How to Say “Let’s Go” in Chamorro With Nihi

In Chamorro, the word nihi is one of those small but powerful words that enhances your speaking. It means “let’s go,” but it can also do much more than that. With nihi, you can invite someone to begin an activity, encourage others to join in, or talk about being together with others. In this post, we’ll start learning some of the common ways nihi is used in Chamorro. We’ll focus on learning how to use nihi to talk about going to different places (i.e.: “Let’s go to the beach”) or going and doing an activity together (i.e.: “Let’s go and swim”).

You’ll find lesson notes, example sentences, and interactive study tools to help you learn these patterns. Chamorro audio recordings will be added at a later date. Happy studying!

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How to Say “Here” and “There” in Chamorro

When we talk about places in Chamorro, words like here and there work a little differently than they do in English. Chamorro location words are more precise—they don’t just tell you where something is, but also give clues about how far away it is and whether there’s movement involved to or from a place. In this lesson, we’ll do a light introduction to the different Chamorro words for “here” and “there” as a foundation for future lessons.

This post includes lesson notes in everyday language, Chamorro audio pronunciations by Jay Che’le, and interactive study tools to help you learn these new words. Happy studying!

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10 Things You Should Know About Chamorro: A Beginner’s Guide to the Chamorro Language

This section is part of our Getting Started in Chamorro series, where we explore the core mindsets, resources, and foundational awareness that help adult learners begin their Chamorro language journey.

In this post, we turn from mindset to community and structure. While the first post focused on building resilience and preparing for the learning journey, this guide explores two essential aspects of learning Chamorro: navigating the Chamorro language community and understanding the language’s core structural features. We’ll discuss important considerations for engaging with speakers and learners, then introduce the key language patterns that every beginner should be aware of. Together, these perspectives provide some practical frameworks for approaching your learning with confidence and awareness. Happy studying!

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How to Say “I Will Be Helped” in Chamorro – Talking About What Will Happen to You

Sometimes, we want to talk about what will happen to us — like saying we will be helped or corrected — but we don’t say who or what will be doing the helping or correcting. There is actually a simple pattern you can use to express when something will happen to you (or to someone else)! In this post, we’ll learn one pattern for making these statements and practice with sentence drills and basic examples such as “I will be corrected” or “They will be helped”.

As always, this post includes Chamorro example sentences, English translations, and Chamorro audio narrations voiced by Jay Che’le. We have also included interactive study tools to help you practice — you’ll find these activities under headings marked with a ⚡(lightning bolt). Happy studying!

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How to Say “Bring It On Your Way Here” in Chamorro – Advanced Use of Chamorro Location Words

Chamorro has general words for “here” and “there”, and we typically use them to describe where someone or something is located or headed. But we can also use these words to express doing an action on the way to a place, such as “Bring the medicine on your way here” or “Bring the fruit on your way to the party.” This is another pattern that adds subtle complexity in how we express ourselves in everyday conversation. In this post, we’ll start learning this pattern, but we’ll keep things simple by practicing with just two Chamorro words: “bring it on your way here” and “bring it on your way there.”

Un dångkulu na Si Yu’us ma’åse’ to our Aunty Faye Untalan for answering our questions about this language pattern, and also to our teacher Ray Barcinas for teaching us about this topic.

As always, this post includes example sentences in Chamorro, English translations, and Chamorro audio narrations by Jay Che’le. Happy studying!

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