They were throwing stones at each other, but it was I who copped a blow. in Tetun

Grammar in this phrase

• Focus

  mak — focus marker

  mak

  'mak' focuses the preceding constituent — used when English would bold or cleft ('it was X who...'). Also forms the superlative with 'liu'.

• Reciprocal

  malu — 'each other'

  malu

  'malu' follows the verb to mark reciprocal action. Common in political / news idioms: 'haree malu diak' (get on well), 'diskuti malu' (argue), 'haan malu' (oppose one another), '(liafuan) la haan malu' (testimonies don't match).

More patterns like these in the Tetun grammar guide.

Related phrases

• Sira hirus malu to'o ida-ida buka fatuk hodi tuda malu.They were angry at each other, to the extent that they each looked for rocks and threw them at each other.
• Maun-alin tenke hela dodook malu para saudades malu nafatin.Brothers and sisters should live far apart so that they keep missing each other.
• 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.
• Ha'u nia viziñu sira baku malu tanba du'un malu buan.My neighbours had a fight because they accused each other’s (wives) of being witches.
• 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.
• Ami hotu hela bes-besik malu.We all live close to each other.