រាត្រីសួស្តី
reatrey suosdey
The English phrase "good night" is translated into Khmer as រាត្រីសួស្តី (reatrey suosdey).
រាត្រីសួស្តី is used as a farewell when parting ways at night or before going to sleep, rather than as a greeting upon arrival.
Meaning: a farewell (phrase)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of រាត្រី (reatrey) meaning 'night' and សួស្តី (suosdey) meaning 'goodness' or 'well-being'.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
រាត្រីសួស្តី is relatively formal and is often used in media, literature or polite social settings.
How do you pronounce it?
reatrey suosdey
Did you know?
- The word សួស្តី used in this phrase is a modern creation. It was developed to provide a general greeting and farewell that didn't rely on traditional religious or hierarchical markers.
- In intimate family settings, a 'good night' is often accompanied by the 'sampeah' gesture, where the palms are pressed together. The height of the hands indicates the level of respect for the elder.
- The word រាត្រី (reatrey) comes from Sanskrit, a classical language, which is why the phrase feels more elegant and formal than everyday Khmer.
Examples in context
- រាត្រីសួស្តី!reatrei suostei!Good night!
Example conversation
Narong and Mali are saying goodbye at the end of the evening.
- ម៉ាលី Malyខ្ញុំត្រូវទៅផ្ទះឥឡូវហើយ។Knhom trov tov phteah ey lov houy.I have to go home now.
- ណារ៉ុង Narongបាទ ធ្វើដំណើរដោយសុខសប្បាយណា ម៉ាលី។Bat, thveu domner doy sok sabbay na, Mali.Yes, have a safe trip, Mali.
- ម៉ាលី Malyអរគុណ ណារ៉ុង រាត្រីសួស្តី។Orkun, Narong, reatrey sour sdey.Thank you, Narong, good night.
- ណារ៉ុង Narongរាត្រីសួស្តី ម៉ាលី។Reatrey sour sdey, Mali.Good night, Mali.
