A friend wants to borrow our car, but I don’t want to give it to him. in Tetun
Ita nia kareta ne'e kolega atu empresta, maibé ha'u lakohi fó.
English → Tetun phrasebook
Grammar in this phrase
Possession
nia / nian — possession
nia'nia' goes BEFORE the thing possessed; 'nian' goes AFTER. Both function the same way; position decides which form. 'nia' is also the 3rd-person pronoun (he / she / it) — disambiguate by position.
More patterns like these in the Tetun grammar guide.
Translate your own text with the free English ↔ Tetun translator or look up individual words in the Tetun dictionary.
Related phrases
- Ó la bele nega ó nia kolega hanesan ne'e, tempu ida sei presiza nia.Don’t deny you friend like this, as one day you’ll need him.
- Katuas lanu-teen mai atu husu tua. Lalika fó!The old drunkard man came asking for booze. Don’t give him any!
- Ne'e ha'u nia sala. Keta fó todan ba nia!It was my fault. Don't blame him!
- Ó hakarak saida de'it, apá fó.Whatever you want, Dad will give.
- Ha'u lakohi haree televizaun.I don't want to watch television.
- Atoy ema ida ne'ebé bosok-teen. Keta fiar nia!Atoy is a liar. Don’t believe him!