Mongolian Phrases
How to Say How Are You in Mongolian
Mongolian has no single word-for-word "how are you". You ask whether the person is well, or casually ask what is new.
Та сайн байна уу?
Ta sain baina uu?
How are you? (polite)
How to Pronounce It
- Та is a short "ta", the polite word for "you".
- Stress the first syllable of each word: ta SAIN BAI-na UU.
- Юу is "yoo", a long vowel; the whole phrase ends on a slightly rising tone.
Romanization is simplified to help you read along; it is not an official standard.
Formal vs Informal Versions
| Use | Mongolian | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Polite | Та сайн байна уу? Ta sain baina uu? | How are you? |
| Casual | Чи сайн уу? Chi sain uu? | How are you? |
| Returning the question | Чамаар юу байна? Chamaar yuu baina? | And what's new with you? |
| Very casual | Юу байна? Yuu baina? | What's up? |
| Asking about something | Ажил сайн уу? Ajil sain uu? | How's work? |
| Answering | Сайн, баярлалаа. Sain, bayarlalaa. | Fine, thanks. |
Example Dialogues
Polite exchange
- Бат Та сайн байна уу? Ta sain baina uu? How are you?
- Багш Сайн, баярлалаа. Та сайн уу? Sain, bayarlalaa. Ta sain uu? Fine, thank you. And you?
- Бат Сайн. Sain. Fine.
Between friends
- Оюна Юу байна? Yuu baina? What's up?
- Тэмүүжин Тайван. Чамаар юу байна? Taivan. Chamaar yuu baina? All calm. And what's new with you?
Asking about work
- Сараа Ажил сайн уу? Ajil sain uu? How's work?
- Бат Давгүй, баярлалаа. Davgüi, bayarlalaa. Not bad, thanks.
When to Use It
Ask Та сайн байна уу? right after a greeting, or on its own, when you want to know how someone is. Because Сайн байна уу? also means “hello”, the two overlap: people often use one phrase for both.
Choose та or чи carefully. Та is polite and the right choice with elders, teachers and strangers, while чи belongs among friends, family and children. For casual chat, Юу байна? (“what’s up?”) is very common. A typical reply is Сайн, баярлалаа. Та сайн уу?, which returns the question.
Practice "How Are You" and More
Say it out loud and use it in real conversations with interactive lessons inside Lingolab MN.
Practice this phrase in Lingolab MN