Daenerys Targaryen’s Best Quotes in High Valyrian (With Meanings)
Why Daenerys Targaryen’s Lines Hit Different
Daenerys Targaryen isn’t just a queen — she’s the character who made an entire fictional language feel real. When she switches from the Common Tongue into High Valyrian, the room goes quiet. Her Valyrian lines mark the biggest turning points of Game of Thrones: the liberation of the Unsullied, the burning of her enemies, the moments she stops asking for power and starts taking it.
Below are her 10 most iconic quotes — the real, attested High Valyrian lines exactly as spoken in the show, plus the famous English lines every fan should know. Each one comes with its meaning, the scene it belongs to, and a pronunciation tip so you can say it like the Mother of Dragons herself.
1. “Dracarys.”
High Valyrian: Dracarys
Meaning: “Dragonfire”
The moment: Astapor, Season 3. After pretending for an entire episode that she doesn’t understand Valyrian, Daenerys turns to Drogon and speaks the one word that changes everything. The city burns, the Unsullied are freed, and television history is made.
Pronunciation tip: drah-KAH-ris. Stress the middle syllable and roll the “r” slightly — drah-KAH-rris — for the full commanding effect.
2. “Zaldrīzes buzdari iksos daor.”
High Valyrian: Zaldrīzes buzdari iksos daor
Meaning: “A dragon is not a slave.”
The moment: Seconds before “Dracarys,” this is the line that reveals Daenerys understood every insult Kraznys threw at her in Valyrian. It’s her declaration of independence — for herself, for her dragons, and for the 8,000 Unsullied about to be freed.
Pronunciation tip: zahl-DREE-zes booz-DAH-ree ik-sos DAH-or. The long “ī” in zaldrīzes is held like “ee” in “see.”
3. “I will take what is mine with fire and blood.”
English line (given in English — no fully attested Valyrian version of this sentence exists in show canon, so we keep it authentic rather than inventing one).
Meaning: Her vow to reclaim the Iron Throne.
The moment: Qarth, Season 2. Spurned and robbed, Daenerys drops the diplomacy and tells the Spice King exactly who she is. “Fire and blood” are the words of House Targaryen — and she means every syllable.
Pronunciation tip: Say it slowly and let “blood” land hard. This one is all about delivery.
4. “I am Daenerys Stormborn of House Targaryen…”
English line (her full title is recited in the Common Tongue; the Valyrian word for “Stormborn” is the attested name-element Jelmāzmo).
Meaning: Her legendary introduction — Queen of the Andals and the First Men, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, Breaker of Chains, Mother of Dragons.
The moment: She delivers versions of this title speech throughout the series, each time adding to it. It’s not vanity — every title is something she earned.
Pronunciation tip: For the Valyrian flavor, try Daenerys Jelmāzmo (day-NAY-ris yel-MAHZ-mo) — “Daenerys Stormborn.”
5. “They can live in my new world, or they can die in their old one.”
English line (no attested Valyrian rendering — presented in English to stay canon-accurate).
Meaning: Her ultimatum to the masters of Meereen.
The moment: Season 5. This is Daenerys the conqueror at her most absolute — no negotiation, no middle ground. It foreshadows the harder, darker choices ahead.
Pronunciation tip: Pause before “or they can die.” The threat lives in the silence.
6. “I am not going to stop the wheel. I’m going to break the wheel.”
English line (no attested Valyrian rendering — presented in English to stay canon-accurate).
Meaning: Her rejection of the entire game of thrones.
The moment: To Tyrion Lannister, Season 5. Every house — Lannister, Stark, Baratheon — is just a spoke on a wheel that crushes the common people. Daenerys doesn’t want to ride it. She wants to shatter it.
Pronunciation tip: Emphasize “break.” Short, sharp, final.
7. “When my dragons are grown, we will take back what was stolen from me!”
English line (no attested Valyrian rendering — presented in English to stay canon-accurate).
Meaning: Her promise of vengeance and restoration.
The moment: Qarth, Season 2, after her dragons are stolen. Young, desperate, and furious — this is the line where you first see the fire that will define her.
Pronunciation tip: Build volume through “take back” and let “stolen from me” ring out.
8. “I will answer injustice with justice.”
English line (no attested Valyrian rendering — presented in English to stay canon-accurate).
Meaning: Her ruling philosophy in Meereen.
The moment: Season 4. After crucifying the masters who crucified slave children, Daenerys explains herself. It’s the clearest statement of what she believes a queen is for — and the beginning of the moral questions that follow her to the end.
Pronunciation tip: Mirror the structure: “injustice” soft, “justice” firm.
9. “Let it be fear.”
English line (no attested Valyrian rendering — presented in English to stay canon-accurate).
Meaning: Her chilling acceptance that love is out of reach — so fear will have to do.
The moment: Dragonstone, Season 8. Jon’s true parentage has turned Westeros against her. The warmth is gone from her voice. Three words, and you know King’s Landing is doomed.
Pronunciation tip: Whisper it. The quieter, the scarier.
10. “Valar morghulis.”
High Valyrian: Valar morghulis
Meaning: “All men must die.”
The moment: The farewell of Braavos, woven through Daenerys’s entire journey — the creed that reminds every character, queen or commoner, that death comes for all. Its gravity makes it the perfect final line of this list.
Pronunciation tip: vah-LAR mor-GHOO-lis. The “gh” is a soft guttural sound, like clearing your throat gently.
Say It Like Dany: Quick Pronunciation Rules
- Stress usually falls on the second-to-last syllable: vah-LAR, mor-GHOO-lis.
- Long vowels (ā, ē, ī, ō, ū) are held roughly twice as long: zaldrĪzes.
- “y” sounds like “i” in “machine,” and “z” is always a buzzing “z,” never “ts.”
- Roll your r’s lightly — it instantly makes any line sound authentically Valyrian.
Keep Exploring High Valyrian
Loved these lines? Try speaking them yourself with our free High Valyrian translator tool — type any English phrase and hear how it sounds in the language of dragons. And don’t miss our 25 Best High Valyrian Phrases post for even more iconic lines, from battle cries to words of love. Valar dohaeris — all fans must keep learning.