My battery is low/flat. I’ll charge it first. in Tetun

Grammar in this phrase

• Aspect markers

  lai — 'first' / polite request

  lai

  After the verb or object, 'lai' means 'first, for a moment' — often softens a request by implying the action won't last long.

• Aspect markers

  sei — 'will' or 'still'

  sei

  Tetun has no verb conjugation. Aspect and tense are marked by particles. 'sei' sits immediately before the verb — marking a definite future ('will') or a continuative ('still'). Combine with 'hela' after the verb for ongoing action. Negation is 'sei la' = 'will not'.

• 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.

Related phrases

• Ha'u nia pilla fraku. Ha'u sei karega lai.My (telephone) battery is low/flat. I’ll charge it first.
• Buat hotu-hotu folin ladún di'ak; koto folin ki'ik, batar folin ki'ik.The price of everything isn't good (for us farmers); the price of beans is low, the price of corn is low.
• Buka fatuk kabelak ida, ha'u atu tuur.Find me a flat rock, I want to sit down.
• Ha'u foin primeira vés mai iha Dili.I’ve come to Dili for only the first time.
• Atu rezolve problema ita presiza kakutak malirin lai.To solve problems we need to first be calm.
• Ha'u isin baruk loos, hakarak atu toba.I’m feeling really flat, and want to lie down.