Twenty words of Nepali that will change your trek
You do not need the language. You need about twenty words, and two of them matter more than the other eighteen.
By Sabina Adhikari · 5 min read · Updated 1 August 2026
Everyone on the main trekking routes speaks enough English to sell you a room and a plate of dal bhat. So no, you do not need Nepali.
You should still learn twenty words, because the difference in how people respond to a visitor who has bothered is out of all proportion to the effort. Two of them matter more than the rest, and almost no guidebook puts them first.
The two that matter: dai and didi
Nepali addresses people by relationship rather than by name. Dai means elder brother, didi elder sister; bhai and bahini are the younger equivalents. You use them constantly, for shopkeepers, lodge owners, porters and strangers.
Calling the woman who cooked your dinner didi rather than nothing at all is the single highest-return thing on this page. It is warm, it is correct, and it takes one syllable. Rough guide: anyone visibly older than you is dai or didi. Anyone clearly younger is bhai or bahini. If you get it wrong nobody minds; if you use them at all people notice immediately.
The everyday twenty
Namaste — hello and goodbye. Namaskar is the more respectful version for elders.
Dhanyabad — thank you. Used less often in Nepali than in English; a smile and namaste often does the same work.
Hunchha — okay, fine, yes. Thik cha — it's fine, that works.
Kati ho? — how much is it. Mahango — expensive, said with a smile while bargaining.
Pani — water. Chiya — tea. Khana — food. Mitho cha — it's tasty, and worth saying to whoever cooked.
Pugyo — enough. This is the one you need at dinner: dal bhat comes with refills, and the server keeps ladling until you say it.
Bistarai — slowly. What your guide will say on the first climb, and the correct answer to almost everything at altitude.
Jam — let's go. Kun bato? — which way. Kati tadha? — how far.
Ramro — good, beautiful. Kasto ramro! — how beautiful. Use it on a view and watch people light up.
Malai bujhina — I don't understand. Bistarai bhannus — please say it slowly.
Pronunciation, briefly
Nepali is written in Devanagari and transliterations vary, which is why you will see chiya, chia and chiyaa for the same word. Do not worry about it.
The one thing worth knowing is aspirated consonants — the difference between k and kh, t and th, p and ph is a puff of air, and it changes meaning. If a word is not landing, try adding the breath.
Nobody expects accuracy. Trying is the entire point and errors are received with delight rather than correction.
What not to say
Avoid asking people their caste, however curious you are about the surnames. Names carry it and it is not small talk.
Do not use namaste as a joke or with a bow — hands together at the chest, a nod, that is all.
And be aware that yes in Nepal is often politeness rather than agreement. If a lodge owner says the room has hot water, ask when it was last working. This is not dishonesty; it is a culture where a flat no to a guest is impolite.
Walk it with us
Private departures on your dates, guided by the people who wrote this page.
Questions we get asked
Do I really need any Nepali?
No. Everyone on the main routes speaks enough English. Learn twenty words anyway — the return on the effort is the best of anything you will do to prepare.
What is the single most useful word?
Didi or dai, depending on who you are talking to. Addressing someone correctly changes the whole interaction.
Will people speak English in the villages?
On the trekking routes, generally yes. Off them, considerably less, which is where the twenty words start earning their keep.
Is there a word I will use every single day?
Pugyo — enough. Dal bhat refills continue until you say it, and the first night without it is a memorable amount of rice.
Read next
Still deciding?
Tell us your dates and how much walking you have actually done, and we will tell you honestly whether this trek is the right one for you.
Ask a guide