Please cover these things with a tarpaulin so that if it rains they won’t get wet. in Tetun

Grammar in this phrase

• Conditionals

  se / karik — conditionals

  karik

  'se' opens a definite conditional ('if X, then Y'). 'karik' sits at the end of a clause and hedges it ('perhaps'); it can also mark an uncertain conditional.

• Negation

  la — 'not' (general negation)

  la

  Placed 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

  bele

  Tetun 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'.

More patterns like these in the Tetun grammar guide.

Related phrases

• Foti lai lona mai satán netik ai-maran para udan been la bele kona.Fetch a tarpaulin here to cover the firewood so that the rainwater won't get into it.
• 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.
• Uma ne'ebá ne'e nia kakuluk kuak hela, favór hadi'a para udan karik la bele tama.The roof of that house is leaking. Please repair it so that when it rains, water won’t go in.
• Sira servisu hamutuk hodi kaer metin prinsípiu moris ida katak, "Todan leba hamutuk, kmaan ita hi'it hamutuk."They worked together, holding firmly to the life principle that, "We carry heavy things together, we lift light things together."
• Sira ne'e oportunista de'it. Uluk rai susar, sira halai sai ba rai li'ur, maibé agora sira mai fali buka pozisaun iha governu.They are just opportunists. In the past when it was hard, they fled overseas, but now they have come back seeking positions in the government.
• Hatuun ha'u nia sasán hosi kareta laran lai.Get my things down out of the vehicle.