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Updated November 8, 2026

Simlish, the language of The Sims

Is Simlish a real language? Who created it, common Simlish words like sul sul and dag dag, the songs pop stars sang in it, and if a translator exists.

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What is Simlish?

Simlish is the made-up language that the Sims speak. EA uses it in The Sims, MySims, some SimCity games, Spore, and SimGolf. It sounds like a real language, but most of it has no fixed meaning. Wikipedia calls it a "fictional constructed language".

You hear Simlish when two Sims talk, when the radio plays, and on the TV in the game. The text in the game, such as signs and books, uses Simlish letters too.

We make LifeSim, a free life sim. We are not part of EA. We wrote this guide from the sources at the end of the page, and we opened each one on November 8, 2026.

Is Simlish a real language?

No. Simlish is not a real language, and you cannot learn it like French or Spanish. Wikipedia says that "Simlish is not intended to be a structured language".

Vice wrote in 2019 that "Simlish does not have defined parts of speech". There is no grammar to learn. The voice actors made up most of the words on the spot. Lingopie says that Simlish "isn't a complete language", but that it has some rules for the sounds.

Some words do have a meaning that fans and the team use again and again. "Sul sul" is hello, and "dag dag" is goodbye. These words come back in every game. The table below lists the ones that our sources agree on.

Who created Simlish, and why?

Will Wright, the creator of The Sims, came up with the idea of Simlish. Wikipedia says that he did this in 1996, while the team made SimCopter. Two voice actors, Stephen Kearin and Gerri Lawlor, made the sound of it.

Why not use English?

Wright wanted players to react to the feeling of a Sim, not to the words, says Wikipedia. Real words also repeat. Claire Curtin, a designer and voice director on the game, told the 20K podcast: "there is nothing more boring than hearing the same phrase over and over and over again."

A real language also needs translation. A made-up language works in every country with one recording.

How did the team make it?

The team first tried real languages. Wikipedia names Ukrainian, Navajo, Tagalog, and Estonian. The 20K podcast says that they tried a mix of Ukrainian and Estonian. Then Kearin suggested gibberish, a game from improv theater.

The two actors recorded together in the booth. They watched simple animations of the Sims and spoke to match them. The 20K podcast says that about 99.9% of the lines were made up on the spot. Vice says that the actors answered prompts such as "flirty", "hungry", and "annoyed".

Kearin and Lawlor voiced Simlish until 2006, says Wikipedia. The first game had about 3,000 to 4,000 voice events. For The Sims 2, in 2004, a team of 11 recorded more than 50,000 lines.

What are some common Simlish words and phrases?

These are the Simlish words with a meaning that our sources give. "20K" is the Twenty Thousand Hertz podcast.

SimlishMeaningSource
Sul sulHello, or goodbyeWikipedia, 20K
Dag dagGoodbyeWikipedia, 20K
YibsYes, or cool20K, Lingopie
NeebNo20K
VadishThank youLingopie
NoobooBabyWikipedia
ShpansaCheersWikipedia
Oh feebee layI'm hungryWikipedia
Awasa poaI'm boredWikipedia
BoobasnotI don't like youWikipedia
O vwa vwaf snaNice to meet youWikipedia

What does WooHoo mean?

WooHoo is the word of the game for romance in bed. Lingopie calls it "a romantic and intimate love encounter between two Sims". Read more in our guide to Sims 4 romance settings.

What about money?

The money of the Sims is the Simoleon. Wikipedia says that its symbol is §.

Is there a Simlish translator or dictionary?

No official, full translator exists. Most Simlish lines have no meaning, so a full translation is not possible.

There are some small tools and lists:

  • The Sims Alexa skill. PCGamesN reported in 2019 that a free skill for Alexa let you speak Simlish and get a translation.
  • The Lin-Z in The Sims 4. PCGamesN says that this in-game device unlocks a "secret vocabulary" of Simlish.
  • A private word list. SimsCommunity says that Krizia Bajos, a voice actor of The Sims 4, keeps a "Simlish Word Bible". She said: "I dunno about 'official' but I have put this little black book together." It is not public.

Any "English to Simlish" tool that you find online is a fan project, not a tool from EA. Treat its results as guesses.

Is there a written Simlish alphabet?

Yes, as letters on signs and books. Wikipedia says that the Simlish letters match neither Latin nor Cyrillic. Snooty Sims reported in January 2025 that fans took a Simlish font from the Sims 25 website. They made it free to download.

Which real singers recorded songs in Simlish?

Many pop stars recorded their songs again in Simlish for the in-game radio. These are some that our sources name, with the game:

  • The Black Eyed Peas: "Shut Up" and "Let's Get It Started", in The Urbz: Sims in the City (2004). See our Urbz guide.
  • Katy Perry: "Hot n Cold" in The Sims 2: Apartment Life (2008), and "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" in The Sims 3: Katy Perry's Sweet Treats (2012).
  • Lily Allen: "Smile", in The Sims 2: Seasons.
  • LeAnn Rimes, Nelly Furtado, Pixie Lott, and others: songs in The Sims 3: World Adventures, says Game Informer.
  • Katy Tiz: "Whistle", in The Sims 4: Get to Work (2015).
  • Anitta: "Practice", the first song of the Sims Sessions in November 2022, says EA.
  • FKA twigs: "Perfect Stranger", in The Sims 4 Enchanted by Nature (2025). EA says that it is "performed entirely in Simlish".

Depeche Mode recorded for The Sims 2: Open for Business, says Wikipedia. The Fader names Paramore, and NME names My Chemical Romance. The sources that we opened do not agree on every title and game, so we leave those out. For the packs of the newest songs, see our Enchanted by Nature and Get to Work guides.

Can you make the Sims speak English?

No, not in the base game. The Sims 4 has no setting to change the voices. A player asked this on Steam: "Is there a way to make the sims speak english instead of simlish?" A reply said: "There is no such setting." The language options change only the text.

The same reply said that a mod could replace the sounds, but that it is "a huge undertaking". Another reply named a few AI voice mods and called them unreliable.

What are Simlish mods?

Many searches for "Simlish mods" look for this change of voice. Other mods add to Simlish instead. For example, the Language Barriers mod on CurseForge adds new languages for Sims to learn. What a Sim can say then depends on the languages that it knows.

Use only mods from a site that you trust. Read our Sims 4 mods guide first, and see Sims 4 AI mods for mods that make Sims talk with an AI model.

Is there a life sim where people speak real words?

Yes. Simlish is part of the charm of The Sims, but it means that you never know what a Sim says. You pick a social action from a menu, and the answer is a sound.

In LifeSim, the game we make, people talk in real words. You live one life in a real city on a 3D map of Earth. Every person there has a job, a home, and a memory of you. You type what you want to say, and they answer in text, in their own words.

LifeSim is not for every Sims fan. It has no Simlish, no voice acting, and no Build mode. If you love the sound of Simlish and the radio songs, stay with The Sims. If you want to know what the people of your town think, try LifeSim free in the browser. For other games like this, read our list of games where you talk to AI.

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