Whether you’ve accidently bumped into someone, said the wrong thing or just made a regrettable mistake, ‘I’m sorry’ can be two of the most useful words in the English language. But what happens when you go on holiday and find yourself in a situation where an apology is necessary? No need to worry; we’ve got you covered.
Below is a list of a vast number of different languages, accompanied by a tranlsation of the words ‘I’m sorry’ in each particular language. So next time you find yourself in the wrong while abroad, you can just say désolé, scusi, perdón or whatever the appropriate choice from this list happens to be.
Hopefully you won’t need to practise these any time soon, but just in case, check out this list and learn to say ‘I’m sorry’ in different languages from around the world.
| Afrikaans | Jammer! |
| Albanian (Gheg) | M’fal! |
| Albanian (Tosk) | Më fal! |
| Aleut | Amtal |
| Aklan | Guinakasubo ko |
| Alsatian | Es töt mir leid |
| Altay | Јаманымды таштагар (Ĵamanımdı taštagar) |
| Amharic | አዝናለሁ (azənallähw)- I am sorrowful |
| Arabic (Egyptian) |
m – (aasif) آسف! f – (aasifa) آسف! |
| Arabic (Lebanese) |
Esef (m) Esfe (f) 3afwan |
| Arabic (Modern Standard) |
(āsif!) أسف |
| Arabic (Moroccan) |
(aasif) اسف |
| Aragonese | Perdón Sincusas |
| Armenian (Eastern) |
Ներողությո’ւն: (Nerogh.utyun) Կներե’ք: (Knerek’) |
| Armenian (Western) |
Ներողութիւն (Neroghootyoon); Կը ներես (Guh neres) inf Կը ներէք: (Guh nerek) frm |
| Assamese | ক্ষমা কৰিব (khyôma kôribô) – frm ক্ষমা কৰিবা (khyôma kôriba) – inf |
| Asturian | Perdón |
| Avar | ТIасалъугьа! (Tʼasałuha) |
| Azerbaijani | Bağışlayın Məni bağışlayın Üzr istəyirəm |
| Balinese | Ampura |
| Bashkir | ғәфү үтенәм (ğäfü ütyenäm) |
| Basque | Barkatu |
| Bavarian | Duad ma laid |
| Belarusian | Прабачце (Prabačcie) Выбачайце (Vybačajcie) |
| Bemba | Njeleleniko Mbelelako uluse |
| Bengali | দুঃখিত (dukkhito) মাফ করবেন (maf korben) |
| Bhojpuri | माफ़ करीं (maaf karin) |
| Bikol | Pasénsya na tabi |
| Bislama | Sori Mi sori |
| Bosnian | Oprostite |
| Breton | Eskuzit ac’hanon! Digarez! |
| Bulgarian | Съжалявам! (Sãžaljavam) |
| Catalan | Perdó! Em sap greu |
| Cebuano | Ikasubo ko |
| Central Dusun | Siou Siou no Ompunai oku Mokiampun oku |
| Chabacano de Cavite | Perdona me Sorry |
| Chabacano de Zamboanga | Perdona conmigo |
| Chamorro (Guam dialect) |
Dispensa yo’ |
| Chamorro (North Marianas dialect) |
Dispensa yu |
| Chechen | Бехк ма билла (Bexk ma billa) |
| Cherokee | ᎤᏲ ᎠᏰᎶᏗ (Uyo ayelodi) |
| Chichewa | Pepani |
| Chinese (Cantonese) |
對唔住 (deuim̀hjyuh) |
| Chinese (Hakka) |
失禮 (siit7li1) 歹勢 (dai-sii5) |
| Chinese (Mandarin) |
對不起 [对不起] (duìbùqǐ) 抱歉 (bàoqiàn) |
| Chinese (Shanghainese) |
对弗起 (dēi fé qì) 勿好意思 (vak hao yi si) |
| Chinese (Taiwanese) |
失禮 (sit-lé) 歹勢 (pháiⁿ-sì/phái-sè) 對不起 (tùi-put-khí) |
| Cimbrian | S tüü-mar ante |
| Chuvash | Кашарӑр (Kašarăr) |
| Coastal Kadazan | Siou Siou no |
| Cornish | Drog yw genev |
| Corsican | Mi dispiace |
| Croatian | Žao mi je Oprostite |
| Cuyonon | Patawad! Patawadi ako! Pasinsia! |
| Czech | Pardon! Promiň! (inf) Odpusť mi to (inf) Odpusťte mi to (frm) |
| Danish | Undskyld! |
| Dari | (Mahzrat mêxwaham) محذرت ميخواهم |
| Dutch | Het spijt me! Sorry! |
| Dzongkha | Tsip maza Gom mathrae |
| Elfdalian | Felåt! |
| Estonian | Vabandust |
| Extremaduran | Perdón! (frm) Disculpi! (frm) Dispensi! (frm) Disculpa! (inf) Dispensa! (frm) |
| Faroese | Tað harmar meg Orsaka |
| Fijian | (Nī) vosota sara (general) (Nī) vosoti au (general) Tulou (when invading space) Jilou (when invading space) |
| Finnish | Anteeksi |
| French | Désolé ! Je suis désolé ! Excusez-moi ! Je m’excuse ! Pardon ! Oh, pardon, excusez-moi ! Je vous demande pardon |
| Frisian (North) | Fertrüt me! |
| Frisian (West) | It spyt my; Pardon |
| Friulian | Scuse! Pardon! |
| Galician | Síntoo! |
| Gascon | Escusats-me |
| Georgian | ბოდიში bodishi ვწუხვარ (vts’ukhvar) |
| German | Es tut mir leid! Entschuldigung! Ich bedaure! |
| Greek (Ancient) | Συγγνώμην ἔχε (Syngnōmēn ékhe) |
| Greek (Modern) | Συγνώμη! (Sygnómi) Λυπάμαι! (Lypáme [lit. “I’m saddened”]) – more frm |
| Greenlandic | Utoqqatsissutigaa Patsit Utoqqatserpunga |
| Gujarati | મન્ને મફ કરો (manne maaf karo) |
| Haitian Creole | Dezole! Mwen regret sa! Padon! |
| Hawaiian | E kala mai iaʻu! |
| Hausa | Sannu barka Yi hak’uri |
| Hebrew | (Slicha) סליחה! |
| Hiligaynon | Pasensyaha lang ako |
| Hindi | क्षमा कीजिए (kṣama kījiye) माफ़ कीजिये (māf kījiye) |
| Hmong (White) | Thov txim |
| Hungarian | Bocsánat! |
| Iban | Minta ampun Ampun |
| Icelandic | Því miður Fyrirgefðu Mér þykir það leitt |
| Igbo | Ndo Gbagharam |
| Iloko | Agpakawanak Pakawanennak Dispensar |
| Indonesian | Maafkan saya Maaf |
| Inuktitut | ᐄᑯᓗᒃ (Iikuluk) ᐊᐃᑦᑖ (Aittaaq) ᓂᑲᔪᖅ (Nakujuq) |
| Iñupiaq | Pisaraluarnak Pisanritchikpin Pisaŋŋitkikpiñ Tusaaŋŋisiqtuŋa |
| Irish (Gaelic) | Gabh mo leithscéal! Tá brón orm! |
| Italian | Scusa! (inf) Scusi! (frm) Mi dispiace |
| Jamaican | Hush |
| Japanese | ごめんなさい! (gomen nasai) |
| Javanese | ꦚꦸꦮꦸꦤ꧀ꦥꦔꦥꦸꦤ꧀ꦠꦼꦤ꧀ (Nyuwun pangapunten) (Kromo Inggil) ꦗꦭꦸꦏ꧀ꦔꦥꦸꦫ (Jaluk ngapurạ) (Ngoko) |
| Jenesch | Pikesch |
| Jèrriais | J’ai r’gret |
| Kalmyk | Би гемән сурҗанав (Bi gemän surjanav) Бичә му сантн (Bichä mu santn) |
| Kannada | ಕ್ಷಮಿಸಿ! (kshamisi) |
| Kashubian | Przeprôszajã Przeprôszóm |
| Kazakh | Кешіріңіз! (Keşiriñiz!) |
| Khmer | សុំទោស (sŏm toŭs) |
| Khoekhoe (Nama) | ǀÛba te. |
| Kiribati | Kabara au bure |
| Korean | 미안합니다! (mianhamnida) – frm 죄송합니다 (joesonghamnida) – vfrm 미안(해) (mian(hae)) – inf |
| Kumyk | Ярай буса, гечип къоюгъуз (Yaray busa, geçip qoyuğuz) |
| Kurdish (Kurmanji) | Bibure (frm) Mi(n) affu bike Mi(n) bi borîne Bi bexshe(frm) |
| Kurdish (Sorani) | (Bibûre) ببوورە |
| Kyrgyz | Кечиресиз (Kechiresiz) – sg/frm (for attention) Кечиресиң (Kechiresing) – sg/inf (for attention) Кечириңиз (Kechiringiz) – sg/frm (begging pardon) |
| Ladino | (Lo syento!) לו סיינטו! |
| Lao | ຂໍໂທດ (khãw thôht) |
| Latin | Ignosce mihi! |
| Latvian | Piedodiet! (frm) Piedo! (inf) Atvainojiet! (frm) Atvaino! (inf) |
| Lithuanian | Atsiprašau! Atleiskite! |
| Low Saxon | Deit mi leed |
| Lozi | Ni swalele |
| Luganda | Nsonyiwa |
| Luxembourgish | Pardon |
| Macedonian | Жалам (Zhalam) Жал ми е (Zhal mi e) Извинете (Izvinete) – frm Извини (Izvini) – inf |
| Magahi | माफ करा /maːpʰ kəraː/ |
| Maithili | Maf karai |
| Malagasy | Azafady |
| Malay | Ma’af Minta maaf (asking for forgiveness) Tolong maafkan saya (‘please forgive me’) |
| Malayalam | ക്ഷമിക്കണം (kshamikkaṇam) |
| Maldivian | (Ma’aaf kurey) މަޢާފް ކުރޭ |
| Maltese | Skużani! Jiddispjaċini! Ahfirli! |
| Manx (Gaelic) | S’doogh lhiam! S’treih lhiam! S’olk lhiam! Gow my leshtal! |
| Māori | Arohaina mai Mō Taku Hē |
| Marathi | माफ करा (māf karā) |
| Marshallese | Jo̧lo̧k bōd Jo̧lo̧k aō bōd |
| Mauritian Creole | Sori |
| Monégasque | Desulau |
| Mongolian | Уучлаарай (Uuchlaarai) |
| Mossi | Mam sugri Y gafara |
| Nahuatl | Ma xinechtlapohpolhui |
| Navajo | No equivalent in Navajo |
| Nogai | Кеширинъиз Афуьв этинъиз |
| Ndebele (Northern – Zimbabwe) | Uxolo |
| Ndebele (Southern) | Ngiyaxolisa (I am sorry) |
| Nepali | माफ गनुस् (maapha ganus) |
| Newari / Nepal Bhasa | छ्यमा यानादिसँ |
| Niuean | Fakamolemole la |
| Northern Sámi | Ándagassii |
| Northern Sotho | Ntshwarele |
| Norwegian | Unnskyld, Beklager |
| Occitan | Perdon! Desencusa! Desencusatz! |
| Okinawan | 悪さいびーん (wassaibiin) |
| Ossetian | Бахатыр кæнут (Baxatyr kænut) |
| Papiamento | Sori |
| Pashto | (zeh mutaasif yum) زه هتاسف يم |
| Persian (Farsi) | (moteassefam) متاسفم! |
| Picard | Pardon Échtchusez-mi |
| Polish | Przepraszam! |
| Portuguese | Desculpe! (frm) Desculpa! (inf) |
| Portuguese (Brazilian) | Me desculpe! (frm) Desculpa! Desculpe-me! Lamento! Sinto muito! Sinto mutíssimo! (I’m so sorry!) Desculpe-me Desculpe Perdoe-me Perdão Mil perdões (I’m sorry! Forgive me) |
| Punjabi | ਖਿਮਾ/ਮਾਫ਼ ਕਰੋ ਜੀ। / معاف کرو جی۔ (kimā/māf karō jī) |
| Quechua | Pampachaykuway |
| Romanian | Pardon! |
| Romansh | I ma displacha |
| Russian | Простите! (Prostite!) – frm Прости! (Prosti!) – inf |
| Rusyn | Прошу (Prošu) – request Будьте добрі (Bud’te dobri) – frm inviting someone to do something Будь добрі (Bud’ dobri) – inf inviting someone to do something |
| Sakha | Бырастыы гыныҥ (bɯrastɯɯ gɯnɯŋ) – frm Бырастыы гын (bɯrastɯɯ gɯn) – inf |
| Samoan | Fa’amalie atu |
| Sanskrit | कृपया क्षम्यताम् (kṛpayā kṣamyatām) |
| Sardinian (Logudorese) | Mi dispiaghet (meda) |
| Scottish Gaelic | Gabh mo leisgeul! Tha mi duilich! |
| Scots | Sorry |
| Serbian | Жао ми је (Žao mi je) Опростите (Oprostite) |
| Sesotho | Ntshwarele |
| Shona | Ndineurombo |
| Sicilian | M’â scusari Mi scusassi M’av’a scusari (frm) Scusàtimi (pl) M’avit’a scusari (pl) |
| Sindhi | (Maaf kajo) معاف ڪجو |
| Sinhala | මට සමාවෙන්න (mata samāvenna) කණගාටුයි (kan’agāṭuuyi) |
| Slovak | Pardón! |
| Slovenian | Oprostite (frm) Oprosti (inf) |
| Somali | Waan ka xumahay |
| Sorbian (Lower) | To jo mě luto |
| Sorbian (Upper) | Wodajće prošu (frm) Prošu wodajće (frm) Wodaj (inf) |
| Southern Sámi | Mannem åånedem |
| Spanish | ¡Perdón! ¡Perdone! ¡Lo siento! |
| Sundanese | Hapunten Hatur nuhun |
| Swahili | Samahani |
| Swazi | Ngiyacolisa Ncesi |
| Swedish | Förlåt! |
| Swiss German | Es duet mr leid |
| Tagalog | Patawad! Pasensya na |
| Tajik | Мебахшед (Mebaxšed) |
| Tamil (formal) | என்னை மன்னிக்க வேண்டும் (ennai manniththu vidungal) [ml] [fm] |
| Tamil (informal) | என்ன மன்னிச்சிடுங்க (enna maniichudunga) [fm] |
| Tatar | Ğafu ütínem |
| Telugu | మా క్షమాపణలు (maa kshamaapanalu) |
| Tetum | Deskulpa! |
| Thai | ขอโทษ (kŏr tôht) |
| Tibetan | ཀོང་དགས་། (gong-da) |
| Tigrinya | ይቅሬታ! (Yiqreta!) |
| Tokelauan | Fakamolemole |
| Tok Pisin | Mi sori Mi sori tumas |
| Tongan | Fakamolemole |
| Tsonga | Ndzi kombela ku khomeriwa |
| Tsotsil | Perton |
| Tswana | Ke kopa tshwarelo |
| Tumbuka | Phepani Phepani chomene (very sorry) |
| Turkish | Pardon (inf) Özür dilerim (frm) |
| Tuvaluan | Fakamolemole, au kō ‘sē! |
| Twi | Kosɛ Kafra |
| Ukrainian | Вибачте! (Vybačte) |
| Urdu | (maf karna) معاف کرنا |
| Uyghur | كەچۈرۈڭ! (Kächürüng!) |
| Uzbek | Afu eting |
| Venda | Ndi khou humbela pfarelo |
| Venetian | El me scuxa Scuxéme (pl) |
| Veps | Prostigat |
| Vietnamese | Xin lỗi |
| Võro | Andis |
| Walloon | Pârdon |
| Welsh | Mae’n ddrwg ‘da fi (SW) Mae’n ddrwg gen i (NW) Sori |
| Westrobothnian | FLåt FöLåt |
| Wolof | Baal ma |
| Yiddish | (Zay moykhl!) זײַ מוחל! |
| Xhosa | Uxolo Ndicela uxolo Ndiyaxolisa |
| Yoruba | Pẹlẹ |
| Yucatec Maya | Ma’taali’teeni’ |
| Zazaki | Qusır de seyr meke |
| Zulu | Ngiyaxolisa |
We hope you enjoyed this feature. Feel free to comment below if you think there’s anything missing from this list.
Sources
- Omniglot, ‘sorry in many languages’. Available here [accessed on 22/01/18].
Written by
Liam Kennedy – Schuman Trainee at the Terminology Coordination Unit of the European Parliament. Graduate of Journalism with a Language (French) at Dublin Institute of Technology. Completed a Masters in Translation Studies at University College Cork.