সাহায্য করুন!
Sha-haj-jo ko-run!
Help me!
Usage
The most important phrase to call for help in an emergency
Grammar Note
In urgent situations, shouting just "shahajjo!" (help!) is also understood.
ডাক্তার দরকার
Dak-tar dor-kar
I need a doctor
Usage
Used when feeling ill or injured. "Hashpatal kothay?" (Where is the hospital?) also helpful
Grammar Note
"Dorkar" is a noun meaning "need/necessity." "Amar daktar dorkar" is more explicit.
পুলিশ ডাকুন!
Po-lish da-kun!
Call the police!
Usage
Requesting police assistance. Bangladesh police emergency number is 999
Grammar Note
"Daka" means "to call/summon." "Dakun" is the polite imperative form.
আমি হারিয়ে গেছি
A-mi ha-ri-ye ge-chi
I am lost
Usage
Asking for help when lost. Dhaka has many complex and winding streets
Grammar Note
"Hariye gechi" = "harano" (lost) + "gechi" (have gone/been). A compound perfect form.
চুরি হয়েছে
Chu-ri ho-ye-che
Something was stolen
Usage
Reporting a theft to police or bystanders
Grammar Note
"Churi hoyeche" is a passive perfect. Use "amar purse churi hoyeche" (my purse was stolen).
আমার পেট ব্যথা
A-mar pet bya-tha
I have a stomachache
Usage
A common traveler ailment. Often caused by food or water. Drink only safe water
Grammar Note
"Amar X byatha" = "my X hurts." "Matha" = head, "buk" = chest, "gola" = throat.
দূতাবাস কোথায়?
Du-ta-bash ko-thay?
Where is the embassy?
Usage
Finding your country's embassy in emergencies like lost passport
Grammar Note
"Duta" (messenger/ambassador) + "abas" (residence) = embassy.
আমার ওষুধ দরকার
A-mar o-shu-dh dor-kar
I need medicine
Usage
Also useful at a pharmacy (farmeshi) when you need specific medicine
Grammar Note
"Amar dorkar" = "I need." Place the noun between "amar" and "dorkar" to specify what you need.
আগুন লেগেছে!
A-gun le-ge-che!
Fire!
Usage
Reporting a fire emergency. The national emergency number is 999 (police, fire, ambulance); the Fire Service hotline is 102
Grammar Note
"Laga" means "to attach/catch." "Agun laga" = fire catching = a fire breaking out. The fire service hotline is 102; 999 is the national emergency number (police, fire and ambulance).
হাসপাতাল কোথায়?
Hash-pa-tal ko-thay?
Where is the hospital?
Usage
Finding a hospital in an emergency. Dhaka has many public and private hospitals
Grammar Note
"Hashpatal" (hospital) is an English loanword that has become a common Bengali term.
থামুন!
Thamun!
Stop it!
Usage
Shown to shut down persistent touts, overcharging or someone following you - deliberately blunt
আমাকে ধরবেন না!
Amake dhorben na!
Do not touch me!
Usage
Can be shown without saying a word when someone touches you; ধরা is the everyday verb for grabbing or touching and this phrasing lands hardest
চোর
Chor
Thief
Usage
Names the person who steals; pair it with চুরি হয়েছে (something was stolen) when reporting the loss
ডাকাতি
Dakati
Robbery
Usage
The act of taking by force or threat; the robber himself is ডাকাত
ছিনতাই
Chhintai
Snatching
Usage
Names having a bag or phone snatched away; show it while pointing at the person running off
পকেটমার
Poketmar
Pickpocket
Usage
Names someone who lifts things from a pocket or bag - used to report thefts on crowded buses or in markets
অপহরণ
Opohoron
Kidnapping
Usage
Names the crime of carrying a person off; show it when reporting to the police (999)
হত্যা
Hotta
Murder
Usage
The act of killing a person; the synonym খুন also means "blood", so this word is the less ambiguous one to show
দাঙ্গা
Danga
Riot
Usage
Names group violence or civil disturbance - show it to warn others off or to ask what is happening
বোমা
Boma
Bomb
Usage
Names an explosive device; a homograph meaning "the yoke of a vehicle" exists, but in everyday modern use this is the sense understood
আগুন লেগেছে! পালিয়ে যান!
Agun legeche! Paliye jan!
Fire! Run!
Usage
Warns of a fire and tells people to get out; agun legeche (there is a fire) with an order to flee added
Grammar Note
The conjunctive participle paliye of palano (to flee) plus the polite imperative jan, the same auxiliary used in phire jan (please go back).
চোর! ধরুন!
Chor! Dhorun!
Thief! Catch him!
Usage
Shouted at bystanders while pointing at someone running off; chor (thief) followed by "grab him"
Grammar Note
Dhora is the everyday verb for grabbing or holding; dhorun is its polite imperative, the same form as in dhoirjo dhorun.
দমকল ডাকুন!
Domkol dakun!
Please call a fire engine
Usage
Asks someone to call the fire service; the Fire Service hotline is 102 and the national emergency number is 999
Grammar Note
Same frame as pulish dakun (call the police), with pulish replaced by domkol (fire engine).
পুলিশ স্টেশন কোথায়?
Pulish steshon kothay?
Where is the police station?
Usage
Shown when looking for a police station to report a crime; naming the building avoids the ambiguity of pulish (the police as an institution) on its own
Grammar Note
The "X kothay?" (where is X?) frame of hashpatal kothay?, filled with steshon (station).
চুরির রিপোর্ট করতে চাই।
Churir report korte chai.
I want to report a theft
Usage
Shown at a police station to file a theft report - the document an insurer asks for is issued from this report
Grammar Note
report korte chai (I would like to report it) with churi (theft) in the genitive.
জাপানি ভাষায় কথা বলতে পারেন এমন মানুষ আছেন কি?
Japani bhashay kotha bolte paren emon manush achen ki?
Is there anyone who speaks Japanese?
Usage
Shown at a police station or hospital when looking for someone who can interpret
Grammar Note
ingrejite kotha bolte paren emon daktar achen ki? with ingrejite replaced by japani bhashay and daktar by manush. Emon links the preceding clause to the following noun.
এই ব্যক্তি জ্ঞান হারিয়েছেন।
Ei byakti gyan hariyechen.
This person is unconscious
Usage
Shown to bystanders or paramedics while pointing at a collapsed person; gyan harano is the set phrase for losing consciousness
Grammar Note
Harano (to lose) is the same verb as in ami hariye gechi; gyan harano means to lose consciousness.
একটা মানুষ পানিতে ডুবে যাচ্ছে!
Ekta manush panite dube jachchhe!
Someone is drowning
Usage
Alerts bystanders to someone drowning in a river, pond or the sea; show it while pointing at the water
Grammar Note
The conjunctive participle of duba (to sink, to drown) with the progressive auxiliary jachchhe; the -achchhe ending is the same present progressive as in ghum pachhe.
আমাকে মারধর করা হয়েছে।
Amake marodhor kora hoyeche.
I was beaten
Usage
Shown to the police or at a hospital to report having been assaulted
Grammar Note
The same passive perfect as churi hoyeche (something was stolen); kora hoyeche marks "was done (to me)".
আমাকে ছুরিকাঘাত করা হয়েছে।
Amake churikaghat kora hoyeche.
I was stabbed
Usage
Reports having been stabbed with a blade; pair it with roktopat (bleeding) if there is blood
Grammar Note
Churikaghat (a stab) is derived from churi (knife). The passive perfect is used.
আমার রুমে চুরি হয়েছে।
Amar rume churi hoyeche.
My room was broken into
Usage
Tells a hotel or the police that your room was entered and robbed while you were out
Grammar Note
churi hoyeche with amar rum (my room) put in the locative rume.
ওই মানুষটি অপরাধী।
Oi manushti oporadhi.
That person is the culprit
Usage
Shown to the police while pointing at the offender; use it only when the person is in sight
Grammar Note
Bengali equational sentences take no copula, as in apni khub mishti manush (you are a very kind person). The suffix -ti is the definite marker also seen in chobiti.
আমাকে ঠকানো হয়েছে।
Amake thokano hoyeche.
I was deceived
Usage
Shown to report a scam or having been overcharged
Grammar Note
The same passive perfect as churi hoyeche; thokano (to cheat) is the causative of thoka (to be cheated).
আমার মানিব্যাগ চুরি হয়েছে।
Amar manibyag churi hoyeche.
My wallet was stolen
Usage
Shown to the police or bystanders when a wallet has been taken; it names what was stolen
Grammar Note
The "amar X churi hoyeche" pattern, filled with manibyag (wallet).
আমি আমার ব্যাগ ফেলে এসেছি।
Ami amar bag fele eshechi.
I left it behind
Usage
Says you left a bag behind in a shop, a vehicle or your lodging - not a theft
Grammar Note
The conjunctive participle fele of fela (to drop, to leave) plus eshechi (I have come) - the set phrase for leaving something behind.
সড়ক দুর্ঘটনা ঘটেছে।
Sorok durghotona ghotechhe.
There has been a traffic accident
Usage
Reports that an accident has happened; pair it with daktar dorkar if an ambulance is needed
Grammar Note
durghotona ghotechhe (there has been an accident) prefixed with sorok (road) - the standard modern term for a traffic accident.
আমাকে একটা গাড়ি ধাক্কা দিয়েছে।
Amake ekta gari dhakka diyeche.
I was hit by a car
Usage
Reports a collision with a car; pair it with har bhanga (a fracture) or similar if you are injured
Grammar Note
"X-ke gari dhakka deoya" means "a car hits X"; the same case frame appears in "protibondhoke gari dhakka dile" (when a car hit the barrier).
জরুরি নির্গমন পথ দিয়ে পালিয়ে যান।
Joruri nirgomon poth diye paliye jan.
Please escape through the emergency exit
Usage
Shown while pointing at the escape route during a fire or a power cut
Grammar Note
Diye is the postposition of means or route, the same use as in kard diye (by card).
সাবধান!
Sabdhan!
Watch out!
Usage
A one-word warning of immediate danger; used both on signs and when shouted
Grammar Note
The bare stem of sabdhane (carefully); on its own it stands as a warning.
তাড়াতাড়ি করুন!
Taratari korun!
Please hurry
Usage
Shown to ask paramedics or the police to come quickly, or to ask a driver to hurry
Grammar Note
taratari (fast) with the polite imperative korun.
এখনই আসুন!
Ekhoni ashun!
Please come right away
Usage
Shown on the phone or face to face to ask someone to come immediately
Grammar Note
ekhoni (right now) with the polite imperative ashun.
এটা জরুরি।
Eta joruri.
It's an emergency
Usage
Shown to ask to be dealt with without waiting in line - at a hospital reception or a police station
Grammar Note
A copula-less equational sentence; joruri is the same word as in joruri nirgomon poth (emergency exit).
More Bengali phrases
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