Free survival kit

Créole Haïtien survival kit

The 20 essential phrases and 100 key words to get by in Créole Haïtien when travelling.

20 phrases
100 key words in the PDF

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Greetings

Créole Haïtien	English
Bonjou	good morning, hello
Bonjou tout moun	good morning everyone
Bonswa	good afternoon, good evening
Bòn nwit	good night
Mèsi	thank you
Mèsi anpil	thanks a lot
Wi	yes
Non	no

Asking for directions

Créole Haïtien	English
kay	house
chanm	room, bedroom
kuizin	kitchen
pòt	door

Emergencies

Créole Haïtien	English
tèt	head
je	eye
zòrèy	ear
bouch	mouth

At the restaurant

Créole Haïtien	English
dlo	water
lèt	milk
diri	rice
pen	bread

30 key words to remember

Créole Haïtien	English
Tanpri	please
Eskize m	excuse me
Padon	sorry, pardon
Orevwa	goodbye
Mwen byen	I am well
Byenveni	welcome
Bòn ane	happy new year
Bon anivèsè	happy birthday
Bon vwayaj	good trip
mwen	I, me
ou	you (singular)
li	he, she, it, him, her
nou	we, us
yo	they, them, the (plural)
se	to be (copula)
genyen	to have, there is/are
ale	to go
vini	to come
manje	to eat
bwè	to drink
dòmi	to sleep
pale	to speak, talk
tande	to hear, listen
wè	to see
konnen	to know
vle	to want
ka	can, to be able to
fè	to do, make
bay	to give
pran	to take

In context: 5 scenes to get by

On arrival

You arrive at Toussaint Louverture airport in the early morning. You give a warm Bonjou to the agent checking your passport, then greet the crowd of drivers with Bonjou tout moun. Later in the day, you will say Bonswa and Bòn nwit to your host.

Bonjou : good morning, hello
Bonjou tout moun : good morning everyone
Bonswa : good afternoon, good evening
Bòn nwit : good night

In a taxi

You hop in a tap-tap in Petion-Ville. You ask the driver to drop you near a well-known house (kay) on the street, then spot the room (chanm) of your accommodation. The shared kitchen (kuizin) is right behind the front door (pòt).

kay : house
chanm : room, bedroom
kuizin : kitchen
pòt : door

At the café

You sit down in a small local restaurant for lunch. You order water (dlo) and coffee with milk (lèt), then ask for rice (diri) on the side. For tomorrow's breakfast, you grab fresh bread (pen) with butter.

dlo : water
lèt : milk
diri : rice
pen : bread

In an emergency

After an overly spicy meal, you feel unwell. You explain to the pharmacist that you have pain in your head (tèt) and eyes (je), your ears (zòrèy) are ringing, and you have strange sensations in your mouth (bouch). He quickly directs you to a doctor.

tèt : head
je : eye
zòrèy : ear
bouch : mouth

On departure

On the morning of departure, you leave your accommodation with gratitude. You thank your host with a big Mèsi followed by a warm Mèsi anpil. When he asks if everything was perfect, you reply Wi with a big smile, and Non when he worries you might have missed something.

Mèsi : thank you
Mèsi anpil : thanks a lot
Wi : yes
Non : no

Cultural notes

Haitian Creole has been one of Haiti's two official languages since 1987, alongside French. Nearly the entire population speaks it, while French remains reserved for administration and part of the elite.
The orthography was standardized in 1979 on a phonetic basis: what is written is pronounced. The "ou" reads like the French "ou" (u sound), "è" like an open e, and "ò" like an open o.
Greeting is essential in Haiti. You always say hello when entering a shop, an office or a taxi. Failing to do so is felt as a glaring lack of manners.
Haitians use many proverbs and images in conversation. Learning a few colorful expressions like Piti piti zwazo fe nich li ("little by little the bird builds its nest") always pleases your hosts.
Tap-taps (colorful pickup taxis) are the most common transport. You shout thank you (Mèsi) before getting off to signal the driver to stop, and you hand the fare directly.
Haitian cuisine is flavorful and spicy. Rice (diri) accompanies almost every meal. Griot (fried pork), saucy chicken and plantains are must-tries. Accepting what is offered is a sign of hospitality.
Avoid discussing politics, the economic situation or poverty-related topics with strangers. These themes remain sensitive and historically charged. Listen before sharing your opinion.
Kompa music is the soul of Haiti, present at parties, on radios and in transport. Knowing a few names (Tabou Combo, Carimi) opens warm conversations.

Keep the whole kit on your phone

The 20 phrases, 100 key words and the cultural notes in a PDF to keep offline or print. We also send it to you by e-mail.

A smiling grandmother holds a baby in her arms

A family language

Reconnect with Haitian Creole

The language of your parents, your grandparents or your partner. The one you want to pass on to your children.

A couple laughing, she hugs him from behind — Speaking the language of the country means reconnecting with its people.

A mother smiles at the little girl in her arms — Now, at home, we speak Haitian Creole.

A young woman smiles, phone in hand — “Hi Mum, I speak Haitian Creole!”

A father in white attire holds his son by the sea — Children who speak Haitian Creole are the greatest cultural wealth you can bring to your family.

A grandmother in a yellow headscarf holds a young child close — Your grandparents’ Haitian Creole should not end with them.

Finally understand what is said at the table, and answer back.
Your in-laws speak Haitian Creole to you. Answer them in Haitian Creole.

A language is passed down from generation to generation. Now it is your turn.

Start Créole Haïtien for free

About this kit

Haitian Creole is spoken by about 10 million people in Haiti and the diaspora. Its lexicon is French-based and its structure shaped by West African languages: a living, expressive and vivid language. With this kit, you have the bare minimum to get by in Port-au-Prince, Cap-Haitien or Jacmel.

Haitian Creole (kreyol ayisyen) is a French-based creole language spoken by about 10 million people in Haiti and several million more in the diaspora across the United States, Canada, France, the Dominican Republic and Brazil. Born in the 17th and 18th centuries in the colonial context of Saint-Domingue, it emerged from the encounter between colonists' French and the West African languages (Gbe, Kongo, Yoruba, Fon) spoken by deported people. Creole borrows most of its words from French but transformed pronunciation, dropped complex conjugations and restructured grammar with a simpler, very regular logic.

Since 1987, Haitian Creole has been one of Haiti's two official languages alongside French. It is the only mother tongue of about 95% of Haitians. The spelling was standardized in 1979 on a strictly phonetic basis, making reading very accessible: every letter is pronounced consistently. For a French speaker, many words feel familiar (Bonjou, Mèsi, Orevwa), but grammar holds surprises: no conjugations, tense markers (te, ap, va) placed before the verb, and a reduced pronoun system.

Traveling in Haiti with a few Creole words changes everything. Greeting in kreyol in a tap-tap, at a market or at a restaurant table instantly opens warm conversations. This kit gathers the essentials to greet, ask for directions, order food, handle an emergency and leave respectfully. You will also find cultural tips to decode Haitian hospitality, Creole cuisine, kompa music and the central role of proverbs in conversation.

Sources and references

Every translation is cross-checked against at least two concordant sources among the references below.

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