tahniah
The English phrase "congratulations" is translated into Malay as tahniah.
tahniah is a common and straightforward way to express approbation. When you want to say "Congratulations on…" to specify the achievement, follow the word with the preposition atas. For example, you can say tahniah atas…
Meaning: expressing approbation (intj)
How does it change in a sentence?
tahniah can be used as a standalone exclamation to express congratulations.
Did you know?
- The word tahniah is an Arabic loanword, meaning it shares the same linguistic roots as the Arabic word for 'felicitations'.
- When expressing tahniah for a wedding, it is common to add a prayer for the couple, as a standalone 'congratulations' can feel too brief in a religious context.
- In professional Malaysian settings, tahniah is often delivered with a slight bow of the head to show respect to the person being congratulated if they are of higher social rank.
Examples in context
- Tahniah kepada kamu berdua.Congratulations to you both.This sentence shows how to direct a congratulation to a specific group using tahniah.Tatoeba #6387862 by LeeSooHa, translation #2643770 by CK
- Saya terdengar awak menang. Tahniah!I heard you won. Congratulations!This sentence shows how to use tahniah as a standalone exclamation.Tatoeba #9155465 by LeeSooHa, translation #870508 by sundown
- Tahniah atas kejayaan kamu dalam peperiksaan!Congratulations on your success in the examination!
- Selamat atas pencapaian yang cemerlang!Congratulations on your outstanding achievement!
- Congrats atas promosi baru!Congratulations on the new promotion!
- Hebatnya kamu berjaya menamatkan maraton itu!It's great that you completed that marathon!
- Tahniah atas kejayaan anda!Congratulations on your success!
Example conversation
Hafiz has just received a promotion at work.
- AishahHafiz, tahniah atas kenaikan pangkat awak!Hafiz, congratulations on your promotion!
- HafizTerima kasih, Aishah.Thank you, Aishah.
- AishahAwak memang layak mendapatkannya.You really deserve it.
- HafizSaya sangat gembira hari ini.I am very happy today.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “congratulations” translations and entries tahniah, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries tahniah, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
