Our last lesson under the Common Twi Expressions series introduced us to four different ways of asking how someone is faring in Twi. If you missed that, you’re just a click away from it. Please take that lesson before you proceed with the present one.

Today, we’re following up on the aforementioned lesson with one on how to tell how you are faring. This lesson will provide you with different ways of responding to a ‘how are you?’ in Twi. If you need help with pronunciation, please watch the embedded video lesson below.

Video Lesson

Ways to Tell How You Are Faring in Twi

Positives

1. me ho yɛ

my body/self good/well

‘I am well?’

2. ɛyɛ

it good/well

‘it is well?’

3. bɔkɔɔ; aane, bɔkɔɔ; biribiara bɔkɔɔ

calm/cool; yes, calm/cool; everything is calm/cool

‘calm/cool; yes, calm/cool; everything’s calm/cool’

4. me ho yɛ den sɛ boɔ

my body/self is strong as stone

‘I am as strong as a stone (rock)’

Negatives

5. me ho nyɛ

my body/self not-good/well

‘I am not well?’

6. ɛnyɛ

it-not-good/well

‘it is not well?’

7. dabi, nneɛma nyɛ; dabi, nneɛma nkɔ yie

no, things not-good/well; no, things not-go well

‘no, things are not well; no, things are not going well’

Notes

1. Like any other Twi-speaking situation, politeness is key. It pays to be polite, so you are probably better off starting out the above responses with ‘mepa wo kyɛw/mepaakyɛw (please)‘. So, you could say:

• mepa wo kyɛw, me ho yɛ

‘please, I am well?’

• mepa wo kyɛw, ɛyɛ

‘please, it is well?’

• mepa wo kyɛw, bɔkɔɔ; mepa wo kyɛw, biribiara bɔkɔɔ

‘please, calm/cool; please, everything’s calm/cool’

• mepa wo kyɛw, me ho yɛ den sɛ boɔ

‘please, I am as strong as a stone (rock)’

2. Apart from ‘mepa wo kyɛw/mepaakyɛw (please)‘, most Twi speakers would begin their responses with ‘by God’s grace/by the grace of God’. This would be represented as any of the following:

• Awurade adom, me ho yɛ

‘(By) God’s grace, I am well?’

• Nyame adom, ɛyɛ

‘(By) God’s grace, it is well?’

• Onyankopɔn adom, bɔkɔɔ; Onyankopɔn adom, biribiara bɔkɔɔ

‘(By) God’s grace, calm/cool; (By) God’s grace, everything’s calm/cool’

• Ɔbɔadeɛ adom, me ho yɛ den sɛ boɔ

‘(By) the Creator’s grace, I am as strong as a stone (rock)’

3. Ghanaians would generally give positive responses to a ‘how are you?’, even when things are not going that well with them. If you ask the average Ghanaian how he/she is doing, expect to hear a ‘me ho yɛ (I am well)‘, ‘ɛyɛ (it is well)‘, ‘bɔkɔɔ (calm/cool)‘, etc. in most cases. We (Ghanaians) would first respond to such questions with the positives, and go on to tell you about the negative(s), if there is/are any.

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