Iban–English Dictionary

Look up Iban words and get English translations, with parts of speech and example sentences. Browse the common-word table below or type a Iban word into the lookup tool.

Translate full sentences into Iban

Type a Iban word above and press Look up to see its English translation.

Browse common Iban vocabulary

Word	Part of speech	Translation	Example
aku	pronoun	I	Aku penat hari tu. I am tired today.
nuan	pronoun	you	Nuan meh kaban aku. You are my friend.
iya	pronoun	he	Iya benung tinduk diatu. He is sleeping now.
kitai	pronoun	we	Kitai bejalai ngagai sekula tiap hari. We go to school daily.
sida	pronoun	they	Sida diau semak sungai. They live near the river.
nama	pronoun	what	Nama ti diga nuan diatu? What do you want now?
dini	adverb	where	Dini rumah nuan? Where is your house?
kati	adverb	when	Kati nuan datai? When will you come?
sapa	pronoun	who	Sapa lelaki nya? Who is that man?
nama kebuah	adverb	why	Nama kebuah nuan tusah ati? Why are you sad?
baka ni	adverb	how	Baka ni nuan nemu? How do you know?
bisi	verb	to have	Aku bisi bup baru. I have a new book.
ngereja	verb	to do	Sida ngereja pengawa nya enggau manah. They do the work well.
bejalai	verb	to go	Kitai bejalai ngagai pekan diatu. We go to town now.
datai	verb	to come	Datai ngagai rumah aku. Please come to my house.
meda	verb	to see	Aku meda bulan malam tu. I see the moon tonight.
nemu	verb	to know	Aku nemu nama iya. I know his name.
berunding	verb	to think	Kitai berunding pasal penanggul nya. We think about the problem.
deka	verb	to want	Aku deka ai. I want some water.
enda tau enda	verb	to need	Kitai enda tau enda bisi makanan mayuh agi. We need more food.
ngaga	verb	to make
mai	verb	to take	Mai bup tu pulai. Take this book home.
meri	verb	to give	Meri aku beras siti. Give me some rice.
madah	verb	to say	Iya madah saut nya enggau terang. He says the answer clearly.
madah	verb	to tell	Madah ngagai aku pemendar. Tell me the truth.
nanya	verb	to ask	Aku nanya siti tanya ti mudah. I ask a simple question.
tetemuka	verb	to find
neing	verb	to look	Neing langit biru nya. Look at the blue sky.
ngena	verb	to use	Aku ngena tuai tu tiap hari. I use this knife daily.
bekereja	verb	to work	Sida bekereja di nengeri. They work in the city.
makai	verb	to eat	Kitai makai asi tiap hari. We eat rice every day.
ngirup	verb	to drink	Aku ngirup ai teh tiap pagi. I drink tea every morning.
tinduk	verb	to sleep	Anak nya tinduk awal. The child sleeps early.
bejalai	verb	to walk	Sida bejalai ngagai sekula begulai. They walk to school together.
belanda	verb	to run	Anak lelaki nya belanda amat pantas. The boy runs very fast.
macha	verb	to read	Aku macha bup tu tiap malam. I read this book nightly.
nulis	verb	to write
jaku	verb	to speak	Sida jaku Iban ba rumah. They speak Iban at home.
nginga	verb	to listen	Nginga musik diatu. Listen to the music now.
ninga	verb	to hear	Aku ninga ujan di luar. I hear the rain outside.
meli	verb	to buy	Kitai meli ikan ba pasar. We buy fish at market.
njual	verb	to sell	Sida njual buah din. They sell fruit there.
mayar	verb	to pay	Aku mayar makanan nya. I pay for the food.
nulung	verb	to help	Tulung nulung indai aku hari tu. Please help my mother today.
rindu	verb	to love	Kitai rindu ka sebilik kitai amat. We love our family deeply.
diau	verb	to live	Sida diau di rumah tu. They live in this house.
mati	verb	to die	Puun tuai mati malembe. Old trees die slowly.
belajar	verb	to learn	Anak belajar ba sekula. Children learn at school.
ngajar	verb	to teach	Sida ngajar anak nya enggau manah. They teach the children well.
muka	verb	to open	Muka pintu nya malembe. Open the door slowly.
ngatup	verb	to close
mensia	noun	person	Genap mensia begunaka ai. Every person needs water.
lelaki	noun	man	Lelaki nya meh apai aku. That man is my father.
indu	noun	woman	Indu nya manah amat. The woman is very kind.
anak	noun	child	Anak nya tinduk. The child is sleeping.
anak lelaki	noun	boy	Anak lelaki nya macha bup. The boy reads a book.
anak indu	noun	girl
sebilik	noun	family	Sebilik aku diau dini. My family lives here.
indai	noun	mother	Indai aku nuchi asi. My mother cooks rice.
apai	noun	father	Apai aku bekereja keras. My father works hard.
kaban	noun	friend
rumah	noun	house	Rumah sida besai amat. Their house is very big.
rumah	noun	home	Kitai bejalai pulai diatu. We are going home now.
sekula	noun	school	Sekula nya semak. The school is nearby.
nengeri	noun	city	Iya bekereja di nengeri. He works in the city.
dunya	noun	world	Dunya tu besai amat. The world is very large.
bilik	noun	room	Bilik nya beresi diatu. The room is clean now.
maya	noun	time	Maya lalu amat pantas. Time passes very quickly.
hari	noun	day	Hari tu hari panas. Today is a hot day.
malam	noun	night	Malam tu alit. The night is quiet.
pagi	noun	morning	Pagi tu ngasuh asa chelap. This morning feels cool.
sungkei	noun	evening	Kitai bejalai ba sungkei. We walk in the evening.
minggu	noun	week	Aku deka datai minggu dudi. I will come next week.
bulan	noun	month	Bulan tu sibuk. This month is busy.
taun	noun	year	Taun tu asa pandak. This year feels short.
hari tu	adverb	today	Aku sibuk hari tu. I am busy today.
pagila	adverb	tomorrow	Kitai deka bejalai pagila. We will leave tomorrow.
kalia	adverb	yesterday	Iya datai kalia lepas tengah hari. He came yesterday afternoon.
diatu	adverb	now	Datai dini diatu. Please come here now.
matahari	noun	sun	Matahari panas amat. The sun is very hot.
bulan	noun	moon	Bulan baka terang malam tu. The moon looks bright tonight.
bintang	noun	star	Bintang besinar ba atas kitai. A star shines above us.
langit	noun	sky	Langit biru hari tu. The sky is blue today.
dunya	noun	earth	Dunya tu rumah kitai. Earth is our home.
api	noun	fire	Api nya panas amat. The fire is very hot.
ai	noun	water	Silaka ngirup ai lebih agi. Please drink more water.
ujan	noun	rain	Ujan berengkah diatu. The rain starts now.
ribut	noun	wind	Ribut ngembus balat malam tu. The wind blows strongly tonight.
puun	noun	tree	Puun nya tinggi amat. That tree is very tall.
bunga	noun	flower	Bunga tu bau manis. This flower smells sweet.
bukit	noun	mountain	Bukit nya jauh. The mountain is far away.
sungai	noun	river	Sungai nya panjai amat. The river is very long.
tasik	noun	sea
makanan	noun	food	Makanan nya bau manah. The food smells good.
roti	noun	bread	Aku makai roti tiap pagi. I eat bread every morning.
asi	noun	rice	Asi meh makanan utama kitai. Rice is our main food.
daging	noun	meat	Sida masak daging malam tu. They cook meat tonight.
ikan	noun	fish	Kitai meli ikan ti baru. We bought fresh fish.
telur	noun	egg	Telur nya udah pechah. The egg is broken.
susu	noun	milk	Anak nya ngirup susu tiap hari. The child drinks milk daily.
buah	noun	fruit	Buah tu asa manis. This fruit tastes sweet.
teh	noun	tea	Teh aku agi panas. My tea is still hot.
kopi	noun	coffee	Iya ngirup kopi tiap pagi. He drinks coffee every morning.
ulu	noun	head	Ulu aku sakit hari tu. My head hurts today.
mata	noun	eye
pendinga	noun	ear	Pendinga aku sakit amat. My ear hurts badly.
mulut	noun	mouth	Muka mulut nuan besai. Open your mouth wide.
idung	noun	nose	Idung iya bedarah. His nose is bleeding.
jari	noun	hand	Basuh jari nuan dulu. Wash your hands first.
kaki	noun	foot	Kaki aku pedis. My foot is sore.
jantung	noun	heart	Jantung iya tegap. His heart is strong.
nama	noun	name	Nama nuan nama? What is your name?
bup	noun	book	Bup tu baru. This book is new.
leka jaku	noun	word	Leka jaku nya pedis. That word is difficult.
jaku	noun	language	Jaku Iban meh jaku kitai. Iban is our language.
duit	noun	money	Aku nadai duit. I have no money.
pengawa	noun	work	Pengawa tu pedis. This work is hard.
rindu	noun	love	Rindu ngaga pengidup manah. Love makes life beautiful.
musik	noun	music	Musik nya nyamai didinga. The music sounds lovely.
cherita	noun	story	Cherita nya balat narit ati. That story is very interesting.
jalai	noun	way	Jalai tu lebih mudah. This way is easier.
utai	noun	thing	Nama utai nya? What is that thing?
pengidup	noun	life	Pengidup enda mudah. Life is not easy.
pintu	noun	door	Pintu nya tebuka. The door is open.
mija	noun	table	Bup nya ba atas mija. The book is on the table.
kerusi	noun	chair	Kerusi nya udah rusak. The chair is broken.
kereta	noun	car	Kereta sida baru. Their car is new.
manah	adjective	good	Bup tu manah. This book is good.
jai	adjective	bad	Cuaca jai hari tu. The weather is bad today.
besai	adjective	big	Rumah nya besai. That house is big.
mit	adjective	small	Bilik nya mit. The room is small.
baru	adjective	new	Aku meli kereta baru. I bought a new car.
tuai	adjective	old	Rumah nya tuai. That house is old.
panjai	adjective	long	Sungai nya panjai. The river is long.
pandak	adjective	short	Kayu tu pandak. This stick is short.
tinggi	adjective	high	Bukit nya tinggi. The mountain is high.
randau	adjective	low
panas	adjective	hot	Teh nya panas. The tea is hot.
chelap	adjective	cold	Ai nya chelap. The water is cold.
gaga ati	adjective	happy	Anak nya baka gaga ati. The child looks happy.
tusah ati	adjective	sad
badas	adjective	beautiful	Bunga nya badas. The flower is beautiful.
mudah	adjective	easy	Pengawa tu mudah. This work is easy.
pedis	adjective	hard	Tanya tu pedis. This question is hard.
pantas	adjective	fast
malembe	adjective	slow	Kereta nya malembe. The car is slow.
betul	adjective	right	Saut nuan betul. Your answer is right.
salah	adjective	wrong	Saut nya salah. That answer is wrong.
beguna	adjective	important	Bup tu beguna. This book is important.
amat	adjective	true	Cherita nya amat. That story is true.
penuh	adjective	full	Butil nya penuh. The bottle is full.
puang	adjective	empty	Bilik nya puang. The room is empty.
biak	adjective	young	Puun nya agi biak. The tree is still young.
tegap	adjective	strong	Lelaki nya tegap. That man is strong.
lemi	adjective	weak	Aku asa lemi hari tu. I feel weak today.
bungai	adjective	red	Bunga nya bungai. The flower is red.
biru	adjective	blue	Langit biru. The sky is blue.
ijo	adjective	green	Daun nya ijo. The leaves are green.
kuning	adjective	yellow	Buah nya kuning. The fruit is yellow.
itang	adjective	black	Pusi nya itang. The cat is black.
bak	adjective	white	Baju nya bak. The shirt is white.
ya	interjection	yes	Ya, aku nemu diatu. Yes, I understand now.
ukai	interjection	no	Ukai, aku enda ulih datai. No, I cannot come.
enda	adverb	not	Aku enda netap. I am not ready.
enggau	conjunction	and	Indai enggau apai bisi dini. Mother and father are here.
tauka	conjunction	or	Teh tauka kopi nadai utai. Tea or coffee is fine.
tang	conjunction	but	Iya seranta tang gaga ati. He is poor but happy.
enti	conjunction	if	Enti ujan, diau ba rumah. If it rains, stay home.
laban	conjunction	because	Aku diau ba rumah laban ujan. I stayed home because rain fell.
enggau	preposition	with	Aku datai enggau kaban aku. I came with my friend.
nadai	preposition	without	Iya bejalai nadai duit. He left without money.
ka	preposition	for	Pemeri tu ka nuan. This gift is for you.
ari	preposition	from	Aku datai ari sekula. I came from school.
ngagai	preposition	to	Kitai bejalai ngagai sungai. We went to the river.