Last year uncle Pedro had a stroke. Now he can't use his left arm. in Tetun
Tinan liu ba Tiu Pedro hetan strok, agora nia liman karuk aat tiha.
English → Tetun phrasebook
Grammar in this phrase
Comparison
liu — comparison 'more / most'
liuTetun 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'.
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
- Hori-kalan ha'u atu estuda, maibé la iha livru, entaun ha'u deskansa de'it.Last night I intended to study, but had no books, so I just had a rest.
- Tiu Pedro uza makaku kalsu kareta para atu hasai roda ne'ebé kuak.Uncle Pedro uses a jack to raise the car so that he can remove the flat tyre.
- Tiu Domingos sempre rei nia oan ho nia kaben molok nia bá servisu.Uncle Domingos always kisses his children and his wife before leaving for work.
- Agora ami la uza ona lali'an, maibé uza fali fogaun hodi te'in.Now we are no longer use a hearth of three cooking stones, but instead use a stove to cook.
- Mateus agora de'ut hela nia matan, tanba ai-luruk mak tama.Mateus is rubbing his eyes with the back of his hands, because a prickle has gotten into his eye.
- Tiu servisu mate an hodi selu ó nia eskola. Agora ó nega fali nia favór ne'e, kuidadu!Uncle worked hard to pay for your schooling. Now if you don’t recognise his kindness, be careful!