Small phrasebook

[Tal’jair Rusk]

Ni ceta… - Excuse me / I'm sorry…
Ke'rejorhaa'I, gedet'ye… - Tell me, please…
Tion'duu ni gana gar sush par kumana? - Can I have your attention for a minute?
Tion'duu ni… - May I…
Tion'meg jatne yust vaabi (bic)? - How is best to do this?
Me'vaar ti gar? - How are you?
Vor entye, ni jate. - Thank you, I'm well
Tion'sal…? - What color…?
Oya burun! - What a weather!
Ke'slana sol'yc payt (staabi) goy'ye, ven slana brii'la. - First turn left (right), then go straight.
Tion'vaii gar slana? - Where are you going?
Gar liniba goy'yir payt (staabi) sha nakil. - At the corner you need to turn left (right).
Tion'cuyi bid du'caryc? - Is it so late?
Su vaar'tuur! - It's still early!
Gedet'ye, ke ne'du'cari! - Don’t be late, please!
Gedet'ye, sol kumana! - One minute, please!
Ni ven'cuy jat'ca'nara. - I will be on time.
Ni ne'gana ca'nara. - I don’t have time.
Ni gana kil'yc ca'nara. - I have little time.
Tion'ca'nara? - What time is it?
Tion'canar (gar) ori'emuuri? - What season do you like most?
Tion'suvari ni? - Do you understand me?
Tion'aala aaray? - Do you hurt somewhere?
Tion'emuuri pir'shaadlar (tra'kajur, geroyacir ...)? - Do you like to swim (sunbath, play ...)?
Vor entye, ner emuur. - Thank you, with pleasure.
Su'cuy! - Hi!
Su cuy'gar! - Hello!
Tion'bana? - How's things going?
Jate vaar'tuur! - Good morning!
Ret'urcye mhi! - Good bye!
K'oyacyi! - Be careful.
Ret'! - Bye-bye!
Ven'jii! - See you later!
Jat. - Okay.
Jate. - Good.
An'jate. - Everything's fine.
Or'draar! - In no case! No way!
Tion'koora gar or ibic bana? - What would you advise in this case?
Ti ori'emuur. - With (great) pleasure.
Ori'serim. - Absolutely.
Ori'elek. - Yes, of course.
Serim! - Exactly!
Gar serim. - You're right.
Ret gebi ibic yust. - Perhaps it is so.
Ni koori ti gar (kaysh, val, ibic mird). - I agree with you (him, them, this point of view).
Ni ne'baati beh bic. - I don’t care about this.
Ke'jorhaa'i niviinyc'shya (kaabla'shya, shevla'shya), gedet'ye. - Please, speak slower (louder, quieter).

[Ruus]

Ori'vore, vod.

[Tal’jair Rusk]

Tion'bor sirbur o'r engle'a (germ'a, frank'a, spani'a)…? - How to say in english (in german, in french, in spanish)…?
Ke'tatugi ibac, gedet'ye. - Please, repeat that one more time
Ni nakar'mi yust ogir. - I don’t know the way (there).
Ni noy'ganyc. - I'm lost.
Ke'cerati bic bat vhekaj, gedet'ye. - Please, show it to me on the map.
Ke'rejorhaa'i oriy'taap, gedet'ye. - Give me an address, please.
Tion'chaaj bic (teh olar)? - How far is it (from here)?
Ni slana at yaim (par …). - I am going home (to …).
Ni trikari, ni ne'lise. - I'm sorry, I can't.
Nayc, gedet'ye. - No, thank you.
Ni ban'tioni elek. - I think yes.
Tion'koori gar? - Do you agree with me?
Ori'nayc. - Of course not.
Ni ne'koori ti gar. - I disagree with you.
Asheso'la! - On the contrary!
Naas bid'yc! - Nothing of the kind!
Ne'ret'yc. - It's unlikely.
Gar dunari. - You're mistaken.
Ke'gaa'tayli ni, gedet'ye. - Help me, please.
Ret. - Perhaps.
Ret'yc. - It's possible.
Ni ne'mirdi bid. - I doubt it.
Tion'ad kar'tayli? - Who knows!
Ni ne'mirutre'la. - I'm not sure.
Haa'tayli! - Look!
Tri'an! - Alas!
Ori'vor'e! - Thank you very much!
Ni gedeteya. - I'm very greatful.
Vor'e (par k'ola'miit). - Thanks (for the invitation).
Ori'jate. - Very good.
Vercopa. - I hope so.
Vor'e (par k'ola'miit). - Thanks (for the invitation).
Ibac naysol! - That’s too much!
Ni gana naas miite! Miite ayayti ni! - I don't know what to say! Words fail me!
Narseryc? - Seriously? (Really?)
Oh Manda! - Oh my God!
Haar'chak! - God dammit!
Jate'kara! - What a luck!
Ni ceta. - Sorry!
Di'dunar, gedet'ye. - Excuse me, please.
Ni vercopaani ni ne'aara gar. - I hope I didn’t hurt you.
Ni trikari gar ru'pare. - I'm sorry that you had to wait.
Ibac ne'ner dunar. - It's not my fault.
Naas baatir. - Nothing to worry about.
Bic trikar. - What a pity!
Ke'sush! - Attention!

[Vlet Hansen]

I've wound up using "how do you say" a lot and I usually just go with tion'joha or tion'sirbu

lots of good stuff in here

[Tal’jair Rusk]

Was thinking, apart from compiling a list of usable phrases, to give a kind of visual guide as to how to actually speak mando'a, how to compile a sentence.

[Mittramikad]

I think that's a great idea. It would be super helpful!

[Ruus]

Was thinking, apart from compiling a list of usable phrases, to give a kind of visual guide as to how to actually speak mando'a, how to compile a sentence.

Not sure what we'd do without you, ner vod.

[Tal’jair Rusk]

K'lamot di'dunla - "Apology accepted" (lit. "Rise, forgiven")
Uj'koor - Optimistic reply on having an agreement, like "Sweet", "Deal", "You got it"
Shukir bal gayiylir - "Crush and smear" (indication of total insignificance of a threat or insult. Like an annoying bug)
Naas kar'galan, ne trikar, ne kar'aray! - "No mercy, no regret, no remorse!" (motto of mandalorian mercenary groups)
Ni slana keb'hiibir bir'ca'nara ti ner vode (buire). - I often go shopping with my friends (parents).
Ni jate (lararyc, haryc). - I'm okay (slightly drunk, tired).
Tion'jate (tion'haryc, tion'duhaa'la) gar? - Are you okay (tired, sick)?
Ke ne'kar'tayli. - Don’t take it to heart.
Ni ne'ru'narsi ibac (mayen dush, aarar gar). - I didn’t mean that (anything bad, to hurt you).
Ne'ori'sushir. - Don’t pay attention.
Ni trikari (par ibic, par gair gar …) - I apologise (for this, for calling you …)
Ni kar'tayli gar darasuum. - I love you.
Ke'hoy! - Look out!
Ke'jora ven'jii, gedet'ye. - Please, call later.
Gar as'gaani naa'serim sol'gai. - You got the wrong number.
Bic dinui. - It's a present.
Jate tuur. - Good day.
Jate ca. - Good night.
Tion'sirbu gar? - What did you say?
Naas waadas. (Not worth anything) - Don’t mention it. (reply to Thank you)
Elek. - Yes.
Nayc. - No.

[Tal’jair Rusk]

ACQUAINTANCE

Ner gai… - My name is…
Tion'gai gar? - What is your name?
Jate urcir gar. - Nice to meet you
Me'vaar ti gar? - How are you?
Jate, gedet'ye. - Thank you, I'm well
K'urci … - Let me introduce you to…
Kaysh ner vod (buir, burc'ya…) - This is my brother (sister, mother, father, friend…)
Tion'car'haalur gar? - Do you smoke?
Tion’solet semire gar? - How old are you?
Tion'ganar vode? - Do you have any brothers or sisters?
Tion'solet semire kaysh vod? - How old is your brother (sister)?
Ni gana vod (… vode) bal dal'vod (… dal'vode). - I have a brother (… brothers) and a sister (… sisters)
Ni … semire. - I am … years old
I ven'gebi … semire. - I will be soon … years old
Tion'tuur gar gota'tuur? - When is your birthday?
Tion'vaii gar yaim'vhetin? - Where are you from?
Ni olaro teh Russia. - I am from Russia
Ni russ'yc. - I am russian
Tion'jorhaa'i engle'a (mando'a)? - Do you speak english (mando'a)?
Ni ne'jorhaa'I engle'a (mando'a). - I don’t speak english (mando'a)
Ni suvari engle'a (mando'a). - I understand english (mando'a)
Tion'suvari? - Do you understand me?
Tion'iviin'yc ni jorhaa'i? - Do I talk too fast?
Ni (ne) suvari gar. - I (don’t) understand you
Ke'jorhaa'i niviinyc'shya, gedet'ye. - Please, speak a little slower
Tion'bor sirbur o'r engle'a…? - How to say in english …?
Ke'tatugi bic, gedet'ye. - Please, repeat that one more time
Mhi (ne')liniba joh'amur. - We (don’t) need a translator
Ni hibira engle'a, al su ni jorha'i dush. - I am learning english, but I speak poorly still
Ni bor'ganan. - I am a businessman

[Mij Ret'lini]

Has anyone seen / come up with the word for leg?
I used to work in theatre. Saying, "Good luck!" , is actually supposed to be bad luck.
I'd like to translate:
"Break a leg, preferably someone else's."

Kind of along the lines of, "Today is a good day for someone else to die."

[Tal’jair Rusk]

Ke’shuku irtaab, jate’shya be ash’ad.

[Adi'karta]

Taljair, you keep this site humming along. Ori'vore. Your contributions to this community are immeasurable.

[Tal’jair Rusk]

Actually its pretty easy to measure. 169 posts

[Mij Ret'lini]

Vor'e!
Ni ven copaani hibirar an.
Got Spanish covered & working on German w/ my wife (she speaks it, I don't yet).
Hope to have Mando'a down by the time I've got the beskar'gam scheme figured out.

3 most important phrases in any language:

Vaii oshokita? Where's the 'fresher?
T'ad gal olar! 2 beers here!
Kaysh dinui waadas. He's paying. (To be used among friends with a good sense of humor only.)

[Tal’jair Rusk]

Tion’vaii oshokita? - Where’s the freshers?

Kaysh dinui waadas - He’s gifting money.
Kaysh beri - He’s paying (buying).

[Ge'tal Buy'ce]

A Mando walks into a bar, holds up two fingers, and says "Rayshe'a gal olar!"

I have put three different languages into a one-sentence joke, one of which is fictional. Someone send help.

[Mij Ret'lini]

Thanks for the corrections.
Those two felt wrong for some reason, now I know why.

[yatenari]

These aren't exactly things that usually fit into a phrasebook (at least, as far as I know), so if this would be better elsewhere or as a singular thread about phrasal expressions ...
I'm not too sure if the grammar is correct and I have taken a few liberties on how things are put together at times, but since they are supposed to be idioms, proverbs, sayings whatever, I thought that a bit of liberty would be normal. I've put what it is supposed to translate to in [] and included a translation (and some bits of other thoughts).

din'waadar beskar bah manda'yaim [lit. to sell beskar to Mandalore] - to do something useless, to do something redundant; the Mandalorian equivalent to 'carry owls to Athens' [or 'carry coals to Newcastle'] and similar expressions

besbe'tracye bat shebs (besbe'tra'ba'shebs) [lit. weapons on [the] ass] - an expression of disbelief, reluctance, aversion and disagreement – used similiary to 'like hell (I'll do that)', but can be attached to almost any statement; it is, as a word, kind of unwieldy, but could be contracted and used as a heartfelt curse to vent some frustration); from the German expression literally meaning 'the sledge hangs on the ass'

shebs bat tracyn (sheb'a'tracyn) [lit. ass on fire] - if used as a verb it means to spur sb. to action, to make sb. hurry up; as an adjective it describes someone in a great hurry; an alternative might be
sheb'ettyc [lit. burning ass], but I'm not too clear on the usage of hettyc for that

ne'cuyi Mandal ures gotabe [lit. there is no Mandal without Motors] - sth that cannot be viewed separately; an action that must be followed by another action or it won't be complete (a job half-done), you have to finish what you start; from the German expression literally meaning 'Who says A has to say B, too'

kar'tayli ni, kar'tayli striili [lit. know/love me, know/love [my] strill] - 'love me, love my dog', the 'darasuum' is omitted from it for shortness, the meaning 'to hold in one's heart' works as well, though

nu'kovid taabe'shya [lit. no head, more feet] - describing a forgetfulness – used in a mildly teasing manner, usually when an errand is run and part is forgotten; this is always without consequence except for a loss of time; from 'Those who can't use their head must use their back'; the second part can be simply implied by the first part if it is intoned as a tease

digur kovid meh nu'tomyc [lit. forget [the] head if [it were] not joint] - describing forgetfulness – used in a slightly condescening manner without actually being considered insulting, used when someone is constantly forgetting vital parts of a task or errand; from the German literally meaning 'to lose/forget one's head if it weren't attached [to the body]; the second part can by implied by the first part

ke'gycir jetii rejorhaa'ir akaan [lit. to order Jedi to declare war] - to have the wrong person for a job, to task someone without the proper qualifications with an important mission; ke'gycir is derived from ke'gyce to simply mean 'to order', and rejorhaa'ir akaan is my quick derivation for 'to declare war'

narir striili'bora [lit. to do a strill's job] and narir shab'ora [lit. do a screwp-up job] - two parts of a whole, the first means doing a good (support) job, while the second means the complete opposite, doing a disservice (especially if done by someone who is supposed to be a professional)

[Mij Ret'lini]

Another one I like;
Aru'e be ner aru'e ner besbe'trayc. - The enemy of my enemy is my weapon.

[Tal’jair Rusk]

K'lamot di'dunla - "Apology accepted" (lit. "Rise, forgiven")
Uj'koor - Optimistic reply on having an agreement, like "Sweet", "Deal", "You got it"
Shukir bal gayiylir - "Crush and smear" (indication of total insignificance of a threat or insult. Like an annoying bug)
Naas kar'galan, ne trikar, ne kar'aray! - "No mercy, no regret, no remorse!"