Uncle Domingos always kisses his children and his wife before leaving for work. in Tetun
Tiu Domingos sempre rei nia oan ho nia kaben molok nia bá servisu.
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.
Time expressions
Temporal connectors
molokCommon time words: 'bainhira / kuandu' = when; 'molok / antes' = before; 'depois' and 'liu tiha' = after; 'kedas' = immediately; 'foin' = only just, very recently; 'kleur' = a long time.
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
- Mestre Mario dada an hosi nia servisu tanba la gosta nia xefe.Teacher Mario resigned from his work as he didn’t like his boss.
- 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.
- Tau kafé ne'e iha bandeja no lori ba fó tiu sira hemu.Put this coffee on a tray and take it to uncle and his companions (wife/family/friends) to drink.
- Tiu kuandu nia hosu sempre tarutu.When uncle farts it’s always loud.
- Tia Martinha ne'e tiu Pedro nia kaben.Auntie Martinha is uncle Pedro’s wife.
- Ha'u sei hamaran hela ropa antes ha'u bá servisu.I’m drying the clothes before going to work.