My younger brother has big calves because he runs every day. in Tetun
Ha'u nia alin nia ain kabun boot loos tanba loroloron nia halai hela de'it.
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.
Aspect markers
hela — 'currently' or 'reside'
helaAfter a verb, 'hela' marks continuous aspect ('is ...-ing'). As a standalone verb it means 'live, reside'. Often paired with 'sei' for 'is still ...-ing'.
Intensifiers
Intensifiers (loos, tebes, demais, laduun)
loosPosition matters. 'loos' / 'tebes' / 'demais' follow the adjective ('barak loos' = very many). 'laduun' PRECEDES the adjective ('laduun diak' = not very good). 'liu tan' = even more.
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
- Ha'u nia maun loroloron hi'it besi, í agora nia brasu loos.My older brother lifts weights every day, and now has big biceps.
- Nia dadeer-dadeer tabele iha odamatan para liman kabun bele boot.Every day he does chin-ups in the door to make his biceps big.
- Ha'u sei ko'alia halimar hela ho alin Caetano, tanba kleur la hetan malu.I’m chatting with my younger brother Caetano, because we haven’t seen each other in a long time..
- Maun Tom hakarak halimar frisbee loroloron.Tom wants to play frisbee every day.
- Ha'u loroloron matabixu tuku hitu.Every day I eat breakfast at seven o’clock.
- Tia olaraga loroloron atu hatuun kabun.Auntie exercises every day to reduce weight.