Amharic food and drink words
Ethiopian food has its own vocabulary and its own rituals — injera under everything, coffee as ceremony. These are the words you will actually use at a table or a market stall.
On the table
| Amharic | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| እንጀራ | injera | injera |
| ዳቦ | dabo | bread |
| እንቁላል | inqulal | egg |
| ስጋ | siga | meat |
| ፍራፍሬ | firafire | fruit |
| ውሃ | wuha | water |
| ወተት | wetet | milk |
| ቡና | buna | coffee |
| ሻይ | shay | tea |
Eating, drinking, buying
| Amharic | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| እበላለሁ | ibelalehu | I eat / I'm eating, depending on context |
| እጠጣለሁ | itetalehu | I drink / I'm drinking, depending on context |
| እገዛለሁ | igezalehu | I buy / I'm buying, depending on context |
| ገበያ | gebeya | market |
| ሱቅ | suq | shop / store |
Injera is both the bread and the plate: a spongy sourdough flatbread that everything else is served on, torn by hand and shared.
Coffee — buna — is Ethiopia's gift to the world and its slowest pleasure: the traditional ceremony roasts, grinds and brews it in front of you, in three rounds.
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