🇰🇭 Khmer conversation practice
Speak Khmer out loud — with Sokha from Phnom Penh
Spoken Khmer practice is hard to find online. Here it’s always open. Sokha is a tuk-tuk driver turned tour guide saving up for a riverside coffee shop — patient, funny and proud of Cambodia.
Free to start · Works in your browser · Captions in ខ្មែរ and English
What you’ll talk about
- Getting around Phnom Penh
- Angkor Wat and Cambodian history
- Khmer food: amok, lok lak, num banh chok
- Family and daily life
- Karaoke and Cambodian pop
The Khmer you’ll hear
Everyday spoken Khmer as used in Phnom Penh, shown in Khmer script with a readable romanization and English translation.
Pick your level
Beginner — Sokha says one or two short sentences at a time, slowly. Intermediate — natural everyday Khmer at a moderate pace. Expert — full native speed, idioms and humor.
Khmer phrases to try with Sokha
| សួស្តី! សុខសប្បាយទេ? | Suostei! Sok sabay te? — Hello! How are you? |
| ខ្ញុំសុខសប្បាយ អរគុណ។ | Knhom sok sabay, arkun. — I’m fine, thank you. |
| និយាយយឺតៗបន្តិចបានទេ? | Niyeay yeut yeut bantech ban te? — Could you speak a bit more slowly? |
| នេះថ្លៃប៉ុន្មាន? | Nih thlai ponman? — How much is this? |
| ឆ្ងាញ់ណាស់! | Chhnganh nas! — Very tasty! |
Say any of these out loud at the table — Sokha will take it from there.
How a conversation works
Turn to Sokha
The table rotates and Sokha greets you in Khmer.
Speak Khmer — or English
Answer out loud. Stuck? Switch to English for a moment; Sokha keeps replying in Khmer.
Read along
Two captions: Sokha’s exact words with simple readable Latin romanization of the Khmer, and the English translation.
Khmer practice — questions
Is Khmer hard to practice?
Finding conversation partners is the hard part — Khmer has few online tutors. Sokha is available any time, speaks slowly for beginners, and captions every sentence with romanization and English.
Does speech recognition work for Khmer?
Yes, in Chrome and Edge. If it has trouble with your pronunciation early on, you can type or speak English and Sokha will still reply in Khmer.
Do I need to type?
No. Chit-Chat is hands-free: just talk. It hears when you finish speaking, and you can interrupt whoever you’re talking to, just like a real conversation. A text box is there if you prefer to type.
How much does it cost?
Your first 5 minutes of conversation are free, with no card needed. After that, Pro is $25/month to talk as much as you like with everyone at the table, within a daily fair-use limit. Cancel any time.