Amharic · Pronunciation

Amharic Listening and Pronunciation Guide

Key Amharic sounds, the Ge'ez syllabary's vowel orders, ejective consonants, and stress patterns. Front: the sound, letter, or example word. Back: the meaning plus a plain-English pronunciation note.

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ሀ ሁ ሂ ሃ ሄ ህ ሆ (ha hu hi ha he hi ho)

The seven-vowel order for the consonant h; each symbol is a full consonant-vowel syllable, not a separate letter.

ቀ (qe)

Pronounced with an ejective q sound, made by pinching the throat; distinct from the plain k sound in ke.

ጠ (t'e)

An ejective t sound, pronounced with a sharp burst of air from the throat; different from the plain te.

ጨ (ch'e)

An ejective ch sound; contrast with the plain che which has no throat closure.

ጰ (p'e)

An ejective p sound, less common, found mostly in loanwords and a few native words.

ፀ (tse)

Pronounced like an ejective ts, as in the ts of tsehay (sun).

ሸ (she)

Pronounced sh as in shoe; part of the palatalized consonant series.

ኘ (nye)

Pronounced ny as in canyon; a palatalized n sound.

ኧ (glottal e)

A vowel-only symbol representing a glottal stop plus e, often at the start of a word.

ዕ (glottal a)

Represents a glottal stop plus a vowel, historically from the Ge'ez letter ayin.

ስ (si, sixth order)

The sixth vowel order often has a reduced or nearly silent vowel, pronounced as a short i or barely voiced.

Word stress

Amharic stress is generally even across syllables, with less emphasis variation than English; avoid over-stressing any one syllable.

Gemination (doubled consonants)

Amharic distinguishes meaning by doubling a consonant's length; listen for the extra-long consonant sound in some verb forms.

ሰላም vs ሰላይ (selam vs selay)

Selam (hello, peace) and selay (spy) differ in the final consonant; listen carefully to tell them apart.

Ejective vs plain consonants

Ejectives (q, t', ch', p', ts') are pronounced with a sharp puff of air and a catch in the throat, while their plain counterparts are pronounced smoothly like in English.

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