Translate English to Hmong
Hmong is spoken by about 4 million people across Southeast Asia (Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, China) and by large diaspora communities in the United States, France, and Australia. The Hmong American community numbers over 300,000, concentrated in Minnesota, California, and Wisconsin. Paste your English text above to get a Hmong translation.
Common English to Hmong translations
| English | Hmong | Pronunciation | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hello | Nyob zoo | nyaw zhong | ||
| Good morning | Nyob zoo sawv ntxov | nyaw zhong shaw ntsaw | ||
| Thank you | Ua tsaug | ooa jaow | ||
| Please | Thov | taw | ||
| How much is this? | Qhov no nqi pes tsawg? | kaw naw nchee pay jawng | ||
| Where is the bathroom? | Chav dej nyob qhov twg? | chah day nyaw kaw twng | ||
| I do not understand | Kuv tsis to taub | koo jee taw taw | ||
| Can you help me? | Koj puas tau pab kuv? | kaw pooa taw pah koo | ||
| I would like water | Kuv xav haus dej | koo shah how day | ||
| The bill, please | Daim ntawv them, thov | die ntaw teh taw | ||
| Nice to meet you | Zoo siab ntsib koj | zhong shee-ah njee kaw | ||
| Goodbye | Sib ntsib dua | shee njee dooa | ||
| I need a doctor | Kuv xav tau kws kho mob | koo shah taw kuh kaw maw | ||
| Excuse me | Thov txim | taw tsee |
Tips for English to Hmong translation
Hmong is a tonal language with seven or eight tones depending on the dialect. In the Romanized Popular Alphabet (RPA), tones are indicated by the final consonant of each syllable: -b (high), -j (high falling), -v (mid rising), -s (mid low), -g (mid), -m (low glottalized), -d (low rising), and no final consonant (mid level). These final letters are not pronounced as consonants; they are tone markers.
There are two main Hmong dialect groups: White Hmong (Hmong Daw) and Green/Blue Hmong (Hmong Njua/Leng). They differ in vocabulary, pronunciation, and some grammar. This translator handles White Hmong, the more widely written variety used in most Hmong American communities and educational materials.
Hmong grammar is relatively simple compared to many European languages. There are no verb conjugations, no grammatical gender, no plural markers on nouns, and no articles. Word order is SVO (subject-verb-object), the same as English. Context and classifiers handle the functions that inflection handles in other languages.
The Hmong writing system (RPA) was created by missionaries in the 1950s. Before that, Hmong was primarily an oral language with various folk scripts that never gained widespread use. The RPA system uses double and triple consonant clusters that look unusual but represent single sounds: ntx, nts, nph, npl are all single-onset clusters.
About the Hmong language
Hmong belongs to the Hmong-Mien (Miao-Yao) language family, one of the smaller language families in Southeast Asia. The Hmong people originated in southern China and migrated southward over centuries into Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, and Myanmar. The Secret War in Laos (1960s-1970s) and its aftermath led to large-scale Hmong immigration to the United States, France, and Australia.
The Hmong American community has grown significantly since the 1970s and now numbers over 300,000 people. Minnesota has the largest Hmong population in the United States, followed by California and Wisconsin. Hmong language education, media, and cultural preservation efforts are active in these communities. Hmong is offered at several American universities and has a growing body of written literature.
One verb form for every time
Hmong verbs never change. There is no -ed, no will, no conjugation table. Time lives in separate words: kuv mus is “I go,” and adding nag hmo (yesterday) turns the whole sentence past without touching the verb. When you translate English past or future tense, that time information has to survive as one of these words, so after translating, check that your “yesterday,” “next week,” or “already” made it into the Hmong. If it dropped out, the sentence lost its time entirely.
Two of us or all of us: the pronoun system
Hmong pronouns count more precisely than English ones. “We” splits into wb (exactly two of us) and peb (three or more). “You” splits three ways: koj for one person, neb for two, nej for a group. English hides these numbers, so the translation has to guess from context.
You can remove the guesswork on the English side. Write “the two of us” instead of “we” when you mean a pair, and the output lands on the dual form a Hmong reader expects.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. No sign-up, no fees.
White Hmong (Hmong Daw), the most widely written variety.
Yes. Click the speaker icon. Hmong tones are especially important to hear.
They are tone markers, not pronounced consonants. Each final letter indicates one of seven or eight tones.
Reasonable for everyday phrases. Hmong is a less-resourced language for translation tools, so complex or specialized text may need human review.
No. Hmong-Mien and Sino-Tibetan are separate language families, though centuries of contact produced vocabulary borrowing.
Visit our Hmong to English page.
Yes.
This tool is optimized for White Hmong. Green Hmong text may produce less accurate results.
Over 60 pairs including Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai, Lao, and more.
Hmong verbs do not conjugate. Time is carried by separate words like nag hmo (yesterday), so the verb itself stays identical. Make sure the time word from your English sentence appears in the output.
Both mean “we.” Wb is exactly two people, peb is three or more. English does not make the distinction, so phrase your source as “the two of us” when the pair meaning matters.
Need the reverse? Try Hmong to English translation.
