I can reply to the hosts' “Xoş gəlmisiniz”, thank the hostess for the meal, politely turn down a second helping, and invite people to my place — with siz or sən, as the situation requires.
Visiting: what the hosts and the guest say
Visiting: what the hosts and the guest say
Visiting has a set phrase for every step. The table shows who says what and how to reply.
• The guest arrives. The hosts say xoş gəlmisiniz. The guest replies xoş gördük — “glad to see you”, not “thank you”. Then the hosts invite you in: buyurun, keçin.
• At the table, to the one eating, you say nuş olsun — “enjoy your meal”.
• To the hostess, for the meal: əlinizə sağlıq — literally “health to your hands”.
• The hosts offer more: bir az da? To refuse politely: sağ olun, toxam — “thank you, I'm full”.
• With older people, siz: keçin, oturun; with friends, sən: keç, otur. The affectionate can after a first name (Anna can, Günel can) goes only with sən.
On the süfrə (the set table) there is tea and şirniyyat (sweets). Tea is drunk from the small pear-shaped glass, armudu stəkan. Watch out: armud means “pear”. The glass looks like a pear, so it is called armudu stəkan; the glass itself is not armud.
Common mistakes:
• ×Xoş gəlmisiniz! — Xoş gəlmisiniz! → the guest replies: Xoş gördük!
• ×Nuş olsun! — to the hostess after the meal → Əlinizə sağlıq!
• ×Nigar can, necəsiniz? → Nigar xanım, necəsiniz?
Visiting: who says what
Learn these set phrases as a whole and choose them by the situation.
| Situation | The hosts say | The guest replies |
|---|---|---|
| the guest arrives | xoş gəlmisiniz | xoş gördük |
| inviting the guest in | buyurun, keçin | sağ olun |
| the guest is eating | nuş olsun | sağ olun |
| after the meal, to the hostess | — | əlinizə sağlıq |
| offering more | bir az da? | sağ olun, toxam |
| the guest is leaving | bizə gəlin | sağ olun, salamat qalın |
Lesson notes
Visiting: what the hosts and the guest say
Visiting has a set phrase for every step. The table shows who says what and how to reply.
• The guest arrives. The hosts say xoş gəlmisiniz. The guest replies xoş gördük — “glad to see you”, not “thank you”. Then the hosts invite you in: buyurun, keçin.
• At the table, to the one eating, you say nuş olsun — “enjoy your meal”.
• To the hostess, for the meal: əlinizə sağlıq — literally “health to your hands”.
• The hosts offer more: bir az da? To refuse politely: sağ olun, toxam — “thank you, I'm full”.
• With older people, siz: keçin, oturun; with friends, sən: keç, otur. The affectionate can after a first name (Anna can, Günel can) goes only with sən.
On the süfrə (the set table) there is tea and şirniyyat (sweets). Tea is drunk from the small pear-shaped glass, armudu stəkan. Watch out: armud means “pear”. The glass looks like a pear, so it is called armudu stəkan; the glass itself is not armud.
Common mistakes:
• ×Xoş gəlmisiniz! — Xoş gəlmisiniz! → the guest replies: Xoş gördük!
• ×Nuş olsun! — to the hostess after the meal → Əlinizə sağlıq!
• ×Nigar can, necəsiniz? → Nigar xanım, necəsiniz?