50+ Basic Slovenian Phrases For Your Next Trip

Heading to Slovenia for your next adventure? While many Slovenians speak English, learning a few basic Slovenian phrases can make your experience so much better! A bit of effort in the local language goes a long way, helping you connect more with locals and showing that you’re a thoughtful, respectful traveler.

So, which Slovenian phrases should you start with? Get ready to enhance your experience with these essential Slovenian phrases below!

Basic Slovenian Phrases For Beginners

Greetings And Basic Slovenian Phrases

Often, all you need to start a conversation is a friendly greeting. Here’s how you do that, and some other phrases that’ll be helpful when initiating conversations:

• Hello – Živjo or Zdravo
• Good morning – Dobro jutro
• Good afternoon – Dober dan
• Good evening – Dober večer
• What’s the time – Koliko je ura?
• Thank you – Hvala
• Thank you very much – Hvala lepa
• You’re welcome – Ni za kaj
• Please – Prosim
• Yes – Ja
• No – Ne
• How are you? – Kako si? (informal)
• How are you – Kako ste? (formal)
• Excuse me – Oprostite
• Bye – Adijo
• Goodbye – Nasvidenje

Basic Introductions And Small Talk

Now, let’s learn how you’d introduce yourself and engage in a bit of small talk. To ask someone their name and introduce yourself in Slovenian, you can use these phrases:

• What’s your name? – Kako ti je ime?
• My name is…- Ime mi je…

Next, Slovenians will probably be interested to know where you came from. After all, we don’t get as many visitors as larger European countries, so we’re excited to share our culture with guests. To find out where you’re from, we might ask you the following phrase:

• Where are you from? – Iz kje si?
• Where do you come from – Iz kje prihajaš?

And to answer, you can say:

• I’m from – Sem iz…
• I come from – Prihajam iz…

Helpful tip: Let’s say, you’re from Argentina. In this case, you wouldn’t say prihajam iz Argentina. The word Argentina will have to change the ending because the Slovenian language has a case system, to show its role in the sentence! The correct way to say this would be: Prihajam iz Argentine.

Numbers In Slovenian

Numbers are super useful, especially if you’re trying to buy some stuff at a local market. With basic counting skills, you’ll be able to ask for prices or quantities. Here are the names of numbers in Slovenian from one to ten:

• One – Ena
• Two – Dva
• Three – Tri
• Four – Štiri
• Five – Pet
• Six – Šest
• Seven – Sedem
• Eight – Osem
• Nine – Devet
• Ten – Deset

Basic Shopping Phrases

To ask someone how much something costs and discuss buying souvenirs or something else, here are some sentences you can use:

• How much does this cost? – Koliko to stane?
• I’ll take it. – Bom vzel/vzela
• That’s too expensive. – To je predrago
• Do you have any discounts? – Imate kakšne popuste?
• Only one, please. – Samo enega, prosim
• Two, please. – Dva, prosim
• How many do you need? – Koliko jih potrebujete?
• I don’t need a bag. – Ne potrebujem vrečke
• Do you have this in stock? – Imate to na zalogi?

Helpful tip: When it comes to Slovenian nouns, all of them are either feminine, masculine or neuter. What does this mean? Well, in the examples above, I used the phrase dva, prosim, meaning ‘two, please’. This works in the case that a noun is masculine.

So, for example, if we bought two cars, then dva, prosim makes sense because a car (avto) in Slovenian is masculine. So, you’d say dva avta (two cars).

But if we bought two shirts, we’d have to say dve, prosim, because a shirt (majica) in Slovenian is feminine. So, you’d say dve majici (two shirts).

Ordering Food And Drinks

Once in Slovenia, you’ll most likely go and try some nice restaurants. Why not try and order food in Slovenian? Here are some easy phrases to help you out:

• I would like to order – Rad/a bi naročil/a
• Can I get the menu, please? – Lahko dobim jedilni list, prosim?
• One beer, please – Eno pivo, prosim
• A glass of water, please – Kozarec vode, prosim
• Can I get the bill? – Lahko dobim račun?
• I would like to pay with card – Rad/a bi plačal/a s kartico
• I would like to pay with cash – Rad/a bi plača/a z gotovino

Helpful tip: notice how I use a slash sometimes when writing some words. That’s because it matters how you say certain words if you’re a man or a woman. A man would say rad bi naročil, and a woman would say rada bi naročila.

Directions And Transportation

You’ll probably have a hard time getting lost in Slovenia because it’s a very small place. All the cities are easily walkable, and we don’t even have a metro or a tram anywhere in the country! But why not still learn some basic phrases for asking directions in Slovenian and using public transportation?

• Where is… – Kje je…
• Is it far? – Je daleč?
• Is it nearby? – Je blizu?
• Bus station – Avtobusna postaja
• Train station – Železniška postaja
• I’m searching for the bus station – Iščem avtobusno postajo
• Bus – Avtobus
• Train – Vlak
• Taxi – Taksi
• Public transport – Javni prevoz
• A trolley bus – Trola (colloquial)

Emergency Phrases

Lastly, if something goes wrong, it’s always nice to have some basic Slovenian emergency phrases at the ready.

• Help! – Na pomoč!
• Call the police! – Pokličite policijo
• I need a doctor – Potrebujem zdravnika
• Call an ambulance – Pokličite rešilca
• Call the firefighters – Pokličite gasilce

In Slovenia, if you want to call the police, you enter the emergency number 113, and if you want to call the ambulance or firefighters, enter 112.

If you’re reading this blog, you’re taking a fantastic first step into learning Slovenian! If you have some time before your trip, also consider getting some practice by downloading the Ling app. Even just a few lessons can help you learn some basic Slovenian phrases so you can make simple sentences. The app even has an AI chatbot you can practice with, so you can get your pronunciation and vocabulary just right!

How Do You Say Basic Phrase In Slovenian?

The word Basic in Slovenian is osnovno. A phrase can be called fraza, stavek, or poved.

You can say, ‘I know some basic Slovenian phrases’ by saying: Znam nekaj osnovnih slovenskih povedi.

To say, ‘I’m learning some basic Slovenian,’ you can say: Učim se osnov slovenščine.

Other Useful Basic Vocabulary In Slovenian

Everyone wants to come across polite and make a good impression when making friends in a new country. Here are some go-to phrases you’ll hear every day and that can help you handle common situations and add a personal touch to your conversations in Slovenia.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What’s The Informal Way To Say Hello In Slovenian?

The informal word for hello is živjo or zdravo. This depends on where in Slovenia you are, because different dialects use different words. For example, if you’re in Ljubljana, you’ll most likely hear živjo, but if you’re in northern Slovenia, you’ll hear zdravo. You may also hear words like hej, oj, or čao.

2. How Do Slovenians Say Yes?

When talking, Slovenians will say ja. But when you’re filling out official documents, or listening to the news, yes will be da. They’re basically the informal and the formal version of the word yes.

3. How Do You Count To Ten In Slovenian?

Here are the Slovenian numbers from one to ten: ena, dva, tri, štiri, pet, šest, sedem, osem, devet, deset.

Wrapping Up

With these basic Slovenian phrases, you’re all set to explore Slovenia and make new friends there. We’ve covered the basics for greetings, small talk, shopping, dining, and even emergency phrases, so you’ll feel more at ease and connect with locals.

Even just a few words of Slovenian can go a long way in showing respect and building connections. My tip is to make a little glossary for yourself and take it out whenever you might need to use a phrase in a certain situation. That way, there’s no pressure, and you can relax about saying the right words. Eventually, you’ll start to remember them and be well on your way to fluency.