Sesotho (Lesotho)→English

Translate Sesotho (Lesotho) to English the way locals mean it.

Sesotho speakers use greetings, softeners, and indirect phrases whose literal English can sound more dramatic or definite than the message intends.

Going the other way? English to Sesotho (Lesotho)

474 local dialects

AIRTranslate on iPhone choosing between Sesotho varieties

What locals actually say

U ntse u phela?

How have you been?

U ntse u ... signals an ongoing state, and phela means being well or getting on, so this is a familiar greeting rather than a question about survival.

Ke tla bona.

We'll see.

The future marker tla plus bona literally gives “I will see,” but in conversation it often keeps the speaker noncommittal rather than promising to check.

Joale, u tla neng?

So, when are you coming?

Joale literally means “now,” but as a conversational marker it can mean “so” or “anyway” and introduce the practical point of the conversation.

U ka nkalima maloti a mashome a mabeli?

Can you lend me twenty maloti?

Maloti is the Lesotho currency plural, signalling a specifically local money context.

Motseng ke fihla joang?

How do I get to town?

Motseng is the locative form of motse, a common Sesotho construction for referring to the town or settlement.

Kajeno re ja papa le moro.

Today we’re having pap and relish.

Papa and moro are everyday Sesotho food terms, signalling a home-style meal rather than a generic dish.

M'e o itse ke khutlele hae pele ho fifala.

My mother said I should come home before dark.

M'e uses the Lesotho spelling for mother, with the apostrophe distinguishing it from the South African form mme.

Lehloa lea na lithabeng; apara jase.

It’s snowing in the mountains; put on a jacket.

Lehloa means snow, and the impersonal weather construction lea na is natural Sesotho for describing snowfall.

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

How Sesotho (Lesotho) differs

Sesotho (Lesotho orthography — differs from South African spelling); dumela greetings.

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Localization Notes explaining why locals say it that way