When travelling to Pakistan, it’s important to be familiar with some basic phrases in Urdu, the official language of the country, in order to communicate with locals and make your trip more enjoyable. Now although English is spoken by many in Pakistan, there is still a large amount that don’t and those that do can often have very low levels of it. In any case, it helps to make an effort and they will love it if you try.
Here are the top 20 phrases you must learn in Urdu when travelling to Pakistan:
- Hello: “Assalam-o-Alaikum” (Peace be upon you)
- Goodbye: “Khuda Hafiz” (May God protect you)
- Thank you: “Shukria”
- Yes: “Haan”
- No: “Nahi”
- Excuse me: “Mujhe maaf kar den”
- How are you? “Aap kaise hain?”
- I’m fine: “Main thik hoon”
- My name is: “Meraa naam hai”
- What’s your name? “Aap ka naam kya hai?”
- How much does it cost? “Yeh kitne ka hai?”
- Can you help me? “Kya aap mujhe madad kar sakte hain?”
- Where is the bathroom? “Bathroom kahan hai?”
- Do you speak English? “Kya aap angrezi bolte hain?”
- Can you speak more slowly? “Kya aap dheere bol sakte hain?”
- Can you repeat that? “Kya aap woh dobara bata sakte hain?”
- I don’t understand: “Main samajh nahi pa raha hoon”
- Can you write it down for me? “Kya aap mujhe likh kar de sakte hain?”
- Can I have the bill please? “Kya main bill le sakta hoon?”
- Where can I find a taxi? “Taxi kahan mil sakti hai?”
Learning these basic phrases will help you to communicate with locals and make your trip more enjoyable. It’s also important to remember that Urdu is written in their alphabet so can be harder to speak if you can’t read their alphabet. The above is phonetic.
