We will coordinate with parish priest about using the parish hall. in Tetun

Grammar in this phrase

• Aspect markers

  sei — 'will' or 'still'

  sei

  Tetun has no verb conjugation. Aspect and tense are marked by particles. 'sei' sits immediately before the verb — marking a definite future ('will') or a continuative ('still'). Combine with 'hela' after the verb for ongoing action. Negation is 'sei la' = 'will not'.

• Possession

  nia / nian — possession

  nian

  '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.

More patterns like these in the Tetun grammar guide.

Related phrases

• Sira sei halo kordenasaun ho sira nia xefe depois mak fó desizaun.They will coordinate with their boss, then they will make a decision.
• Diretór sira hotu orsida lokraik tuir enkontru kona ba planu anuál.This afternoon all the directors will be attending a meeting about the annual plan.
• Padre lee sai naran estudante sira ne'ebé sei simu prezente iha Natál.The priest read out the names of students who will receive their presents in Christmas.
• Ita sei liu iha imigrasaun hodi revista ita nia sasán hotu mak foin ita bele sai ba li'ur.We will go through immigration where they will inspect our goods before we can go outside.
• Sr. Olivio nia kapasidade kona ba uza komputadór mínimu liu, tanba foin hahú uza.Mr Olivio’s capacity in using a computer is very minimal, because he has only just started using one.
• Governu sei negosia ho grupu arte marsias sira kona ba oinsá mak bele kria estatutu própriu ba sira.The government will negotiate with the martial arts groups about how to create statutes catering for them.