A travel study conducted by Booking.com in 2018 found that 44 percent of travelers hesitate to plan a trip abroad due to the language barrier.
Can you relate? If so, learning a few key phrases in a country’s native language might help to alleviate some of those travel anxieties.
With the help of IU’s language experts, we’ve created a guide to the basics—a mini crash course in Spanish, French, Italian, German, and Japanese—that will help you locate the nearest baño in Spain, order a glass of vino in Italy, or inquire about the coût of a souvenir in France.
Navigate to a specific language using the following quick links. Following each translated phrase is an audio clip with the proper pronunciation.
Spanish
Translations and pronunciations provided by Manuel Diaz-Campos, professor and department chair in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at IU Bloomington.
Do you speak English?: ¿Hablas inglés?
Hello / Goodbye: Hola / Hasta luego
Please / Thank you: Por favor / Gracias
Excuse me (informal): Discúlpame
Numbers 1-5: Uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco
How much does this cost?: ¿Cuánto cuesta esto?
Where is the restroom?: ¿Dónde está el baño?
Language to order food: ¿Me puede traer [insert food item]?
Can you help me?: ¿Me puede ayudar?
French
Translations and pronunciations provided by Barbara Vance, associate professor in the Department of French and Italian at IU Bloomington.
Do you speak English?: Est-ce que vous parlez anglais?
Hello / Goodbye: Bonjour / Au revoir
Please / Thank you: S’il vous plaît / Merci
Excuse me (informal): Pardon
Numbers 1-5: Un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq
How much does this cost?: Ça coûte combien?
Where is the restroom?: Où sont les toilettes?
Language to order food: Je voudrais [insert food item].
Can you help me?: Est-ce que vous pourriez m’aider?
Italian
Translations and pronunciations provided by Kenna Daniel, BA’09, MA’11, MA’19, who earned her master’s in both Italian and Second Language Studies from IU Bloomington.
Do you speak English?: Parli l’inglese? (Informal)
Hello / Goodbye: Buongiorno / Ciao
Please / Thank you: Per favore / Grazie
Excuse me: Scusa. / Scusami. (Informal)
Numbers 1-5: Uno, due, tre, quattro, cinque
How much does this cost?: Quanto costa?
Where is the restroom?: Dov’è il bagno?
Language to order food: Vorrei [insert food item].
Can you help me?: Mi puoi aiutare?
German
Translations and pronunciations provided by Troy Byler, BA’95, MA’99, MA’01, a senior lecturer in the Department of Germanic Studies at IU Bloomington.
Do you speak English?: Sprechen Sie Englisch?
Hello / Goodbye: Guten Tag / Tschüss
Please / Thank you: Bitte / Danke
Excuse me (informal): Entschuldigung
Numbers 1-5: Eins, zwei, drei, vier, fünf
How much does this cost?: Wieviel kostet das?
Where is the restroom?: Wo ist die Toilette?
Language to order food: Ich möchte [insert food item].
Can you help me?: Könnten Sie mir helfen?
Japanese
Translations and pronunciations provided by Keiko Kuriyama, director of Japanese Studies at IUPUI.
Do you speak English?: Eego o hanashimasu ka?
Hello / Goodbye: Konnichiwa / Sayonara
Please / Thank you: Doozo / Arigatoo
Excuse me (informal): Sumimasen
Numbers 1-5: Ichi, ni, san, shi, go
How much does this cost?: Kore wa ikura desu ka?
Where is the restroom?: Toire wa doko desu ka?
Language to order food: [Insert food item] onegaishimasu.
Can you help me?: Tasukete kudasai?
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