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Kinyarwanda overview

Free Kinyarwanda starter kit — 25 phrases you can print

A one-page Kinyarwanda cheat sheet for absolute beginners. Every phrase shows the Kinyarwanda spelling, what it means, and a respelling with the stressed syllable in capitals so you can say it out loud today. Rwanda, with close relatives in Burundi and Uganda — around 12 million.

First words

Greet someone and be polite

  • MurahoHello/moo-RA-ho/
  • MurakozeThank you/moo-ra-KO-zeh/
  • Murakaza nezaWelcome/moo-ra-KA-za NEH-za/
  • MurabehoGoodbye/moo-ra-BEH-ho/
  • YegoYes/YEH-go/
  • OyaNo/O-ya/
  • NyabunekaPlease/nya-boo-NEH-ka/
  • MbabariraSorry/m-ba-ba-REE-ra/

Free starter kit

Unlock the remaining Kinyarwanda phrases

Enter your email and all 25 phrases open right here — every meaning and pronunciation respelling, ready to print. We'll also send one short daily phrase so it actually sticks.

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Is Kinyarwanda hard to learn?

  • Tone and vowel length both change meaning.
  • Words get long: prefixes and suffixes stack onto one verb stem.
  • Very close to Kirundi, spoken in Burundi.