I thought you knew a lot. But it turns out you are more ignorant than I am! in Tetun

Grammar in this phrase

• Aspect markers

  fali — 'again' / 'back' / 'instead'

  fali

  Placed after the verb. Can mean 'again / back' or mark an unexpected reversal ('instead'). Context decides which.

• Comparison

  liu — comparison 'more / most'

  liu

  Tetun comparison uses 'X liu Y' not 'mais X' — the adjective stays put and 'liu' follows. With a focus 'mak' it becomes superlative. Avoid Portuguese-style 'melhor' or 'mais boot'.

More patterns like these in the Tetun grammar guide.

Related phrases

• Ita la'o kalan, kuidadu rama ambon.If you go out at night, watch out for metal darts.
• Iha 1999, ema barak liu hili independénsia duké autonomia.In 1999, more people chose independence than autonomy.
• Rama oan tama ó nia isin, sai araska, tenke koá sai.If an arrow goes into your body, it’s hard to get it out. It has to be cut out.
• Ami prepara kadeira atus ida, maibé ema mai res-resin tiha fali.We prepared a hundred chairs, but the people who came were many more than that.
• Kuandu partidu ida hetan maioria absoluta, ne'e katak nia hetan liu 50% hosi votu hotu-hotu.When a party gets an absolute majority, this means that it gets more than 50% of all votes.
• Kuandu kandidatu ida hetan maioria simples, nia hetan votu barak liu partidu sira seluk, maski la to'o 50% hosi votu hotu-hotu karik.When a party gets a simple majority, it gets more votes than the other parties, even if it doesn't reach 50% of all votes.