Help and emergencies in Swahili
The words you hope to never need. Play the ten Swahili words against the clock, with a note on how locals really use each one after every answer. All ten are written out below.
All 10 Swahili phrases in this lesson
- Msaada!m-sah-AH-da
- Help!
- Mwite daktarim-WEE-teh dak-TAH-ree
- Call a doctor
- Polisipoh-LEE-see
- Police
- Duka la dawaDOO-ka la DAH-wa
- Pharmacy
- Hospitalihos-pee-TAH-lee
- Hospital
- Nimepoteanee-meh-poh-TEH-a
- I'm lost
- Sijisikii vizurisee-jee-see-KEE-ee vee-ZOO-ree
- I don't feel well
- Imeibiwaee-meh-ee-BEE-wa
- It was stolen
- Ni dharuranee dha-ROO-ra
- It's an emergency
- Niache!nee-AH-cheh
- Leave me alone
Or "Saidia!" (help me). Shouting either gets attention; Swahili speakers are quick to respond to genuine distress. Police emergency is 911 or 112 depending on the country.
Literally "call a doctor". In Kenya the emergency number is 999 or 112.
Pronounced like the English word. Police presence is visible in cities and towns. Most tourists have minimal interaction. Theft is the main concern; reporting to police gets documentation for insurance claims.
Literally medicine shop. Dawa means medicine or drug. Pharmacists speak English in cities. Over-the-counter medications are available but always ask about efficacy rather than assuming. Self-medication is common culturally.
Direct from English. Larger facilities have emergency wards. Rural areas have health centers with basic services. Private hospitals exist in cities alongside public ones. Ask locals which hospital to use as quality varies widely.
Literally "I have got lost".
Literally "I don't feel myself well".
Literally "it has been stolen".
Literally "leave me!".