Learn Twi

Where it's spoken

Ghana

Speakers

around 20 million including second-language speakers

Writing system

Latin alphabet with ɛ and ɔ

Twi is the everyday language of much of Ghana and the language behind widely known words like akwaaba (welcome).

What makes Twi different

• Tonal, with meaning carried by pitch as well as sound.
• ɛ and ɔ are separate vowels from e and o.
• Day-names (Kwame, Akosua) come from the Twi week and are still in daily use.

Your first Twi phrases

Each phrase is written the way it's spelled, then respelled for English speakers with the stressed syllable in capitals.

• MaakyeGood morning/MAA-chee/
• MedaaseThank you/meh-DAA-seh/
• AkwaabaWelcome/ak-WAA-ba/
• Nante yieGoodbye/NAN-teh yee-EH/
• AaneYes/AA-neh/
• DaabiNo/DAA-bee/
• Mepa wo kyɛwPlease/meh-PA wo chow/
• KosɛSorry/ko-SEH/

Want the full list? Read the free Twi phrasebook with pronunciation, grab the free printable Twi starter kit, or compare SemaSoma with other African language apps.