አመሰግናለሁ
ʾämäsägnalähu
To say "thank you" in Amharic, you use አመሰግናለሁ (ʾämäsägnalähu). Wiktionary also lists ኣመሰገናልሎ (ʾamäsägnaləlo).
Meaning: an expression of gratitude (intj)
Ways to say it
| Amharic | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| አመሰግናለሁ | ʾämäsägnalähu |
| ኣመሰገናልሎ | ʾamäsägnaləlo |
The phrases are used to express gratitude.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is literally constructed from the verb root meaning "to thank" and the first-person singular suffix indicating "I", translating to "I have thanked (you)".
How does it change in a sentence?
While አመሰግናለሁ is the standard way to say "thank you", the verb can be conjugated with specific gendered suffixes to target a specific person, such as አመሰገንኩህ for a male.
How do you pronounce it?
ʾämäsägnalähu
Did you know?
- When receiving a gift, some Ethiopians may initially decline the item before saying አመሰግናለሁ as a sign of modesty and humility.
- While አመሰግናለሁ means 'thank you', Ethiopians often express gratitude by saying እግዚአብሔር ይባርክህ, which translates to 'may God bless you'.
- Amharic is a Semitic language, making the root of አመሰግናለሁ a distant relative of words for 'praise' or 'thanks' in Arabic and Hebrew.
Examples in context
- በጣም አመሰግናለሁ።betam amesegeñalehu.Thank you very much.
- ስለ እርዳታህ አመሰግናለሁ።sile erdatahi amesegeñalehu.Thank you for your help.
- ስለ ስጦታው አመሰግናለሁ።sile sitotaw amesegeñalehu.Thank you for the gift.
Example conversation
Betelhem gives Nati a book.
- ቤተልሔም Betelhemይህ መጽሐፍ ላንተ ነው።Yih metsihaf lante new.This book is for you.
- ናቲ Natiአመሰግናለሁ፣ ቤተልሔም!Ameseginalehu, Betelhem!Thank you, Betelhem!
- ቤተልሔም Betelhemምንም አይደለም።Minim aydelem.It is nothing.
- ናቲ Natiበጣም ደስ ይላል።Betam des yilal.That is very nice.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “thank you” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
