Module 2: Building Blocks – Essential Vocabulary & Phrases
Congratulations on mastering the script! Now, the real fun begins. In this module, we will build your vocabulary, giving you the essential words and phrases you need for basic communication in Cambodia.
Pronunciation Engine Status: Initializing...
Lesson 2.1: Essential Greetings (Formal & Informal)
The way you greet someone in Cambodia depends on their age and status. Using the correct greeting shows respect.
| Khmer | Romanization | English | Usage |
|---|---|---|---|
| ជំរាបសួរ | chum-riep-suor | Hello (Formal) | Use with elders, officials, or people you don't know. Always accompanied by a សំពះ (sampeah). |
| សួស្ដី | suo-sdey | Hello (Informal) | Use with friends, peers, and people younger than you. |
| ជំរាបលា | chum-riep-lie | Goodbye (Formal) | Used in formal situations. |
| លាសិនហើយ | lie-sen-haeuy | Goodbye (Informal) | Commonly used among friends. Literally "goodbye for now". |
Lesson 2.2: The Key Words
These five words are the absolute essentials for polite communication.
| Khmer | Romanization | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| បាទ | baat | Yes (male speaker) | Also used to show you are listening or to say "pardon?". |
| ចាស | chaa | Yes (female speaker) | Same usage as បាទ for female speakers. |
| ទេ | dtei | No / Not | A simple and direct "no". |
| សូម | soom | Please | Used at the beginning of a request. |
| អរគុណ | ar-kun | Thank you | For a more heartfelt thank you, say អរគុណច្រើន (ar-kun chraen). |
| សូមទោស | soom-dtoh | Sorry / Excuse me | Used for apologising or getting someone's attention. |
Lesson 2.3: Introducing Yourself & Others
| Khmer Phrase | Romanization | English |
|---|---|---|
| ខ្ញុំឈ្មោះ... | khnhom chmuah... | My name is... |
| អ្នកឈ្មោះអ្វី? | neak chmuah ey? | What is your name? |
| គាត់ឈ្មោះ... | koat chmuah... | His/Her name is... |
| រីករាយដែលបានជួបអ្នក | rik-reay dael baan chuop neak | Nice to meet you. |
Example Conversation:
You: ជំរាបសួរ។ ខ្ញុំឈ្មោះ David។ (chum-riep-suor. khnhom chmuah David.)
Them: ជំរាបសួរ David។ ខ្ញុំឈ្មោះ Sophea។ រីករាយដែលបានជួបអ្នក។ (chum-riep-suor David. khnhom chmuah Sophea. rik-reay dael baan chuop neak.)
You: ជំរាបសួរ។ ខ្ញុំឈ្មោះ David។ (chum-riep-suor. khnhom chmuah David.)
Them: ជំរាបសួរ David។ ខ្ញុំឈ្មោះ Sophea។ រីករាយដែលបានជួបអ្នក។ (chum-riep-suor David. khnhom chmuah Sophea. rik-reay dael baan chuop neak.)
Lesson 2.4: People & Family
Cultural Note: The terms បង (bong - older sibling/person) and ប្អូន (p'oun - younger sibling/person) are used constantly to show respect, even to strangers. You might call your slightly older waiter "bong". It is a key part of polite address.
| Khmer | Romanization | English |
|---|---|---|
| ខ្ញុំ | khnhom | I, me |
| អ្នក | neak | You |
| គាត់ | koat | He, she |
| យើង | yeung | We, us |
| ពួកគេ | puok-kei | They, them |
| ឪពុក / ប៉ា | ov-puk / pa | Father / Dad |
| ម្ដាយ / ម៉ាក់ | m'day / mak | Mother / Mom |
| បងប្រុស | bong-proh | Older brother |
| បងស្រី | bong-srey | Older sister |
| ប្អូនប្រុស | p'oun-proh | Younger brother |
| ប្អូនស្រី | p'oun-srey | Younger sister |
| មិត្តភក្ដិ | mit-pheak | Friend |
Lesson 2.5 & 2.6: Numbers
Numbers in Khmer follow a logical pattern. Once you learn 1-10 and the words for 20, 30 etc., you can form any number.
How it works: To say a number like 21, you say "twenty one": ម្ភៃមួយ (m'phey muoy). This pattern continues for all numbers.
| Number | Khmer | Romanization | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | ដប់មួយ | dop-muoy | |
| 20 | ម្ភៃ | m'phey | |
| 30 | សាមសិប | sam-seb | |
| 40 | សែសិប | sae-seb | |
| 50 | ហាសិប | ha-seb | |
| 100 | មួយរយ | muoy-roy | |
| 1,000 | មួយពាន់ | muoy-poan | |
| 10,000 | មួយម៉ឺន | muoy-muen |
Lesson 2.7 to 2.15: Thematic Vocabulary Lists
The following sections provide expanded lists of common words organized by theme.
Food & Drink (Lesson 2.7)
| Water | ទឹក (tuk) |
| Rice (cooked) | បាយ (bai) |
| Coffee | កាហ្វេ (ka-fe) |
| Beer | ប៊ីយែរ (bi-yer) |
| Delicious | ឆ្ងាញ់ (chnganh) |
| Spicy | ហឹរ (hoer) |
| Beef | សាច់គោ (sach-ko) |
| Chicken | សាច់មាន់ (sach-moan) |
Places & Locations (Lesson 2.8)
| House | ផ្ទះ (phteah) |
| Market | ផ្សារ (phsar) |
| School | សាលារៀន (sala-rien) |
| Hospital | មន្ទីរពេទ្យ (monti-pet) |
| Airport | ព្រលានយន្តហោះ (pro-lean-yon-hah) |
| Hotel | សណ្ឋាគារ (san-tha-kie) |
Time: Days & Months (Lesson 2.9)
| Monday | ថ្ងៃច័ន្ទ (thngai-chan) |
| Tuesday | ថ្ងៃអង្គារ (thngai-ang-kie) |
| Wednesday | ថ្ងៃពុធ (thngai-put) |
| January | ខែមករា (khae mak-ka-ra) |
| February | ខែកុម្ភៈ (khae kom-pheak) |
Telling Time & Times of Day (Lesson 2.10)
| What time is it? | ម៉ោងប៉ុន្មានហើយ? (maong pon-maan haeuy?) |
| It is 1 o'clock. | ម៉ោងមួយ (maong muoy) |
| Morning | ពេលព្រឹក (pel proek) |
| Afternoon | ពេលរសៀល (pel ro-siel) |
| Night | ពេលយប់ (pel yup) |
Essential Verbs (Lesson 2.11 & 2.12)
| To go | ទៅ (tov) |
| To come | មក (mork) |
| To eat | ញ៉ាំ (nham) |
| To drink | ផឹក (phoek) |
| To have | មាន (mien) |
| To want | ចង់ (chong) |
| To like | ចូលចិត្ត (chol-chet) |
| To sleep | គេង (keng) |
| To speak | និយាយ (ni-yeay) |
| To understand | យល់ (yul) |
Common Adjectives & Colors (Lesson 2.13 & 2.14)
| Big | ធំ (thom) |
| Small | តូច (dtoch) |
| Hot | ក្តៅ (kdau) |
| Cold | ត្រជាក់ (tror-cheak) |
| Beautiful | ស្អាត (sa'aat) |
| Red | ពណ៌ក្រហម (por kro-horm) |
| Blue | ពណ៌ខៀវ (por khew) |
| White | ពណ៌ស (por sor) |
Asking for Prices (Lesson 2.15)
The key phrase is: ...តម្លៃប៉ុន្មាន? (...tamlai pon-maan?) - How much is...?
Example: នេះតម្លៃប៉ុន្មាន? (Nih tamlai pon-maan?) - How much is this?
Lesson 2.16: Module 2 Review & Quiz
You have just learned a huge number of essential words and phrases! This is your core vocabulary for building sentences in the next module. Test your knowledge below.
Self-Assessment Quiz
Try to answer these questions without looking at the tables above.
- How would a male speaker say "Yes, thank you"?
- What is the Khmer word for "older sister"?
- If today is ថ្ងៃច័ន្ទ (Monday), what is tomorrow?
- Translate this sentence: ខ្ញុំចង់បានកាហ្វេ។
Answers: 1. បាទ អរគុណ (baat ar-kun), 2. បងស្រី (bong-srey), 3. ថ្ងៃអង្គារ (thngai-ang-kie - Tuesday), 4. I want coffee.
Module Complete! You are now equipped with the fundamental vocabulary to begin expressing yourself in Khmer. Get ready for Module 3, where we will learn how to put these words together using Khmer grammar!