Amharic

American

[am-har-ik, ahm-hahr-] / æmˈhær ɪk, ɑmˈhɑr- /

noun

the Semitic language that is the official language of Ethiopia.

adjective

of or relating to this language or its speakers.

Amharic British

/ æmˈhærɪk /

noun

the official language of Ethiopia, belonging to the SE Semitic subfamily of the Afro-Asiatic family

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

denoting or relating to this language

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of Amharic

First recorded in 1590–1600; Amhar(a) + -ic

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Amharic

She told us about this Amharic word tizita, that speaks to nostalgia, memory and longing.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2026

Translation services will be available at the sessions in American Sign Language, Amharic, Cantonese, Spanish and Vietnamese, according to the district.

From Seattle Times ● May 16, 2024

Long lines formed at campus ATMs, with a student in western Ethiopia telling BBC Amharic people were withdrawing money until police officers arrived on campus to stop them.

From BBC ● Mar. 18, 2024

It was "shaytan," which means the devil in my parent's mother tongue, Amharic.

From Salon ● Oct. 14, 2023

The chief spoken language is the Amharic; in it some books have been published.

From The New Gresham Encyclopedia. Vol. 1 Part 1 A to Amide by Various

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023