Wine & Spirits

1. Mën naa gis carte bu biiñ bi?

   May I see the wine list?

   Usage

   Requesting the wine list at a restaurant

   Grammar Note

   "Mën naa" = "may I?". Wine is "biiñ" (synonym "sanggara"; "defare biiñ" = "to make wine"). "Carte" is the French loan ("Am na carte bu yoon yi?"). Note: "diw" is oil/fat and "reer" is "to dine / to be lost" — together they do not mean any kind of drink

2. Mën nga ma digal biiñ walla sanggara bu ñu defar fi?

   Can you recommend a local wine or spirit?

   Usage

   Asking for a local wine/spirit recommendation

   Grammar Note

   "Mën nga" = "can you?". "To recommend" is "digal". "Defar" = "to make". Note: "soxor" means "wicked/mean", not "recommend", and "ëmb" means "parcel / pregnancy", not "made here". Note also that Senegal has no wine region, so the answer will be palm wine or an import

3. Bëgg naa biiñ bu xonq / bu weex / rosé / pétillant.

   I'd like red / white / rosé / sparkling wine.

   Usage

   Specifying the type of wine

   Grammar Note

   "bu" is the b-class relative that links an adjectival verb to a noun. Red is "xonq", white is "weex". Note: "dëgg" means "truth", not red. Wolof has no words for rosé or sparkling; since all wine in Senegal is imported, people use the French label terms "rosé" and "pétillant"

4. Bëgg naa kaas / butéel, jërëjëf.

   I'd like a glass / bottle please.

   Usage

   Ordering a glass or bottle

   Grammar Note

   "Bëgg naa" = "I want". A glass is "kaas" and a bottle is "butéel". Note: "oto" means "car", not "glass", and "butéey" is not a valid spelling

5. Lan moo bokk ak ñam wii?

   What pairs well with this dish?

   Usage

   Asking about food and wine pairing

   Grammar Note

   "bokk ak" = "to go together with". Food is "ñam" (noun class w, hence the demonstrative "wii"). "ndax-lekk" is not a Wolof word

6. Biiñ bi ñaata alkol la am?

   What is the alcohol content?

   Usage

   Asking about alcohol percentage

   Grammar Note

   The pattern "noun + ñaata + noun + focus marker + am" follows the example "ñaata at nga am ?" ("how old are you?", literally "how many years do you have?"). Note: "dëkk" means "to live / village, town", not "to be contained in"; its proper use is "Fan ngay dëkk?" ("where do you live?")

7. Lii dafa sec / fruité / rond.

   This is dry / fruity / smooth.

   Usage

   Describing wine tasting notes

   Grammar Note

   ⚠ Wolof has no wine-tasting vocabulary. Because all wine in Senegal is imported, these terms stay French: "sec" (dry), "fruité" (fruity), "rond" (smooth/round). The French adjective sits inside a Wolof frame ("Lii dafa …" = "this one is …"), the same construction as "Oto bi damuloo démarrer." Note: "sedd" means "cold", not "dry"; "ngor" means "honor"; and "neem" is not a Wolof word at all

8. Am ngeen beer walla sanggara bu ñu defar fi?

   Do you have a local beer or spirit?

   Usage

   Asking for local beer or spirits

   Grammar Note

   "Am ngeen" = "do you have?" (2pl/polite). Beer has its own Wolof word "beer" (from English), and "sanggara" covers liquor generally. Note: "ëmb" means "parcel / pregnancy", not "made here"

9. Bëgg naa mos biiñ yu bari.

   I'd like to do a wine tasting.

   Usage

   Requesting a wine tasting

   Grammar Note

   "Bëgg naa" = "I would like". "To taste" is "mos". Note: "sàmm" does not mean "to taste"

10. Am ngeen xeeti biiñ yu ndaw ngir mos?

    Do you offer flights / samples?

    Usage

    Asking if tasting flights are available

    Grammar Note

    "Am ngeen" = "do you have?". "Xeeti" = "kinds of", "ndaw" = "small", "ngir" = "for". Note: "ñibbi" means "to go home", not "a small portion", and "ñëw" ("to come") has no place in this sentence

11. Bul ma jox lu am suukar lool.

    Not too sweet, please.

    Usage

    Specifying preference for less sweetness

    Grammar Note

    "Bul …" is the 2sg negative imperative and "jox" is "to give". Instead of an adjective for "sweet", Wolof says "has a lot of sugar". Sugar is "suukar". Note: the spelling "suukër" is not a valid spelling

12. Lan mooy biiñ bu kër gi?

    What's the house wine?

    Usage

    Asking about the house wine

    Grammar Note

    "Lan mooy …?" = "what is …?" (the same frame as "Fan mooy Monument de la Renaissance Africaine bi?"). "Bu kër gi" = "of the house". Note: "jox" means "to hand over" and cannot mean "to offer on a menu", and "diw reer" is not a drink

13. Fan la biiñ bi jóge?

    What region is this wine from?

    Usage

    Asking about the wine's region of origin

    Grammar Note

    "Jóge" = "to come from (a place, country)". The question word "Fan" plus the focus marker "la" plus subject plus verb asks about origin.

14. Bëgg naa cocktail ak rhum / gin.

    I'd like a cocktail made with rum / gin.

    Usage

    Ordering a cocktail with a specific spirit

    Grammar Note

    "ak" = "with"

15. Santé !

    Cheers! / Let's toast!

    Usage

    ⚠ Wolof has no toasting formula. Senegal is about 95% Muslim and the Gambia about 96%, so the social occasion of drinking together never produced one. In the bars and hotels of Dakar or Saly people say it in French: "Santé !", casually "Tchin !". ⚠ There is almost no occasion to use this card in an ordinary eating house (gargotte), in a provincial town, or in public at all

    Grammar Note

    ⚠ This is French, not Wolof. Wolof has no toasting formula, so the French word stands as-is, as with "rosé" / "pétillant", "sec" / "fruité" / "rond", "Oto bi damuloo démarrer." and "Dama bëgg soin du visage." ⚠ "Yàgg na!" is not a toast: "yagg" means "Durer" (to last), and "Yàgg na" means "it has been long / has long been doing". Example: "yàgg na koo jiite" = "he led it for a long time".

16. Ndax biiñ bi dafa sedd?

    Is this wine chilled?

    Usage

    Checking if the wine is chilled

    Grammar Note

    "Ndax" introduces a yes/no question (the same frame as "Ndax am na alkol?"). "Sedd" = "cold". Note: "xamuloo" means "you don't know" and cannot form the second half of an alternative question

17. Am ngeen naan yu amul alkol?

    Do you have non-alcoholic options?

    Usage

    Asking for non-alcoholic beverages

    Grammar Note

    "Naan" is both a noun ("Boisson", a drink) and a verb ("Boire", to drink). "Amul" = "there is none" ("Amul galaas" = "no ice"). Note: "diw reer" is not a drink

Browse all TravelPhrases languages