Language/Maltese/Vocabulary/Express-Surprise

Maltese Vocabulary - Express Surprise

Hi Maltese learners! 😊
In this lesson, you will learn how to express surprise in Maltese. Surprise is an intense emotion that can convey a range of feelings from shock, disbelief, astonishment, and awe. Mastering how to express surprise in Maltese will help you to communicate your emotions effectively and connect with Maltese speakers on a personal level. Let's get started!

Basic Expressions

Here are some basic expressions you can use to express surprise in Maltese:

Maltese	Pronunciation	English
Wow!	waaw!	Wow!
Ejjja!	iyaa!	Come on!
Qed tieħu affarijiet bil-mod?	qed t-ee-hu af-fa-ree-yet bil-mod?	Are you joking?
Inċerdixi!	ingr-jeedi-kshee!	Unbelievable!
Allura?!	Alloo-ra!	Really?!

Example dialogue:

• Person 1: Qed niekol ċipar? (Am I eating Cyprus?)
• Person 2: Qed tieħu affarijiet bil-mod? (Are you joking?)

As you can see from the dialogue, "Qed tieħu affarijiet bil-mod?" can be used ironically to show disbelief or surprise.

Positive Expressions

Here are some positive expressions you can use to express delight and amazement in Maltese:

Maltese	Pronunciation	English
Oħxon!	osh-khon!	Amazing!
Halieħ!	haa-lee!	Great!
Jekk trid!	yekk treed	If you want!
Hemm mudell biżżejjed!	Hemm mudell biz-zejed!	There is a sufficient model!
Trid titkellem ma' triq ta' ħajtek!	trid tit-kel-lem ma treeek ta hai-tek	You want to talk about the way of your life!

Example dialogue:

• Person 1: Skerrew biex tiekol sardelli? (Are you crazy about eating anchovies?)
• Person 2: Oħxon! (Amazing!)

Negative Expressions

Here are some negative expressions you can use to express disappointment or shock in Maltese:

Maltese	Pronunciation	English
Xi żmien nġibuh!	Shi zmiin n-gib-oo!	It's been a while since I got it!
Kif jibqa' dawn ifforma?	Kif jib-qa daawn if-for-ma?	How can these forms remain?
X'hemm aħna?	shemm ahhna?	What are we?
Imma kif kien hemm oħrajn?!	Ima kkienhem morahgin	But how were there others?!
Mela ħaddieħor hu li se jaħbi.	Mela had-die-hor hu sli saahbi	So somebody else will do it.

Example dialogue:

• Person 1: Kitba tajba! (Good writing!)
• Person 2: Xi żmien nġibuh! (It's been a while since I got it!)

Interesting Facts

- Did you know that in Maltese, the word for surprise is "surpriża"? The word derives from the Italian "sorpresa".

- Maltese is a Semitic language and is the only Semitic language written in the Latin alphabet.

- Malta is known for its historic sites, such as the Megalithic Temples of Malta, which are some of the oldest free-standing structures in the world.

If you want to learn more about the Maltese language, go to the Polyglot Club website.

To enhance your understanding of Maltese vocabulary, check out our Vocabulary page.

➡ If you have any questions, please ask them in the comments section below.
➡ Feel free to edit this wiki page if you think it can be improved. 😎

Sources

• Maltese Language
• Malta
• Surprize (disambiguation)

Related Lessons

• Count to 10
• Camping
• Numbers
• Time
• Seasons
• Verbs in Maltese
• Time ħin
• Clothes
• Essential Phrases in Maltese
• Fruits