English→Tongan

Translate English to Tongan like a local.

Tongan sounds like itself through its open-vowel rhythm, ʻokina and macrons, and everyday particles such as mai and siʻi that mark direction and familiarity.

Going the other way? Tongan to English

474 local dialects

AIRTranslate on iPhone choosing between Tongan varieties

What locals actually say

Hang on a second.

Tatali mai siʻi.

Mai directs the waiting toward the speaker, while siʻi, meaning “a little,” softens the request into the familiar Tongan way to say “just wait a moment.”

Can you bring me some water?

ʻE lava ke ke ʻomi mai ha vai?

ʻOmi mai means “bring toward me,” with mai making the direction explicit; ha vai is the natural indefinite phrase for “some water.”

Where’s the bathroom?

Ko fē ʻa e fale mālōlō?

Fale mālōlō, literally “resting house,” is the ordinary Tongan euphemism for a toilet or bathroom.

How much does this cost?

Ko e hā hono mahuʻinga ʻo e meʻa ni?

The construction hono mahuʻinga ʻo e meʻa ni means “the value of this thing,” a natural Tongan way to ask the price.

Turn left at the church.

Tafoki ki tohema ʻi he lotú.

Tohema means “left,” while the locative ʻi he marks the place where the turn happens.

I’m full.

Kuo u mākona.

Mākona means “full” after eating, and kuo signals a completed state, giving the sense “I have become full.”

This is my older sister.

Ko hoku tuofefine lahi ʻeni.

Hoku is the possessive form used with close family relationships, and tuofefine lahi means “older sister.”

I have to go to work tomorrow.

Kuo pau ke u ʻalu ki he ngāue ʻapongipongi.

Kuo pau ke means “must” or “have to,” a common Tongan construction for obligation.

Notes like these come with every AIRTranslate translation, so you learn why locals phrase it that way as you go.

How Tongan differs

Tongan; honorific registers (regal/chiefly language) only when context demands.

Sound like a local everywhere, not just here.

Every one of 474 dialects, with voice, camera, a keyboard for any app, and offline packs.

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Localization Notes explaining why locals say it that way