50+ High Valyrian Words & Phrases (With Meanings)

50+ High Valyrian Words & Phrases (With Meanings)

Quick Answer: High Valyrian is a fully constructed language created by linguist David J. Peterson for HBO's Game of Thrones and later House of the Dragon. The most essential phrases are Valar Morghulis ("All men must die") and Valar Dohaeris ("All men must serve") — but the language goes far deeper, with thousands of attested words, four noun genders, and a rich grammatical system worth learning properly.

High Valyrian is no mere TV prop. When David J. Peterson sat down to build it for HBO in 2012, he constructed a language with the full architecture of a natural tongue — case endings, verb conjugations, gendered nouns, and a sound system that feels ancient and aristocratic all at once. Whether you caught your first phrase from Daenerys commanding her dragons or from Princess Rhaenyra in House of the Dragon, this guide gives you the canonical words, real meanings, and enough grammar to understand why the language sounds the way it does.

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The Basics — Most Common High Valyrian Words

These are the highest-frequency words you will encounter across both shows and in any study resource. Memorize these first.

High Valyrian	Meaning	Pronunciation Guide
Nyke	I	NIH-keh
Ziry	he / she / it	ZIH-ree
Sȳz	good	SEEZ
Daor	no / not	DAY-or
Kesir	this	KEH-seer
Kirimvose	thank you	kee-RIM-voh-seh
Kostilus	please	KOS-tih-lus
Skoriot	where	SKOH-ree-ot
Āeksio	master / lord	AEK-see-oh
Ñuhe	my (possessive)	NYOO-heh
Issa	is (third person)	IH-sah
Iksan	I am	IK-san
Lue	other / another	LOO-eh
Bē	upon / on	BEH

The macrons (the bars above vowels like ā, ō, ȳ) indicate long vowels — hold them roughly twice as long as unmarked vowels. This distinction is phonemic in High Valyrian, meaning two words can be identical except for vowel length and mean entirely different things. Getting the vowel lengths right is the single most important pronunciation habit to build early.

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Essential Phrases for Beginners

The best place to start with any language is the phrases you will actually use — or at least recognize when Daenerys says them.

Valar Morghulis — All men must die. This is perhaps the most famous phrase in the entire Game of Thrones universe. It functions as a greeting among certain characters, particularly those connected to the Many-Faced God and the Free Cities. The word morghulis comes from the verb meaning "to die (of all men)" — it carries a fatalistic philosophical weight that a plain translation cannot fully capture.

Valar Dohaeris — All men must serve. The ritual response to Valar Morghulis. Together the two phrases form a complete worldview: life ends, but before it does, one serves. Dohaeris connects directly to the verb dohaeris meaning "to serve."

Avy jorrāelan — I love you. Grammatically this is a direct-object construction: avy is the accusative form of "you," and jorrāelan is the first-person singular present of the verb "to love." It is one of the most searched High Valyrian phrases online and appears memorably in several scenes across both shows.

Kirimvose — Thank you. Clean, two-word substitute for a formal expression of gratitude. Easy to remember, and it sounds genuinely pleasant.

Daor — No / not. One of the most useful single words in the language. It functions as both a negative particle and a standalone response. When a character says something is daor, they mean it is not the case, or they are refusing.

Sȳz issa — It is good. Combining sȳz (good) with issa (is), this construction gives you an immediate tool for basic affirmative statements. High Valyrian tends toward verb-final structure, but short copular sentences like this often place issa last.

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Dragon and Fire Vocabulary

For many fans, the dragon vocabulary is the most exciting corner of the language — and it is where High Valyrian most visibly shapes the tone of the shows.

Dracarys — Dragonfire. Used as a command to instruct a dragon to breathe fire. This is the word Daenerys whispers in season one and screams across battlefields in later seasons. In House of the Dragon, it becomes equally charged — Rhaenyra and her children use it, and the word's weight only grows as the series progresses. Etymologically it draws on the High Valyrian root for fire.

Rōvāgon — To grow. Not exclusively a dragon word, but thematically linked to the growth of power and empire. The Valyrian Freehold built its dominance on dragonlore, and the vocabulary of growth and expansion runs through formal High Valyrian speech.

Āeksio — Master / lord. The word used to address those in power. In a dragon-riding civilization, the relationship between lord and dragon was the foundation of everything. Characters of Valyrian descent often use āeksio in formal address.

Emagon — To have. Essential in any language. Dragons have power; Targaryens have dragons. The verb emagon appears in constructions that express possession and ownership — core concepts in a world built around who controls which dragon.

Māzīgon — To come. A verb of movement and summons. Dragons are called; armies are commanded to come. Māzīgon and its conjugated forms appear in commands and narrative description throughout Peterson's expanded vocabulary.

The fire and dragon register of High Valyrian is noticeably more formal and ancient-feeling than everyday speech — a deliberate choice by Peterson to signal that this vocabulary predates the events of both shows by centuries.

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High Valyrian Grammar — Why Word Order Matters

High Valyrian grammar rewards learners who take it seriously. Here are the most important structural facts.

Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) tendency. Unlike English, which places the verb between subject and object (SVO), High Valyrian prefers to put the verb at the end of the clause. So where English says "Daenerys loves the dragon," High Valyrian would order it closer to "Daenerys the dragon loves." This gives the language a formal, weighty feel — every sentence builds toward its verb.

Four noun genders. High Valyrian nouns fall into one of four genders: lunar, solar, terrestrial, and aquatic. These are not quite the masculine/feminine/neuter system familiar from Latin or German — they reflect a more cosmological worldview. The gender of a noun affects which endings all related adjectives and verbs take, so learning a noun always means learning its gender alongside it.

A full case system. High Valyrian uses case endings to mark grammatical roles rather than relying purely on word order. There are eight cases: nominative, accusative, genitive, dative, locative, instrumental, comitative, and vocative. This means the same root word changes its ending depending on whether it is the subject, object, or recipient of an action, or whether it is being directly addressed. The accusative avy (you, as object) in avy jorrāelan is a perfect example — the base form of "you" shifts because it is receiving the action of loving.

Long vowels are grammatically meaningful. As noted above, vowel length distinguishes words and also marks certain grammatical forms. This is not decoration — it is load-bearing phonology. The macron in sȳz or jorrāelan tells you something about the word's form and function.

For a deeper treatment of these patterns, see the High Valyrian Grammar Guide.

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High Valyrian Numbers 1–10

Numbers are practical vocabulary and also reveal something about how a language organizes concepts.

Number	High Valyrian
1	hen
2	lue
3	hāre
4	izula
5	tōma
6	bȳre
7	sīkuda
8	jēnqa
9	vōre
10	ampa

Note that lue appears both as the number two and as the adjective meaning "other/another" — a coincidence worth flagging for learners, as context distinguishes the two. The number system is base-ten and regular enough that once you have the roots, compound numbers follow predictable patterns.

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Phrases from Game of Thrones & House of the Dragon

Canonical attested phrases with their episode context give learners anchors for memory.

"Valar Morghulis / Valar Dohaeris" — First appears in Game of Thrones Season 2 when Jaqen H'ghar gives Arya Stark a coin and speaks the phrase. It recurs throughout the series as a ritual greeting in the Free Cities and among Faceless Men.

"Dracarys" — Daenerys first uses this in Season 3 to devastating effect. In House of the Dragon, the command takes on additional complexity as the dragons and their riders differ in temperament — not every dracarys produces the same response.

"Avy jorrāelan" — Appears in romantic scenes across both series. Its construction (avy = accusative you, jorrāelan = I love) is a clean demonstration of how High Valyrian encodes grammatical roles in word form rather than position.

"Iksan" — I am. Short, declarative, used in identity statements. Characters of Valyrian descent use the language for self-assertion as well as command.

"Issa" — Is. The third-person copula appears in descriptive statements throughout the shows. Sȳz issa — it is good — is a complete High Valyrian sentence.

For a full breakdown of how House of the Dragon uses and expands the language compared to Game of Thrones, see the House of the Dragon Language Guide.

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How to Practice High Valyrian Words

The best practice method depends on your goal. For recognition and fan fluency, passive immersion works well — rewatch scenes with subtitles off and see what you catch. For actual speaking and writing ability, active study with spaced repetition is required.

Duolingo has an official High Valyrian course developed in consultation with David J. Peterson's team. It has over four million registered learners as of 2025, making it one of the largest constructed-language communities on the platform. The course covers core vocabulary, basic grammar, and a substantial phrase bank. See Duolingo for High Valyrian for an honest review of what the course does and does not cover.

David J. Peterson's own resources — Peterson has written extensively about High Valyrian on his blog and through the Living Language series. His explanations of the grammar are authoritative and accessible.

Community resources — The High Valyrian subreddit and the Language Creation Society forums have active learners who post original compositions, corrections, and discussions of newly attested words from each new episode of House of the Dragon.

Connection to Dothraki — Peterson also created Dothraki for the same universe. The two languages sound very different (Dothraki is harsh and consonant-heavy; High Valyrian is vowel-rich and formal), but studying both gives you insight into how a single linguist builds contrast between languages in a shared world. See Dothraki Vocabulary: 100 Words List for a parallel deep-dive.

If you enjoy learning languages from fiction, the David J. Peterson Constructed Languages overview covers his full body of work, and Best Fictional Languages to Learn ranks the options by learnability and community support.

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People Also Ask

What does Valar Morghulis mean in High Valyrian? Valar Morghulis means "All men must die" in High Valyrian. It is answered with Valar Dohaeris — "All men must serve." Both phrases appear throughout Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon as a philosophical greeting between certain characters, particularly those connected to the Free Cities and the religion of the Many-Faced God.

What does Dracarys mean in High Valyrian? Dracarys means "dragonfire" in High Valyrian and functions as a command for a dragon to breathe fire. It is one of the most recognizable words in the entire Game of Thrones universe and carries enormous dramatic weight every time it is spoken across both series.

How do you say I love you in High Valyrian? Avy jorrāelan means "I love you" in High Valyrian. The construction shows the case system in action: avy is the accusative (object) form of "you," and jorrāelan is the first-person singular present of the verb "to love." It is one of the most searched High Valyrian phrases among fans.

Is High Valyrian a real language? Yes — High Valyrian is a real constructed language with full grammar, vocabulary, and an active learner community. David J. Peterson created it for HBO's Game of Thrones starting in 2012 and has continued expanding it for House of the Dragon. It has thousands of attested words, a complete eight-case noun system, four grammatical genders, and a phonological system with meaningful vowel length distinctions.

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Related Reading

• How to Learn High Valyrian — The complete 2026 study guide with resources ranked by effectiveness
• High Valyrian Grammar Guide — Deep-dive into cases, genders, and verb conjugation
• House of the Dragon Language Guide — Every attested High Valyrian phrase from HotD with context
• Duolingo for High Valyrian — Honest review of the official course
• High Valyrian vs Dothraki — How Peterson's two Game of Thrones languages compare
• David J. Peterson Constructed Languages — Full overview of Peterson's linguistic work
• Dothraki Vocabulary: 100 Words — Parallel vocabulary guide for the other major GoT conlang
• Best Fictional Languages to Learn — Ranked guide to constructed languages worth studying

Ready to practice a constructed language with structured lessons? The Tengwar platform offers guided learning for Dothraki — another language from the same fictional universe, also built by David J. Peterson. Start free at /learn/200.