Appendix:Old English phrasebook

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Here are basic words and common conversational phrases in Old English:

Translation Phrase IPA Comments
English Englisċ IPA(key): [ˈeŋɡliʃ]
how are you? hū færst þū? IPA(key): [huː færˠst θuː]
hello wes hāl IPA(key): [wes hɑːl]
goodbye far wel IPA(key): [fɑr wel]
please iċ bidde IPA(key): [it͡ʃ ˈbid.de] or understood; see usage note.
thank you iċ þanciġe þē IPA(key): [it͡ʃ ˈθɑŋkije θeː]
how much? hū miċel? IPA(key): [huː ˈmit͡ʃel]
yes ġēse IPA(key): [ˈjeːze]
no nēse IPA(key): [ˈneːze]
where is the bathroom? hwǣr is þæt gangsetl? IPA(key): [ˈhwæːr is θæt ˈɡɑŋɡsetl]
where are you from? hwanon eart þū? IPA(key): [ˈhwɑnon æɑ̯rt θuː]
do you speak English? spricst þū Englisċ? IPA(key): [ˈsprikst θuː ˈeŋɡliʃ]
I don’t understand iċ ne understande IPA(key): [it͡ʃ ne ˌunderˈstɑnde]
who are you? hwæt eart þū? IPA(key): [hwæt æɑ̯rt θuː]
  • *No word directly corresponds to the word “please”. Old English expressed the concept of politeness in a request in various ways.