If We Give You a Phrase, Can You Tell Us Which European Language It's Written In?

By: Isadora Teich
Estimated Completion Time
1 min
If We Give You a Phrase, Can You Tell Us Which European Language It's Written In?
Image: Shutterstock

About This Quiz

Are you a student of European languages? Do you think you could identify the language if we gave you a phrase? Take this How Stuff Works quiz to test your knowledge of European languages.

Did you know that there are roughly 445 languages currently spoken in Europe? However, about 90% of the population of Europe speak one of three types of languages: Slavic, Germanic, and Romance. The speakers of these languages are relatively equal with more than 200 million native speakers each. 

Slavic languages are languages such as Russian, Polish, and Ukrainian. Of these languages, Russian is the most widely spoken, with more than 100 million native speakers. Of the Germanic languages, which include German and Dutch, there are roughly 210 million native speakers. And, of the Romance languages, which include French, Spanish, and Italian, there are, again, roughly 210 million speakers.

But, let's be serious, you probably didn't study an obscure European language in school, so unless you grew up speaking one, you'd be at a disadvantage when taking this quiz. We have tried to incorporate languages that many people would be familiar with, so there's no need to phone a friend for help.

Let's find out how much you really know about European languages.

Ti amo.
Greek
Hungarian
Czech
Italian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Italian is one of the closest Romance languages to Latin and spoken by about 85 million people in Europe, Africa, Australia and the Americas. This phrase means "I love you."

Il est grand et beau.
German
French
Ukrainian
Manx
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

French is a Romance language with official status in 29 countries and over 270 million speakers around the world. This phrase means "He is tall and handsome."

Bonghjornu.
Corsican
French
Serbian
Estonian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Corsican is a Romance language that is closely related to Tuscan Italian and has about 200,000 native speakers. This phrase means "hello."

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Es ist mein Geburtstag.
Italian
German
Polish
Finnish
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

German is a West Germanic language spoken by about 95 million people around the world and the most spoken language within Europe. This phrase means "It's my birthday."

Изморен съм.
French
Danish
Portuguese
Bulgarian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Bulgarian is a Slavic language spoken by about 8 million people. This phrase means "I am tired," and is pronounced "Izmoren sŭm."

On és?
Catalan
Russian
Polish
English
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Catalan is a Romance language that has the most in common with Italian and is spoken in Andorra, Italy, the Balearic Islands and Spain. This phrase means "Where is it?"

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Ik ben een student.
Italian
Portuguese
Dutch
Bulgarian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Dutch is a West Germanic language spoken by about 24 million people throughout Europe, Africa, The Americas and Southeast Asia. This phrase means "I am a student."

Onde é o banheiro?
Portuguese
German
Dutch
Icelandic
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Portuguese is a Western Romance language spoken throughout Europe, Asia, India, Africa, the Caribbean and the Americas. It has the 6th most native speakers of any language on earth. This phrase means "Where is the bathroom?"

Zdravo!
Bosnian
German
Ukrainian
Irish
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Bosnian is a unique language widely spoken throughout Eastern Europe. It has used both the Latin and Cyrillic alphabets and is a South Slavic language that borrows words from Arabic, Ottoman Turkish and Persian. This phrase can mean hello or goodbye.

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Gdzie jest toaleta?
Finnish
German
Polish
Irish
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Polish is a West Slavic Language spoken by roughly 55 million people around the world, making it the second most widely spoken Slavic language after Russian. This phrase means "Where is the bathroom?"

Olen eksyksissä.
Finnish
Italian
Gaelic
Russian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Finnish is a Finnic language with official status in Finland and minority status in Russia, Sweden and Norway. This phrase means "I am lost."

Pomôžte mi!
Russian
German
French
Slovak
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Slovak is a West Slavic language spoken by over 5 million people around the world, but mostly in Slovakia where it is the official language. This phrase means "Help me!"

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Είμαι χαρούμενος.
Greek
French
Portuguese
Danish
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Greek is a Hellenic language with over 3,000 years of history in the Mediterranean, giving it the longest history of any Indo-European language. This phrase is pronounced "Eímai charoúmenos," and means "I'm happy."

Ederra zara.
Polish
Hungarian
Basque
Russian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Basque is a language isolate, meaning that it has no other known living language relatives. It's spoken throughout Basque Country, which includes parts of Northern Spain and Southern France. This phrase means "You are beautiful."

Hundurinn minn er svartur og hvítur.
German
Dutch
Icelandic
Italian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Icelandic is the native language of Iceland. It is a Nordic language spoken by less than 400,000 people. This phrase means "My dog is black and white."

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Un ceai, te rog.
Romanian
Greek
Russian
French
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Romanian is an Eastern Romance language spoken by about 25 million people as a native language. This phrase means "One tea, please."

Cá bhfuil an t-ospidéal ann?
Irish
Spanish
German
Hungarian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Irish, also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language spoken mostly in parts of Ireland. This phrase means "Where is the hospital?"

Jeg besøger.
English
Danish
Polish
French
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Danish is a North Germanic language spoken by about 6 million people mostly in Denmark, Northern Germany and Greenland. This phrase means "I am visiting."

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Debesis ir zilas.
Latvian
Greek
Russian
Icelandic
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Latvian is a Baltic language spoken by over a million people, mostly in Latvia. This phrase means "The sky is blue."

Ech sinn hongereg.
Luxembourgish
French
Spanish
Catalan
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Luxembourgish is a West Germanic Language spoken by less than 400,000 people worldwide and mainly in the country of Luxembourg. This phrase means "I am hungry."

Збогум.
Italian
German
Macedonian
English
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Macedonian is a South Slavic language spoken by roughly 2 million people around the world, mostly in the country of Macedonia and throughout the Balkans. This phrase means "Goodbye" and is pronounced "Zbogum."

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Vil du ha kaffe?
Polish
Norwegian
English
Greek
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken in various forms by 5 million people, mostly throughout Norway. This phrase means "Do you want coffee?"

Добры дзень.
Belarussian
Welsh
Finnish
Czech
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Belarussian is an East Slavic language that is somewhat mutually intelligible with Russian and Ukrainian. it is spoken mainly in Eastern Europe and Russia. This phrase is pronounced "Dobry dzień." and means "Hello."

Tha an t-uisge ann.
German
Spanish
Scottish Gaelic
Italian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language spoken fluently by less than 60,000 people. This phrase means "It's raining."

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Пада киша.
French
Serbian
English
German
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Serbian is spoken by millions throughout Eastern Europe but is the official language of Serbia and the Serbs. This phrase is pronounced "Pada kiša." and means "It's raining."

Všeč mi je jabolka.
Portuguese
Spanish
Slovenian
Greek
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Slovenian is a South Slavic language spoken by over 2 million people worldwide, but mostly in Slovenia. This phrase means "I like apples."

Du är vacker.
Slovenian
German
Russian
Swedish
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Swedish is a North Germanic language spoken by about 10 million people and is mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish. This phrase means "You are beautiful."

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Я женат.
Russian
English
Czech
Portuguese
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Russian is an East Slavic language spoken by about 260 million people around the world. This phrase is pronounced "Ya zhenat." and means "I'm married."

Rydych chi'n hardd.
Dutch
Welsh
Ukrainian
Serbian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Welsh is a Celtic language spoken in Wales, England and Argentina by minorities of the population. This phrase means "You are beautiful."

Děkuji.
Dutch
Czech
German
Italian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Czech is a West Slavic language spoken natively by about 10 million people. This phrase means "Thank you."

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Hol van a feleségem?
Spanish
Dutch
English
Hungarian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Hungarian is a Uralic language spoken by about 13 million people in Europe, North America, Israel and Australia. This phrase means "Where is my wife?"

Më pëlqen.
Spanish
French
Albanian
English
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Albanian is an Indo-European language spoken by more than 5 million people, mostly in Albania, Kosovo and the Republic of Macedonia. This phrase means "I like you."

Kuidas läheb?
English
Norwegian
German
Estonian
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Estonian is a Finnic language spoken by about a million people, the majority of whom live in Estonia. This phrase means "How are you?"

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Inħobbok.
Greek
Romanian
Russian
Maltese
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Maltese is a Siculo-Arabic language. Its Arabic roots have been heavily influenced by Italian and Sicilian. Most of its roughly 500,000 speakers live in Malta. This phrase means "I love you."

Ти красива.
Ukrainian
German
English
Czech
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Ukrainian is an East Slavic language spoken by over 40 million people around the world. This phrase is pronounced "Ty krasyva." and means "You are beautiful."

You Got:
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