Useful foreign phrases |
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Colours |
Kinship |
Idioms |
Tongue twisters |
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Useful foreign phrases |
Numbers |
Colours |
Kinship |
Idioms |
Tongue twisters |
Proverbs |
Other multilingual pages
A collection of useful phrases in Iban, a language closely related to Malay and spoken in Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei. Click on the English phrases to see them in many other languages.
Key to abbreviations: frm = formal, inf = informal
| English | Jako Iban (Iban) |
|---|---|
| Welcome | Selamat datai |
| Good morning | Selamat pagi |
| Good afternoon | Selamat tengah hari |
| Good night | Selamat lamai |
| How are you? I'm fine. And you? |
Nama Berita? (what news?) Bakani gaya kitak? (How's life?) |
| Manah. Nuan/Dik deh? Dik/nuan, nama berita? | |
| Long time no see | Udah lama enda betemu |
| What's your name? My name is ... |
Sapa nama dik? |
| Nama aku ... | |
| Where are you from? I'm from ... |
Nuan/dik datai 'ari ni? |
| Aku datai 'ari ... | |
| Pleased to meet you | Manah betemu nuan! |
| Good morning | Selamat pagi |
| Good afternoon | Selamat tengah hari (12-2pm) |
| Good evening | Selamat lamai (2-7pm) |
| Good night | Selamat malam (after 7pm) |
| Goodbye | Kami ka' mupuk dulu (we're going back to where we're from) Betemu baru ila (see you later) |
| Good luck | |
| Good health! | Gerai Nyamai! |
| Have a nice day | Arap meh sari dik/nuan manah amai! |
| Bon appetit | Nyamai nya' empa/lauk dimakai nuan? (is it good?) Makai 'agi! (eat more!) Makai am! (let's go eat!) |
| Bon voyage | Jimat jimat bejalai |
| I don't understand | Aku enda mereti |
| I don't know | Aku enda nemu |
| Please speak more slowly | Ulih nuan/ dik jako belubah? |
| Please say that again | Nama nya' agi? (What's that again?) Ulih nuan nyebut nya' agi? (Could you say that again?) |
| Please write this/that down | Ulih nuan nulih leka jako nya/tu? |
| Do you speak Iban? Yes, a little |
Nuan/Dik nemu bejako iban? Ulih/Nemu nuan/dik bejako Iban? |
| Nemu mimit aja | |
| How do you say ... in Iban? |
Baka ni nyebut ... ba jako iban? Nama leka jako ... ba Iban? |
| Leave me alone! | Anang ngachau aku! |
| Excuse me | |
| How much is this? | Brapa rega tu? |
| Sorry | Minta ampun / Ampun |
| Quick | Jampat |
| It's very cold | Celap amat |
| It's very hot | 'Angat amat |
| Thank you Response |
Terima kasih / Tabik basa |
| Sama-sama / Nadai ngawa' | |
| Where's the toilet? | Dini endor jamban? Dini endor Agu? |
| This gentleman/lady will pay for everything |
Iya ka' mayar semoa nya' |
| Would you like to dance with me? |
Ka nuan betanda enggau aku? |
| I miss you | Aku lelenggau ka nuan/dik |
| I love you | Aku sayau nuan? |
| Get well soon | |
| Help! Fire! Stop! |
|
| Merry Christmas and Happy New Year |
Selamat Hari Krismas (Christmas) Selamat Taun Baru (New Year) |
| Happy Birthday | Selamat Hari pengada |
| One language is never enough |
Enda chukup/Umbas enti nemu bejako aja Siti Jako aja sigi enda chukup |
| My hovercraft is full of eels |
|
| Don't be naughty | Anang manchal! |
| Where can I find ...? | Dini ulih ngiga' ... |
Iban phrases provided by Christian Maynes, with corrections by Farrel Gara
If you would like to make any corrections or additions to this page, please contact me.
Collections of Iban phrases (some with audio)
Cebuano, Chamorro, Fijian, Hawaiian, Iban, Iloko, Indonesian, Javanese, Malay, Māori, Samoan, Sundanese, Tagalog, Tahitian, Tetum, Tuvaluan