Food & Drinks

26 phrases · Assamese with romanization, English and audio

  1. এইটো কি?

    Eito ki?

    What is this?

    Usage

    Used while pointing at a dish on a menu or a stall

    Grammar Note

    এইটো is 'this'; এটা means 'one, a' in Assamese, so do not swap them. The question word কি goes last and no verb for 'is' is needed

  2. মোক একাপ চাহ দিয়ক

    Mok ekap sah diyok

    Please give me a cup of tea

    Usage

    A polite way to order tea at an eatery, stall or lodge; Assam is tea country and milk tea is an everyday drink

    Grammar Note

    মোক is 'to me'. The number and measure word fuse as এ+কাপ. দিয়ক is the polite request form of দিয়া 'give', ending in -ক

  3. কম জলকীয়া দিয়ক

    Kom jolokiya diyok

    Please make it less spicy

    Usage

    Added to an order when you cannot take much heat

    Grammar Note

    জলকীয়া means chilli and also stands for a dish's heat, so the phrase is 'give less chilli'. কম marks a small amount

  4. পানী দিয়ক

    Pani diyok

    Please give me water

    Usage

    The basic way to ask for drinking water at a restaurant or lodge

    Grammar Note

    পানী is the everyday word for water. The object takes no case marker here; পানী + দিয়ক alone makes the request, with -ক as the polite ending

  5. বিল দিয়ক

    Bil diyok

    Please bring the bill

    Usage

    Said to the server when you have finished eating and want to pay

    Grammar Note

    বিল is borrowed from English bill and Xobdo also lists it as an invoice. The same spelling means a lake in another sense, but context keeps them apart

  6. বৰ সুস্বাদু

    Bor xuxwadu

    Very delicious

    Usage

    A compliment for the food, always welcome to a host

    Grammar Note

    বৰ is 'very' and sits before the adjective. সুস্বাদু is Sanskrit-origin 'well-tasting'; in casual talk সোৱাদ 'taste' is also heard

  7. মই নিৰামিষভোজী

    Moi niramixobhoji

    I am vegetarian

    Usage

    Tell this before ordering so that meat and fish are left out

    Grammar Note

    নিৰামিষ means 'without meat or fish' and ভোজী 'eater'; the compound is written as one word. Fish is common in Assam, so add মাছ নাখাওঁ if you also avoid fish

  8. খাদ্য তালিকাখন দেখুৱাব পাৰিবনে?

    Khadyo talikakhon dekhuwab paribone?

    Could you show me the menu?

    Usage

    A polite request for the menu once you are seated

    Grammar Note

    খাদ্য তালিকা 'list of food' is the menu. The suffix -খন marks a flat thing, 'the'. পাৰিবনে is 'will you be able to', with -নে making it a question

  9. আৰু অলপ ভাত দিয়ক

    Aru olop bhat diyok

    Please give me a bit more rice

    Usage

    For asking for a refill at a meal; rice is the centre of an Assamese meal

    Grammar Note

    আৰু means both 'more' and 'and'. অলপ is a small amount, so আৰু অলপ is 'a little more'. ভাত is cooked rice

  10. এইটোৰ দাম কিমান টকা?

    Eitor dam kiman toka?

    How much is this in rupees?

    Usage

    For checking a price at a stall or eatery; the answer will be in rupees (টকা)

    Grammar Note

    কিমান is 'how much'; do not use কত, which is a different word in Assamese. টকা is the Assamese spelling, without the long আ

  11. মই মাংস নাখাওঁ

    Moi mangx nakhaõ

    I do not eat meat

    Usage

    The basic negative sentence for saying what you do not eat

    Grammar Note

    Negation puts the prefix না- on the verb: খাওঁ becomes নাখাওঁ, written as one word. মাংস is meat in general

  12. মোৰ ভোক লাগিছে

    Mor bhok lagise

    I'm hungry

    Usage

    A simple way to say you want to eat

    Grammar Note

    ভোক লগা is 'to feel hungry'. The person is marked by মোৰ 'to me', not মই. লাগিছে is the perfect form describing the present state

  13. মোৰ পিয়াহ লাগিছে

    Mor piyah lagise

    I'm thirsty

    Usage

    Tells people you need something to drink

    Grammar Note

    পিয়াহ লগা is 'to feel thirsty'. It follows the same pattern as ভোক লাগিছে; only the noun changes

  14. ভাত

    Bhat

    Cooked rice

    Usage

    The heart of an Assamese meal; ভাত খাব can also mean to have a meal

    Grammar Note

    Cooked rice; raw rice is called চাউল. The word ends right after ত, so it sounds like bhat

  15. পাউৰুটী

    Pauruti

    Bread

    Usage

    Loaf bread eaten at breakfast or as a snack, available at lodges and small eateries

    Grammar Note

    The word is ৰুটী 'roti' with a foreign element পাউ in front; Xobdo glosses the whole as bread or loaf. A variant spelling with short ি also exists

  16. ৰুটী

    Ruti

    Roti

    Usage

    A flat bread made from wheat flour

    Grammar Note

    The word ends in the long vowel ী; Xobdo lists it

  17. মাছ

    Mas

    Fish

    Usage

    An everyday part of Assamese meals, especially river fish

    Grammar Note

    মাছ is the general word for fish, as food and as an animal. Both চ and ছ are read /s/, so the word sounds like mas

  18. গাখীৰ

    Gakhir

    Milk

    Usage

    Put in tea or drunk plain; available at breakfast and tea stalls

    Grammar Note

    গাখীৰ is the everyday word for milk. Milk tea is called গাখীৰ চাহ in Assamese

  19. চাহ

    Sah

    Tea

    Usage

    The classic drink of Assam, a tea-growing state; ordered with or without milk

    Grammar Note

    চাহ means tea, with চ read as /s/. A tea garden is চাহ বাগিছা, a very common phrase in Assam

  20. জলকীয়া

    Jolokiya

    Chilli / spicy

    Usage

    Means both the chilli itself and spiciness; useful for checking how hot a dish is

    Grammar Note

    Xobdo lists it as chilli. It is also used for a dish's heat, though other words are heard in speech; it is a noun, so its adjectival use depends on context

  21. মিঠা

    Mitha

    Sweet

    Usage

    Describes the sweetness of sweets and tea, handy for stating how sweet you like it

    Grammar Note

    A basic taste word that appears in Xobdo's list of 100 common words; it differs from the Bengali word for sweet, so do not carry that over

  22. কেঁচা

    Kẽsa

    Raw / unripe

    Usage

    Describes uncooked food or unripe fruit

    Grammar Note

    The ঁ is the nasalisation mark, so it sounds like kencha. Xobdo glosses it as unripe or not cooked; the form without the mark is a rare variant

  23. মাখন

    Makhon

    Butter

    Usage

    Butter for bread, sometimes asked for at lodge breakfasts

    Grammar Note

    A Sanskrit-based word shared with Hindi and Bengali; Xobdo lists it as butter, so it is safe to use in Assamese

  24. ধনিয়া পাত

    Dhoniya pat

    Coriander leaf

    Usage

    A herb sprinkled on dishes; if you dislike it, say ধনিয়া পাত নালাগে

    Grammar Note

    ধনিয়া is the coriander plant and পাত means leaf; the two words are written apart. নালাগে is 'not needed' with the negative prefix

  25. দৈ

    Doi

    Yoghurt

    Usage

    Curd eaten with rice or as a dessert, common at Assamese meals

    Grammar Note

    দৈ is the everyday word for curd or yoghurt; Xobdo also lists a homograph meaning a stick. The sign ৈ stands for the diphthong /oi/

  26. ৰেষ্টুৰেণ্ট ক'ত আছে?

    Resturento kot ase?

    Where is a restaurant?

    Usage

    To ask a passer-by or hotel staff where to eat

    Grammar Note

    Borrowed from English restaurant, with the conjunct ষ্ট standing for /st/. ক'ত আছে? is the standard 'where is it?' frame

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