Formal vs Informal Greetings
Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
Amharic greetings change based on who you are talking to: use 'tena yistilign' for formal situations and 'selam' for friends.
- Use 'selam' for friends and family (Informal).
- Use 'tena yistilign' for elders, strangers, or in professional settings (Formal).
- Always adjust the verb suffix based on the gender and number of the person you are addressing.
Greeting Suffixes
| Form | Suffix | Usage |
|---|---|---|
|
Informal (M)
|
-neh
|
Men/Boys
|
|
Informal (F)
|
-nesh
|
Women/Girls
|
|
Formal/Plural
|
-new
|
Elders/Groups
|
|
Formal (M)
|
-newot
|
High Respect
|
|
Formal (F)
|
-newot
|
High Respect
|
|
Plural
|
-nachu
|
Groups
|
Meanings
Amharic greetings are highly sensitive to social hierarchy, age, and gender. Choosing the right greeting shows respect and cultural awareness.
Universal Formal
A respectful greeting used for anyone older or in a position of authority.
“ጤና ይስጥልኝ”
“እንዴት አደሩ?”
Casual/Peer
A relaxed greeting for friends or people of the same age.
“ሰላም”
“እንዴት ነህ?”
Time-based
Greetings that change depending on the time of day.
“እንዴት አደሩ (Morning)”
“እንዴት ዋሉ (Daytime)”
Reference Table
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Informal
|
Greeting + Suffix
|
Selam neh?
|
|
Formal
|
Greeting + Suffix
|
Indet new?
|
|
Morning
|
Indet + Time
|
Indet aderu?
|
|
Day
|
Indet + Time
|
Indet walu?
|
|
Evening
|
Indet + Time
|
Indet ameshu?
|
|
Negative
|
Al + Verb
|
Selam aydelem
|
|
Question
|
Verb + ?
|
Indet neh?
|
|
Answer
|
Subject + Adjective
|
Dehna negn
|
Spectre de formalité
እንዴት ነዎት? (Meeting someone)
እንዴት ነህ/ነሽ? (Meeting someone)
ሰላም? (Meeting someone)
ሰላም ነህ? (Meeting someone)
Greeting Hierarchy
Formal
- Tena yistilign May God give health
Informal
- Selam Peace
Exemples par niveau
ሰላም
Hello (Informal)
ጤና ይስጥልኝ
Hello (Formal)
እንዴት ነህ?
How are you? (to a man)
እንዴት ነሽ?
How are you? (to a woman)
እንዴት አደሩ?
Good morning (Formal)
እንዴት ዋሉ?
How was your day? (Formal)
ሰላም ነህ?
Are you at peace? (to a man)
ሰላም ነሽ?
Are you at peace? (to a woman)
ጤና ይስጥልኝ፣ እንዴት ሰነበቱ?
Hello, how have you been? (Formal)
ሰላም፣ እንዴት ነህ ወንድሜ?
Hi, how are you, brother?
እንዴት አመሹ?
Good evening (Formal)
እንዴት ነዎት?
How are you? (Formal)
ጤና ይስጥልኝ፣ እንደምን አደሩ?
Greetings, how did you sleep? (Formal)
ሰላም፣ ምን አዲስ ነገር አለ?
Hi, what's new?
እንዴት ዋሉልኝ?
How was your day for me? (Very polite)
ሰላም፣ እንዴት ነሽልኝ?
Hi, how are you (for me)?
ጤና ይስጥልኝ፣ እንደምን ሰነበቱልኝ?
Greetings, how have you been (for me)?
ሰላም፣ ደህና ነሽ?
Hi, are you well?
እንዴት አደሩልኝ?
How did you sleep (for me)?
ጤና ይስጥልኝ፣ እንኳን ደህና መጡ።
Greetings, welcome.
ጤና ይስጥልኝ፣ እንደምን ከረሙ?
Greetings, how have you been (long time)?
ሰላም፣ እንዴት ነህ?
Hi, how are you?
እንዴት ዋሉልኝ?
How was your day?
ጤና ይስጥልኝ፣ ደህና ነዎት?
Greetings, are you well?
Facile à confondre
Learners mix up masculine and feminine suffixes.
Learners use them interchangeably.
Learners use formal 'new' for friends.
Erreurs courantes
Selam new?
Selam!
Tena yistilign neh?
Tena yistilign
Indet nesh (to a man)
Indet neh
Indet neh (to a woman)
Indet nesh
Indet aderu (to a friend)
Indet aderk?
Selam (to an elder)
Tena yistilign
Indet new (to a friend)
Indet neh/nesh
Tena yistilign (to a peer)
Selam
Indet new (to a woman)
Indet nesh
Indet new (to a man)
Indet neh
Indet aderu (to a peer)
Indet aderk/aderesh
Selam (to a boss)
Tena yistilign
Indet new (to a child)
Indet neh/nesh
Structures de phrases
ሰላም ___ ነህ?
ጤና ይስጥልኝ፣ ___ አደሩ?
___ ነሽ?
እንዴት ___?
Real World Usage
ሰላም!
ጤና ይስጥልኝ
እንዴት ነህ?
ጤና ይስጥልኝ
ሰላም
ጤና ይስጥልኝ
Listen first
Don't rush
Smile
Respect
Smart Tips
Always start with Tena yistilign.
Use Selam.
Use the plural form.
Use the formal time greeting.
Prononciation
Tena yistilign
Pronounced as 'Te-na yis-ti-li-gn'.
Question
Indet neh? ↑
Rising intonation for questions.
Mémorise-le
Moyen mnémotechnique
S-S: Selam is for Small (friends), T-T: Tena is for Tall (elders).
Association visuelle
Imagine a small bird (Selam) for friends and a tall mountain (Tena) for elders.
Rhyme
Selam for a friend, Tena for the end (of the age gap).
Story
Abebe meets his friend and says 'Selam'. Then he sees his teacher and says 'Tena yistilign'. He feels proud of his manners.
Word Web
Défi
Say 'Selam' to a friend and 'Tena yistilign' to a stranger today.
Notes culturelles
Greetings are a sign of respect. Always greet elders first.
Amharic greetings are rooted in Semitic traditions of peace and health.
Amorces de conversation
ሰላም፣ እንዴት ነህ?
ጤና ይስጥልኝ፣ እንዴት ሰነበቱ?
ሰላም፣ ምን አዲስ ነገር አለ?
ጤና ይስጥልኝ፣ እንኳን ደህና መጡ።
Sujets d'écriture
Erreurs courantes
Test Yourself
ሰላም ___ ነህ?
Which is formal?
Find and fix the mistake:
Indet nesh (to a man)
Arrange the words in the correct order:
All words placed
Click words above to build the sentence
Hello (Formal)
Answer starts with: ጤና ...
Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:
Indet ___?
A: Selam! B: ___
Score: /8
Exercices pratiques
8 exercisesሰላም ___ ነህ?
Which is formal?
Find and fix the mistake:
Indet nesh (to a man)
ነህ እንዴት?
Hello (Formal)
Match formal/informal.
Indet ___?
A: Selam! B: ___
Score: /8
FAQ (8)
No, it is too informal for elders.
Use the formal 'new'.
It is a phrase.
Use the plural 'nachu'.
Yes, with elders.
It sounds distant.
It means 'How'.
Yes, time-based ones.
Scaffolded Practice
1
2
3
4
Mastery Progress
Needs Practice
Improving
Strong
Mastered
In Other Languages
Hola / Buenos días
Amharic uses verb suffixes for politeness.
Salut / Bonjour
Amharic is more hierarchical.
Hallo / Guten Tag
Amharic is more gendered.
Konnichiwa
Amharic is more direct.
Salam
Amharic has more complex verb suffixes.
Ni hao
Amharic is more complex.
