarai | please sit | суугаарай |
| khuleegeerei | please wait | хүлээгээрэй |
| ireerei | please come | ирээрэй |
Meeting someone
Introductions
minii ner … — my name is …. udaan kheleerei — please say it slowly — and dakhiad kheleerei — please say it again — rescue any conversation.
| minii ner | my name (is…) | Миний нэр |
| tany neriig khen gedeg ve | what is your name? | Таны нэрийг хэн гэдэг вэ? |
| ta khaanaas irsen be | where are you from? | Та хаанаас ирсэн бэ? |
| oilgokhgui baina | I do not understand | ойлгохгүй байна |
| udaan kheleerei | please say it slowly | Удаан хэлээрэй |
| dakhiad kheleerei | please say it again | Дахиад хэлээрэй |
| medekhgui | I do not know | мэдэхгүй |
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
At the ger door
At a ger you will hear orooroi — come in — before you can knock. tsai uugaarai puts milk tea in your hands; yavaarai sends you off well.
| orooroi | come in! | Ороорой |
| tsai uugaarai | have some tea | Цай уугаарай |
| chi tsai uukh uu | will you have tea? | Чи цай уух уу? |
| khuukhedtei yuu | do you have children? | хүүхэдтэй юү? |
| za yavlaa | right — I am off! | За, явлаа |
| yavaarai | safe travels (the send-off) | яваарай |
In the ger
Clockwise, right hand, smile
Ger rules: walk in without knocking, move clockwise, never step on the threshold, receive everything with your RIGHT hand. The suutei tsai is salty — drink it anyway.
| ger | the ger | гэр |
| tom ger | a big ger | том гэр |
| suutei tsai | milk tea (salty!) | сүүтэй цай |
| dailakh | to host a meal | дайлах |
| bolloo | done · that is enough | боллоо |
| saikhan | lovely · beautiful | сайхан |
Numbers
Tugrik in thousands
Prices run in myanga — thousands of tugrik. A bus fare is under myanga, buuz a few myanga each, and taxis charge by the kilometre.
| neg | 1 | нэг |
| khoyor | 2 | хоёр |
| tav | 5 | тав |
| arav | 10 | арав |
| zuu | 100 | зуу |
| myanga | 1,000 | мянга |
| togrog | tugrik | төгрөг |
| mongo solikh | to exchange money | мөнгө солих |
Getting around
Any car might stop
Outside the capital, hold a hand out low — any car is a potential taxi; agree the price first. In UB, zogsooroi stops the driver where you need.
| taksi | taxi | такси |
| avtobus | bus | автобус |
| buudal | stop · station | буудал |
| neg bilet ogno uu | one ticket, please | Нэг билет өгнө үү |
| zogsooroi | please stop | зогсоорой |
| ergeerei | please turn | эргээрэй |
Directions
The compass does the work
baruun and zuun are right and left — and also west and east. Mongolians orient the world by compass; the ger door always faces south.
| baruun | right · west | баруун |
| zuun | left · east | зүүн |
| chigeeree | straight ahead | чигээрээ |
| oirkhon | near | ойрхон |
| khol | far | хол |
Eating
Meat is the menu
Buuz dumplings, khuushuur pastries, tsuivan noodles — meat carries the table. amttai! compliments the cook; vegetarians should learn makhgui, without meat.
| buuz | buuz — steamed dumplings | бууз |
| khuushuur | fried meat pastry | хуушуур |
| tsuivan | fried noodles | цуйван |
| makh | meat | мах |
| makhgui | without meat | махгүй |
| tsai | tea | цай |
| amttai | tasty! | амттай |
| nadad tsai kheregtei | I need tea | Надад цай хэрэгтэй |
At the zakh
Cash and a wince
The zakh is the everything-market. khyamd bolokh uu? asks nicely; unetei with a wince does half the work. Cash rules outside UB.
| zakh | the market | зах |
| unetei | expensive | үнэтэй |
| khyamd | cheap | хямд |
| khyamd bolokh uu | can it be cheaper? | Хямд болох уу? |
| eniig avya | I will take this one | Энийг авъя |
| mongo | money | мөнгө |
| dakhiad neg | one more | дахиад нэг |
Staying somewhere
Rooms & radiators
UB apartments are kept very warm in winter — the heating is city-wide and unadjustable. bi tulkhuuree geesen — I lost my key — is the sentence you hope not to need.
| zochid buudal | hotel | зочид буудал |
| oroo | room | өрөө |
| tulkhuur | the key | түлхүүр |
| bi tulkhuuree geesen | I lost my key | Би түлхүүрээ гээсэн |
| khaluun | hot | халуун |
| khuiten | cold | хүйтэн |
Getting help
Serious words, hopefully unused
tuslaarai! — help — is the sentence to know; say it clearly. bolgoomjtoi is what everyone shouts on the winter ice.
| tuslaarai | help me, please! | Туслаарай! |
| tsagdaa | police | цагдаа |
| emneleg | hospital | эмнэлэг |
| emch | doctor | эмч |
| em | medicine | эм |
| ayuultai | dangerous | аюултай |
| bolgoomjtoi | careful! | Болгоомжтой! |
Staying in touch
Phone & photos
SIMs are cheap with a passport; the steppe has more signal than you expect. zurag avch bolokh uu? asks before the camera — always, in a ger.
| utas | phone | утас |
| dugaar | number | дугаар |
| zalgaarai | please call | залгаарай |
| zurag avch bolokh uu | may I take a photo? | Зураг авч болох уу? |
Ask where anything is
Where is the ___?
| zakh khaana baina ve? | Where is the market? | зах хаана байна вэ? |
| zochid buudal khaana baina ve? | Where is the hotel? | зочид буудал хаана байна вэ? |
| emneleg khaana baina ve? | Where is the hospital? | эмнэлэг хаана байна вэ? |
| buudal khaana baina ve? | Where is the bus stop? | буудал хаана байна вэ? |
| jorlon khaana baina ve? | Where is the toilet? | жорлон хаана байна вэ? |
Ask if something is there
Is there ___?
| tsai baina uu? | Is there tea? | Цай байна уу? |
| us baina uu? | Is there water? | Ус байна уу? |
| buuz baina uu? | Is there buuz? | бууз байна уу? |
| oroo baina uu? | Is there a room? | өрөө байна уу? |
| suutei tsai baina uu? | Is there milk tea? | сүүтэй цай байна уу? |
Ask for something politely
___, please.
| us ogno uu | water, please. | Ус өгнө үү |
| tsai ogno uu | tea, please. | Цай өгнө үү |
| buuz ogno uu | buuz, please. | бууз өгнө үү |
| eniig ogno uu | this one, please. | энийг өгнө үү |
| tulkhuur ogno uu | the key, please. | түлхүүр өгнө үү |
Ask any price
How much is ___?
| ene khed ve? | How much is this? | Энэ хэд вэ? |
| oroo khed ve? | How much is the room? | өрөө хэд вэ? |
| tsai khed ve? | How much is the tea? | цай хэд вэ? |
| bilet khed ve? | How much is the ticket? | билет хэд вэ? |
Common questions
How do you say hello in Mongolian?
Sain baina uu. 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 Mongolian 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 Mongolian 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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