A business call in Uzbek has a rhythm: a greeting, who you are and from which company, who you want, and what happens next. Most of it is fixed phrases, so a few of them go a long way, even if the rest of the call is in English or Russian. The one grammar idea on this page is the polite “may I” and “can you” with -sam boʻladimi and -a olasizmi.
This page is part of Uzbek for business in Uzbekistan, the guide for professionals and investors.
Answering and saying who you are
| Uzbek | Sounds like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Allo! | al-LO | Hello? (on the phone) |
| Eshitaman. | e-shi-ta-MAN | I’m listening. (answering a call) |
| Assalomu alaykum, «Namuna» kompaniyasi. | ah-sah-loh-mu ah-lay-KUM, na-mu-NA kom-pa-ni-ya-SI | Hello, Namuna company. (answering at work; Namuna, “sample”, stands for your company’s name) |
| Sizga qanday yordam bera olaman? | siz-GA qan-DAY yor-DAM be-RA o-la-MAN | How can I help you? |
| Kim qoʻngʻiroq qilyapti? | KIM qoʻn-gʻi-ROQ qil-yap-TI | Who is calling? |
| Kim bilan gaplashyapman? | KIM bi-LAN gap-lash-yap-MAN | Who am I speaking with? |
| Men Jon Smith. | men JON SMITH | I am Jon Smith. |
| Example Trading kompaniyasidan qoʻngʻiroq qilyapman. | ig-ZAM-pl TREY-ding kom-pa-ni-ya-si-DAN qoʻn-gʻi-ROQ qil-yap-MAN | I am calling from Example Trading. |
| Men Example Trading kompaniyasidanman. | men ig-ZAM-pl TREY-ding kom-pa-ni-ya-si-dan-MAN | I am from Example Trading. |
| Eshitmayapman. | e-shit-ma-yap-MAN | I cannot hear. |
| Sizni yaxshi eshitmayapman. | siz-NI yakh-SHI e-shit-ma-yap-MAN | I cannot hear you well. |
| Sekinroq gapira olasizmi? | se-kin-ROQ ga-pi-RA o-la-siz-MI | Could you speak more slowly? |
| Takrorlay olasizmi? | tak-ror-LAY o-la-siz-MI | Could you repeat that? |
Asking for someone, and the answer
| Uzbek | Sounds like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Rustam aka bilan gaplashsam boʻladimi? | rus-TAM a-KA bi-LAN gap-lash-SAM boʻ-la-di-MI | May I speak with Rustam aka? |
| Rustam akani chaqirib bera olasizmi? | rus-TAM a-ka-NI cha-qi-RIB be-RA o-la-siz-MI | Could you call Rustam aka to the phone? |
| Ulab bera olasizmi? | u-LAB be-RA o-la-siz-MI | Could you put me through? |
| Bir daqiqa kuting, iltimos. | bir da-qi-QA ku-TING, il-ti-MOS | One minute, please. |
| Ulab beraman. | u-LAB be-ra-MAN | I will put you through. |
| Rustam aka hozir yoʻq. | rus-TAM a-KA ho-ZIR yoʻq | Rustam aka is not in right now. |
| Rustam aka yigʻilishda. | rus-TAM a-KA yi-gʻi-lish-DA | Rustam aka is in a meeting. |
| U kishi hozir band. | U ki-SHI ho-ZIR BAND | He is busy right now. (u kishi, a respectful “he” or “she”) |
| Xabar qoldirsam boʻladimi? | kha-BAR qol-dir-SAM boʻ-la-di-MI | May I leave a message? |
| Menga qayta qoʻngʻiroq qilsin, iltimos. | men-GA qay-TA qoʻn-gʻi-ROQ qil-SIN, il-ti-MOS | Please have him call me back. |
| Menga qayta qoʻngʻiroq qiling. | men-GA qay-TA qoʻn-gʻi-ROQ qi-LING | Please call me back. |
| Keyinroq qoʻngʻiroq qilsam boʻladimi? | ke-yin-ROQ qoʻn-gʻi-ROQ qil-SAM boʻ-la-di-MI | May I call later? |
| Soat uchda qayta qoʻngʻiroq qilaman. | so-AT uch-DA qay-TA qoʻn-gʻi-ROQ qi-la-MAN | I will call back at three. |
Names, numbers and ending the call
| Uzbek | Sounds like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Familiyam Smith. | fa-mi-li-YAM SMITH | My surname is Smith. |
| Harfma-harf aytsam boʻladimi? | harf-ma-HARF ayt-SAM boʻ-la-di-MI | May I spell it? (lit. letter by letter) |
| Ismingizni harfma-harf ayta olasizmi? | is-min-giz-NI harf-ma-HARF ay-TA o-la-siz-MI | Could you spell your name? |
| Raqamim: bir, ikki, uch, toʻrt, besh. | ra-qa-MIM: BIR, ik-KI, UCH, TOʻRT, BESH | My number is 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. (read digit by digit; see numbers 1 to 10) |
| Raqamimni yozib oling, iltimos. | ra-qa-mim-NI yo-ZIB o-LING, il-ti-MOS | Please write down my number. |
| Raqamingizni ayting, iltimos. | ra-qa-min-giz-NI ay-TING, il-ti-MOS | Please tell me your number. |
| Qoʻngʻiroq uchun rahmat. | qoʻn-gʻi-ROQ u-CHUN rah-MAT | Thank you for the call. |
| Tushunarli. | tu-shu-nar-LI | Understood. |
| Kelishdik. | ke-lish-DIK | Agreed. |
| Yaxshi, rahmat. | yakh-SHI, rah-MAT | Fine, thank you. |
| Xayr! | KHAYR | Goodbye! |
| Koʻrishguncha! | koʻ-rish-gun-CHA | See you! (until we meet) |
May I and can you: -sam boʻladimi and -a olasizmi
Two patterns make nearly every polite request on the phone, and both are in the tables above.
- Gaplashsam boʻladimi?: verb stem + -sa (if) + -m (I), then boʻladimi (is it possible?). Literally “if I talk, will it be all right?”, so “may I speak?”. The same frame gives qoldirsam boʻladimi? (may I leave?), qilsam boʻladimi? (may I do?) and aytsam boʻladimi? (may I say?).
- Bera olasizmi?: verb stem + -a + olasizmi (can you?), “could you give?”. Ber- + -a gives bera, and gapir- gives gapira. After a stem that ends in a vowel the link is -y instead: takrorla- gives takrorlay olasizmi? (could you repeat?).
- Olasizmi is for “you” (siz). For “I can”, use olaman: Sizga yordam bera olaman. (I can help you.) A yes-or-no question ends in -mi; with a question word such as qanday (how) there is no -mi: Sizga qanday yordam bera olaman?
- For a plain order, -ing or -ng with iltimos is enough: Kuting, iltimos (wait, please), Qayta qoʻngʻiroq qiling (call back). Use -sam boʻladimi when you are asking permission and -a olasizmi when you are asking for a favour.
A call to a partner’s office
A: Allo, assalomu alaykum.
Hello? Hello.
B: Va alaykum assalom. «Namuna» kompaniyasi, eshitaman.
Hello. Namuna company, I’m listening.
A: Men Jon Smith, Example Trading kompaniyasidan qoʻngʻiroq qilyapman. Rustam aka bilan gaplashsam boʻladimi?
I am Jon Smith, calling from Example Trading. May I speak with Rustam aka?
B: Kechirasiz, Rustam aka hozir yigʻilishda.
Sorry, Rustam aka is in a meeting right now.
A: Xabar qoldirsam boʻladimi? Menga qayta qoʻngʻiroq qilsin, iltimos.
May I leave a message? Please have him call me back.
B: Albatta. Raqamingizni ayting, iltimos.
Of course. Please tell me your number.
A: Raqamim: bir, ikki, uch, toʻrt, besh. Katta rahmat!
My number is 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Thank you very much!
Uzbekcha is being built to teach the polite phrases of everyday Uzbek, from the first greeting to a call that ends well. At launch, lessons are in English and compare Uzbek with your first language. Join the waitlist.