Teanu online dictionary (original) (raw)

POc*ra3 plural

Apersonal pronoun

Grammar

3rd person dual independent pronoun, referring to a pair of people already mentioned in discourse

1 – subjectthey

Da tieli.They are siblings.
In’ ne me in’ re, da menuko.This man here, and that one there, they are friends.
Da ñoko lai-te ne kulumoe.Only they two were living in the village.

2 – objectthem: anaphoric third dual pronoun, referring to a pair of people already mentioned in discourse

Teliki iadapa li-wokobe da.The chiefs welcomed them.
Kape la-kila da.They’re going to marry [each other].

3 – possessortheir: 3rd dual possessor of inalienable nouns

La-katei kiñe vabasa da.They’re pulling each other’s hair.

Bquantifier

Grammar

foll. by possessed kin termdyad: construction referring to a couple of kin-related individuals

da til’ iape[lit. both his brother] two brothers
d’ ai’ iape[lit. both his father] a father–child pair
da gi’ iape[lit. both his uncle] an uncle–nephew pair
da pi’ iape[lit. both his grandfather] the grandfather and his grandson
da uk’ iape[lit. both his in-law] two in-laws

Clinker

Grammar

between two singular NP's(X) and (Y): serves as a coordinator between two human individuals

mwaliko iote da emel’ iapea man and his wife
Emele iune, ini da men’ iape, la-te ne kulumoe.One woman, [she] with her child, were living in the village.

da=2 ⁿda quantifier

POc*ra3 plural

plural proclitic found in combination with a handful of irregular plural nouns

~da3 (i·)ⁿda verb, transitive

1 – go past, cross ‹s.th., s.o.›

Li-da dapa ne anoko.They crossed [lit. went past] each other on the road.
Li-da noma re i-ka.They came here rounding the cape over there.

2 – in time expressionstime+pass

Ai' one ka i-bu, ebieve tua ka i-da.My father died eight years ago. [lit. he has died, eight years have passed]
Aeve i-etengi kwate i-da tilu-tae.It’s 8:30 [lit. the sun is ringing 30 over 8]

3 – after a first adjectival or verbal predicateexceed, surpass ‹s.th., s.o.› in doing s.th., hence do s.th. better or be more than. Forms comparative structures

Ini bwara biouro i-da eo.She’s probably taller than you. [she’s tall she surpasses you]

Averb, transitive

often V2 in serial patternsurround ‹s.th.›, go around ‹a place›

Dapa kula li-vio li-dadai mane.Some men were standing around the dancing area.

Bverb, intransitive

often V2 in serial patterngo around, go in circle

Li-ae kie tepapa i-dadai.They dug holes for the dancing boards all around (the village area).
Ije pwoi i-ke i-dadai.The pig tusk has grown out into a full circle.

Averb, transitive

1 – often V2 in serial patternsurround ‹s.th.›, go around ‹a place›

Noma, uña toñaki van li-ka li-dai temaka i-katau uña basakulumoe.In the olden days, large ships would sail around the archipelago, going from island to island.
Tetawene i-wen’ i-dai moe na.The drawings were running around the walls of the house.

2 – distributive meaning(go) around, (go) along ‹a group+›

Kape n-ajau kopi abia me le-waga i-dai kulumoe iakapa.I'll make many copies so we can distribute them around in the village.

Bverb, intransitive

often V2 in serial pattern, 3sg subject(go) around, (go) in circle

Tepapa i-dai ka ne mane po, li-vo aero i-dai.The dancing boards were lying around the village area; and they had erected a fence all around.
Uña teliki li-anu i-dai i-le i-le.The chiefs drank the kava around (in a circle).

da= + *mala ‘white’ (?)

1 – personwhite, Westerner

Viabasa emele damala ponu pwelele.That white woman has soft hair.

2 – collective use, even with no plural markerWesterners, whitemen

Ka basavono ponu, mamote damala tae.In those times, there were no Westerners yet (in this area).
Li-romo ñe duduko we damala pe Franis.They watched with the looking glass of the French whitemen.

ie damala adjective

of whitementypical of the Western world, modern (opp. iakapa, traditional)

kuo ie damala[canoe of Westerners] a modern ship
kulumoe ie damala[village of Westerners] a city

dameliko ⁿdameliko da meliko damiliko da miliko noun

Lvnmaranga melika

Tnmlali uneida

Kin

children: irregular plural of menu or apali

dameliko 'nonemy children
dameliko viñevi[female children] little girls
buro ie damilikoa children’s song
Okoro pe dameliko li-moloe ñi tae.A knife is not for children to play with.
Ni-vodo ni-ko eo ka uña damiliko iono pi-te wako.I hope that you and your children are well.

MorphologyOriginally da meliko with plural da= clitic; the dual form is da-tilu meliko ‘the two children’. The form sometimes has redundant plural marking: uña dameliko.

Apersonal pronoun

Grammar

1 – subject, object or possessoranaphoric third plural pronoun, referring to a group of people already mentioned in discourse

Dapa li-madau.They were scared.
Ni-ovei dapa.I know them.
Li-pei dapa.They were rejoicing [themselves].

2 – raregeneric plural pronoun: people, generic ‘they’

dapa ne kulumoepeople in the village (villagers)

Sem.In this meaning, dapa is less common than idi, the impersonal 3pl pronoun, which is always non-anaphoric (‘people’).

3 – appellativepeople! guys!

Ei! Dapa! Na toñaki ae na?Hey, people! What sort of ship is that?
Ebel' ini me, dapa!This is excellent, guys!

Bquantifier

Grammar

1 – foll. by Nounplural marker for human nouns

2 – foll. by NP modifierin the absence of a noun head, dapa serves as head in a plural NP with human reference: ‘people’, ‘those (who+)’

dapa abiamany people, many
dapa wopine [the great/old ones] grown men; authorities; ancestors
dapa Teanuthe people of Teanu
dapa peini toñaki ponthe people on that ship
dapa po li-kila emelethose who are married
dapa pe uña teliki li-lamini tanoe se dapathose who were given land by the authorities

Kin

3 – +possessor enone‹s.o.›’s people: relatives, family; community

(uña) dapa enonemy people, my relatives
dapa ie mwaliko po i-buthe family of the person who died
Dapa iakapa ka awoiu!Our people are doomed!
Dapa iakapa noma li-ovei pe li-pwalau.Our ancestors used to practice navigation.

dapa gete ⁿdapa ᵑgete noun

Lvndetu laungale

plural of mwatageteyoung unmarried boys, typic. male teenagers

Kape pe-loko dapa gete enone, da meliko viñevi, pe-lui ne moe re.We'll take my boys and my girls, and lead them to that house over there.
Dapa gete le-wabe, le-lui tev' dapa li-anu.The young men fill up (the cups) and give them to (the elders) for them to drink.
moe uña dapa getethe house of youngsters
Uña teliki samame dapa wopine li-waivo uña dapa gete ñe telepakau akapa.The chiefs and the elders teach youngsters about our culture.

dapa wopine ⁿdapa wopine idi wopine noun

1 – masculine and plurals.o.the great onesadult men, elderly men

dapa wopine, dapa gete, da viñevi, da meliko…elderly men, young men, women, children…
Bwara le-ko le-watebo iepiene teve uña dapa wopine.We should rather ask the elders about those traditional stories.

2 – ‘great men’: men of high rank, initiated men; hence chief

Noma, idi wopine li-akawo kolokolo me i-botongo dapa.In ancient times, important men used to wear 'kolokolo' breast plates as a protection.
Li-koie takoie ne touro ponu, dapa wopine kula li-ke li-le.While they were walking up towards the shore, some of the [island's] chiefs walked down towards them.

dapenuo ⁿdapenuo da penuo noun

men: irregular plural of mwalikote ‘man, male’

da-tilu penuo mwatagetetwo young men
Ruene iote ie da penuo, ka iote ie da viñevi.One door is for men, another one for women.
Dapenuo li-go dapa ñe tolosai; da viñevi li-ativi dapa ñe tekume.The men girt themselves in loincloths, the women in skirts.

MorphologyOriginally da penuo with plural da= clitic; the dual form is da-tilu penuo ‘the two men’.

Aquantifier

dual proclitic, combined with the same irregular plural nouns as da=

da-tilu viñevi mwatebetwo virgin women
da-tilu penuo mwatagetetwo young men
Na nga da-tilu meliko.These look like two children.

Bpersonal pronoun

1 – definite sensethey two, both of them. Heavier form of 3 dual pronoun da ①

Da-tilu pe Teanu; kulumoe iada Aneve.They (two) were from Teanu; their village was Aneve.

2 – generic sensetwo people; a couple (married or not), a dyad

basavono pe da-tilu kape la-kila da[lit. when two people follow each other] whenever there is a wedding
Datilu ne ene kape la-ka la-romo ene.Two relatives of mine will come visit me.

3 – appellativeyou two; guys!

Ei, da-tilu!Hey, you two!

daviñevi ⁿdaviɲevi da viñevi noun

POc*pinewoman

women: irregular plural of emele ‘woman’

makone ie da-viñevia women's dance
namolo ie daviñeviwomen's clothes
dapa wopine, dapa gete, da viñevi, da meliko…elderly men, young men, women, children…
Daviñevi tete li-te ne moe pe li-apinu ene pon.There are three women sitting in the kitchen over there.
Da viñevi wopine li-ovei pe li-anu kava.Adult women can drink kava.
Temabete me mawene, li-garei pe daviñevi li-te ene.Women are forbidden from sitting on mats or semi-mats.

MorphologyOriginally da viñevi with plural da= clitic; the dual form is da-tilu viñevi ‘the two women’. The form viñevi sometimes appears in compounds, e.g. da meliko viñevi ‘female children, i.e. girls’.

Nga u-katei namuko iote, u-toe dekele mina.If you catch a fish, you must cut off its tail.

delesa ⁿdelesa noun

petal

delesa mana viloa flower petal

demene ⁿdemene noun

An outrigger canoe (kuo demene)

POc*saman

Techniques

outrigger of a canoe

Po ka li-bo ebele kuo awoiu, kape le-toe demene peini na ta.Once the hull of the canoe is finished, it's time to cut its outrigger.

see lexical list atkuocanoe, boat

kuo demene noun

outrigger canoe

Basavono na, kuo demene ka l-ejau tae, pe li-la ngatene ñi pine tamwase.These days, outrigger canoes aren't being made any more, because they are too much work.

Li-kai bele dero.tear off the bark of the kaori tree
Dero ponu, vilo pe emele i-ve.The kauri is a tree that was first born out of a woman.
Abwa dero i-ke mina oie basavono po li-toe, i-ka i-beiu ka li-kila li-ko “tepulu peini dero”.The sap of the kauri tree runs out of the trunk when you cut it; then it solidifies, and we call it tepulu, “kauri gum”.

Techniques

1 – k.o. wooden knife traditionally used in cooking

📘 The shape of this shell is vaguely reminiscent of a knife blade.

~di (i·)ⁿdi verb, transitive

1 – cut off, prune ‹tree›

2 – shave ‹beard›

U-di vagumia eo ko!Shave your beard!

Shaving ✧ Li-di idi

Noma, nuduko, ero pe i-wene ne moboe voko ne noma. Li-romo dapa ñepe ene, li-la ije boe li-di ñei vagumia dapa ka viabasa dapa.

In the past, our mirrors were just water puddles in a stone hole on the reef. Looking at themselves in the water, men would use a shark tooth to shave their beard or their head.

die ⁿdie noun, relational

Anatomy

1 – hum, animalbone

Ni-sune die iote.I found a bone.
die mwaliko pe i-buthe bones of a dead body

die idi noun

bone of peoplehuman bones

Puro, li-ejau ñe die idi.War arrows are made using human bones.

die nengele noun

Anatomy

structured bonesskeleton

die i-meli phrase

pregnant womanpainful bonesfeel contractions conducive to labour

Die i-meli ponu, i-ve!She felt the contractions, and soon she was giving birth.
Ne topola 'none pe ni-wo ne die 'ne, uo kula kupa tete ka pi-ae.In the basket I'm carrying on my back, these are a few yams we just dug out.

dienebe ⁿdieneᵐbe noun

Architecture

light horizontal purlin in the roof structure

📘 This generic term for light purlins contrasts with terms for specific beams with a stronger supporting role, e.g. basadigo ‘tie-beam’, womoe ‘main purlin’, pumene ‘ridgepole’. Purlins support rafters (lo).

digo ⁿdiᵑgo noun

Architecture

vertical post holding the walling of a house (telemoe), and supporting a tie-beam (basadigo).

Li-toe iuro, ae, digo, we uña ngatene nga pon, peini kape le-vo.They made pillars, beams, and all the pieces so they could build [the house].

📘 This post is of secondary importance – opp. iutego ‘main supporting pillar’.

diksoneri diksoneri diksonari noun

Engdictionary

dictionary

Ne-ko ne-la awis pine iakapa ne-mini tili’ akapa pe i-si diksoneri akapa ñe piene akapa Teanu.I’d like to extend our deep gratitude to our brother, who wrote our dictionary in our language of Teanu.

dingobe1 ⁿdiŋoᵐbe digobe noun

POc*sikop

dingobe2 ⁿdiŋoᵐbe digobe noun

diro ⁿdiro noun

arrow, dart, used in hunting (opp. puro, arrow used in warfare)

Diro, li-le ne ngogoro li-avi otovo; awoiu li-la iadiro peini, li-bo diro.You go to the bush, collect sago leaves; take out their midribs, and sharpen them into darts.
Pe li-wete telupe, u-avi visone ka u-iui diro i-le i-wete ini.When you hunt pigeons, you bend your bow, and let the arrow fly and hit it.

TechnHunting arrows diro are made with the midrib of a sago leaf (iadiro peini otovo). Being made of a single piece, they have a simpler design than combat arrows puro.

mata diro noun

point of arrowtip of arrow

~do1 (i·)ⁿdo verb, transitive

Words for planting ✧ ~do

~do plant ‹tree, flower›
~teli plant ‹fruit, taro›
~vo ④ plant ‹bananas›
~woi plant ‹maniok›
~wowo ③ plant ‹yam, tuber
vese seed
mata ①▻⑨ sprout
jie taro shoot, sucker
ekuo digging stick

plant ‹trees›

Li-do baleplant a breadfruit
Li-do balaweplant a pineapple
Li-do mana viloplant flowers
La-tabe mata ka la-lui la-do i-katau ngogoro.They collected shoots, and began to plant them around the island.
Ai-e mana luro wako? – Ewe. – Pe li-sava!Do you like rice? – Yes I do. – Then just buy it!

~do2 (i·)ⁿdo verb, transitive

POc*ⁿdolom

swallow

U-do etapu.Don't swallow it.
U-romo nga die, nara kape u-do i-abu.Beware the bones, you might swallow them.

~do3 (i·)ⁿdo verb, transitive

scrape off ‹fish scales, ngava› when scaling a fish

U-do ngava, awoiu u-ia bea mina.You scrape off the scales, and then gut it.

~dobuo (i·)ⁿdoᵐbuo verb, intransitive

be wet, damp

Uña namolo enone mamote i-dobuo.My clothes are still wet.
Tokoli i-dobuo pe tebo, ka i-mu tamwase.The bridge is wet due to the rain, it's very slippery.

dokita ⁿdokita noun

Engdoctor

doko ⁿdoko noun

POc*raqu(p)

1 – view, picture+hazy, blurry

donga ⁿdoŋa noun, relational

lid

donga awothe lid of the [small box containing] lime