Don’t roast the potatoes on the fire for too long, otherwise they will all be burnt. in Tetun
La bele tunu fehuk kleur liu iha ahi, se la bele motuk hotu.
English → Tetun phrasebook
Grammar in this phrase
Negation
la — 'not' (general negation)
laPlaced before verbs and adjectives to negate them. For contrastive 'not X but Y' use 'laós'; for 'not yet' use 'seidauk'; for 'no longer' wrap 'la ... ona' around the verb.
Possibility & probability
bele / parese / dala ruma / kala — possibility
beleTetun hedges less than English, but has a cluster of markers. 'bele' before the verb = can / may. 'parese' at the start = 'seems'. 'dala ruma' at the start of a clause = 'perhaps, sometimes'. 'kala / kal' before a number = 'approximately'.
Prohibition & permission
keta / lalika / la bele — prohibition
la beleThree strengths of 'don't': 'lalika(n)' is softest — 'no need to, don't bother'. 'keta' is a direct prohibitive command. 'la bele' = 'not allowed, must not'.
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
- Sira sei halo kordenasaun ho sira nia xefe depois mak fó desizaun.They will coordinate with their boss, then they will make a decision.
- Sira hotu han to'o bosu. Han tiha, sira mós fahe malu.They all ate until they were satisfied. Having eaten, they went their separate ways.
- Sira hotu riku. Maski nune'e, sira lakoi ajuda ami.They are all rich. Nevertheless, they refused to help us.
- La bele hanaruk tan sira nia kontratu, tanba sira servisu la di'ak!Don't extend their contract, because they don't work well!
- La bele hirus beibeik; se lae, ferik lailais.Don’t get angry all the time; otherwise you’ll grow old quickly.
- Karik sosa eskrim han hotu kedas, se lae nabeen.If you buy ice cream, eat it all up straightaway, otherwise it will melt.