How to Speak Shona

Last Updated: December 27, 2022 References

Shona is primarily spoken in Zimbabwe, with additional Shona speakers in Zambia, Mozambique, and Botswana. Whether you're planning a trip to Zimbabwe or simply want to talk to a friend or family member in their native language, learning to speak Shona is not difficult. Because the language is phonetic, start by learning how to pronounce the alphabet. Then, you'll be able to pronounce any word you see correctly, as well as correctly spell any word you hear, even if you don't know what the word means. Once you have a handle on the alphabet, you can start having basic conversations. Uve nemhanza yakanaka! (Good luck!)^{[1]
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Things You Should Know

Learn to pronounce the 5 Shona vowels and pronounce consonants as you would in English—but practice the trickier consonant combinations.
Study basic greetings, friendly questions, polite words, and learn how to introduce yourself so you can carry a basic conversation in Shona.
Expand your vocabulary by labeling items around your home in Shona, listening to Shona music, and finding ways to hear native speakers talk.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Pronouncing Shona Words

1
Start with the 5 vowels. The Shona alphabet has 5 vowels, each of which are pronounced similarly to the same letters in the Spanish or Italian alphabets. If your first language is English, practice the vowel sounds, focusing on the ones that are pronounced differently in Shona than they are in English. Vowels are perhaps the most important part of the Shona language. Because Shona is a phonetic language, if you understand the vowel sounds, you'll be able to spell practically any word you hear.^{[2]
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- The letter "A" makes an "ah" sound, similar to the "a" in the English word "father."
- The letter "E" makes an "eh" sound, similar to the "ay" in the English word "say."
- The letter "I" makes an "ee" sound, similar to the "ee" in the English word "see."
- The letter "O" makes an "oh" sound, similar to the "o" in the English word "so."
- The letter "U" makes an "oo" sound, similar to the "oo" in the English word "doom."
Tip: There are no silent letters or diphthongs in Shona. When you see 2 vowels side by side in a Shona word, pronounce each vowel separately. For example, the word "kuudza" (meaning "to tell") is pronounced "koo-oo-dza."
2
Pronounce most consonants the same as you would in English. Shona uses the same alphabet as English, and almost all of the consonants are pronounced the same, with the exception of "j," which is pronounced with a "yah" sound, similar to the Spanish "j." However, Shona also has more breathy consonants that don't appear in English.^{[3]
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- To pronounce a breathy consonant, breathe out a little, almost like a sigh, as you say the letter, similar to how you would pronounce the "h" in the English word "behind."
- Breathy consonants in Shona are represented by an "h" after the initial consonant: "bh," "ch," "dh," "mh," and "vh."
- Most Shona dialects, as well as "Standard Shona," do not use the "L" sound, except in loan words.^{[4]
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3
Practice consonant combinations. There are no silent letters or blended consonants in Shona. Rather, each consonant retains the same sound regardless of which letters appear around it. For this reason, some consonant combinations may be difficult for you to pronounce correctly.^{[5]
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- For example, the combination "dz" might give you trouble, especially if your first language is English.
- The combinations "zv" and "sv" are properly pronounced with something like a whistle. This is a sound unique to the Shona language, and can also be difficult if you speak English or a European language as your first language. Listen to native speakers to get a better idea of how these combinations sound.^{[6]
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- If you come across a word with a consonant combination that you have difficulty pronouncing, look online for a recording of a native speaker saying the word slowly. Practice saying the word, gradually speeding up your speech until you can pronounce it correctly. Forvo (https://forvo.com/languages/sn/) is a good place to find native speaker pronunciations of words.
4
Use vowels to break words into syllables. Shona words only have one vowel per syllable and each syllable ends in a vowel. Therefore, you can use the presence of vowels to easily divide a word into syllables.^{[7]
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- For example, the word "vakadzi" means "women" in Shona. You can break this word down into 3 syllables: va-ka-dzi.
- All syllables carry the same stress in a Shona word, and the vowels always sound the same. Therefore, a word such as "vakadzi" would be pronounced "vah-kah-dzee."
5
Listen for tones that differentiate words. While Shona is not a completely tonal language, like Chinese, the language does use two tones — a high tone and a low tone. These two tones are used to differentiate words, typically two-syllable words, that mean something different depending on which tone pattern is used.^{[8]
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- For example, the word "hama," spoken with two high tones, means "relative." However, if you use a high tone with the first syllable and a low tone with the second syllable, the word means "hammer."
- In longer words with 4 or more syllables, tones have less significance. While tones may be used with longer words, getting the tones wrong will seldom change the meaning of the word.
Tip: Tones aren't indicated in written Shona. As you learn new words, listen to the word said by a native speaker and pay attention to how they say the word. Keep in mind that your use of tones can change the meaning of the word.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Having Basic Conversations

1
Use "mhoro" as a general greeting. "Mhoro" means "hello," and is a reasonably formal way of greeting people. This greeting is appropriate when greeting or acknowledging anyone, particularly if you've never met them before.^{[9]
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- With people your age or younger, especially friends, you can also use "hesi," which is a more casual way of saying "hi."^{[10]
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Tip: Remember that the "h" in "mhoro" indicates a breath, rather than a hard "h" sound.
2
Try different greetings based on the time of day. Just as in other languages, people often greet each other with reference to the time of day, especially if seeing each other for the first time. Some Shona greetings are:^{[11]
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- Mangwanani: Good morning (reply: Mangwanani, marara sei?)
- Masikati: Good afternoon (reply: Masikati, master sei?)
- Manheru: Good evening (reply: Maswera sei?)
3
Continue the conversation by asking "Wakadini?" The word "wakadini" means "How are you?" If you want to converse with someone you meet, say this immediately after saying "mhoro." This is also considered polite if you're actually interacting with someone rather than simply acknowledging their presence.^{[12]
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- The standard response to this question is "ndakasimba, waita hako," which means "I'm good, thanks." If you were the first person to ask, the person might also add "ko iwe?" which means "And you?"
- For example, if you're walking up to a counter at a restaurant to order food, you might say "Mhoro, wakadini?"
4
Use the word "ndinonzi" to tell someone your name. After your greeting, it's polite to introduce yourself to someone if you plan to continue speaking to them. Say "ndinonzi" followed by your name. You don't have to worry about "translating" your name into Shona. Your name as it's pronounced in your language is fine.^{[13]
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- After you introduce yourself, add "Unozani?" to ask them their name. When they tell you their name, you might say "ndafara kukuziva," which means "pleased to meet you."
5
Ask basic questions to keep the conversation going. Perhaps the best way to keep a conversation going is to ask the person about themselves. If you're just beginning to learn Shona, it doesn't matter if you don't understand every word the person says — you can ask them about it later to get a better sense of what they're saying. Some good questions to ask are:^{[14]
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- Une makore mangani? (How old are you?)
- Unobva kupi? (Where are you from?)
- Unogara kupi? (Where do you live?)
- Unoitei chinokuraramisa? (What do you do for a living?) Note that Zimbabweans consider it a point of pride to talk about their education and occupation, as these things are seen as a way to earn your respect.^{[15]
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6
Use polite words and phrases to show respect. Generally, people will be more helpful and willing to talk to you if you're well-mannered. Be gracious and respectful to Shona speakers by learning the following words and phrases:^{[16]
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- Ndinokumbirawo (please)
- Waita zvako (thank you)
- Zvakanaka (reply to "thank you")
- Ndineurombo (sorry)
- Pamusoro (excuse me)

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Expanding Your Vocabulary

1
Label items around your home with Shona words. Search online for vocabulary lists you can use for furniture and other items around your home. Write the Shona word on a sticky note and attach it to the item. Each time you pass the item, say the Shona word aloud.^{[17]
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- With this method, you'll come to think of the labeled items by their Shona word after a while. Once you've committed one group of items to memory, move on to another group.
Tip: Start with large objects and gradually get smaller. For example, you might label "bed" first, then move on to "blanket" or "pillow." You can also add phrases to describe the relationship of the small objects to the larger ones.
2
Listen to Shona music. The rhythm, repetitive lyrics, and relatively simple themes of most songs allow you to become more familiar with the language in a way that's easy to remember. Traditional Shona music, called "mbira," features interwoven rhythms and melodies with a lot of improvisation, similar to jazz music. iYou can listen for free online through YouTube and other websites.^{[18]
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- On YouTube and music streaming services, you can also access current popular music in the Shona language.
3
Chat online with native Shona speakers. Search online for language exchange platforms with native Shona speakers. Typically, you speak with Shona-speaking users on this platform in exchange for practicing with them a language they want to learn that you know.
- For example, if you speak English and Spanish, you might search for Shona speakers who want to learn either of those languages.
- Some platforms charge a subscription fee. However, most of them are free. Those which charge a subscription may offer additional options that aren't offered on free websites, such as the ability to have group chats or converse for longer periods of time.
Warning: Even though you are on a language exchange website, observe the same caution you would when talking to any other stranger on the internet. Be careful about revealing private or personal information to online language partners.
4
Stream radio from Zimbabwe on the internet. Listening to Zimbabwe radio stations, such as Radio Zim (https://www.radiozim.co.zw/), allows you to listen to Shona being spoken by native speakers as well as Shona-language music.
- Because you can listen to news, you may be able to pick up on what some of the words mean based on the context — particularly if they're discussing international events that you are already familiar with.
5
Read about news and current events in Shona. Since Shona is a phonetic language, reading can help both your literacy and your speech, especially if you read articles aloud. Look online for news websites from Zimbabwe that are written in Shona.^{[19]
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- Voice of America offers news stories written in Shona on https://www.voashona.com/z/3259. You can also stream Voice of America radio broadcasts in Shona at https://www.voazimbabwe.com/z/4020.
- If you can find news videos with accompanying transcripts, you can use them to practice both your reading and your listening comprehension.

Warnings

When speaking to someone in Shona, avoid bringing up politics or making critical comments about Zimbabwe. This is often seen as impolite and offensive.^{[21]
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Talking about unpleasant or negative topics is ordinarily seen as impolite by Shona speakers, particularly in public or in a social setting.^{[22]
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