Emergency Phrases in Bengali: Hospital, Police, Lost
Critical Bengali phrases for medical emergencies, police situations, and getting un-lost in Kolkata or Dhaka — with native script, romanization, and IPA.
You are in a Kolkata market and someone collapses nearby. Or you're in Dhaka and your bag disappears on a CNG ride. Or you've been walking for forty minutes and the hotel address is on your phone in a script you can't read aloud. These are the moments when having even a handful of Bengali emergency phrases is the difference between getting help in thirty seconds and pantomiming for three minutes while the situation worsens.
This post covers three categories: medical emergencies, police and crime situations, and being lost. Every phrase comes with Bengali script, romanization, and IPA. The word counts here are short on purpose — in an emergency, you reach for the shortest phrase that conveys the most critical information.
Help and Stop: The Two Loudest Words
The most important word in any emergency: বাঁচাও! (bachao!, /batʃao/) — "Help!" or literally "Save me/us!" This is the word that will get strangers running toward you rather than looking up from their phones. It is not polite; it is urgent. Use it without hesitation.
থামো! (thamo!, /tʰamo/) — "Stop!" Use this to stop a person, a vehicle, or an action. For stopping a driver, গাড়ি থামান (gari thaman, /ɡari tʰaman/) is slightly more precise and appropriate with an adult driver. থামো is the intimate/direct form; থামান is the respectful form. In a genuine emergency, either will work.
| Bengali | Romanization | IPA | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| বাঁচাও! | Bachao! | /batʃao/ | Help! / Save me! |
| থামো! | Thamo! | /tʰamo/ | Stop! (familiar) |
| গাড়ি থামান | Gari thaman | /ɡari tʰaman/ | Stop the car (respectful) |
| সাহায্য করুন | Shahajjo korun | /ʃahadʒːo korun/ | Please help (formal) |
| আগুন! | Agun! | /aɡun/ | Fire! |
| চোর! | Chor! | /tʃɔr/ | Thief! |
চোর! (chor!) — "Thief!" — is worth memorizing. It carries more social force in a Bengali crowd than you'd expect; shouting it in a market will typically produce an immediate response from nearby people.
Medical Emergencies
The phrase আমার ডাক্তার দরকার (amar daktar dorkar, /amar daktar dorkar/, "I need a doctor") is your anchor. It is simple, universally understood, and unambiguous. Pair it with pointing or a facial expression and you will be understood.
আমাকে হাসপাতালে নিয়ে যান (amake hashpataale niye jan, /amake haʃpatalе nie dʒan/) means "Take me to the hospital." This is worth knowing as a complete sentence rather than trying to construct it on the spot.
Describing the emergency
| Bengali | Romanization | IPA | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| আমার ডাক্তার দরকার | Amar daktar dorkar | /amar daktar dorkar/ | I need a doctor |
| আমাকে হাসপাতালে নিয়ে যান | Amake hashpataale niye jan | /amake haʃpatale nie dʒan/ | Take me to the hospital |
| আমি অসুস্থ | Ami oshustho | /ami oʃuʃtʰo/ | I am unwell / sick |
| আমি আহত | Ami ahoto | /ami ahɔto/ | I am injured |
| আমার খুব ব্যথা | Amar khub bytha | /amar kʰub betʰa/ | I am in a lot of pain |
| এখানে ব্যথা | Ekhane bytha | /ekʰane betʰa/ | Pain here (point to location) |
| আমি শ্বাস নিতে পারছি না | Ami shwaas nite parchhi na | /ami ʃɔas nite partʃʰi na/ | I cannot breathe |
| আমার মাথা ঘুরছে | Amar matha ghurchhe | /amar matʰa ɡʰurtʃʰe/ | I am dizzy |
| রক্ত পড়ছে | Rokto porchhe | /rɔkto portʃʰe/ | Bleeding (it is bleeding) |
Allergies
The sentence structure আমার X-এ অ্যালার্জি আছে (amar X-e allergy aache) means "I am allergic to X." Fill in the substance:
- বাদাম (badam, /badam/) — peanut/nut
- পেনিসিলিন (penisilin, /penisilin/) — penicillin
- দুধ (dudh, /dudʰ/) — milk
So: আমার বাদামে অ্যালার্জি আছে (amar badame allergy aache) — "I am allergic to nuts."
For any medication, carrying a written card with your allergies in Bengali script is far more reliable than trying to pronounce them under stress.
Police Situations
Two things to know before the phrases. First, the emergency number in Bangladesh is 999 (police) and 999 also connects to ambulance and fire. In India (including West Bengal), the national emergency number is 112. Know these before you need them.
Second, the 25 Bengali phrases every traveler needs covers basic register — the key point for a police interaction is to use the formal pronoun আপনি (apni) throughout. Using the casual তুমি (tumi) or worse তুই (tui) with a police officer reads as disrespectful; in a stressful moment it can escalate unnecessarily.
| Bengali | Romanization | IPA | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| পুলিশ ডাকুন | Pulish dakun | /puliʃ dakun/ | Call the police |
| আমার চুরি হয়েছে | Amar churi hoechhe | /amar tʃuri hoetʃʰe/ | I have been robbed |
| আমার পাসপোর্ট হারিয়ে গেছে | Amar passport hariye gechhe | /amar passport harije getʃʰe/ | My passport is lost |
| আমার টাকা চুরি হয়েছে | Amar taka churi hoechhe | /amar taka tʃuri hoetʃʰe/ | My money was stolen |
| আমার ব্যাগ চুরি হয়েছে | Amar bag churi hoechhe | /amar bæɡ tʃuri hoetʃʰe/ | My bag was stolen |
| দূতাবাসে ফোন করুন | Dutabase phone korun | /dutabaʃe fon korun/ | Call the embassy |
| আমি একজন বিদেশি | Ami ekjon bideshi | /ami ekdʒon bideʃi/ | I am a foreigner |
| আমার দোভাষী দরকার | Amar dobhashi dorkar | /amar doβaʃi dorkar/ | I need an interpreter |
| থানা কোথায়? | Thana kothay? | /tʰana kotʰaj/ | Where is the police station? |
আমার চুরি হয়েছে (amar churi hoechhe) is the standard phrase for "I've been robbed" and also covers pickpocketing. The verb চুরি হওয়া (churi howa) means "to be stolen" — the phrasing is passive in Bengali, treating the theft as something that happened rather than something done by a specific named person, which is the natural construction.
One phrase that is particularly useful at a police station: এফআইআর করতে চাই (FIR korte chai, "I want to file an FIR/complaint"). FIR (First Information Report) is the standard term in India; in Bangladesh, you would say মামলা করতে চাই (mamla korte chai, "I want to file a case").
Lost and Directions
Getting lost in Kolkata or Dhaka is easy. Both cities have dense, winding neighborhoods, addresses that don't follow predictable numbering, and a layer of local knowledge that no map app fully captures.
The most useful phrase: আমি হারিয়ে গেছি (ami hariye gechi, /ami harije getʃi/, "I am lost"). Follow it immediately with এটা কোথায়? (eta kothay?, /eta kotʰaj/, "Where is this?") and show your phone with the destination.
| Bengali | Romanization | IPA | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| আমি হারিয়ে গেছি | Ami hariye gechi | /ami harije getʃi/ | I am lost |
| এটা কোথায়? | Eta kothay? | /eta kotʰaj/ | Where is this? |
| হোটেলের নাম হলো... | Hoteler naam holo... | /hoteler nam holo/ | The hotel's name is... |
| কাছের থানা কোথায়? | Kachher thana kothay? | /katʃʰer tʰana kotʰaj/ | Where is the nearest police station? |
| হাসপাতাল কোথায়? | Hashpatal kothay? | /haʃpatal kotʰaj/ | Where is the hospital? |
| এখান থেকে কতটা দূর? | Ekhan theke kotota dur? | /ekʰan tʰeke kɔtɔta dur/ | How far from here? |
| সোজা যান | Shoja jan | /ʃodʒa dʒan/ | Go straight |
| ডানে যান | Dane jan | /dane dʒan/ | Turn right |
| বাঁয়ে যান | Baye jan | /baje dʒan/ | Turn left |
A practical note on showing addresses: if you have the destination written in Bengali script, locals can read it directly. If you only have the English transliteration, you may get uncertain responses — transliterated addresses from Google Maps don't always match how locals spell or say their neighborhood names. Downloading the Bengali script version of your hotel address before you travel is a small step that matters.
The phrase এই ঠিকানায় যেতে চাই (ei thikaanay jete chai, "I want to go to this address") combined with showing the address on your screen is the most efficient way to communicate your destination to a rickshaw driver or CNG driver.
A Note on Regional Number Use
If someone gives you a phone number or address verbally in Bengali, they'll typically use Bengali numerals in Bangladesh. West Bengal speakers commonly mix Bengali numerals with the International Arabic numerals (0-9) in conversation. For critical safety information (a phone number, a building number), ask them to write it. লিখে দিন (likhe din, /likʰe din/) — "please write it down."
The Bengali pronoun and formality guide is worth reading before any trip — the pronoun you use when addressing a doctor or officer signals your level of cultural literacy, and using the formal আপনি throughout any official interaction is simply the right call.
Practicing Before You Go
Emergency phrases are exactly the kind of vocabulary that feels fine to skip — until you need it. The problem is that under stress, even phrases you "know" can disappear. The antidote is rehearsal: say them out loud, not just read them.
Write the five most critical phrases on a card:
- বাঁচাও! (bachao!)
- আমার ডাক্তার দরকার (amar daktar dorkar)
- আমার চুরি হয়েছে (amar churi hoechhe)
- আমি হারিয়ে গেছি (ami hariye gechi)
- দূতাবাসে ফোন করুন (dutabase phone korun)
Say them until they are automatic. The Brightwood Apps Learn Bengali app has native-speaker audio for core phrase sets — practicing pronunciation against a real speaker's recording is more useful than reading a romanization in a moment of stress. Unit 1 is free, and the safety-relevant phrases appear early in the course.
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