Drow Language Translator — Speak Like a Dark Elf of the Underdark (D&D)
Translate English into Drow, the sinister tongue of the dark elves of the Underdark. Built on canonical vocabulary such as vendui' (I greet you), abbil (trusted friend), ogglin (enemy), oloth (darkness), and Lolth tlu malla (Lolth be praised), with authentic Drow plurals and possessives. Add a traditional greeting, curse, or praise to the Spider Queen.
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What Is the Drow Language?
Drow, sometimes called Deep Elvish, is the language of the dark elves who rule the lightless caverns of the Underdark in Dungeons & Dragons. It shares its roots with the speech of the surface elves, but millennia of isolation, cruelty and devotion to the Spider Queen Lolth have twisted it into something sharper and colder, rich in words for scheming, warning, power and betrayal.
Drow is full of soft sibilants and apostrophes: ssussun (light), z'ress (power), qu'ellar (noble house). Fittingly for a people who trust no one, its word for friend, abbil, carries a cynical edge, and one of its best-known sayings is jal khaless zhah waela, "all trust is foolish."
Drow in Dungeons & Dragons
The drow became iconic through R.A. Salvatore's novels about Drizzt Do'Urden, beginning with The Dark Elf Trilogy and the city of Menzoberranzan. TSR's 1991 sourcebook Drow of the Underdark published a core vocabulary, and fans have expanded it ever since into dictionaries used across tabletop campaigns, novels and games such as Neverwinter Nights and Baldur's Gate 3.
Drow society is a ruthless matriarchy. Matron mothers (ilharess) lead the noble houses, priestesses (yathrin) carry the will of Lolth, and warriors (sargtlin) and wizards (faern) serve them. Much of the language reflects that order: titles, honorifics such as malla (honored), and a long list of words for danger and deceit.
Common Drow Words and Phrases
| Drow | English |
|---|---|
| Vendui' | I greet you |
| Aluve' | I leave you (farewell) |
| Abbil | Trusted friend |
| Ogglin | Enemy |
| Oloth | Darkness |
| Orbb | Spider |
| Velve | Blade |
| Rivvil | Human |
| Darthiir | Surface elf |
| Oloth plynn dos! | Darkness take you! (a curse) |
| Lolth tlu malla | Lolth be praised |
| Khaless nau uss | Trust no one |
Drow Grammar Basics
Drow word order is close to English, which makes it approachable for players. Plurals add -en after a consonant and -n after a vowel, so velve (blade) becomes velven and ogglin (enemy) becomes ogglinen. Possessives work much as in Common: 's, or just an apostrophe after a final s.
Insults matter as much as grammar in the Underdark. Wishing light upon someone, ssussun pholor dos, is a curse, because to a drow the sun is a punishment.
How This Drow Translator Works
Type your English text and the translator renders it in Drow, using authentic dark-elven vocabulary, sayings and curses. Plurals and possessives follow the Drow rules above, so "the matron's spiders" becomes lil ilharess' orbben. Words the dark elves never needed are still given a fitting Drow sound, so every sentence reads like it came from Menzoberranzan.
Use the Flourish option to open with a greeting, end with a curse, or finish with praise to Lolth. The Drow translator is also available through the Fun Translations API for bots, character generators and virtual tabletop tools. Vendui', abbil.
