Bedeutung
Saying you will return immediately.
Kultureller Hintergrund
Saying 'I'm going' (ehedallhu) can sound abrupt or even slightly rude in a cozy social setting. 'I'm coming' (emetallhu) is the polite 'social glue'. In the fast-paced capital, this phrase is often shortened to just 'መጣሁ!' (Mettahu!) which literally means 'I came!' but is used to mean 'I'm on it!' In meetings, if you must take a call, a slight bow and 'አሁን እመጣለሁ' is the standard professional way to excuse yourself. On Ethiopian social media, 'Ahun emetallhu' is the equivalent of 'AFK' (Away From Keyboard).
The 'Mettahu' Shortcut
If you want to sound like a local, just say 'Mettahu!' with a smile as you walk away. It's the ultimate cool-kid way to say 'BRB'.
Don't Overuse with Strangers
With people you don't know well, use the full 'Ahun emetallhu' to remain polite and clear.
Bedeutung
Saying you will return immediately.
The 'Mettahu' Shortcut
If you want to sound like a local, just say 'Mettahu!' with a smile as you walk away. It's the ultimate cool-kid way to say 'BRB'.
Don't Overuse with Strangers
With people you don't know well, use the full 'Ahun emetallhu' to remain polite and clear.
The 'Habesha Time' Trap
If you say this, try to actually be back within 10 minutes. If you take 30, people will tease you about your 'Amharic minutes'.
Body Language
Usually accompanied by a slight hand gesture or a nod towards the direction you are going.
Teste dich selbst
You are at a friend's house and need to go to your car for a second. What do you say?
ጓደኛዬ ሆይ፣ ____።
‘አሁን እመጣለሁ’ is the correct way to say you'll be right back.
Complete the sentence to say 'I will come right now' (emphatic).
____ እመጣለሁ።
Adding '-ኑ' to 'አሁን' makes it 'right now'.
Match the phrase to the correct situation.
Situation: You are leaving work for the day and won't return until tomorrow.
You shouldn't use 'Ahun emetallhu' if you aren't coming back soon.
Fill in the missing line.
A: ቡናው ቀርቧል! (Coffee is served!) B: እሺ፣ እጄን ታጥቤ ____።
The speaker is promising to return to the coffee after washing their hands.
🎉 Ergebnis: /4
Visuelle Lernhilfen
Variations of 'Coming'
Urgent
- • አሁኑኑ እመጣለሁ
Casual
- • መጣሁ!
Formal
- • ተመልሼ እመጣለሁ
Aufgabensammlung
4 Aufgabenጓደኛዬ ሆይ፣ ____።
‘አሁን እመጣለሁ’ is the correct way to say you'll be right back.
____ እመጣለሁ።
Adding '-ኑ' to 'አሁን' makes it 'right now'.
Situation: You are leaving work for the day and won't return until tomorrow.
You shouldn't use 'Ahun emetallhu' if you aren't coming back soon.
A: ቡናው ቀርቧል! (Coffee is served!) B: እሺ፣ እጄን ታጥቤ ____።
The speaker is promising to return to the coffee after washing their hands.
🎉 Ergebnis: /4
Häufig gestellte Fragen
10 FragenTechnically yes, but it's better to say 'ቆይቼ እመጣለሁ' (I'll come after a while) so people don't wait for you.
Yes, it is neutral. To make it more formal, add 'ይቅርታ' (Excuse me) at the beginning.
It's a cultural focus on the relationship. You are coming back to the person, not just going away from them.
'Ahun' is 'now'. 'Ahununu' is 'right now/immediately'.
Yes, it literally means 'I came', but in this context, it's used idiomatically for 'I'm coming right now'.
Yes, it's the most common way to say 'BRB' in Amharic texts.
Use 'አሁን እንመጣለን' (Ahun ennemetallan).
Then you've lied! In Amharic culture, this is a small promise. If you break it, just apologize later.
It's an ejective. Try to make a clicking sound with your tongue against your teeth while saying 't'.
No, the 'እ-' prefix in 'እመጣለሁ' already means 'I'.
Verwandte Redewendungen
ተመልሼ እመጣለሁ
similarI will come back.
አሁኑኑ
builds onRight now.
ቆይ
similarWait.
እሄዳለሁ
contrastI am going.
መጣሁ
specialized formI'm coming!
