Hotel

1. Misy efitrano ve?

   Mi-sy e-fi-tra-no ve?

   Do you have a room available?

   Usage

   Checking room availability at a hotel or guesthouse

   Grammar Note

   "Misy" is the existential verb meaning "there is/are." "Misy + noun + ve?" forms "Is there a...?" — a very versatile question pattern.

2. Misy efitrano ho an'ny olona iray sa roa ve?

   Mi-sy e-fi-tra-no ho an'ny o-lo-na i-ray sa ro-a ve?

   Do you have a single/double room?

   Usage

   Specifying room type when checking in

   Grammar Note

   "Ho an'ny olona iray" means "for one person". "Sa" is "or" in a choice question. Numerals follow the noun.

3. Ohatrinona isan'alina?

   O-hat-ri-no-na i-san'a-li-na?

   How much per night?

   Usage

   Asking the nightly rate

   Grammar Note

   "Isan-" prefix means "per/every." Examples: "isan'andro" (per day), "isan'herinandro" (per week). Apostrophe indicates sound linking.

4. Anisan'ny vidiny ve ny sakafo maraina?

   A-ni-san'ny vi-di-ny ve ny sa-ka-fo ma-rai-na?

   Is breakfast included?

   Usage

   Checking whether breakfast is included in the room rate

   Grammar Note

   "anisan'ny vidiny" means "part of the price", i.e. included. "sakafo" (meal) + "maraina" (morning) = breakfast.

5. Misy WiFi ve?

   Mi-sy Wi-Fi ve?

   Is there WiFi?

   Usage

   Checking if WiFi is available

   Grammar Note

   WiFi is available in urban Madagascar but often unreliable in rural areas.

6. Azafady, ny lakile

   A-za-fa-dy, ny la-ki-le

   The key please

   Usage

   At check-in or when receiving the room key

   Grammar Note

   "Lakile" (key) is borrowed from French "clé". "Azafady" is the all-purpose polite expression in Malagasy.

7. Amin'ny firy no hiala?

   A-min'ny fi-ry no hi-a-la?

   What time is checkout?

   Usage

   Asking what time checkout is

   Grammar Note

   "Hi-" marks future tense. "Hiala" (will leave) is the future of "miala" (to leave).

8. Mila lamba fanamainam-batana fanampiny aho

   Mi-la lam-ba fa-na-mai-nam-ba-ta-na fa-nam-pi-ny a-ho

   I need extra towels

   Usage

   Requesting additional towels from hotel staff

   Grammar Note

   "fanampiny" means "extra/additional." "Mila...aho" is the structure for "I need..." in Malagasy.

9. Mitabataba ny efitrano

   Mi-ta-ba-ta-ba ny e-fi-tra-no

   The room is noisy

   Usage

   When the room is too noisy to sleep

   Grammar Note

   "mitabataba" is the verb meaning "to be noisy". "Mafy" means hard or strong and does not mean noisy.

10. Misy ventilateur na climatiseur ve?

    Mi-sy ven-ti-la-teur na cli-ma-ti-seur ve?

    Is there a fan/air conditioning?

    Usage

    Madagascar has a tropical climate. Cooling is important

    Grammar Note

    Malagasy has no native words for an electric fan or an air conditioner, so the French ventilateur and climatiseur are used as they are; the descriptive native term for a cooling appliance is fampangatsiahana. Na means "or". The northwest coast (Nosy Be and around) is especially hot, so always check before booking.

11. Te hitoetra ela kokoa aho

    Te hi-to-et-ra e-la ko-koa a-ho

    I'd like to extend my stay

    Usage

    When you want to extend your hotel stay

    Grammar Note

    "Te" marks desire and takes the future form (mitoetra → hitoetra). Ela is "long in duration"; the comparative particle kokoa follows it to give "longer". Lava, the other word for "long", refers to physical length, not duration.

12. Ondana

    Pillow

    Usage

    Point at it when asking the front desk for an item

13. Bodofotsy

    Blanket

    Usage

    Point at it when asking the front desk for an item

14. Savony

    Soap

    Usage

    Point at it when asking the front desk for an item

15. Borosy nify

    Toothbrush

    Usage

    Point at it at the front desk or a shop

16. Efitrano mangina

    A quiet room

    Usage

    Point at it when asking to change rooms

17. Mitabataba

    It is noisy

    Usage

    Point at it when complaining about noise

18. Diovy azafady ny efitrano

    Please clean the room

    Usage

    Point at it when asking for housekeeping

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