Amharic

noun

Am·​har·​ic am-ˈher-ik 

-ˈha-rik;

am-ˈhär- 

äm-

: a Semitic language that is an official language of Ethiopia

Amharic adjective

Examples of Amharic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Many of the children at the clinic come from families that speak Spanish, Amharic, and Somali – clinic staffers at the front desk help with translation. — Bruce Finley, Denver Post, 23 Nov. 2025

As late as December 2020, Meta lacked hate speech classifiers for Oromo and Amharic, two of the major languages spoken in Ethiopia. — Vittoria Elliott, WIRED, 13 Dec. 2022

Guelleh learned to speak several languages, including Somali, Amharic, Arabic, English, and French. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 Apr. 2026

The celebration of Christ's resurrection, a core belief known as Fasika in Amharic, is observed a week after Catholic and Protestant Easter. — ABC News, 13 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin Amharicus, borrowed from Amharic amarəñña "of Amara (region of highland Ethiopia)," with Latin -icus -ic entry 1 replacing the Amharic suffix -əñña

First Known Use

1682, in the meaning defined above