Uncle worked hard to pay for your schooling. Now if you don’t recognise his kindness, be careful! in Tetun
Tiu servisu mate an hodi selu ó nia eskola. Agora ó nega fali nia favór ne'e, kuidadu!
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
fali — 'again' / 'back' / 'instead'
faliPlaced after the verb. Can mean 'again / back' or mark an unexpected reversal ('instead'). Context decides which.
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
- Inan-aman hanorin la rona ta'uk mak la'o sala dalan de'it.Parents educating you but when you don’t pay attention just be careful just be careful that you don’t go astray.
- Tinan liu ba Tiu Pedro hetan strok, agora nia liman karuk aat tiha.Last year uncle Pedro had a stroke. Now he can't use his left arm.
- Uluk ha'u servisu iha Embaixada Brazíl. Agora ha'u la servisu.In the past I worked for the Brazilian Embassy. Now I don’t have a job.
- Tiu Domingos sempre rei nia oan ho nia kaben molok nia bá servisu.Uncle Domingos always kisses his children and his wife before leaving for work.
- Dezafiu boot ne'ebé ha'u hasoru mak la iha osan atu selu ha'u nia eskola.A major challenge I am facing is that I don’t have money to pay for my schooling.
- Fernando lakon iha fulan Janeiru 1998, no to'o agora nia família la hatene nia paradeiru.Fernando disappeared in January 1998. To date his family don't know his whereabouts.