Amharic Gender
Welcome to the fifth Amharic lesson about gender. This time we will view a list of people, feminine and masculine, followed by grammar rules, finally a list of expressions in Amharic to help you practice your daily phrases. To hear the pronunciation, just click on the sound icon.
man  ወንድ [wänədə] | woman ሴት [setə] | husband ባል [balə ] | wife ሚስት [misətə] |
boy ወንድ ልጅ [wänədə ləǧə ] | girl ልጃገረድ [ləǧagärädə ] | father እባት [ʾəbatə] | mother እናት [ʾənatə] |
Gender Grammar Rules
In general, gender is used to distinguish between male and female, sometimes referred to as masculine and feminine. For example: my son and daughter are students the noun [son] is masculine, while [daughter] is feminine. The following examples use gender in different ways and places to demonstrate their behavior.
| Grammar + Rules | Amharic + Pronunciation |
|---|---|
| my son is a student [masculine + noun] | ወንድ ልጄ ተማሪ ነው [wänədə ləǧe tämari näwə ] |
| her daughter is a student [feminine + noun] | ሴት ልጅዋ ተማሪ ነች [setə ləǧəwa tämari näčə] |
| he has a tall brother [adjective + masculine] | ረጅም ወንድም አለው [räǧəmə wänədəmə ʾäläwə ] |
| she has a tall sister [adjective + feminine] | ረጅም እህት አላት [räǧəmə ʾəhətə ʾälatə ] |
| his brothers are young [plural masculine + adjective] | ወንድሞቹ ወጣቶች ናቸው [wänədəmoču wät'atočə načäwə ] |
| his sisters are young [plural feminine + adjective] | እህቶቹ ወጣቶች ናቸው [ʾəhətoču wät'atočə načäwə ] |
The list below will probably provide more clarification. These are family members (males and females). I think it would be wise to memorize them as part of your important vocabulary list.
son ወንድ ልጅ [wänədə ləǧə ] | daughter ሴት ልጅ [ setə ləǧə] | brother ወንድም [wänədəmə] | sister እህት [ʾəhətə] |
grandfather ወንድ አያት [wänədə ʾäyatə] | grandmother ሴት አያት [setə ʾäyatə] | child ልጅ [ləǧə] | children ልጆች [ləǧočə] |
Expressions in Amharic
Now it's time to practice expressions used in daily conversations. If you're a beginner in learning Amharic, then the phrases below are something you would want to know.
| English | Amharic | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| What do you mean? | ምን ማለትህ ነው? | [mənə malätəhə näwə?] |
| I don't understand | አልገባኝም | [ʾäləgäbañəmə] |
| I don't know | አላውቅም | [ʾälawəqəmə] |
| What is that called in Amharic? | ያ በአማርኛ ምን ተብሎ ይጠራል? | [ya bäʾämarəña mənə täbəlo yət'äralə?] |
| What is this? | ይህ ምንድነው? | [yəhə mənədənäwə?] |
| What does that word mean in English? | ያ ቃል በእንግሊዘኛ ምን ማለት ነው? | [ya qalə bäʾənəgəlizäña mənə malätə näwə?] |
| Sorry (if you made a mistake) | አዝናለሁ | [ʾäzənalähu] |
I hope you enjoyed this lesson about the gender in Amharic. If you have any question about this lesson please contact me here. Now it's time to check the next lesson below.
| Amharic Numbers |
Inspirational Quote: High achievement always takes place in a framework of high expectation. Jack Kinder |