Kazakh phrasebook
A Kazakh phrasebook arranged by situation, not alphabetically: introductions, cafés, directions. Each has both sides' lines, so you understand not only what to say but what you will be told back.
Conversations by situation
- 💬Meeting peopleA chat with a neighbor
- 💬At the caféOrdering at an Almaty café
- 💬How to get thereLooking for the train station
- 💬At the bazaarThe green bazaar, a fruit stall
- 💬Calling a repairmanCalling the landlord: the bathroom faucet is leaking
- 💬At the pharmacyThe late-night pharmacy in the evening
- 💬Weather and plansTwo colleagues on Friday
- 💬About workA chat with a new colleague at the office
- 💬At check-inA check-in desk at Almaty airport, a flight to Astana
- 💬Renting a boatA pier on a mountain lake, boat rental
- 💬In the fitting roomA clothes shop in a mall, a customer and a salesperson
- 💬Late and apologizingA friend is forty minutes late for a café meeting
- 💬Ordering at a caféA small café, a waiter taking an order from two people
- 💬No signalCalling a friend from a café with poor reception
- 💬At the post officeA post office: sending a parcel to Astana
- 💬Before the matchTwo people arranging to go to a football game
- 💬Invited to a toiA neighbor invites you to her nephew's wedding
- 💬Household choresA parent and a teenager split the chores on Saturday
- 💬At the admissions officeAn applicant finds out what is needed to enroll
- 💬A loan at the bankA talk with a manager about the loan terms
- 💬At the GP's appointmentA patient tells the doctor about the symptoms
- 💬A job interviewA candidate answers the employer's questions
- 💬Moving dayTwo people arrange how to move the belongings
- 💬At the car rentalA tourist rents a car and clarifies the terms
- 💬The remote control disputeTwo people at home can't share the TV
- 💬At the public service centerA person is getting registration and a work permit
- 💬To go or not to goTwo people weigh whether to accept a work trip abroad
- 💬An argument about the new roadNeighbors disagree about the city construction site
- 💬How will I recognize himTwo people arrange by phone how to meet an unfamiliar man at the station
- 💬Supporting a friendTwo friends talk after a family quarrel
- 💬A takeout orderA customer orders food to go and warns about an allergy
- 💬A return at the shopA customer returns shoes that did not fit
- 💬At the service centerA customer brings a phone in for repair
- 💬The weekend forecastTwo people decide whether to go out of town and check the forecast
- 💬How to get to the museumA visitor asks a passerby for directions
- 💬Signing up for a courseA person calls a language school and picks a group
- 💬Rescheduling the meetingColleagues arrange a new time by phone
- 💬A bad connectionA phone call where you have to keep asking again
- 💬Getting a jobAn interview at a small firm
- 💬Where is my order?A call to the online store's support
- 💬For the neighborNeighbors collect money for treatment
- 💬At the exhibitionTwo people walk around an exhibition at the museum
- 💬Signing up at the gymSigning up at the gym reception
- 💬Please measure it for meFabric and paint are bought at a hardware store
- 💬A talk at the doctor'sA doctor's appointment, complaints and an examination
- 💬Getting ready for the toiTwo relatives prepare the house for a family celebration
- 💬The dispute at the meetingAn argument at the residents' meeting about yard repairs
- 💬Should I move or notTwo people discuss an offer of a job and a move
- 💬What kind of thing do you need?Choosing cookware at a hardware store
- 💬Where is the museum?A passerby explains the way in an unfamiliar district
- 💬Discussing the numbersTwo people go through the figures of the monthly report
- 💬When will the repair be done?The flat owner calls the foreman
- 💬Is this true?An argument about a news item sent in a messenger
- 💬Looking at an old photographA grandson questions his grandmother about an old photograph
- 💬Who sorts the trash?Neighbors discuss the containers for separate collection
- 💬Receiving at the warehouseAccepting a batch of goods at the warehouse
- 💬How did it end?Two friends discuss yesterday's incident
- 💬The new colleagueTwo colleagues discuss the new employee
Phrases that always rescue you
These are learned first not for politeness. They bring back a conversation that has already gone wrong — which makes them more useful than any list of nouns.
Frequently asked
Which Kazakh phrases to learn first?
“Hello”, “thank you”, “sorry”, “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”. The first three open a conversation; the last two save it.
Is a phrasebook enough without grammar?
For a short trip — yes. For living in the country — no: memorized phrases do not assemble into new ones, and the other person does not follow your script.