The complete table below is the same 623-term list used by this guide's SRS deck and downloads.
Hover or tap a highlighted term to see its English meaning and copy it. With a keyboard, Tab to the first term and use the arrow keys; source status is shown in the popup.
#
Burmese
English
1
hello / greetings
2
how are you?
3
I'm fine
4
thank you
5
you're welcome / it's okay
6
yes
7
no
8
please
9
sorry
10
excuse me
11
goodbye (I'm off)
12
what's your name?
13
I (male speaker)
14
I (female speaker)
15
you
16
he / she
17
person
18
woman
19
man
20
child
21
father
22
mother
23
friend
24
house / home
25
water
26
food
27
cooked rice / meal
28
meat
29
milk
30
tea
31
money
32
work / job
33
school
34
book
35
car
36
day
37
night
38
today
39
tomorrow
40
yesterday
41
to eat
42
to drink
43
to go
44
to come
45
to want
46
to know
47
to speak
48
to see
49
to hear
50
what
51
who
52
where
53
when
54
why
55
how much / how many
56
good
57
bad
58
big
59
small
60
(I) love (you)
61
I don't understand
62
do you speak English?
63
goodbye (on the telephone)
64
welcome
65
human, person, human being
66
man (adult male human)
67
woman
68
child, boy
69
girl
70
friend
71
guest
72
teacher (male)
73
student (male), pupil (male), schoolboy
74
monarch, king
75
queen regnant
76
paddy farmer
77
mother
78
father
79
elder brother
80
elder sister
81
son, child
82
daughter
83
husband
84
wife
85
grandmother
86
grandfather
87
grandchild
88
uncle, specifically father's elder brother
89
aunt, specifically mother's elder sister
90
family; household
91
relative, relation
92
we, us
93
they, them
94
why, for what reason
95
one
96
two
97
three
98
four
99
five
100
six
101
seven
102
eight
103
nine
104
ten
105
eleven
106
twelve
107
twenty
108
thirty
109
hundred
110
thousand
111
first
112
body
113
head (part of the body)
114
face
115
eye (organ of sight)
116
ear (organ of hearing)
117
nose (protuberance on the face)
118
mouth (opening of an animal through which food is ingested)
119
tooth
120
tongue
121
lip, lips
122
neck
123
arm; narrow projecting part of a main body
124
finger; digit
125
stomach, belly
126
stomach, belly
127
back, behind, rear
128
leg
129
knee
130
leg; foot (part of the human body)
131
skin (outer covering of the body), hide, pelt
132
bone
133
blood (vital liquid flowing in animal bodies)
134
heart (muscular organ that pumps blood)
135
liver (large organ in the body; this organ used for food)
136
food (any substance consumed by living organisms to sustain…
137
bread
138
meat; flesh
139
egg, roe
140
salt (sodium chloride)
141
sugar
142
honey
143
oil, grease
144
rice plant, paddy (Oryza sativa)
145
maize, corn (type of grain of the species Zea mays)
146
potato
147
cassava
148
tangerine; orange with loose skin
149
apple
150
fruit (seed-bearing part of a plant)
151
pumpkin
152
onion
153
green tea; tea
154
coffee
155
beer
156
wine
157
soup
158
flour, powder
159
peanut
160
animal
161
dog
162
cat
163
cow
164
ox; bull; bullock
165
goat (animal)
166
sheep (animal)
167
pig
168
horse, pony
169
donkey, ass
170
chicken, fowl
171
hen
172
rooster
173
bird (animal)
174
mouse, rat
175
rabbit, hare
176
lion
177
leopard
178
elephant
179
giraffe
180
zebra
181
hippopotamus
182
rhinoceros
183
crocodile, alligator
184
hyena
185
monkey
186
snake
187
frog
188
house lizard
189
tortoise, turtle
190
insect, pest
191
mosquito
192
bee
193
ant (insect)
194
spider
195
butterfly
196
worm, earthworm
197
louse (insect of the order Psocodea)
198
bear (large omnivorous mammal)
199
wolf
200
fox
201
deer
202
eagle
203
crow, house crow, raven
204
sun
205
moon
206
star (luminous celestial body)
207
sky
208
cloud (visible mass of water droplets suspended in the air)
209
rain (condensed water from a cloud)
210
wind, air
211
thunder, thunderclap, thunderbolt
212
lightning
213
fire; conflagration
214
vapor, smoke, fume
215
ash (solid remains of a fire)
216
earth (classical element), soil, ground
217
sand
218
stone, rock, flint (hard earthen substance)
219
mountain
220
hill
221
valley
222
river
223
lake, pond, tank
224
sea (expanse of water)
225
sea, ocean
226
island
227
ice
228
mist, dew, snow, frost
229
tree
230
forest; wood
231
grass (including common grass, paddy, corn, etc.)
232
leaf (organ of a plant)
233
flower
234
root (part of a plant)
235
wood, timber
236
paddy field
237
garden, orchard
238
road (way for travel), street, pathway
239
desert, sandy region
240
world
241
light, illumination
242
shade; shadow
243
house; home; residence; abode
244
hut, shed, booth, tent
245
door
246
window
247
roof
248
bed
249
chair
250
table (item of furniture)
251
pot
252
cup, saucer, plate, dish
253
cup, bowl
254
spoon (scooped utensil for eating or serving)
255
knife, chopper
256
basket
257
bag (flexible container); sack
258
box, chest
259
blanket, rug
260
clothing, clothes
261
shirt
262
shoe
263
hat, cap, headgear
264
money
265
paper
266
letter (of the alphabet)
267
picture (representation of visible reality produced by…
268
bicycle
269
bus (motor vehicle for transporting large numbers of people…
270
boat
271
ship; vessel
272
airplane, aeroplane
273
spear, lance, javelin
274
arrow
275
axe, ax
276
drum
277
key
278
rope, string, cord
279
needle (implement for sewing etc.)
280
mirror, looking-glass
281
broom
282
portable container like a bucket, tin, box, etc
283
village
284
country (region of land)
285
shop (establishment that sells goods), store
286
hospital
287
farm
288
pit, well, burrow, hole (in the ground)
289
bridge
290
prison, jail
291
time (inevitable progression into the future)
292
morning
293
afternoon (from noon to sunset)
294
high noon, midday
295
week
296
hour (time period of sixty minutes)
297
again; once more; anew
298
soon; in the near futute
299
season
300
summer
301
cold season; winter (in temperate and polar regions)
302
red
303
black
304
white, fair
305
green
306
blue (color)
307
yellow
308
brown (having a brown color)
309
big; large; great (in magnitude); high (in degree)
310
big, large, grand, huge, strong
311
small
312
long (of linear measure, time, or age)
313
short (in length, duration, time, stature, temper, etc.)
314
good, nice, fine, pleasant
315
beautiful
316
ugly
317
old (of an object, concept, etc.: having existed for a…
318
young
319
hot, warm
320
cool, cold
321
warm, tepid, lukewarm
322
heavy, ponderous
323
to be full, be full of
324
vacant, blank, empty
325
to be hardy and strong
326
weak, debilitated (lacking in force or ability)
327
slow (not quick in motion)
328
to be rich; to be wealthy
329
to be poor
330
to be happy, glad, merry, amused, pleased, etc
331
to be tired
332
to be hungry, be thirsty
333
to be thirsty
334
clean, pure
335
to be dirty, be filthy
336
sweet
337
bitter (having an acrid taste)
338
sour; acid
339
to be true, to be the case, to be so, to be a fact
340
right (the right-hand side)
341
left (the left side)
342
to be near, be close, be imminent
343
far, distant
344
high
345
wide, broad, spacious
346
narrow
347
thick (relatively great in extent from one surface to…
348
thin (having little thickness; very narrow; slender; flimsy)
349
fat (carrying a larger than normal amount of fat on one's…
350
hard, firm, stiff (resistant to pressure)
351
soft, weak, malleable, pliable
352
easy (not difficult)
353
difficult
354
urgent, important, serious, pressing, critical
355
different (not the same)
356
to be the same
357
dead (no longer living)
358
to have (with မှာ (hma, “at”))
359
to come
360
to eat, consume
361
to drink
362
to sleep
363
to wake up (from sleep)
364
to sit
365
to stand (support oneself on the feet in an erect position)
366
to walk, go about
367
to run
368
to jump (up, over) (bend the leg and lift the body upwards)
369
to swim (move through water)
370
to see
371
to look (to try to see), look at
372
to hear
373
to listen
374
to speak, say, utter, narrate, tell, relate
375
to ask (request an answer); to question; to inquire, enquire
376
to answer (questions), solve (problems)
377
to shout; call
378
to know (be acquainted or familiar with; have knowledge…
379
to understand, know, comprehend
380
to learn
381
to teach (pass on knowledge), train
382
to read
383
to write, draw, compose
384
to count (enumerate or determine number)
385
to want (desire)
386
to like (enjoy)
387
to be affectionate, to be fond of, to love
388
to abhor, loathe, hate
389
to fear, dread, be afraid (of)
390
to require, need
391
to give (transfer the possession of something to someone…
392
to take
393
to bring
394
to carry, transport
395
to buy, purchase
396
to sell (agree to transfer goods or provide services)
397
to pay (for goods received)
398
to work (do a specific task)
399
to play (act in a manner such that one has fun), be up to…
400
to dance
401
to laugh
402
to weep, cry, shed tears
403
to smile
404
to open; to inaugurate
405
to close, to shut
406
to begin, start, commence
407
to finish; to end
408
to wait for
409
to help, aid, assist
410
to lose (something)
411
to seek, search, find, look for
412
to cook (rice), distill, refine, brew, process, make
413
to wash (clean with water or other fluid)
414
to build, construct (form by combining materials or parts)
415
to cut (hair)
416
to throw (cause an object to move rapidly through the air),…
417
to catch (capture or snare, intercept an object in the air,…
418
to hold (in the hand) (grasp)
419
to drag, pull, tow, tug (apply force to (something) so it…
420
to push (apply force to (something) so that it moves away)
421
to put (place something somewhere)
422
to fall (move to a lower position under the effect of…
423
to kill (put to death), to cause to die
424
to die (stop living), pass away
425
to live, be alive
426
to be born (in a certain time or place)
427
to plant
428
to dig (move hard-packed earth)
429
to burn, set fire, ignite
430
to pour, water (something)
431
to fill in, complete
432
to send off, see off
433
to go back, return
434
to arrive, reach
435
to enter (go into (a room, etc.)), come in, go in
436
to go out, come out
437
to visit
438
to marry
439
to steal, pilfer, burgle
440
to quarrel, fight, argue
441
to hit (deliver a blow), strike, beat
442
to blow (expel air with force)
443
to breathe, inhale
444
to smell (to sense with the nose)
445
to touch (make physical contact with)
446
to show; to explain; to indicate
447
to hide, conceal
448
to follow (go or come after in physical space), chase,…
449
to win, be victorious
450
to remember
451
to choose, select, pick
452
to use
453
to sew (join pieces of fabric by means of needle and…
454
to weave
455
to hunt game (chase down prey)
456
to sweep (clean using a broom or brush)
457
name
458
word
459
language (system of communication using words or symbols)
460
story, narrative, novel, fiction
461
song (music with words)
462
question
463
thing; object
464
life
465
death
466
peace
467
war
468
God
469
spirit, soul
470
dream
471
news
472
health; wellbeing
473
problem; difficulty
474
law, enacted law, customary law
475
custom, usage, precedent
476
game (playful activity, amusement, pastime)
477
gift, present
478
price (of articles and items etc.)
479
number
480
Nope.
481
Yep.
482
Come!
483
Go.
484
Wrong.
485
Correct.
486
It is raining hard.
487
Can you open the door for me, please?
488
I am sick.
489
Are you serious?
490
Do you like it?
491
Good luck.
492
Have fun.
493
Look out!
494
Forget it.
495
Never mind!
496
Listen.
497
Relax.
498
Wake up!
499
Stand up.
500
Take care.
501
No way!
502
Hurry up.
503
Begin.
504
Wait.
505
Smile.
506
Run!
507
Hi.
508
Stop!
509
Help!
510
Wonderful!
511
Hello!
512
Really?
513
Congratulations!
514
This isn't what I wanted.
515
What is the best road to go?
516
Say that again.
517
Are you too tired?
518
I'd like to come along if you don't mind.
519
I walked along the river.
520
When is your lunch break?
521
I don't agree.
522
I have a car.
523
Are you well?
524
I am ready.
525
I feel sorry for her.
526
I think that you'll like it, too.
527
Perform a good deed, every day.
528
Wait outside.
529
Oh, really?
530
Hi, guys.
531
Attention please!
532
Welcome home.
533
How deep?
534
The bigger the tiger, the larger the footprints.
535
Passport, please.
536
All rise!
537
Why not?
538
Louder, please.
539
Drive slowly.
540
Walk slowly.
541
Listen carefully.
542
Please hurry.
543
Too late.
544
Goodnight.
545
Goodbye!
546
Unbelievable!
547
He is handsome.
548
You're beautiful.
549
Show me your passport.
550
Mary also likes bananas.
551
Tom loves bananas.
552
Monkeys love bananas.
553
Tom looked a bit worried.
554
I want to say goodbye.
555
Tom is very chatty.
556
I was upstairs.
557
The towel is in the bathroom.
558
She was swimming.
559
They swam.
560
Where's the restroom?
561
Say it again, please.
562
"Thank you." "You're welcome."
563
I know that Tom is a good teacher.
564
She speaks fairly quickly.
565
My younger sister is playing with a doll.
566
He is always cheerful.
567
The plane flew over the island.
568
He tried to open the door.
569
My father is an expert surgeon.
570
What made you so angry?
571
Don't worry about what others say.
572
You can call me anytime you like.
573
The bus will be leaving soon.
574
Many highways are still closed.
575
The clouds have disappeared.
576
Get out of bed.
577
Try again.
578
Sweet dreams!
579
Fish, please.
580
Beef, please.
581
He has nine pairs of shoes.
582
When will the roses in your garden bloom?
583
What is life?
584
That is essential.
585
Tom is our friend.
586
I'm busy with my homework.
587
I also feel the same way.
588
He seems to be rich now.
589
Tom fell into the water.
590
What time is it now?
591
She's a girl.
592
What do you mean?
593
Please speak more slowly.
594
Can you speak English?
595
He translated everything for me.
596
Did you dry your hair?
597
Mary is my aunt.
598
Everyone loves his country.
599
Is this your toothbrush?
600
Is it getting cold outside?
601
I need a larger envelope.
602
Please call me a doctor.
603
Tom looks a bit sick.
604
I saw the girl.
605
I am a woman.
606
I'm swimming in the ocean.
607
I'm a person.
608
Mr Tanaka is our teacher of English.
609
How many cities did you visit?
610
He traveled around the country.
611
Don't turn off your computer.
612
I come inside to drink coffee.
613
I am a student.
614
I have to go shopping with Tom.
615
I can't find my toothbrush.
616
This is the first time this has happened.
617
I don't like this class.
618
Those glasses look good on you.
619
Don't thank me yet.
620
I'm not a doctor.
621
How old is this umbrella?
622
Tom knows everybody on his street.
623
I was only five minutes late.
A1.1Beginner · Foundations
2. What is Burmese?
Burmese (မြန်မာစာ, myanma sa) is the official language of Myanmar and the first language of around 33 million people, with tens of millions more using it as a second language. It belongs to the Sino-Tibetan family (Tibeto-Burman branch).
It is written in the distinctive rounded Burmese script, an abugida descended from Brahmi via Mon. The spoken language is tonal and Subject–Object–Verb, relies heavily on grammatical particles, and counts nouns with classifiers — a profile very different from English but shared with much of mainland Southeast Asia.
A1.2Beginner · Building Basics
Why learn Burmese?
A beautiful script — The circular letters evolved to avoid tearing palm-leaf manuscripts — and they're elegant to write.
Gateway to Myanmar — Burmese opens a country with deep Buddhist heritage and warm everyday hospitality.
A clean particle grammar — Once you learn the particles, sentences assemble logically with no conjugation.
Understudied & rewarding — Few foreigners learn it, so even a little goes a very long way.
A2.1Elementary · Everyday Language
4. Essential Grammar
Burmese is Subject–Object–Verb and works through particles that attach to words to show their role. Verbs don't conjugate for person; tense/mood come from sentence-final particles.
Core particles
Particle
Role
Example
က (ka)
subject marker
ကျွန်တော်က — as for me
ကို (ko)
object marker
သူ့ကို — him/her (object)
မှာ (hma)
at / in (location)
အိမ်မှာ — at home
တယ် (deh)
statement (non-future)
စားတယ် — (I) eat
မယ် (meh)
future / intention
စားမယ် — (I) will eat
လား (lá)
yes/no question
စားလား — do (you) eat?
A2.2Elementary · Expanding Range
Classifiers
To count, use number + classifier: လူ သုံး ယောက် (lu thoun yauk) = "person three [human-classifier]" = three people. The classifier matches the kind of thing counted.
Politeness is built in: men end polite sentences with ခင်ဗျာ (khamya), women with ရှင် (shin); the polite "I" differs by gender too.
B1.1Intermediate · Independent Use
5. Pronunciation & Script
Burmese has three main tones plus checked syllables. Tone is carried partly by spelling marks and changes meaning.
Tone
Quality
Example
low
level, relaxed
ခါ (kha) — shake
high (creaky)
short, sharp, glottal
ခ (kha̱) — bitter
high (breathy)
long, falling, breathy
ခါး (khá) — waist
checked
stopped by glottal stop
ခက် (khak) — difficult
Watch for sounds English lacks: aspirated vs. plain stops, the voiceless nasals (hm, hn), and th as in English "thin". The script is an abugida — base consonant + vowel marks above, below and around it.
Practice: Foundational A1 Burmese (မြန်မာ): a basic pronoun and verb, the core sentence particles that do most of the grammatical work, and two tone-distinguished words. Burmese is written in the Myanmar abugida; meaning is built by stacking particles after the verb. Type the Burmese script or a romanization — tone marks in the romanization are optional.. Type the missing word — Latin accents are optional.
1.the word a male speaker uses for 'I' →
Hint: the 1st-person pronoun a man uses; women use a different word (ကျွန်မ)
2.'to eat' (the basic verb) →
Hint: a core verb; add the endings below to turn it into a full sentence
3.the particle that marks the subject / topic ('as for X') →
Hint: comes after the subject; pronounced 'g-' after a vowel
4.the particle that marks the object ('to / at X') →
Hint: comes after the object of the verb
5.the particle for a location ('at / in') →
Hint: comes after a place word (e.g. 'home ___' = 'at home')
6.the ending that closes a present/past statement →
Hint: finishes a sentence about now or the past
7.the ending that marks the future / an intention →
Hint: finishes a sentence about what will or is meant to happen
8.the particle that makes a yes/no question →
Hint: tag it onto the end to ask a yes/no question
9.'to shake' (low, relaxed tone) →
Hint: a low, relaxed tone — contrast it with the clipped word below
10.'to be difficult' (checked / stopped tone) →
Hint: ends in a glottal 'checked' tone (a clipped stop)
10 questions
Grammar reference: All Burmese forms are taken directly from this guide's own 'Core particles' and 'Pronunciation & Script (Tone)' tables (the pronoun ကျွန်တော်, the verb စား, the particles က / ကို / မှာ / တယ် / မယ် / လား, and the tone words ခါ / ခက်) and cross-verified for meaning against Okell, John (1994), Burmese: An Introduction to the Spoken Language, DeKalb: Center for Burma Studies, Northern Illinois University. Standard (Yangon) Burmese, Myanmar script; romanization as commonly transliterated. All prompts and item design original to LinguaCommons.. Sentences are original to LinguaCommons.
6. Common Mistakes
Flattening the tones — low, creaky and breathy high tones distinguish words; ignoring them garbles meaning.
Putting the verb early — Burmese is SOV; the verb plus its particle ends the sentence.
Dropping particles — case and tense live in the particles; leaving them out is like English with no word order.
Counting without a classifier — numbers need the right classifier between noun and number.
Using the wrong politeness marker — sentence-final khamya/shin and the polite pronouns are gendered.
B2.1Upper-Intermediate · Fluency & Nuance
7. Learning Resources
Burmese overviewall levels — Background on tones, script and grammar.
iTalkiall levels — Find Burmese tutors for pronunciation and script.
8. Culture & Context
Buddhism everywhere
Theravada Buddhism shapes daily life, vocabulary and the calendar. Knowing terms like hpongyi (monk) and paya (pagoda/Buddha) is part of basic fluency.
B2.2Upper-Intermediate · Consolidation
Names and no surnames
Burmese people typically have no family name; honorifics like U (Mr.), Daw (Ms./aunt) and Ko (older brother) precede the given name and signal age and respect.
Mingala — auspiciousness
The greeting မင်္ဂလာပါ (mingalaba) literally wishes "auspiciousness"; politeness, indirectness and avoiding loss of face are deeply valued.
›Before you go — one vowel, two different words
Say one of these out loud, then the other.
Pick one.
Two words identical but for one sound, meaning different things, are a minimal pair — and that is the test linguists use to prove two sounds are genuinely separate in a language rather than two flavours of the same one. Every pronunciation guide on this site is built on pairs like it.