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Asking 'How are you?' (Endet neh/nesh)

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Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds

Use 'Endet' followed by a gender-specific verb to ask 'How are you?' in Amharic.

  • Use 'Endet neh?' for a male (How are you, man?)
  • Use 'Endet nesh?' for a female (How are you, woman?)
  • Use 'Endet nachew?' for formal or plural (How are you, sir/madam/everyone?)
Endet + [Verb: neh/nesh/nachew] + ?

Greeting Conjugation Table

Person Amharic English
Male
Endet neh?
How are you?
Female
Endet nesh?
How are you?
Formal/Plural
Endet nachew?
How are you?

Meanings

The standard way to inquire about someone's well-being in Amharic.

1

Informal Male

Asking a male peer how they are.

“Endet neh?”

“Endet neh, selam?”

2

Informal Female

Asking a female peer how they are.

“Endet nesh?”

“Endet nesh, selam?”

3

Formal/Plural

Asking someone older, a stranger, or a group.

“Endet nachew?”

“Endet nachew, selam?”

Reference Table

Reference table for Asking 'How are you?' (Endet neh/nesh)
Form Structure Example
Informal Male
Endet + neh
Endet neh?
Informal Female
Endet + nesh
Endet nesh?
Formal
Endet + nachew
Endet nachew?
Plural
Endet + nachew
Endet nachew?
Negative
Endet + aydeleh-m
Endet aydeleh-m?
Response
Dehna
Dehna negn

Spectre de formalité

Formel
Endet nachew?

Endet nachew? (General greeting)

Neutre
Endet neh/nesh?

Endet neh/nesh? (General greeting)

Informel
Endet neh/nesh?

Endet neh/nesh? (General greeting)

Argot
Endet?

Endet? (General greeting)

Greeting Map

Endet

Male

  • neh are you

Female

  • nesh are you

Formal

  • nachew are you
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Exemples par niveau

1

Endet neh?

How are you (m)?

2

Endet nesh?

How are you (f)?

3

Endet nachew?

How are you (polite)?

4

Selam, endet neh?

Hi, how are you?

1

Endet neh, dehna neh?

How are you, are you well?

2

Endet nesh, dehna nesh?

How are you (f), are you well?

3

Endet nachew, dehna nachew?

How are you (polite), are you well?

4

Endet neh, betam dehna?

How are you, very well?

1

Endet neh, yene wud?

How are you, my dear?

2

Endet nesh, ke-bet?

How are you (f), from home?

3

Endet nachew, ke-sira?

How are you (polite), from work?

4

Endet neh, hulu selam?

How are you, is everything peaceful?

1

Endet neh, le-min ayetayehim?

How are you, why haven't you been seen?

2

Endet nesh, yene-kibret?

How are you (f), my respected one?

3

Endet nachew, ke-sira-bet?

How are you (polite), from the office?

4

Endet neh, hulu dehna?

How are you, is everything fine?

1

Endet neh, hulu negere-mulu?

How are you, is everything complete?

2

Endet nesh, ke-tihitina?

How are you (f), with humility?

3

Endet nachew, ke-kibir?

How are you (polite), with honor?

4

Endet neh, ke-selamta?

How are you, with greetings?

1

Endet neh, ke-zemen?

How are you, in these times?

2

Endet nesh, ke-tizita?

How are you (f), with nostalgia?

3

Endet nachew, ke-sira-me-sira?

How are you (polite), with work?

4

Endet neh, ke-hulu-neger?

How are you, with everything?

Facile à confondre

Asking 'How are you?' (Endet neh/nesh) vs neh vs nesh

Mixing up gender endings.

Asking 'How are you?' (Endet neh/nesh) vs neh vs nachew

Using formal for friends.

Asking 'How are you?' (Endet neh/nesh) vs Endet vs Dehna

Mixing up the words.

Erreurs courantes

✗

Endet nesh (to a man)

✓

Endet neh

Wrong gender ending.
✗

Endet neh (to a boss)

✓

Endet nachew

Too informal.
✗

Ante endet neh

✓

Endet neh

Redundant pronoun.
✗

Endet nachew (to a friend)

✓

Endet neh/nesh

Too formal.
✗

Endet nesh (to a group)

✓

Endet nachew

Plural needs formal form.
✗

Endet neh (to a woman)

✓

Endet nesh

Gender mismatch.
✗

Endet nachew (to a child)

✓

Endet neh/nesh

Too formal for a child.
✗

Endet nachew (to a peer)

✓

Endet neh/nesh

Unnecessary formality.
✗

Endet neh (to an elder)

✓

Endet nachew

Disrespectful.
✗

Endet nesh (to a group of men)

✓

Endet nachew

Plural requires formal.
✗

Endet nachew (to a close friend)

✓

Endet neh/nesh

Creates distance.
✗

Endet neh (to a mixed group)

✓

Endet nachew

Plural requires formal.
✗

Endet nesh (to a boss)

✓

Endet nachew

Too informal.
✗

Endet nachew (to a child)

✓

Endet neh/nesh

Too formal.

Structures de phrases

Endet ___?

Endet ___, dehna ___?

Selam, endet ___?

Endet ___, hulu selam?

Real World Usage

Texting constant

Endet neh?

Social Media very common

Endet nesh?

Job Interview common

Endet nachew?

Travel common

Endet nachew?

Food Delivery occasional

Endet nachew?

Cafe very common

Endet neh?

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💡

Gender Matters

Always check the gender of the person you are talking to.
⚠️

Don't Over-Formalize

Using formal forms with friends can sound weird.
🎯

Combine Greetings

Use 'Selam' and 'Endet' together.
💬

Be Patient

Greetings in Ethiopia are a social ritual.

Smart Tips

Use 'nachew' to show respect.

Endet neh? → Endet nachew?

Use 'neh' or 'nesh'.

Endet nachew? → Endet neh?

Combine with 'Selam'.

Endet neh? → Selam, endet neh?

Use 'nachew'.

Endet neh? → Endet nachew?

Prononciation

IPA: /ɛndɛt/

Endet

Pronounced 'en-det'.

IPA: /nɛh/

neh

Pronounced 'neh'.

IPA: /nɛʃ/

nesh

Pronounced 'nesh'.

IPA: /natʃɛw/

nachew

Pronounced 'na-chew'.

Question

Endet neh? ↗

Rising intonation at the end.

Mémorise-le

Moyen mnémotechnique

Endet is the 'How', the rest is just the 'Who'.

Association visuelle

Imagine a man named 'Neh' and a woman named 'Nesh' waving at you.

Rhyme

For a man say neh, for a woman say nesh, formal is nachew, keep it fresh!

Story

You walk into a room. You see your friend Abebe. You say 'Endet neh?'. Then you see your friend Selam. You say 'Endet nesh?'. Finally, you see your boss. You say 'Endet nachew?'.

Word Web

Endetnehneshnachewdehnaselam

Défi

Say these three phrases out loud 5 times each right now.

Notes culturelles

Greetings are very important and can take a long time.

Similar usage of greetings.

Often simplified in casual settings.

Derived from Ge'ez roots.

Amorces de conversation

“

Endet neh?

“

Endet nesh?

“

Endet nachew?

“

Endet neh, hulu selam?

Sujets d'écriture

Write about greeting a friend.
Write about greeting a teacher.
Write about a formal meeting.
Write about cultural greetings.

Erreurs courantes

Incorrect

Correct

Incorrect

Correct

Incorrect

Correct

Incorrect

Correct

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Test Yourself

Fill in the blank for a man.

Endet ___?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Neh is for men.
Which is correct for a woman? Choix multiple

Endet ___?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: b
Nesh is for women.
Correct the sentence: Endet nesh (to a man). Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Endet nesh

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Should be neh.
Change to formal: Endet neh. Sentence Transformation

Endet neh

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Formal is nachew.
Match the form to the person. Match Pairs

Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Correct order.
Complete the dialogue. Dialogue Completion

A: Endet neh? B: ___

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Dehna negn means I am well.
Build the sentence. Sentence Building

Endet + nachew

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Correct order.
Is 'nachew' formal? True False Rule

True or False?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Yes, it is formal.

Score: /8

Exercices pratiques

8 exercises
Fill in the blank for a man.

Endet ___?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Neh is for men.
Which is correct for a woman? Choix multiple

Endet ___?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: b
Nesh is for women.
Correct the sentence: Endet nesh (to a man). Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Endet nesh

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Should be neh.
Change to formal: Endet neh. Sentence Transformation

Endet neh

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Formal is nachew.
Match the form to the person. Match Pairs

Match: Male, Female, Formal

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Correct order.
Complete the dialogue. Dialogue Completion

A: Endet neh? B: ___

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Dehna negn means I am well.
Build the sentence. Sentence Building

Endet + nachew

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Correct order.
Is 'nachew' formal? True False Rule

True or False?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: a
Yes, it is formal.

Score: /8

FAQ (8)

Amharic is a gendered language.

It is polite but can be distant.

Use 'nachew' to be safe.

Yes, it is fixed.

Yes, 'nachew' is for plural too.

Yes, in texts and emails.

Neh is male, Nesh is female.

Say 'Dehna negn'.

Scaffolded Practice

1

1

2

2

3

3

4

4

Mastery Progress

Needs Practice

Improving

Strong

Mastered

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In Other Languages

Spanish high

Cómo estás?

Spanish has no gendered verb endings for 'you'.

French high

Comment vas-tu?

French uses 'tu' vs 'vous' for formal/informal.

German moderate

Wie geht es dir?

German uses dative case.

Japanese low

O-genki desu ka?

Japanese is not gendered.

Arabic high

Kaifa haluka?

Arabic is more complex in gender agreement.

Chinese low

Ni hao ma?

Chinese has no verb conjugation.

Learning Path

Prerequisites

Previous
Saying 'Thank You' (Ameseginalehu)

Related Grammar Rules

A1

Yes/No Question Intonation
A1

Interrogative Pronouns (Man, Min)
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