English–Iban Dictionary

Browse common English words and their Iban translations, with parts of speech and example sentences. Use this dictionary to look up everyday vocabulary or as a starting point for learning Iban.

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Browse common Iban vocabulary

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