MIYA-ENGLISH-HAUSA
DICTIONARY
[Draft version, 2010; corrections and comments welcome]
Russell G. Schuh
with
Vaziya Ciroma Tilde Miya
UCLA Department of Linguistics
2010
About the Dictionary1
The basis of this dictionary is a vocabulary which R.G. Schuh assembled together
with Vaziya Ciroma Tilde Miya in 1982-83. Other speakers contributed words. In
particular, I thank Yakubu Sarkin Miya for a detailed history of Miya that he narrated.
The data was all entered into a FileMaker Pro database, from which is was exported to an
MS Word file for editing and converted to PDF. In order to make this version available
with any more delay or procrastination, it has undergone very little proof-reading. Most
grammatical formatives have been entered, but no personal pronouns are entered in the
dictionary. All pronouns can be found in the Appendices. In a future edition, entries will
be much more thoroughly exemplified from texts and from examples in Schuh (1998).
Every entry has a Miya head word, indication of grammatical category, indication of
underlying tone pattern, and English and Hausa glosses. Every verb has an entry for
verbal noun, and all nouns for which plural forms were collected have their plurals
entered. Many entries have grammatical information and/or examples of use.
Noun entries
Gender: Miya has grammatical gender, shown by pronoun agreement, demonstrative
agreement, and agreement on adjectives. The gender of all nouns is given as n.m. or n.f.
for masculine and feminine respectively. A few nouns are basic plurals, as shown by
their agreement patterns. These are marked n.pl.
Number: Every noun for which a plural was provided has a plural entry.
Tone: The tone pattern is provided for every noun. See below for a sketch of the
Miya tonal system and the tone marking in this dictionary.
Verb entries
Verb class: Every verbal entry lists the verb class, with the tone subclasses for each
class in parentheses. The Appendix presents the entire verbal system, showing diagnostic
patterns for all classes in all Tenses/Aspects/Moods (TAMs). The basic classes are those
that the late Johannes Lukas originated in his work on Bole, but generally speaking, the
same classification can apply to Miya. The headword of verbal entries is the form the
verb would take in the Completive. The classes are as follows:
A1: CVC or CVC”
A2: all other verbs with more than one consonant and ending in no vowel or ”
B: CVCa
C: C” (Miya has only one Class C verb, namely b” ‘come’—other Chadic languages
have several such verbs)
D: Ca
V.bor.: Miya has borrowed verbs, especially from Hausa, that do not fit any of the
regular verb classes. There are marked V.bor. The way that borrowed verbs should
be classified needs more study.
1
I conducted this research when I was a Visiting Professor in the Department of African and Nigerian
languages at Ahmadu Bello University. The research was supported in part by a grant from the WennerGren Foundation for Anthropological Research.
ii
Verbal tones: Each verb class has several tonal subclasses. Classes A1, A2, B have
classes L, HH, and HL. Class D has L and H. These classes undergo distinct tonal
alternations in various contexts. Unlike non-verbs, the tone classes do not necessarily
indicate citation tones because of many contextual tonal alternations special to verbs. See
below for an explanation of tone marking, and see Schuh (1998) for details of verbal
tones.
Verbal nouns: Every verbal entry includes one or more verbal nouns. Verbal nouns,
like all other nouns, have grammatical gender. This is marked as “(m)” or “(f)” for
verbal nouns where gender was checked. I did not check gender on verbal nouns left
unmarked for gender.
Other categories
Categories and entries for categories of word and morpheme classes other than nouns
and verbs should be relatively self-explanatory. See the list of abbreviations below for
the meanings of the category labels.
Definitions
Entries have definitions in both English and Hausa. Every word has one or more
English definitions. These definitions are as complete as possible, given current data.
More study of texts may bring out additional meanings and/or functions. Some entries
lack a Hausa definition. These are cases where neither Vaziya nor I could readily find a
good Hausa equivalent. Rather than make something up, I felt it was better to leave the
Hausa blank.
Examples
There are examples of usage, idioms, and special grammatical properties for many
entries. These could, and should be expanded by drawing more examples of usage from
texts and from example sentences in Schuh (1998). This would be a long term project,
however, so the dictionary is produced as is for the time being.
Alphabetical order
The first letter of the alphabet is taken to be ’ (glottal stop), the second letter is ”. The
only vowel that can begin a word is a. There is a contrast between ’a and a at the
beginning of a word. As far as I know, there is no phonetic difference between ’a and a,
but the difference shows up in context and in morphology. A word beginning in /’a/ is
always pronounced with an initial [a], whereas initial /a/ disappears under some
circumstances and is lengthened under others (see Schuh (1998) for details). Words
beginning in [”] and [i] all begin in underlying /í”/ and /’i/ respetively (no words begin in
initial [u]). Following these two letters, ordering is the normal Roman alphabetical
ordering, with the “hooked” letters ordered after their non-hooked counterparts. Sounds
represented by digraphs, such as ts, tl, sh, are treated as the sequence of letters for
purposes of alphabetization.
iii
í
”
a
b
c
d (including dl and dz)
e
f
g (including gh)
h
i
j
k
l
m (including mb)
n (including nd, ndz, ng, nz)
o
p
r
s (including sh)
t (including tl and ts)
u
v
w
y
z (including zh)
Tone system and tone marking
Miya has what is called a “terraced level” tone system (a term that I believe was
coined by the late Wm. E. Welmers). In such a system, there are three contrasting tones:
high (H), low (L), and downstepped high. Downstepped high is a step down in pitch after
a H that does not drop as low as a L. This is not called “mid” (M) tone for at least two
reasons. First, in a language with a true M, it is possible to drop from a H to either a M
or a L AND to rise from a L to either a M or a H, i.e. going up or down in pitch from
syllable to syllable is symmetrical. In a terraced level system, it is possible to drop from
H to downstepped H or to L, but rising in pitch from a L, there is only one possibility,
which is to rise to a pitch that is lower than a preceding H (i.e. a downstepped H).
Moreover, once one has dropped from a H to a downstepped H, one cannot then rise back
to the level of a preceding H (i.e. the downstepped H is now the “new” H). Second, in a
language with a true H, M, L distinction, one can only go up or down on these three
pitches. In a terraced level system, since a downstepped H sets a new pitch level for H,
one can again downstep from that H. In fact, there is no limit in principle in how many
downteps may follow one after the other, and it is quite easy to construct utterances that
downstep four or five times.
The description of the tone system adopted in Schuh (1998) and used in this
dictionary has three possible lexical specifications for tone:
L = low tone; domains marked for L bear L pitch in all contexts
H = (downstepped) H; in sequence HH, the second H is downstepped from the first.
Strangely, /H/ at the beginning of a phrase is pronounced on a low pitch and is
indistinguishable from /L/, but the difference shows up when the /H/ vs. /L/ come
after anything—the /L/ stays [L], the /H/ become downstepped [H].2
T = “toneless”; ironically, a T domain is pronounced on a H tone at the beginning of a
phrase, but when following anything, it has no distinct tonal identity, but rather
copies the preceding tone.
The following table may help in understanding this system:
2
A possible explanation for pronouncing phrase-initial /H/ on low pitch is that “H” always represents
downstepped H. At the beginning of a phrase it does’t following anything to be downstepped from, so it
gets the “ultimate downstep”, namely all the way to L.
iv
Citation tone
(Lexical tone)
Following high pitch
ákyar ‘back (of …)’
Following low pitch
v
na ‘mouth (of …)’
‘Nile monitor’
gz”m (L)
[__]
kyar gz”m
[– – _ _]
v
na guz”m
[_ _ _ _ ]
‘castrated goat‘
m
” (H)
[_ _]
kyar m”
[– – – –]
v
na m”
[_ _ – – ]
‘jackal’
lh” (T)
[– –]
kyar lh”
[ – – – –]
v
na lh”
[_ _ _ _]
Lexical tone indications: Every entry is followed by its lexical tones in parentheses,
as in the second column from the left in the table above. Note that although the words
have two syllables each, there is only one tone marking. Miya very strictly follows what
linguists call (for better or worse), the OBLIGATORY CONTOUR PRINCIPLE (OCP). This
principle says that a single tone is associated with the entire domain that bears the same
pitch.3 In the table above the domains for the tones of the respective citation forms are
two syllables, but it is possible for a single tone to be associated with fewer or more
syllables, e.g. the monosyllabic word ’íy (T) ‘dog’ and the trisyllabic word lábadi (T)
‘basket’, like lh” (T) ‘jackal’, are marked simply as T (“toneless”) because in contexts
like those above, they would continue the preceding tone throughout. Paralleling the
single tone indication in parentheses, head words are tone marked only on the first
syllable or when there is a change in pitch. Tone marking uses the standard diacritics for
African languages: grave accent (à) = L tone, acute accent (á) = H tone. Only the first
syllable of a domain is marked for tone; a new tone mark indicates a change in pitch.
Here are some examples of entries with more than one tone:
gwágúm (TH) [ – –] ‘dove’: initial T syllable has high pitch, H is downstepped
g˙r (TL) [ – _ ] ‘kola’: initial T syllable has high pitch, L has low pitch
ttelw (TH) [ – – –] ‘corstalk flute’
srth” (TH) [ – – –] ‘lake’
bl”nky (TL) [ – – _ ] ‘hyena’
tkusm (THL) [ – – – _] ‘hedgehog’
vìyayúw (HH) [ _ _ – ] ‘fireplace’: initial H syllable has low pitch, second H raised
Note that no words other than those that have low pitch throughout, e.g. gz”m (L)
‘Nile monitor’, begin with L. All words like vìyayúw (HH) ‘fireplace’ that are cited with
initial low pitch and rise later in the word, begin on lexical H tone (cf. nákn víyayúw
[ – – – – _ ] ‘this fireplace’ with downstepped H on víya- following H). There are also
no lexical HL words, which is understandable. Initial /H/ would be cited on low pitch,
and the L would also be on low pitch. A putative “HL” word would thus be cited with
low pitch throughout and thus be indistinguishable from simple L and H words!
TONES ARE NOT MARKED ON HEADWORDS OF VERBAL ENTRIES SINCE VERBAL TONES
ARE DETERMINED BY CONTEXT. THERE IS NO “CITATION” TONE.
3
The OCP was first formulated in William R. Leben (1973), Suprasegmental Phonology, PhD dissertation,
MIT (distributed by Indiana University Linguistics Club). “Contour” in this context means “change in
pitch”. For there to be a change in tone there must be a change in pitch. Otherwise, obligatorily, there is a
single tone.
v
SPECIAL TERMS IN ENGLISH DEFINITIONS
Cultural differences make it impossible to find satisfactory English equivalents for a
number of common items found in northern Nigerian cultures and African cultures in
general. This is particularly true of food terms, but also of certain items of material and
political culture. Rather that use English terms that would not convey appropriate
connotations, this dictionary uses Hausa words to express a number of concepts that
come up frequently in definitions. The following terms will be found in English
definitions:
Hausa word
Explanation of meaning
tuwo
staple food made from guinea corn or maize flour, rice, or
other starch base, cooked to a stiff consistency
miya
a “sauce” or “stew”, usually with a vegetable base, such as
okra, sorrel, baobab, tomatoes, etc. and often with meat or
fish, served accompanying tuwo
kunu
a “gruel” of finely ground flour, cooked to a relatively thin
consistency, usually with a flavoring such as tamarind or
lime juice
fura
millet flour, cooked and formed into balls that are broken
up and mixed into a liquid, preferably cultured milk, but
sometimes water
faifai
a round tray woven from grass, often with designs woven
in by using different colors of grass; multi-functional, used
as a pot or bowl cover, a mat on which to place small
object, a tool for separating bran from flour, and,
sometimes decorated with cowries or coins, as decoration
in room
zana
a mat made from interwoven heavy grass, used as a fence,
granary liner, and other functions
ABBREVIATIONS
adj.
adj.participle
adv.
adv.loc.
adv.man.
adv.time
aux.
clitic
conj.
det.
adjective
paticiple usable as an adjective, e.g. “broken (pot)”
adverb
locative adverb, such as “outside”, “there”)
manner adverb, such as “with difficulty”, “thus”
time adverb, such as “today”, “last year”
auxiliary particle indicating verb tense and the like
a form added at the beginning or end of a word
conjunction, such as “and”, “if”, “until”
determiner, including esp. articles and demonstratives
vi
det.def.
det.dem.
det.indef.
f.
existential
gen.linker
id.
id.adj.
idiom
interjection
interr.
interr.adv.
interr.det.
interr.pro.
m.
n.
n.mass
num.card.
num.ord.
part.
pl.
plac.
prep.
presentative
pro.
pro.1 pl.
pro.1 sg.
pro.2 pl.
pro.2 sg.f.
pro.2 sg.m.
pro.3 pl.
pro.3 sg.f.
pro.3 sg.m.
quant.
quant.univ.
stat.
v.A1
v.A2
v.B
v.C
v.D
v.ext.
v.irreg.
definite determiner, such as “the”
demonstrative, such as “this”, “those”
indefinite determiner, such as “a”, “some”
feminine
word meaning “there’s...”, “there’s no...”
particle meaning “of”, as in “ear of a sheep”
ideophone-a large class of words that emphasize actions or qualities
ideophonic adjective-ideophone-like words than can modify nouns
an expression whose meaning is not predictable from its parts
all types of exclamations, expressions, greetings, etc.
interrogative word, such as “who?”, “how?”
interrogative adverb, such as “how?”, “when?”
interrogative determiner, such as “which...?”
interrogative pronoun, such as “who?”
masculine
noun
mass noun, such as “water”, “millet”
cardinal number, such as “five”, “six”
ordinal number, such as “fifth”, “sixth”
particle, added to reinforce meaning, such as Hausa dai, ma
plural
pluractional verb indicating multiple action, such as Hausa firfita
preposition
word meaning “here’s...” when offering something
pronoun
first person plural pronoun, “we, us”
first person singular pronoun, “I, me”
second person plural pronoun, “you”
second person feminine pronoun, “you” (to a female)
second person masculine pronoun, “you” (to a male)
third person plural pronoun, “they, them”
third person feminine pronoun, “she, her”
third person masculine noun, “he, him”
quantifier, such as “all”, “a few”
universal quantifier, such a “everything”, “whoever”
stative derive from verb, such as “seated”
class A1 verb (CVC or CVC roots)
class A2 verb (roots roots ending in Ø or longer than CVC-)
class B verb (verbs ending in -a)
class C verb (C verb—there is only one such verb in Miya)
class D verb (Ca verbs)
verbal extension, showing action done this direction, etc.
irregular verb, verb not fitting one of the regular classes
vii
REFERENCE
Schuh, Russell G. 1998. A Grammar of Miya. University of California Pulbications in
Linguistics, Volume 130. Berkeley and Los Angeles: UC Press.
viii
CONTENTS
About the Dictionary
i
SPECIAL TERMS IN ENGLISH DEFINITIONS
vi
Abbreviations
vi
REFERENCE
viii
CONTENTS
ix
MIYA-ENGLISH-HAUSA DICTIONARY
1
APPENDICES
APPENDIX I: PRONOUNS
51
APPENDIX II: VERB CLASSES
54
ix
MIYA-ENGLISH-HAUSA
DICTIONARY
í
íf = ín (LHL) prep. (imposes low tone on noun complement) 1. with (comitative)
ex j nga-y yr íf ty they spoke in (ther native) language with him. 2. and
(conjoining nouns) ex j tluws íf ín tuws íf wutlmy nuwas” then he arose
with his wife and his children | da (mutum)
í”fa (HH) v. B (v.n. fak) peel, shell (peanuts) | bxare
í”ma (HH) v. B (v.n. íman (m), ímak (m)) cut off guinea corn heads | yanke kan hatsi
ín = íf (LHL) prep. (imposes low tone on noun complement) 1. with (comitative)
ex ín mn/fwy/mc/ty/nj/my/hn/tln with me/you (m)/you (f)/him/her/us/you
(pl)/them; ”m cm ín my he did work with us. 2. and (conjoining nouns) ex d
”hntln wr íf wciya he and so-and-so have been married (one has tied them
marrieage with so-and-so (f)); d” zatla kak”r í”n azurfa t k”nza she put on her
shoes and silver rings | da (mutum)
ís” (T) n.f. locust beans used for kalwa | orawa, kalwa
í”s” (HL) v. A1 (v.n. íshshi (m), ísk”) be sated, have enought to eat | oshi
í”say (HL) v. A2 feed ex mn ís v”rk”nz I fed her child | osar da, ciyar da
íía (T) n interjection no | aía
íadz”ma (L) v. A2 (v.n. ídzadzam (m)) grunt, groan, moan | nisa
ífuw (T) n.f. (pl. cw, cwaww) goat | akwiya
ím (T) n.f. (pl. tvam) woman, wife | mace, mata
íns (bor) v.A2 bor (v.n. ínsk”) answer ex mn íans sw tsyak” tuwsay I answered
his question | amsa
íar (HL) v. A1 (v.n. írk”) 1. put (away), place. 2. set a time. 3. cherish, consider
special | ajiye; yanke (lokaci); kee
írw (TLH) n.?, adv.loc. north | arewa
ír‰ (T) n.f. loan (of thing to be returned) ex tsan arawa duwak” tuws” he lent me his
horse | aro
íts” (H) n.m. shame, embarrassment ex d”ky s tsay she was embarrassed | kunya
íyaba (L) n.f. banana (Musa sapientum) ex íyaba gyrya plantain | ayaba
ízhr (LHL) n.?, adv.time early afternoon | azahar
ízr (TLH) n.? beam | azara
íic” (HL) v. A1 (v.n. íck” (f)) sneeze ex íc icw he sneezed | yi atishawa
íji (T) n.m. (pl. íjajw) mortar | turmi
íman (T) n.m. cutting heads off guinea corn | yankan kan hatsi
ír (H) n.m. (pl. írarw) Nile perch (Lates niloticus) | ariya
íshashi (T) n.m. being full after eating, being replete | oshi
ítli (T) n.m. (pl. ítlatlw) coughing | tari
íitli (HL) v. A1 (v.n. ítli (m), ítlk”) cough ex íitl íitlw he coughed | yi tari
íy (T) n.m. (pl. íyw) (f. ty) dog | kare
1
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
2
íiy (L) v. A1 (v.n. íyak”) be able | iya
íy Ö = Ö (H) rel.loc. 1. the place that …, where … ex íy gaf k íiy bwn where
you go is where I go. 2. (with nominalized purpose phrase) in order to ex Mngila bat
suw íiy nd”mk” Mangila went out to have a look around | inda .
íyly (LHL?) n.? family | iyali
íyka (H) det.loc. 1. there ex tk”m íiyk! go over there!. 2. (in íyk) there upon ex t˘,
íyk Mazang myt say well, thereupon Mazanga died | can
íyk”n (H) det.loc. here ex wshashanf” mn jiykn buwhiyf yk”na? how many
year has it been since you came here? | nan
íykwa = ykwa (T) interr.loc.adv. where? ex fy baf ykwa? where are you going?; f
ts”gaku íykwa? where did you sit?; t˘, fy f b”kw íykw? well, you where have
you come from? | ina?
A
See ’a- at the beginning of the dictionary for words with initial a- not found here.
a- (T) prefix (lengthened when not post-pausal) 1. prefix vowel with no meaning, found
on many root words and derivatives such as verbal nouns. 2. see ía- for words where
the a is a root vowel. 3. prefix on ordinal numbers ex n(a) tsra the second one;
tsruws” the seond of them (“his seond”). 4. prefix forming a locative adverbial form
ex by nMngil water of Mangila hill (cf. by na Mngila ‘Mangila’s water’);
tlwiy ntsk”n wild animal, animal of the bush (cf. tsk”n ‘the bush’) |
(L) aspect perfective auxiliary with 3rd person subjects ex b”s” sy s/he washed |
(LL) prep. 1. with (instrument) ex m cm giti he did work with an axe. 2. as,
with respect to (marker of objective complement) ex dawun Kasy íam he sought
Kasay as a wife | da (+ kayan aiki), don
(LL) prep. marker of a postverbal subject ex t”nz” mr Ndwya (= Ndwya a
t”nz” mr) Nduya planted millet; kw zratln Ksham k, buwatln d” b
tsgatln when Kasham calls them they will come and sit down; tbrma ba kn(a)
vrk” the mat that the boy bought |
(L) aspect imperfective auxiliary ex fy zara w? who will you call?; mkuws” kd
t tsyw he spent three days digging it (he “dayed” three he was digging) | na
= w (L) interr. ( is by far the most frequent; see n for focussed subject equational
questons) sentence final question marker of any type of question (yes/no, constituent)
ex f tlak suw nd-a? Good morning! (standard greeting meaning, “Have you
arisen?”); w zratln-? who called them? |
(HL) prep. from (locative or temporal) ex m b‰k”m íykw? where have you come
from?; tsuway hr bahy zhr from morning all the way until the late afternoon |
daga
= d (H irreg) aspect (see alsod) perfective auxiliary used when subject is focused ex
w zrawa? who called?i; Ksham zraw t is Kasham who called (cf. Kshm zr
sy ‘Kasham called’); my zraw it is we who called | ne/ce
(H irreg) aspect conditional future auxiliary ex A: Dw, ìWy-y.î B: ì, n- by
uwy.î A says, “Jump down.”, B (responds) “But I’ll get a fracture.” |
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
3
brbr (THL) n.f. red-eyed or speckled pigeon (Columba guinea) | hazbiya
b”s” (HH) n.f. bathing | wanka
btak” (TH) n.f. disused farm | saura
bkak”m (TH) n.m. palm of hand | tafin hannu
bkats”my (THH) n.m. sole of foot | tafin sawu
bngu (TL) n.m. (pl. bngwngww) lizard (Agama agama) | adangare
bru (TL) n.?, adv.loc. area in Miya where dancing is done | unguwar Miya
bya (LH) conj. after (+ clause, phrase) ex bya miy ty sw dmy, j my y
after we chopped down the tree, we split (the wood); bya s”nw f”rf
” d íar
tlay after eight days, they brew beer | bayan (+ jimla)
by (TH) n.m. (pl. byayw) water | ruwa
by g”rnna (TH TH) n.m. gum Arabic | aro
by ghns” (TH L) n.m. rain | ruwan sama
by py (TH H) n.m. milk | madara, nono
by tw (TH H) n.m. arrowhead | ruwan kibiya
c” (TH) n.m., adv.loc. underneath ex n t c” the last | arkashi(n)
cm (TH) n.m. 1. work ex mn m cm = mn n scamay I worked. 2. (in
kfiy(a) cam) sending ex kfiy(a) cam send (it) to him | aiki; aike
car (T) n.f. tick | kaska
cc (TL) n.f. a type of wild grain, fonio (Digitaria exilis) | acca
cw (TH) n.f. caring for, taking care of a newborn by an older woman | reno
dama = dma (HL) prep., conj. for the purpose of, for the sake of, in order to, because
ex my tb”natl dama nj” m bsazaw we abused her because she doesn’t bathe;
my n niykin dma ghns we did this for the sake of God; dama mn = dma
m”n for my sake | domin, don, saboda
damb” (T) n.f. traditional shaving of women’s head, leaving round patch of hair on top |
irin kitso
dr (LH) prep. from, originating from, via ex tln dr Mya they are from Miya;
hn dr ykwa? where are you from? | daga, ta
dzhi (TH) n.f. poison | dafi
dingil (T) n.f., adv.loc. a pond in Miya | tabkin Miya
dlmdlm (THL) n.m. (pl. dlndlmmw) mud dauber wasp | zanzaro
dkuna (TH) n.? place (of) ex Ksham bt(a) dkunwun Kasham came to me (to
my place); mn b˘wn (a)dkun Jl I have come from Jala (from Jala’s place) |
wurin
dwdw (THL) n.m. sugar ants | sha zumami
ng” (TH) n.f. (pl. ngangw) talking, speech | magana
dzn
ar (TL) n.m. bedbugs | kuin cizo
dyam (T) n.m. fancy dress or behavior | mai, gaye
fay (T) n.f. zorilla (Ictonyx libyca) | bodari
fy
ya
uw (TH) n.f. whistling ex fay sfiy
ya
way à fay sfiyyaúway | fito
g”danglw (LHL?) n.f. millipede | adandoniya
gzh”, gzhi (TH) n.f. (pl. gzhazhw) hair ex g”zh” [sic] t ghm hair on the
head; gzh” t tuwatw hair on the body | gashi
gzh” tt shm/dndi (TH T) n.m. pubic hair (hair on penis/vulva) | zaza
gzha wutli zham (TH T TH) n.m. feathers | gashin tsuntsu
gíay (TH) n.m. left, left hand ex mb
uwun tgíay my left thigh | hagu
gdara (TL) n.m. red-headed male lizard (Agama agama) | jan gada, adangare
ghuw (TH) n.m. (pl. ghuwww) disused farm | saura
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
4
gam (T) n.f. (pl. gamamw) jaw, chin | muamui, haa
gam (T) n.f. desert date (Balanites aegyptiaca) | aduwa
gar (T) n.f. Ruppell's griffon (Gyps rueppellii) | mikiya
gruw (TL) n.m., adv.loc. Bauchi ex gruw raw r Mya a zh”k” Bauchi is larger
than Miya | Bauci
gidderun (TL) n.m. dung beetle | buzuzu
gn t”myr (TH TL) n.? face | fuska
gtuw (TL) n.?, adv.loc. the southern rock of Miya town | dutsen Miya
gwgw (LH?) n.m., n.f. duck | agwagwa
gwm (TH) n.f. locust | fara
gwarzhiwt” (HH) n.m. growing up | girma
gyr (TH) n.m. (pl. gyrarw) hole ex gyr tar squirrel hole | rami
gyr tn (TH H) n.m. nostril | kafar hanci
gyr vy
(TH H) n.m. crack between buttocks | uwawu
kt”rw (THL) n.f. scorpion | kunama
km (TH) n.m., adv.loc. at home, home ex kmh Kasham at Kasham’s house; t
buws km he will go home; by dzm km they took beans home | a gida, gida
kan˘ (TL) n.?, adv.loc. Kano | Kano
ky ghm (THL H) pro.reflex. base for emphatic reflexive pronouns ex my buwma ky ghmws” we will come ourselves | kan wani
kyt” (TH) n.f. difficulty | wuya, wahala
kr (TH) n.f. theft | sata
kitlrti (THL) n.m. fear | tsoro
kf” (TH) n.f. forging, smithing | ira
kl (TH) n.f. clearing bush | sassabe
kur (T) n.f. shea nut (Vitellaria paradoxa) | kaanya
kw (TH) n.f. (pl. kwaww) fire ex vn akw flame; mb”sh kuw she
extinguished the fire | wuta
kwal (T) n.f. (pl. kwlalw) hut where rituals are performed | kurmi
kwary (TL) n.m. bog (where sugar cane is planted) | kwari, fadama
kwaykway (TH) n.m. shin | sha raa
kyar (T) n.m. back; behind ex mn kyar Kasham I am behind Kasham | baya
kyar k”mn (T TH) n.m. back of hand | bayan hannu
kyar py (T H) n.m. nipple of breast | kan nono
kyar ts”my (T TH) n.f. top of foot | bayan afa
kyar wr (T H) n.m. nape of neck | baya wuya
l”bs” (TL) n.f. (pl. l”bssw) onion (Allium cepa) | albasa
l”pn (TL) n.f. cloud; sky | gajimare, sama
lg” (TH) n.m. indentation below sternum | wurin ciki
laly = rts” (TH) n.? Acacia sieberiana | farar aya
lw see luw | a dubi luw
m”sm (TL) n.f. dream | mafarki
m” (TH) n.f. dew | raa
mk” (TH) n.m. metal band worn around thumb for drawing bowstring | awanya
mngla (TL) n.?, adv.loc. the northern monolith of Miya town | dutsen Miya
marn (TH) n.m. side of body, ribs | ugu, haarari
my (TH) n.f. cry of a dodo ex mya Dlramb” cry of the Dlerabu dodo | kukan dodo
mbg”d” (TH) n.f. crawling ex vrk” g”na tmbg”d” the child is crawling; ”n
smbag”day he crawled | rarrafe
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
5
mbn (TH) n.f. goodness, niceness, beauty | kyau
mbahn (THL) n.f. small frog | burduddugi
mblmt (THLH) n.m. miserliness | rowa
mbyíala (TL) n.f. skink (Mabuya perottetii and other skink spp.) | kulbxa
mray (TH) n.m. running | gudu
mr (THL) n.f. (pl. mryaw) woven belt used to hold on leaves used as skirt |
datsi
mishngay (TH) n.f. earthworm | tana
m (TH) n.f. tiger nuts (Cyperus esculentus) | aya
mkwa (TH) adv.time, n.? dry season, work away from home during the dry season |
rani, cin rani
nany (TH) n.f. algae | gansakuka
nd”lkay (TL) n.f. burr grass (Cenchrus biflorus, C. Ciliari) | arangiya
nd”rkwna (TL) n.f. whirlwind | guguwa
nd” (TH) n.f. conjunctivitis | jan ido
ndaly (TL) n.f. red-flowered silk cotton tree (Bombax buonopozense and other B.
species) | gurjiya
ndzhi (TH) n.f. (pl. ndzhazhw) hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius); hippo
hide whip | dorina, bulala
ndw = dw (TL) conj. 1. introduces direct quotations ex kw
yarda ka, d” b”laya
anduw, ìM”n g
luwf”.î if she is in agreement, she says to him, “I too love you.”. 2.
introduces indirect speech other than indirect questions ex kw nga nduw s
bwtl”n s”b” y
ky kaÖ when one says that the war-makers are coming…; mlv
nduw mn zuwwun the sarki said that I should enter. 3. (preceding a proper name or
a designation) called, named ex gwn ka a zraza nduw gwl that (type of) locust,
one calls it gwal | cewa, wai
ngna (TH) n.pl. one’s one, possession belonging to one ex ngna niywan my own
thing(s); ngna t”makw nywn my own sheep; ngna kn nuwun my own house
| mallaka
ngr (TH) n.f. (pl. ngrarw) leg | afa
ngrc” (THL) n.m. black ants | tururuwa
ngn (TL) adv.loc. someplace, anyplace ex my m b
m nginw we didn’t go
anywhere | wani wuri
nginniy (TL) n.f. (pl. anginniyyw) spider | gizo-gizo
ngunm (TH) n.f. type of bee with makes honey inside a tube | rekuwa
nguw (T) n.f. quarter of town ex nguw tma = nguw hma our quarter; nguw ta
malvw = nguw h malvw the chief’s quarter | unguwa
ngz” (TH) n.m. beard | gemu
ngwazr (TL) n.f. trap | tarko
ngwiy ghnaw (T) n.pl. twins ex ngwiy dzh” a male twin; ngwiy dzku a female
twin | tagwaye
ningi (T) n.?, adv.loc. Ningi | Ningi
nyh (THL) n.m. medicine, remedy | magani
p”snd (TLH) n.f. gecko, possibly house gecko (Hemidactylus frenatus) | tsaka
pank (TLH) n.f. embers | garwashin wuta
par (T) n.f. (pl. pararw) horn | aho
py [py] (TH) n.m. (pl. pyayw) breast, milk ex py ím woman’s breast; kyar
py nipple; biy piy mile | nono
pyatlm (TH) n.f. hip, lower abdomen | ugu
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
6
rdl” = rdl” (TH) n.f. writing | rubutu
rh” (TH) n.f. bowstring | tsirkiya
rai (T) n.m. fart ex byara raai he farted | tusa
rs” (TH) n.m. sorrel, roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa) | yakuwa
rts” = laly (TH) n.m. Acacia sieberiana | farar aya
r‰ (T) n.f. begging, beseeching | roo
rw (TH) n.m. type of tall grass (not as tall as tsaure) used for basket weaving | iri
ruwy (TH) n.f. custard apple (Annona senegalensis) | gwandar daji
ryw [ryw] (TH) n.f. pus | mugunya
sk (TLH) n.?, adv.loc. open area east of Miya where dancing and other recreation
takes place | unguwar Miya
sr (TH) n.m. 1. circumcision ex sarwn my peer. 2. (with possessive) peer | kaciya,
tsara
srsar (TH) n.pl. peers | tsararraki
shin (TL) n.m. house at farm ex bat ssh
nay he went to the farmhouse | gidan
gona
shiwyuw (TH) n.f. 1. sweat. 2. hot weather | zuffa, gumi
shiy (HH) adv.time formerly, olden times ex sb” ni shy people of the past | da
shwashw (THH) n.f. (pl. shwashwaww) star | tauraro
t (LH) prep., aspect (as an auxiliary, can take either a deveral noun or a gerund) 1. on,
on top of ex my bay t y we take it onto a rock outcropping; py ka njt y the
pond was on the rock outcropping. 2. about, concerning ex j buwatl”n t msyy
ba shgabanc then they came concerning the dispute over the leadership. 3. mound of,
heap of ex j fr nayk t smay n Mngil they began by looking at the mound
of trash of Mangila. 4. impefective auxiliary (progressive or habitual, but not future) ex
mn t zhrar” ~ mn t zra zarw I am calling; tln dt mkantln wnk
they were dwelling thus; d ”ma wsn wut at d˘na gwalf” they spent a year
seeking (new) leadership; mn dt cm na Cir˘ma I was doing the work of Ciroma |
(1, 2) kan; (3) na
t”lm (TL) n.f. water lily (Nymphaea lotus) | bado
t”ly (TL) n.m. tree squirrel | kuregen bisa
tm (TH) n.f. song | waa
t”r (LL) n.m. (used only with a possessive pronoun) carelessness ex ts”rwn tr
nuws” he stopped me on purpose | ganganci
t”rry (TL) n.m. biting ant | cirnaka
tí” (TH) n.f. chameleon (Chamaeleo africanus) | hawainiya
tí” (TH) n.f. odor (good or bad) | wari, anshi
tk” (LH) n.f. argument, dispute ex ”m tk” they argued | faa, musu
takwam (T) n.f. cupping with horn ex kiy takwam he was cupped | yi kxaho
tar (T) n.m. (pl. tararw) ground squirrel (Xerus erythropus) | kurege
tikwrma (TL) n.f. stone partridge (Ptilopachus petrosus) | kazar dutse
tm (TH) n.m. (pl. tmamw) nose | hanci
tm by (TH H) n.f. spring (of water) | idon ruwa
tvi (TH) n.m. walking, traveling ex bat tvi he traveled | tafiya
tiwy (TL) n.m. (pl. tiwyyw) fly (insect) | uda
ty [ty] (TH) n.f. (pl. tyayw) eye | ido
ty (TH) n.f. (f. of íy) female dog, bitch ex tk”n ty this dog | karya
tyaty [ty—ty] (THH) n.f. kidney | oda
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
7
tiyr (TL) n.? place of … ex tiyrwn my place, where I am; tiyrza her place, where
she is | wajen ., wurin .
tlaky (TH) n.f. (pl. tlakyayw) crab | aguwa
tlakwam (T) n.f. (pl. tlakwamamw) spear | mashi
tlar (T) n.?, prep. between (cannot be used with human complements) ex mn tlra
zkiy I am between the rocks | tsakani(n)
tlara mb
” (T L) n.? crotch | hantsa, tsakanin cinya
tlatluw (T) n.m. armpit | hamata
tly
i (TH) n.f. (pl. tly
ya
w) farming, weeding, cultivating | noma
tlyw [tlyw] (TH) n.f. (pl. tlywaww) tribal markins, etching, tracing | shasshawa,
zane
ts
”f (THH) n.m. broom | tsintsiya
tstsaly (THL) n.f. 1. cauri, cowrie, taxes. 2. (usually in tstsaly m km) taxes |
wuri, haraji
tsaf” (T) n.m. middle, between, among ex t tsafa km he is in the middle of the house;
t tsafa Ndwy í”n Ksham he is between Nduya and Kasham | tsakiya, tsakani(n)
tsaku (T) n.f. Fulani camp | ruga
tsm (TL) n.?, adv.loc. area in Miya where wrestling is done | unguwar Miya
tsw (TH) n.m. (pl. tswaww) egg | wai
tsuw bb” (TH L) n.? testicles | gwaiwa, golo
tku
(THH) n.f. toad | kwadxo
tkusm (HHL) n.f. (pl. tkusmmw) hedgehog (Atelerix albiventris) | bushiya
tw (TH) n.f. (locative form of twatw) on one’s body ex twwn on my body; j
m shkarw d tltln wtl”my d p tuwtln they spent several year and
their children were growing and increasing their numbers (pouring onto their bodies) | a
jiki
tw (TH) adv. again, still, more ex ngtw say it again; d jy d
tsiyak pay t
Mangla tw then they again dug out more of the pond on Mangila | har yanzu
tsíay (TH) n.m. right hand, right side ex tsíayuwun on my right; mb
uwun
ttyíay my right thigh | dama
vkiy (TL) n.f. (pl. vkiyyw) thorn | aya
vviy (TL) n.m. (pl. vviyyw) mosquito | sauro
vo (T) n.f. mistletoe (Loranthaceae spp. and Tapinanthaceae spp.) | kauci
vwavw (THH) n.f. intestines, guts | hanji
vwn
(TL) n.f. slipperyness | santsii
vy
i (TH) n.m. (pl. vy
a
w) buttocks, anus | uwawu, tsuliya
war (T) n.m. (pl. wrarw) marsh | fadama
ws” (TH) n.m. (pl. ws”sw) grass | ciyawa
wy (TH) n.f. jujube (Ziziphus mauritiana or Z. abyssinica) | magarya, kurna
whi [whi] (TH) n.f. load, tools, implements | kaya
wra k”mn (TH TH) n.? wrist | wuyan hannu
wra ts”my (TH TH) n.? ankle | idon sawu
w (TH) n.m. courtyard inside compound | tsakar gida
wm (TH) n.m. (pl. wmamw) cheek | kunci
y (H) aux. (See sw (Ö -y); -y alone is used mainly in the imperative, hortative, and
subjunctive) totality marker with TAM’s other than perfective and imperfective ex
b˘kway! goout! (m.s. imperative); t m”ts zhky he should sell the donkey; d kiya
tvay d kiya v”riyy she began walking and she began crying |
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
8
ay suffix transitizer of intransitive bases, causitivizer ex bay (< ba ‘go’) take, carry;
daway (< daw ‘get down, stay as guest’) unload; put up (guest); ts”ray (< ts”r ‘come
to a stop’) stop, bring to a stop | da
yerti (TL) n.m. old age | girma, tsufa
zk (TLH) n.m. maternal uncle (younger or older) ex zkwf” your uncle | kawu
zly (TL) n.f. (pl. zliyyw) thread | zare
zham (T) n.m. ground hornbill (Bucorvus abyssinicus) | burtu
zhpiy (TL) n.f. tears ex zhpiywun my tears | hawaye
zhpiy (TL) n.f. striped sand snake | irin maciji
zwazhw (THH) n.f. musk shrew (Crocidura spp.) | jaa
zwry in ny zwry (TLHL) n.? relatives, clan members | zuriya, zumai
B
b” (HL) v. C (v.n. bwk” (f)) (form used in verbal TAMs; buw used in nominal TAMs;
, m.sg. imper. tku, f.sg. imper. tkam, pl. imper. twka) come | zo
bdlang” = blang” (L) n.m. gutta percha tree (Ficus platyphylla) | gamji
bdly” (TL) n.m. nettle tree (Celtis integrifolia) | zuwo
b” (H) n.f. (pl. baw) 1. navel, lower abdomen ex ahn ts”tsly b”aza
she attached cowries to her front. 2. before, in front of | cibiya; gaba(n)
baksh (LHL) n.m. gourd plant (Lagenaria siceraria) | duma
b”l (HH) v. A1 (v.n. blak) pop out, appear suddenly | ullo
b”la (HH) v. B (v.n. blak) say, tell ex b”la wk” he told a lie; b”lan lbr he told
me the news | faa
bl”nky (TL) n.m. (pl. bl”nkyyw) baboon (Papio anubis) | gwaggon biri
blang” = bdlang” (L) n.m. gutta percha tree (Ficus platyphylla) | gamji
bn (TL) adv.time 1. yesterday ex bn nk day before yesterday; tr na bn last
month. 2. time period preceding current one | jiya
bngna (TH) n.m. type of drum with large bottom and narrow top | azariya
b”r (L) v. A1 (v.n. brak”) help; save ex mn bryc
I helped him with work | taimaka;
ceta
br”m (L) n.m. remainder ex br”ntln the rest of them; br”nn the rest of you;
br”mm the rest of us; br”m mr the rest of the money | saura
brb”tl” (L) n.m. (pl. brb”tltlw) tortoise | kunkuru
b”r” (L) v. A2 (v.n. brak”) hang | rataya
briy (L) n.f. the trees Piliostigma reticulatum & P. thonningii | kargo
b”rmay (bor) v.A2 bor (v.n. bmyak) cave in ex ryj nuwun brmy sy my well
caved in | bxurme
b”s” (L) v. A1 (v.n. bs” (f), bsak”) wash; bathe ex mn bs”sw kb”tuwny I
washed my gown; mn b”suwans I bathed | wanke, yi wanka
bsaka gn t”myr (L H TL) n.? washing superficially | wankin ido
b”ta (HH) v. B (v.n. btak (f)) 1. untie, release. 2. shoot, throw | kwance, saka; harba,
jefa
b”ts” (L) v. A1 (v.n. btsak” (m)) spit | tofa
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
9
bzakwy (HH) n.f. five string harp--resonator is held against stomach as instrument is
plucked | molo
b”zay (HH) v. A2 (v.n. bzayak) finish; be finished ex mn bzay sy I have finished it;
cm bzayt say the work is finished | gama, are
ba Ö (k) (L) conj. (post-clausal k only with affirmative clauses) if it were the case
(counterfactual conditional conjunction) ex ba b”tln ka, kiyy sawhihi ttlnay If
they had come, they would have taken their stuff away; f ba b”ruwwam mw, d
mn mbiy ma cn nuwnuw if you had not helped me, I would not have finished my
work | daa
b- + possessor (T) n.m. (form used with possessor; citation form bh”) father ex bwun
my father; bf” your (m.s.) father; bma our father; b Vziya Vaziya’s father | uban .
b (H) pro.rel.m. ( sba) (f. m) 1. one who owns, ex b km householder; b mr rich
person. 2. one who does ex b yw madman; sm ba kalak” good-for-nothing; hm
b tw food (thing for eating) | mai
ba (L) v. D (v.n. bhiy (f)) pick up, remove, pull out ex bhiy by scooping up water |
auka, cire, fitar
ba (H) v. D (v.n. bhy (f)) (m.sg. imper. tku, f.sg. imper. tk”m, pl. imper. tka , 1st pl.
imper. tmy) go ex bat
mray he ran off | tafi, je
bb” (L) n.m. (pl. bbbw) scrotum + testicles | gwaiwa
bab”la (HH) v. B2 (v.n. bb”lak) say (several times) ex bab”la bb”law they spoke
repeatedly | faffadxa
bad” (L) v. A1 (v.n. bdak”) lick | lasa
bday (L) n.f. (pl. bdayyw) large basket | kwando
b dvin (H L) n.m. fool | wawa
b gb” (H L) n.m., n.f. (pl. sba gb”) (f. m gb”) enemy | maiyi
bh” (T) n.m. (citation form; b- used with possessors) father; paternal uncle (older or
younger) | uba, kawu (na wajen uba)
bh”n (L) num. -teen, units in numbers above twenty ex bh”n wut eleven; di tsr
bah”n wut twenty-one | sha (goma sha .), da .
bh”n vtl” (L L) num.card. fifteen | sha biyar
bh”n f” (L H) num.card. fourteen | sha huu
bh” frf” (L LH) num.card. eighteen | sha takwas
bh”n kd (L HL) num.card. thirteen | sha uku
bh”n kcya (L HL) num.card. nineteen | sha tara
bh” mh (L HL) num.card. sixteen | sha shida
bh”n mtsr (L HL) num.card. seventeen | sha bakwai
bh”n tsr (L H) num.card. twelve | sha biyu
bh”n wut (L LH) num.card. eleven | sha aya
bhy (TH) prep. to, up to, toward, as far as (verbal noun of ‘go’, used when
directionality is away or neutral--cf. bwk”) ex di kiya g‰r‰ tre í”n gyama ango
bahiy adukuna Mai Unguwa theycarry kolas together with the groom to the place of
the Ward Head; wtl”my s”ba wshasham kiyat wshashan dritin bh”n vtl”
bhy bh”n mtsr children whose ages range from 10 to 15; bahiy camaza up until
the night; hr bahy zhr up until mid-afternoon | zuwa
b jlr (H H) n.m. (pl. sba dlr) hunter | mafarauci
b kr (H H) n.m. (pl. sba kr) thief | arawo
b kitlrti (H THL) n.m. fearful person | matsoraci
bk‰ dzh” (H) n.m. (pl. bk‰) (f. bk‰ dzku) guest, visitor, stranger | bao
b kf” (H H) n.m. (pl. sba kf”) blacksmith | maeri
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
10
bkwal (H) n.m. (pl. bkwallw) bag | buhu
bndz”h” (L) n.m. (pl. wtl” bazan) young man | saurayi
b ndzhiy (H L) n.m. poor person | matsiyaci
bng” (H) n.f. (pl. bangngw) drum held sideways and beat at both ends | dogon kia
bngwar (L) n.f. (pl. bngwarrw) quiver (for arrows) | kwari
b nws” (H H) n.m. ripe ex zw b nws” ripe corn; hm b d ntln = kt” sb d
ntln ripe things | nunanne
bnza (T) adj.? worthless ex sm ba banza worthless person | banza
b ra
ws (H THH) n.m. (f. ma ra
w ) wet ex zw b ra
w wet grain; kb” m
r
az wet gown; kb”bw ma ra
w wet gowns | jiae
braku (L) n.f. Acacia nilotica | bagaruwa
brbaj dzh” (TH) n.m. (pl. brbaj) (f. brbaj dzku) Fulani person | Bafillatani
brg‰ (LH) n.f. blanket | bargo
bs” (H) n.f. loan (of any kind—money, thing) ex mn t sw bs” zuwy I took a loan
of grain | aro, rance, bashi
bt” (H) n.m. haze | hazo
b tahy (H TH) n.m. (f. m tahy) sharp (blade) ex gti b tahy sharp axe; sr”m m
tahy sharp knife | mai kaifi
btl” (H) n.m. karaya gum tree (Sterculia setigera) | kukuki
b tlyi [b tlyi] (T H) n.m. (pl. sba tlyi) farmer | manomi
b ts”fw (H TH) n.m. (pl. sb ts”fw) (f. m tsafw) dry ex zw b ts”fw dry grain;
gts”r b ts”fw dried mucouse; kb” m tsafw dry gown; kt”tw sb ts”fw dry
things | busasshe
baw (L) v. A1 (v.n. bwak”) 1. go out. 2. sprout | fita; tsiro
b wnaw (H L) n.m. (f. m wnw) full ex ndwul b wnaw full pot; tlrky m
wnw full calabash | cikakke
baway (HH) v. A2 (v.n. bwayak) take out, remove | fitar
bay (HL) v. A1 (v.n. byk”) (sg. imper. ty, pl. imper. tyy, 1st pl. imper. tyiym) 1.
take, transport, convey ex by swih Kanwy he took the load to Kano. 2. reach |
kai; isa
b yw (H H) n.m. (pl. sba yw) (f. m yw) mad person | mahaukaci
bzaniy (L) n.f. (pl. wtl” tvm) young woman not yet of marriageable age | yarinya,
budurwa
bzara (T) adv.time, n.? hottest part of dry season |
blebel (L) n.m. uvula | beli
bnti (L) n.m. (pl. bnttyw) loincloth ex ghma benti loincloth belt | bante
br muuw (T T) n.f. sand boa | maciji (iri)
bder (L) n.f. (pl. bderrw) viper (Atheris chloroechis) | kububuwa
bndim-bndim (H H) n.m. ratel, honey badger (Mellivora capensis) | damagere, dage
by (H irreg) part. (= jy) particle of uncertain meaning inserted following TAM
auxiliaries in negative subjunctive and all nominal TAMs except focused subject
perfective ex tt lkaw mn t by tsya kytuw he is afraid lest I give him trouble;
j buws d by marws then he went and found him; t g by zraf” he will call
you; kw biy ts ngn ka, d dzaratl”n sb” when one has given the name, the
people disperse | sai
biy (?) v.A1 (?) make noise | yi ara
bfuw (LH) n.? bag | buhu
bug” (HL) v. A1 (v.n. bgk”) be drunk ex bugt sy he is drunk | bugu
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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buw (HL) v. A1 (v.n. buwk” (f)) (form used in nominal TAMs; b” used in nominal
TAMs; , m.sg. imper. tku, f.sg. imper. tkam, pl. imper. twka) come ex y buwm
let’s come | zo
bwk” (THH) prep. to, up to, until (verbal noun of ‘come’, used when directionality is
understood as being toward the speaker--cf. bhy) ex triyhy na My jiyka,
frkooz íf srkn miyza hr buwk” c‰nk” triyhìy na Míyà jiyka, fárkoozà
’f sàrkúnà miyza hár buwák” cnàk” | zuwa
buway (HHL) v. A2 (v.n. bwyak”) bring | kawo
buwsa (bor) v.B2 bor (v.n. bwsk) blow ex bwsk” ta rwn blowing of the wind |
busa
byra (L) v. B2 (v.n. byrak”) (with rai as object) fart ex byra raai he farted |
yi tusa
bytlyama (L) n.m. (used adjectivally, m. bytlyamana, f. bytlyamaya, pl.
byatlayamaniy) unripe, green ex gwym bytlyamana unripe yam; bytlyamaya =
bytlyama pym unripe pumpkin; kt” byatlayamaniy = bytlyana kt” unripe
things | anye
”ga (HH) v. B (v.n. gak) kneel; squat | durusa, tsuguna
”nt” (HH) v. A2 (v.n. ntak) reduce | rage
a (L) v. D (v.n. hiy) 1. (tr., intr.) break (pot) ex mn sw ndwuly I broke the
pot; ndwul at say the pot broke. 2. split wood ex mn sw ghuwy I split
wood. 3. slap ex mn ys wumuw sy I slapped him. 4. swim ex wtl”m t
yiy by the children are swimming | fasa, fashe; faskare; mara; yi iyo
dam (L) n.f. bamboo (Oxytenanthera abyssinica) | gora
hy (TH) n.f. firewood | faskare
hiya ghm (T H) n.f. headache ex ghamwun jt uwwn my head aches (my
head is breaking to me) | ciwon kai
aku (HL) v. A1 (v.n. kwk”) hop ex t”ku t akw akww the toad is hopping |
yi tsalle
k-k (TL) id. indicates hopping | amsa amo
al (HH) v. A1 (v.n. lak) 1. break (rope) (transitive or intransitive); ex mn lsw
zhwy I broke the rope; zhw lt sy the rope broke. 2. chop ex mn lsw
ghuwy I chopped wood | tsinke; sara
m (T) n.? (used in ghma am) termite hill | suri
nanshi (L?) n.f. woman’s name | sunan mace
ndaliya (L) adj. naked ex vrk” ndaliya naked boy; wn andaliya naked girl;
wtl”my ndaliya naked children | tsirara
iy (HL) v. A1 (v.n. yk”) stab, pierce; be stabbed. be pierced ex mn iysw ggay
I pierced the zana-mat; ytsy it is pierced | huda, soka
yat (TL) n.f. woman’s name | sunan mace
wy (TH) n.m. francolin (Francolinus spp.) | makwarwa
uwy” (HL) v. A2 (v.n. wyk”) (tr., intr.) break (stick) ex mn wysuw
kwmbaly I broke the stick; kwmbal uwytsy the stick broke | karya, karye
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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yaiya (HL) v. B2 (v.n. yiyk”) (plac. of iy) pierce many, dig many | huhhuda
yiy [iy] (T) n.f. (pl. iyayw) diarrhea | zawo
C
c” (T) n.m., prep.loc. underneath, bottom, base of ex c”” zkiy underneath the stone |
gindi(n), arashi(n)
caga (HH) v. B (v.n. cgk) precede ex cagns bwk” he came before me | riga
cam (T) n.m (bound form of cnh) heart ex cnwn my heart; cnws” his heart |
zuciya
cam (HH) v.A1 (v.n. cmak”, cmak) 1. like, love ex mn cntl cmaw I love her;
ghns” can sw m bm cmuw Allah wanted it such that we didn’t finish the work.
2. want | so
cmak” (H) n.f, love | soyayya
cmza (TH) adv.time at night ex ”matln kr camza one did a theft at night | da
dare
cmz” (TH) n.m. night, darkness ex cmz” n sy = ”n s cmaz” night has
fallen | dare
cngu (H) n.m. (pl. cngwngww) billygoat | bunsuru
cngu (TH) n.f. (pl. cngwngww) Abdim’s stork, rainbird (Ciconia abdimii) |
shamuwa
cnh (TH) n.m. (pl. cnhhw) (free form; bound form cam) heart ex nk”n cnh this
heart | zuciya
capay (bor) v.A2 bor (v.n. cpyak”) catch in the air ex mn cpay sy I caught it | cafe
cratuwa (L) n.f. type of eye disease that discolors lens of eye and can cause blindness |
cs” (L) quant. much, many ex ghruwi csniy many cattle; mr csna a lot of
money; tsp”r cs = tsp”r csya a lot of urine | da yawa
ct” (L) n.m. red pepper (Capsicum annuum, C. frutescens) | barkono
ciga (L) v.B sit (palatalized version of ts”ga?) ex d cig ghmatsy he burst out
laughing | zauna
cld” (TH) n.f. red-billed hornbill (Tockus erythrorhynchus) | cilakowa mai jan baki
cr (L?) n.m. chewstick tree (Anogeissus leiocarpus) | marke
crandm (TL) n.m. boil on buttocks | maruru
c˘nk, c‰nk”n (HHL?) adv.time now | yanzu
cw (H) n.pl. (pl. of ífuw) goats ex nykin cw these goats | awaki
cwcuw (L) adj. warm ex by cwcuwna warm water; kt” cwcwniy warm things;
tyatl” j cwcuw ‘the kunu is warm | dxumi
cuwr” (bor) v.A2 bor (v.n. cwrk”) knead ex mn cwr say I kneaded it | cura
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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D
d (L) part., aspect 1. particle of unclear function occurring with third person subjects,
directly preverbal ex frk‰ triyhy na My, sb” tsr d fr bwhyatln the
beginning of the history of Miya, two men were the first to come. 2. third person
perfective auxiliary in relative clauses ex sm b d tsyws Ksham the person that
Kasham asked. 3. particle of unclear function occurring with any subject in
imperfective and verbless sentences ex tlw m”n d gyamuws” he want me to be his
friend; mn d m mydzhw I am not a Miya person; t d t”fa ní he was hunting
duikers; nywy rnma d” g
y there are some others like us |
d = (H irreg) aspect perfective auxiliary used when subject is focused ex w d
zrawa? who called?; Ksham d zraw it was Kasham who called; my d zraw it
was wee who called | ne/ce
d”ba (L) v.B (v.n. dbak”) dye, paint black | rina
db” (T) n.f. open area, field, arena | fili, dandali
dbak‰ dz”h” (L) n.m. (pl. dbak‰) (f. dbak‰ dzku) blind person | makaho
d””n (HH) v.A2 (v.n. dyn, d”nk”) transplant | dasa
d”da (L) v.B (v.n. ddyadi, ddak”) fall | fai
dd (TL) n.m. (pl. no plural) in-law ex ddwn my father-in-law | suruki
d”kay (HH) v.A2 (v.n. dkayk”) hear, feel | ji
dm (L?) n.f. (pl. dmamw) tree | bishiya
dmb”r (H) n.m. (pl. dmb”rrw) baobab tree (Adansonia digitata) | kuka
dna (L) adv.loc., n.m. sky, above ex wtl”zam tltln dna the birds flew up; tln
dn ghma zkiy they are above the rock | sama, sama da
dndaly (TL) n.f. spiny plum (Ximenia americana) | tsada
dng (HL) v.bor. keep doing | dinga
dp” (H) n.f. (pl. dpapw) termite | gara
d”r (L) v.A1 (v.n. dr, drak”) grind ex d”r zuw gam she ground sorghum | nia
dr (L) n.f. grinding | nia
dram (H) n.f. ebony tree (Diospyros mespiliformis) | kanya
d”r” (HH) v.A2 (v.n. drk” (f)) press down on | danna
dritim (T) num. ten ex sb” d”ritim ten people | goma
d”rrup (?) id. indicates swallowing | amsa amo
da (L) v.D (v.n. dhiy) 1. topple, fall over, fall on ex mn d t k”nz I grabbed her
hand; dzwk” dat” sy the dry season has set in. 2. collapse ex ln tuwun datla sy
my hut collapsed. 3. set (sun) ex mku datla sy the sun set | fai, rushe
da (L) v.D (v.n. dhiy) be a follower of ex mn dah I am your adherent | bi (Wane)
dab” (L) v.A1 (v.n. dbak”) scold | tsawata
dbaja (L) adv.time this year | bana
dbak” ta ghns (L T L) n.f. thunder | cida
Dbiya (L?) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
d”san (L) adj. blunt, dull ex sr”m da”sanya dull knift; kt” da”sanniy blunt
things | dasashe
ddm (TH) n.f. “inch worm”, a type of caterpillar that moves by bunching itself up then
expanding |
Ddima (HH) n.f. woman’s name | sunan mace
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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da” (HH) v.A1 (v.n. dak (f)) increase, keep on doing | daa
da”ha (L) v.B2 (v.n. d”hak”) winnow with a faifai | tankae
da”m (HH) v.A2 (v.n. d”mak (m)) 1. fix, repair. 2. to have ever done, to have never
done | gyara; taa yi
dga = dg (L) conj. when (+ cohesive clause in perfective narrative, with verb in
participle form) ex t˘ dga myw Tashy, ywwa, d sk pyak Bgaw hr
ynzu Well, when Tashay died, yes, they again installed Bugaw another time; dg
s”ntl”n tsr, d sw bhyu rnjbyay when a couple of days had passed, they
went fishing | da (+ SUKA)
dguriy (L) n.f. (pl. dguriyyw) sheep or goat that has not given birth | kazganya
dgwa” (L) n.f. (pl. dgwaw) clay used for making pots or building | yumu
dk”man (L) n.m. (pl. dk”mannw) bottle gourd | buta
dlyly (HHL) n.? reason | dalili
dma = dama (HL) prep., conj. (dama is far more frequent; seems = sb˘d) for the
purpose of, for the sake of, in order to, because (see dama for examples) ex mn íar
biy mku dama ma cwcuw I put the water in the sun so that it would become
warm | domin, don, saboda
dng” (T) n.f. (pl. dngangw) large pot for water or for cooking beer | randa
dng”s” (L) n.m. (pl. dng”ssw) warthog (Phacocherus aethiopicus) | mugun dawa,
gadu
dngu (T) n.f. (pl. dngwangww) Cape hare (Lepus capensis), rabbit | zomo
Dniya (L?) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
Dns (HH) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
dr (LH) prep. see dr |
drh” (L) n.m. (pl. drhhw) road, way; means | hanya
d
tsa (bor) v.B2 bor (v.n. btsk”) chop up in to pieces | datsa
daw (d‰) (L) v.A1 (v.n. dwak”) 1. get down, descend; . 2. fall (rain) | sauka; fai (ruwa)
dwan (L) n.pl. (pl. of ys”, vki) siblings, brothers and/or sisters, close relatives of the
same generation ex dwanza her siblings | íyanuwa
daway (HH) v.A2 (v.n. dwayak) 1. (tr.) lodge. 2. unload ex daway sw zwy he
unloaded the grain | saukar da, sauke
dawun = d‰na (L) v.A2 (v.n. d˘nak”) 1. look for ex dawunya sy = d‰naya sy I
looked for him. 2. try, seek to do. 3. court (woman) | nema; yi kxokxari
day (L) v.A1 place, put | sa, ajiye
dyday (T) adv.man. correct ex nkin kt” suw dyday that thing is exact | daidai
dyn (HH) n.m. transplanted plant, transplantation | dashe
drwtli (HH) n.m. (pl. dwtlyatlyw) leopard (Panthera pardus) | damisa
di (T) num. tens (used to form ‘tens’ from 20-90) ex di tsr 20; di f”rf” bh”n
mtsr 87 | gomiya
di (H) n.m. (pl. daw) boundary | iyaka
di f” (H L) num.card. forty | arbaíin
di f”rf” (H HH) eighty | tamanin
di kdi (H L) num.card. thirty | talatin
di kciya (H L) num.card. ninety | casaíin
di mha (H L) num.card. sixty | sittin
di mts”r (H L) num.card. seventy | sabaíin
di tsr (H L) num.card. twenty | ashirin
di vtl” (H L) num.card. fifty | hamsin
ddyadi (L) n.m. falling | fauwa
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dndi (H) n.m. (pl. dndyandn) vagina, female genitalia | duri
dng” (T) n.f. (pl. dngangw) ledge inside house used as bed | dinga
dvin (L) n.f. foolishness, foolish behavior | wauta
dy”m (T) n.f. hammer | guduma
dyy (TH) n.f. hyrax, coney (Procavia capensis) | rema
dyts” (L) n.f. (pl. dytstsw) a grain, kernel | waya, tsaba
dytsaty (L H) n.f. eyeball | kxwayar ido
dl”dl”r (L) v.A2 (v.n. dldl”rak” (f)) tremble ex t st dldl”ry he is trembling | yi
karkarwa
dlnt (TH) n.m., n.f. (pl. dlnttw) lion (Panthera leo) | zaki
dlrky (TH) n.f. (pl. dlrkw) chicken, hen | kaza
dldl”r (L) n.f. dum palm, dum fronds (Hyphaene thebaica) | goruba, kaba
dlng”r (L) n.m. (pl. dlng”rrw) animal ex dlng”r nkm domestic animal; dlng”r
ntsk”n wild animal | dabba
dlr (T) n.f. (pl. dalrarw) bed | gado
dlr (H) n.m. hunting ex mn n dlr I hunted | farauta
dlramb” [dlramb”] (L) n.m. (pl. dlrambmbw) masquerader, dodo ex dlramb”
b glaw “feathered dodo” | dodo
dlramb [dlramb] (LH) n.f. (pl. dlrmbmbw) masquerader, tamatar dodo |
tamatar dodo
dlwar (L) n.m. anger, departure by angry wife ex atl sdlwary she (wife) angrily
left her husband’s house | fushi, yaji
d˙l (HL) conj. it is necessary, have to (requires subjunctive clause) ex d˙l f bwaf
py you must come quickly | dole
d‰na = dawun (L) v.A2 (v.n. d˘nak”) 1. look for ex dawunya sy = d‰naya sy I
looked for him. 2. court (woman). 3. try, seek to do | nema; yi oari
d˘y (HH) n.f. cassava (Manihot esculenta) | rogo
dubu (T) num. thousand ex dbu wut 1000 | dubu
dgwagum (L) n.m. (pl. dgwagummw) log | gungume
dw = ndw (L) conj. 1. introduces direct quotations ex j tsyza duw, ìM b‰k”m íykw?î he asked her, “Where have you come from?”; Q: Duw, ìNa tiy m?î A:
Duw, ìMiy tiy naí”.î Q: He asked, “What did your kill?” A: They answered, “We
killed a duiker.”. 2. introduces indirect speech other than indirect questions ex d
”ngatln dw dabaja s v zwy he says to them that this year he will perform the
sorghum festival. 3. (preceding a proper name or a designation) called, named ex wya
kacmba wn dw L
[there is] a certain ugly girl called Labe | cewa, wai
dwak” (L) n.m., n.f. (pl. dwakkw) horse ex dwak” dzh” stallion; dwak” dzaku
mare | doki
dwm (TH) n.m. stirring stick | muciya
Dzgay (HH) n.f. woman’s name | sunan mace
dzh” (H) adj.m. (pl. ghnaw) (f. dzku) male (used to show masculine gender with
lexically gender neutral roots) | namiji
dza (L) v.D (v.n. dzhiy) sweep away, push away (water, sweepings, etc.) | ture, share
dzb”n gts”r (HH L) n.m. type of green snake which climbs | maciji (iri)
dzb”rku (HH) n.f. (pl. dzb”rkwakww) guinea fowl (Numida meleagris) | zabo
dza
” (HH) v.A1 (v.n. dz
ak) overturn | kife
dzf” (H) n.pl. (pl. of jfana) males, husbands ex dzf” niytln your husbands | maza
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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dzku (L) adj.f. (pl. ghnaw) (f. of dzh”) female (used to show feminine gender with
lexically gender neutral roots) ex dwak” dzaku mare; my dzaku Miya woman’;
ngwiy dzku a female twin | tamata
dzakwu (L) v.A1 (v.n. dzkwak”) begin | fara
dzm (H) n.m. (pl. dzmamw) cowpeas, beans (Vigna sinensis) | wake
dzar (L) v.A1 (v.n. dzrak” (f)) milk ex mn t dzr p I am milking | tatsa (nono)
dzar (HH) v.A1 (v.n. dzrak (f)) disperse, scatter ex sb” dzaraya sy = sb” dzartln
say the people scattered | watse
dzaray (LH) v.A2 (v.n. dzrayak) distribute, share out, separate ex mn dzrayatln
say I shared (it) out to them | raba, rarraba
dzatl” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. dztlk”) kick | shura
dzya (T) part. emphasizes imperative or other statment | mana
dzwk” (L) n.m. (pl. dzwkkw) kapok tree (Ceiba pentandra) | rimi
(H) part. (never phrase initial) moreover, as a continuation of the preceding (usually
has no clear English translation) ex mi buway was” miy lumbuws” ndemeyi kwapa
a s”nata kidi miy b ” we bring grass and cover it (fermenting grain) completely
until it spends three days, and we uncover it again; wataw ta s”nuws” kidi kfin miy
s ” that is it goes three days before then drink it | kuma
”h”n (HL) v.A2 (v.n. yhyahyn (m), h”nk”) tie, attach; hobble | aure
”m (HH) v.A1 (v.n. mak) 1. do; (intr.) be possible; (intr) be in effect, turn to; spend
time (doing). 2. (intr.) be possible ex ”muws gm it’s possible. 3. (intr.) be in
effect, turn to; spend time (doing) | yi
mak wn (LH L) n.? playing | wasa
”nga (HH) v.B (v.n. ng” (f), ngak) say, tell, talk, speak a language | ce, faa,
gaya
”var (HH) v.A2 (v.n. varak) faint, pass out ex ”vart say he fainted | suma
a (L) v.D (v.n. hiy) defecate (with w” as object) | yi kashi
a”ngaya (HH) v.B2 (v.n. ”ngangw, ”ngyak) talk over, discuss | tattauna
h” [‰, ] (T) adv.loc, prep. in, inside ex tln ah” [] they are inside; tln
h”z [z] they are inside it; zy h” [] go in! | ciki(n)
ah” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. hk”) taste | taa
ah”na (HL) v.A2 (v.n. h”nk”) put on girdles for dancing, etc. ex mn hnwan
sy I girded myself | dxamara
am (HL) v.A1 (v.n. mk”) 1. arrive; ex mn an s” Myay I have arrived at Miya. 2.
be equal to | kai
ml (HH) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
mbar (LHL?) n.? belt, girdle | amara
ngo (T) n.m. type of locust | fara (iri)
riy (L) num. hundred ex riy wut 100; riy ë”n wt” 101; riy tsr 200 | ari
y (H) n.m. (pl. yayw) mountain, rock | dutse
(?) v.? ?short form of ”m |
fw (TH) n.m. lower back | unumi
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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iy (HL) v.A1 (v.n. yk” (f)) follow ex y t”makw niywas” he followed his sheep;
mn yws Nayr vtl” he owes me five Naira | bi
iy (HH) v.A1 (v.n. yak) cook; be cooked ex iy sw sp”ny she cooked tuwo’;
sp”n iyt sy the tuwo cooked | dafa, dafu
rr (HH) n.m. grey heron (Ardea cinerea) | zalbxe
yhyahyn (TL) n.m. tying, attachment | auri
ymyam (THH) adj. bitter ex g‰r yamyamna bitter kola; kwm
ymyamya bitter mahogany | aci
E
Ö = íy Ö (H) rel.loc. 1. the place that …, where … ex mn d˘na tsw s”natln dzb”rku I looked for eggs where the guinea fowls slept; batln kuw by they
went in order to draw water. 2. (with nominalized purpose phrase) in order to ex
k˙wnk buws tvi nuws” everybody was going out for his stroll. 3. (in dg-)
when, upon having done ex dg mn zratln, d buwtln d” by tsgatlny
when I called them, they came and sat down. 4. (in j-) the, subsequently ex bya my
ty sw dmy, j my ay after we had chopped down the tree, then we split (the
wood) | inda .
e see a- (palatalized nouns beginning in “a”) |
m (T L) interr.adv. why?, what for? ex Q: f bukw m? - A: rma tlwiy Q: why
did you come? - A: in order to eat meat | don me?
wuty (TH) adv.man. 1. at one place ex m hasuw ghmm wty let’s join
ourselves in one place. 2. together ex tln d ndwuti n bngwar they were
together with their arrow quivers; yr nm wtyw we don’t speak the same
language | tare
wya (TH) adv.time some day, one day, a certain time ex sw kwp wya see you
later (only until another day); j d ír mku wya ka d btln tyr Mngla
d jy ma hyra they they would fix a day (a day some day) and they would go and
chat at Manglia’s place | wata rana
y (TH) det.loc. the place in question, there ex d p ghmatln y they join forces
there (they join their heads at the place in question) | wurin, wajen
yn + complement (TH) det.loc. (complement is a noun or an inalienable pronoun) the
place of (noun) ex j buws yn by they went to the (place of the) water; d p nd
ynwas” wut they would pour (it) in just his one place | wurin, wajen
F
f” (L) num. four ex sb” f four people | hudxu
ff” (TH) num. eight ex sb” frf” eight people | takwas
fak” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. fkk”) rub, wipe on, paint | shafa
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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fp” (H) n.m. foam, froth | kumfa
fra (bor) v.B2 bor (v.n. frk”) 1. happen ex m frtln? what happened?. 2. start,
begin ex mn fr sy I started | faru; fara
fwfaw (THH) adj. light (in weight) ex sm fawfawna lightweight person; zkiy
fawfawya lightweight stone; kt” fawfawni lightweight things | mara nauyi
fay (L) v.A1 (v.n. fyak”) blow ex fay sw pary he blew the horn | busa
fy (H) n.f. (pl. fyayw) flour | gari
fn (L?) n.f. beehive | amya
G
g- … + imperfective aux. (in complementary distribution with gm, q.v.: g- is used only
with imperfective aux , gàm elsewhere; mutually exclusive with súw (… -áy), q.v.,
with which it seem to have functional similarities) 1. (aspect marker always used in
conjuction with imperfective aux ) functions as a logical operator particularly, though
not exclusively, associated with yes/no questions and concessive conditionals; as an
imperfective, it is associated with future and habitual, but not progressive senses ex t
g- zaraza wa? will he call her? (cf. corresponding statement t s-zrazay he will
call her); tn g- tluws” piy Kasham, t g- ma ban kwna ín my even if
Kasham is leaving in a hurry, he will take his leave of us; (non-verbal sentence) f g-
mr wa? do you have any money?; Ndwya g- mr = Ndwya s- mr Nduya has
money. 2. (with locative y) exists, there is ex mm wiy d g
y, ngnuws” jy
Gwrama but there is another one, his name is Gwarama |
gdlamby (HH?) n.? bark (of tree) ex gdlamby dmb”r baobab bark | awo
gdlaniy (L) n.f. (pl. gdlaniyyw) woven tray used to serve tuwo (made of rw) |
faifai
ganzakway (L) n.m., n.f. (pl. ganzakwayyw) spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta) |
kura
gga” (L) n.f. (pl. ggaw) zana mat | zana
ggal (H) n.m. jujube (Ziziphus mauritiana or Z. abyssinica) | magarya
ggaw (H) n.m. bug, insect | waro
g”la (L) v.B (v.n. glak” (m)) roast, grill ex mn gla tlw I grilled meat; tlwi g”lata
sy the meat became grilled | gasa
g”m (L) v.A1 (v.n. gmak”) join, meet ex my gm darh” we met on the road | haa,
gama
g”may (HH) v.A2 (v.n. g”mayak) intercept | tare
g”r (L) v.A1 (v.n. grak”) show, point out | nuna
g”ra (L) v.B (v.n. grak”) move aisde, get out of the way ex mn gratln say I got out
of their way | gusa, ba wani wuri
grnna (TH) n.m. Acacia senegal or A. dudgeoni, a source of gum Arabic | akwara,
arara
grdaku (L) n.f. lower legs of cow | gana
g”s” (L) v.A1 (v.n. gsak”) 1. accept, take thing offered ex mn gs” sw lbshy
nuwnay I received my salary. 2. take away from ex g”san swihi tuwnay he took my
things away from me. 3. answer | kara; wace; amsa
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
19
g”t” (L) v.A1 (v.n. gtak”) open | bue
gtak” ta ghns (L T L) n.? lightening | waliya
g”tla (L) v.B (v.n. gtlak” (m)) belch ex g”tla sy he belched | yi gyatsa
ga (L) v.D (v.n. ghiy) lie in wait for | sana
g- (L) aux. (in gn, gy) introduces first person hortatives, let me…, let’s… ex gn
buwn let me go; gy bm let’s go | in, mu
g (L) aux. g- + imperfective auxiliary ; see g- |
gbs (TL) adv.loc. east | gabas
g”n (L) adj. a little ex tsan mr g”n he gave me a little money; mn sbiy g”
I’ll drink a little water | kadxan
g”n (L) quant. a little ex tsan mr g”n he gave me a little money; mn sbiy
g” I’ll drink a little water | kaan
g”na (L) adj. (pl. gy‰n) (f. gyiya) small, short ex vrk” gna small boy’;
kwmbal ga”na short stick’; wn gyiya small girl; wtl”m gy‰n small
children | arami, gajere
gday (T) n.f. (pl. gdayayw) machete; sword | adda, takobi
gd˘ (TL) n.? inheritance | gado
gag”s” (L) v.A2 (plac. of g”s”) 1. accept. 2. take away from. 3. answer | kara;wace;
amsa
ghuw (H) n.m. (pl. ghuwww) stalks | kara
gjal dzh” (T) n.m. (pl. gjal ghnaw) (f. gjal dzku) short (person) | gajere
gjay (bor) v.A2 bor (v.n. gjyak) inherit ex mn gj ghrf‰ dz”h” nuwun I
inherited from my father; mn gjya sw I inherited from him | gada
gjiy (LHL) n.m. tiredness, fatigue | gajiya
glak”y (L) n.m. collar bone | ashin wuya
glaw (H) n.? (used in dlramb” glaw) feathered dodo | dodon fikafikai
gliy (L) n.f. (pl. gliyyw) huge calabash | masaki
glw dzh” (LH?) n.m. (pl. glw ghnaw) (f. glw dzku) slave | bawa
gm = gn (L?) aux. (in complementary distribution with g, q.v.: g- is used only with
imperfective aux , gàm elsewhere; mutually exclusive with súw (… -áy), q.v., with
which it seem to have functional similarities) 1. (following a verb in TAMs other than
imperfective) seems to imply inclusion as part of a set; particularly frequent in yes/no
questions and concessive conditionals ex zraza gam (conditional future) he will call
her; mn ta mar gm m‰t m ghraza, mn glw even if I get an old car, I want it.
2. (with ‘know’ and perhaps other verbs) seems to have function equivalent to sw (Ö
-y) ex mn snya gam = mn snya s-y I know him; mn sn gan sm b buws I
know the man who came. 3. in addition to, including (cf. meaning #1 of ) ex wy gan
wnka others, too, are like that; j tluws í”f ín tuws íf wtl”my nywas” gan
ty then he arose with his wife and his children as well as him(self) | ko, har da
Gmar (TL) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
gn = gm (L?) part. (see gm for examples) even, also (seegm for discussion) | ko, har
da
gnd” (H) n.f. (pl. gndandw) thick hide of a cow, elephant, etc. ex gnd” ywun
elephant hide | fata mai kauri
gng” (L) n.m. (pl. gngngw) pink-backed pelican (Pelecanus rufescens) | kwasakwasa
gng”h”n (TH) n.f. praying mantis | oi-oi
gngan grna (L H) n.m. large drum held on knees | babban kia
gngam (L) n.m. (pl. gngammw) drum | ganga
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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gngangam ga”na (L L) n.m. large drum held over shoulder | aramin kia
gnya (L) n.m. communal labor | gayya
gra (H) n.? important (person) ex gra b sn gàra bá sn | babba
grab” (L) n.m. (pl. grabbw) ribs [Skinner ‘chest’] | haarari
grna (H) adj. (pl. gyruwni [gruwni]) (f. gyrya) big, important ex mbrgu grna
big ram; tmku gyrya big ewe; tmakw gyruwni big sheep (pl) | babba
Gsa (L?) n.f. woman’s name | sunan mace
gskwt” (LHH) n.? truth | gaskiya
gatl”gatl” (?) id. ideophone | amsa amo
gay (HH) v.A1 (v.n. gyak) wait for ex mn gytl say I waited for her | jira
gzam (H) n.f. (pl. gzammw) cat | kyanwa, mage
gy = jy
y (TH) existential there is (see g-) ex tln gywa? are they there?; m b”l
m g
ynghm you didn’t say where you are | akwai
|
ghd” (H) n.f. (pl. ghdadw) fish | kifi
gh”dza (HH) v.B (v.n. ghdzak) 1. (tr., intr.) turn, roll, look back ex gh”dza sw
ndwuly he turned the pot; gh”dzat say he turned around; ghdzak bng”
performing rituals, beginning a festival. 2. become ex saboda d” gh”dzatl”n wutl”
bazam in order that they become young men (referring to boys being circumcized) |
juya, waiwaya; zama
gh”ma (HH) v.B (v.n. ghmak (m)) climb, mount ex gh”mat s ghama dwaky he
mounted the horse | hau
gh”may (HH) v.A2 (v.n. ghmayak) lift up, raise | hawar, tayar
gh”na (L) v.B (v.n. ghnak” (f)) change into, metamorphose ex gh”n ganzakway
he turned into a hyena | rikia
ghnak” ta ghns (LLL L HL) n.f. storm (transformation of the sky/god) | hadiri
ghnaw (L) adj.pl. pluralizer used with some humans and animals which show gender
with dz@h@ and dzaku, q.v. ex ngwiy ghnaw twins; gmb” ghnaw Roan
antelopes; gjal ghnaw short people | jamíi
ghns” (L) n.m. god; rain; sky ex d‰s ghns” it rained; ghns” jt dwaw it is
raining | Allah, ruwan sama, sama
gh”nts” (L) v.A2 (v.n. ghmats” (m), ghntsak”) laugh ex mn ghnts” sy I laughed |
yi dariya
ghrs” (H) n.m. cane rat, grasscutter, cutting grass (Thryonomys swinderianus) | gyazbi
ghruw (L) n.f. (pl. ghruwiy) cow ex wna ghrw, wtl” ghrwiy calf, calves |
saniya
ghrwan (L) n.f. aardvark (Orycteropus afer) | dabgi
ghuw (H) n.m. (pl. ghuwww) wood | itace
ghj (TL) interr.adv.time when? ex nyn ghj? when will he see you? | yaushe?
ghjky (TLH) quant.univ. (only as the head of a generic clause; see k‰ghaj)
whenever …, anytime that … ex t n
m gam ghjky, d t”r
my whenever he saw
us, he would greet us | koyaushe .
ghm (H) n.f. (pl. ghmamw) 1. head; on; -self; (with linked genitive) peer, age mate;
(with tool) handle ex kiya wyh ghamtl”n they took the load on their head. 2. (with
tool as possessor) handle ex ghma gti axe handle. 3. on ex tln ghma zkiy they
are on the rock | kai; kan; ota
ghm (H) n.f. (pl. ghmamw) 1. (with direct genitive) self ex my nay ghmma we
saw ourselves. 2. (with linked genitive) peer, age mate ex ghm tuwun/ghn tza ‘my
peer/her peer | kai;tsara, saía
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
21
ghma Ö (H) n.m, n.f. handle of …, attachment for … | ota, maauri
ghma am (H T) n.f. termite hill | suri
ghma y (H H) n.m. rock outcropping | kan pa, pa
ghma srm (H L) n.? knifepoint | tsinin wua
ghma shm (H H) n.m. penis head | kan bura
ghmats” (L) n.m. laughter | dariya
ghma vuwshi = vwshi (H L) n.m. (pl. vwshshw) rubbish heap | juji
ghan (L) v.A1 (v.n. ghnak” (m)) 1. build. 2. mould (pot). 3. weave | gina, sakxa
ghn ta- (H T) n.f. peer, age mate ex ghn tuwun my peer; ghn tza her peer | tsara,
saía
ghar (L) v.A1 (v.n. yerti (m), ghrak”) grow old | tsufa
ghrahaw dz”h” (H) n.m. (pl. ghrahaw) (f. ghrahaw dzku) 1. old person. 2. parent |
tsoho; mahaifi
ghrnw (HH) n.m. dodon buzu (the main dodo of the Kvr festival) | dodon buzu
gti (H) n.m. (pl. gtayw) axe | gatari
Gtuw (TL) n.m. man’s name; one of the founders of Miya | sunan mutum
gy (H?) n.m, n.f. (in gy + tool) worn out tool ex gya tlp worn out hoe; gya gti worn
out axe; gya srm worn out knife; gyaza it’s worn out | dumbun kaya
g‰day (bor) v.bor. (v.n. g‰dyak) thank ex mn g˘d
sw thank you | gode
g‰r (TL) n.m. kola nuts | goro
gudz” (L) v.A1 (v.n. gdzak”) 1. measure, weigh ex mn gdz” sw zwy I weighed
the sorghum. 2. point at, take aim at; threaten | nuna, auna
gmb” dzh” (T) n.m. (pl. gmb” ghnaw) (f. gmb” dzku) roan antelope
(Hippotragus equinus) | gwamki
gmb” (H) n.m. (pl. gmbambw) large round gourd | gora
gmbul (L) n.f. belly | tumbi
gts”r (L) n.m. (pl. gts”rrw) mucous; cold (the illness) | majina, mura
guw (L) v.A1 (with verbal noun) just do, do abruptly ex gw nd bh/bhy‰n / gw
nd bh just go (m/f, pl); mn gw th I just ate (it) | yi kawai
gz”m (L) n.m. (pl. gz”mmw) Nile monitor (Varanus niloticus) | guza
gwa (L) v.D (v.n. gwhiy) spend a long time, last | jima, dae
gw”sam (L) adj. thick (in size) ex gh” gwa”sanna thick wood; ttsiy gwa”sanya
thick tendon; sb” gwa”sanni thick people | kauri
gwgm (TH) n.m. (pl. gwgmamw) dove (Streptopelia spp.) | kurciya
gwgwas” (L) n.m. (pl. gwgwassw) elbow | gwiwar hannu
gwl (H) n.m. type of locust | fara (iri)
gwlf” (L) n.f. chieftainship, kingship | sarauta
gwnagwn (HH) n.m. (pl. gwnagwnamamw) stink ant | gwano
gwngwan (L) n.m. gate, doorway | ofa
gwr dz”h” (L) n.m. (pl. gwr gh”naw) (f. gwr dzku) bachelor, divorced man;
divorced person | gwauro, tuzuru
gwarza (HH) v.A2 (v.n. gwarzhiwt” (m), gwrdzak) grow up, grow | girma
gwatl” (L) v.A1 (v.n. gwtlak”) give a sideways blow, butt ex gwatl”tla sy he
knocked her aside | mangara, tunkwiya
gwym (TH) n.m. (pl. gwymamw) yam (Dioscorea spp.) | doya
gy” (L) quant. a little, a few ex mr g
na = mr gy” a little money; ghruwi
gy
ni = ghruwi gy” a few cattle | kaan
gy”-gya” (L) quant. a little | kaan-kaan
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
22
gyiya (L) adj.f. (pl. gy‰n) (f. of g”na) small, short ex wn gyiya small girl |
arama, gajeriya
gy‰n (L) adj.pl. (pl. of g”na) small, short ex wtl”m gy‰n small children |
anana, gajeru
gyagiya (L) v.B2 (v.n. gygiyak” (f)) learn, teach, imitate | koya, koyar, kwaikwaya
gym (L?) n.m., n.f. (pl. gymamw) friend ex gymwun my friend; gyma Vaziya
Vaziya’s friend | aboki
gyruwni [gruwni] (H) adj.pl. (pl. of grna) big, important ex tmakw gyruwni big
sheep (pl.) | babba
gyrya (H) adj.f. (pl. gyruwni [gruwni]) (f. of grna) big, important ex tmku
gyrya big ewe | babba
H
hmay (L) adj. empty ex ndwul hmyna empty pot; tsdy h”myya empty alleyway;
kt” hmyni empty things | fanko
h”r (HL) v.A1 (v.n. hrk”) prevent | hana
h”ra (L) v.B (v.n. hrak”) grind with water ex h”ra zuw gam she ground sorghum |
nia
h (T) n.? 1. (always with complement) place of; to, toward ex by m hmw there’s
no water where we are; t buws ha niy bh” he goes to his family. 2. (with some
locational nouns used as locative adverbial) of, that of ex my zama kan h Kasham
we entered Kasham’s compound (cf. mn nay km Ksham ‘we saw Kasham’s
compound’, where ‘compound’ is not adverbial) | wurin; zuwa; -n/-r (wuri-n .)
híar (H) nlml ( híarrw) fat (on meat) | kitse
hm b r”mak” (T H T) n.? food (that must be chewed, e.g. meat, peanuts) | abinci
hcww (TH) n.m. early morning ex ta m ham b ta hacwwu they didn’t eat i
nthe early morning | safe, sassafe, asuba
hal (L) v.A1 (v.n. hlak”) protect, defend, guard, screen off ex mn hl sw knwany I
protected/screened off my house | tsare, kare
hm ba Ö (T) n.pl. 1. thing for…, thing that…, ingredient for… ex nkin ham b taw
this food; hm ba frtln he thing that happened. 2. matter, affair | abin (da); shaíani,
alíamari
ham (HL) v.A1 (v.n. hmk”) yawn ex h hamw he yawned | yi hamma
hm b rf” (T H H) n.? ingredients for miya | kayan miya
hm b sw (T H H) n.? something to drink (kunu, beer, etc.) | abin sha
hm b tw (T H H) n.pl. food (of people only--cf. thy) | abinci
hr (T) prep., conj. (indicates a time or an an activity continues up to a specified time,
extent, or end point; compare kwfa = kwpa, which indicate an elapse of time or
hiatus after which a time or activity commences) 1. until, up until (sometimes
redundantly combined with bhy) ex hr bahy zhr up until mid-afternoon; nj g
p dzf” hr vtl” she will attract as many as five suitors; kw p t dm ka hr d
r”tlzy when they (locusts( pour onto the tree, they even knock it over. 2. (hr ynz
< Hausa, hr c˘nkn) moreover, in addition to that ex d sk pyak Bgaw hr
ynz they again put Bugaw back on the throne; har cokan” wiy g”gau jiy
yi ba na
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
23
zaruws ng”nuws” jiy dad”m gyaa-gyaa in addition there is a certain insect that
one calls its name as tiny dadim | har
hwiya mku (T H) adv.time next year | bai
Hwun (T) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
hay (HL) v.A1 (v.n. hyk”) answer | amsa
hv”n (HH?) adv.time last year | bara
hiya (L) v.B (v.n. hyak” (f), hyk” (f)) dislike ex mn hytla sy I dislike her; nj
kw d hiya hy jif” nza ynn she disliked her husband a lot | i
h˘ (L) interjection yes | i
I
i- see íi- |
J
j- Ö part., cop., aspect contracted form ofjy before vowel | ne/ce
j (H) part. (form of jy when contracted with a vowel and sometimes an alternate of jy
in other contexts) 1. (introduces non-verbal predicate) be ex kma vwagwahi ta
My j” mtsr moreover the town of Miya is (divided into) seven (quarters); wtaw
dwky t knn j nd k”n sm wut that is the wealth of your household is in the
hands of one person. 2. (with aux in ‘have’ and locative sentences) shows question or
focus of subject ex Q: w j- dwak” tsr? - A: mn j- dwak” tsr Q: who has
two horses? - A: I have two horsss; Q; w j-lma? - A: ysuwan j-lm Q: who is in
the hut? - A: my younger brother is in the hut |
jrk (TH) n.m. (pl. jrkww) patas monkey (Erythrocebus patas) | biri
j (H) aux. see j, jy |
Jl (TL) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
jng”r (L) n.m. black kite (Milvus migrans) | shirwa
j (H irreg) conj., part. (possibly a contraction of jy or j with , i.e. “it was there”) then
(connective in perfective discourse) ex íiyk j tatray. J ngay s”n
nGtuw, Ö J gray bwuws” s”n nMngil. J tsiyws anduwÖ
Thereupon they greeted each other. The man from Giruwa said to him, … The man
from Mangila showed him where he came from. He asked him … | sai
jfana (H) n.m. (pl. dzf”) male; husband ex jfa nza her husband; jf” n„„m your
husband | namiji; miji
jfana tw (L H) n.? type of broad-headed arrow | fasa
jhj (LHL?) adv.time time of… | lokacin.
jmin (LH?) n.f. ostrich (Struthio camelus) | jimina
jy (H irreg) part., cop., aspect (becomes j- before vowel) 1. (= by)particle of uncertain
meaning inserted following TAM auxiliaries in negative subjunctive and all nominal
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
24
TAMs except focused subject perfective ex wy ta jiy bws tsgaya ts”pr
camzw let no one go to unrinate at night; L d” b
z d jy bla sb” ny
kntl”n Labe went and told the people living in the house; tk”may m
jy mka
noom go and doin your living. 2. focused subject marker in non-verbal and
imperfective sentences ex Q: w jy zruwsa? - A: mn jy zruws” Q: who will call
him? - A: I will call him.; Q: w jy malv, Ndwya k˙ R˘ya? - A: R˘ya jy malv,
d m
Ndwyaw A: who was chief, Nduya or Roya? - A: ROOYA was chief, not
Nduya. 3. introduces a proper name as a predicate ex t˘ dam ngnuws” jy Gtw
well as is known his name was Gituwa | ne/ce
jyy = gy (TH) existential there is ex jiy mar wy wuriy, mdzay jyey he found
a certain place, and there was land there | akwai
jyk (TL) n.m., n.f. grandchild ex jyk nuwun/tuwun my grandson/-daughter | jika
jka = jkn (LH) cop. …it is (equivalent to Hausa kenan, giving a sense of finality to
what precedes) ex wtaw b km jyka that is, it is he who is the householder;
dwnya wan jykn wa? so that’s how the world is, is it? | ke nan
jykn, jyk (LH) existential (contraction of jy or j with íykn, íyk ‘there’) …it is
(equivalent to Hausa kenan, giving a sense of finality to what precedes) ex wtaw b
km jyka that is, it is he who is the householder; dwnya wan jykn wa? so that’s
how the world is, is it? | kenan
K
k”a (HH) v.B (v.n. kk) scoop up, scoop out (non-liquid) | iba
kk (TL) n.f. (f. of dd) female in-law | surukuwa
k”la (HH) v.B (v.n. klak (f)) sweep ex mn kla sw kny I swept my house | share
km (T) n.m. (pl. kmamw) hand ex kmn my hand | hannu
k”may (HH) v.A2 (v.n. kmayak) (tr., intr.) spoil, become spoiled ex k”may
s
wihitnay he spoiled my things; whi k”mytln say my things spoiled | ata, aci
km g”na (T L) n.m. little finger ex kmn g”na my little finger | an yatsa
kn, kn (L T) det. (has low tone in deictic clauses, toneless (copies preceding tone)
elsewhere) 1. topic marker when the topic is understood in a proximal sense (compare
k, definition #2) ex nak”n biy k”n, a kam
ta miy buw
ma ndyan miy jiy daa
bahiy tu as for this water, we should all go and dredge out (the pond) some more; t‰
n”na k”n nj” ma s
biy ”huw well now indeed she will not drink water out of it. 2.
(clause final in presentative sentences with a proximal sense, compare k, definition
42) here is… ex ny g˘r˙ kn here are some kolas; n kaf”ma b
wn kn
dkunf” here is it, the girl’s father has sent us to you. 3. formative suffixed to give
proximal sense to a number of deictic bases (compare k, definition #5) ex nk”n,
tk”n, nyk”n this (m), this (f), these; wnk”n thus; wdwnya wan jykn wa? so
that’s how the world is, is it? | nan
k”n (HL) v.A1 (v.n. knk” (f)) count | irga
k”na (L) v.B (v.n. knak” (f)) 1. buy. 2. marry ex mn knatla sy I married her | saya;
aura
k”ra (L) v.B (v.n. kr (f), krak”) steal ex k”ra mr he stole money; ”m akr he
stole | sata
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
25
kr” (L) n.m. thirst | ishirwa
k”rm = k”r”m (L) v.A2 (v.n. krmak” (f)) 1. scoop up, collect and remove. 2. take up an
activity ex krmaka gngam krmaka gngam | kwashe
ktlh” (TH) n.m. tilapia, cichlid perch (Tilapia spp.) | karfasa
kv”k” (L) n.f. (pl. kv”kkw) Bosc’s or savannah monitor (Varanus exanthematicus) |
damo
kv”n (L) n.f. (pl. kv”nnw) buffalo (Syncerus caffer) | auna (Syncerus caffer)
k, k (H irreg) det. (has rather irregular tonal behavior) 1. the, the one in question
(marks a noun as being previously introduced or implied in a discourse, esp. when
topicalized) ex sb” tsr ka tln j t mwsyy ghama ba fr buwak the two
men (in question) were disputing about who was the first to come; nka sn ka t jy
ba t” da sr
kmas” as for that man, it is he who is the one who is in charge of the
celebration. 2. topic marker when the topic is understood in a neutral or distal sense
(compare kn, definition #1) ex wiy l‰kaciy ka a r”ma r”ma bahiy kidi sometimes
[the locusts] will eat [the crops] up to three [times[. 3. clause final formative in
conditional clauses and optionally in ‘before’ clauses ex jfana kw nya wn gyiya
k, t tn s luwza k, d ”ngatls nduw, Ö a man, if he sees a young girl and if
he loves her, then he says to her…; k
f”n tshiy
yuw k, nata sy before the
breaking of the dawn, it will have fermented. 4. (clause final in presentative sentences
with a distal sense, compare kn, definition #2) there is… ex ny ywunnw yka k
there are some elephants over there; ny hm b marwn k here’s what happened to
me. 5. formative suffixed to give distal sense to a number of deictic bases (compare
kn, definition #3) ex nka, tka, nyka that (m), that (f), those; wnka thus; Ndwya
jiyka Nduya is who it is | -n/-r, idan
kÖk (H) conj. if, when (for some speakers =kw Ö k, see for explanation of
function) ex k g r”dza ka, miy m”na b”saw when the afternoon comes, we wash it
again |
kb” (H) n.f. (pl. kbabw) man’s gown | riga
kcmba (TL) adj. ugly ex wya kacmba wn an ugly girl | mugu
ka” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. kk”) shake ex ka suw dk”manay he shook the bottle
gourd | rau da
kaf” (L) v.A1 (v.n. kfak”) 1. send (a person), ex mn kfiya dkna malm I send him
to the (place of the) chief. 2. (in ~ cm) send a message ex ba wun ka d” kaf can
didiwas” the girl’s father sends (a message) to his son-in-law | aika
kf” (H) n.m. scar | tabo
k
f”n (L) prep., conj. (requires subjunctive with verbal clause) before ex k
f”n f by
tsgafa lm, mn klaf k”lw before you sit down in the hut, I will sweep it for
your; wya íam k
f”n myza, nj
kn dzf” v
tl” a woman, before she dies, might
marry five men; k
f”n wy l‰kci d” m”na íra wiy t after awhile (before a certain
time) they yet again brew beer | kafin
k
k (HH?) n.m., n.f. (pl. no plural) grandparent | kaka
kk”ns (HH) n.m. puff adder (Bitis arietans) | kasa
kk”r (L) n.f. (pl. kk”rrw) shoe | takalmi
kk”tlriy (TL) id. clattering |
kl (T) id. indicates striking ex Anguna d” gudza gudza tukus”m duw kal! nji
Anguna took aim on the hedgehog the bam with her | amsa amo
kal (HH) v.A1 (v.n. klak) cut through, across ex my kl atsk”n we cut through the
bush | ratse
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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klak” (T) n.f. useless, worthless ex sm b kalak” useless person; ím m kalak”
useless woman | banza
klakl (HH) n.m. potsherd | tsingaro
klp” (T) n.m. strength ex sm b kalp” strong man; ím m kalp” strong woman; sb”
sba kalp” strong people; sm b kw kalp” weak person | arfi
km (H) n.m., adv.loc (pl. kmamw) 1. compound; house, home. 2. hometown | gida;
garin.
kam (HL) v.A1 (v.n. kmk”) pull, pull off, pull away | ja, janye
km (L) part. as for (topic marker) ex Mmmn duw t km, t ”ma awr
L
Mamma said that as for him, he would marry Labe | kam
kmt (LHL) v.A2 be fitting ex kamt d” bway mir Kshm Kasham should
bring money | kamata
knd- = k- (TL) quant.univ. (compounded with an interrogative adejctive) every … ex
knd w
na km every house; knd wayya gh”ruw every cow; knd wn b
shim
k every householder | ko Ö
kn srn (H L) n.? sheath | gidan wua
kp (T) id. all |
kraf” (L) n.f. (pl. kraffw) palm fronds | kaba
krakara (L) adj. tall, long ex sm krkarana tall man; ín krakaraya tall woman;
sb” krkarani tall people | dogo
krtuw (L) n.m. reading, studying | karatu
krf (TL) n.?, adv.time o’clock | arfe (na agogo)
krmaya (L) n.m. dodo covered with leaves to waist, wearing loincloth | dodo (iri)
krwa dzku (TL H) n.f. prostitute | karuwa
kas” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. ksk”) sing | rera wa
Ksay (HH) n.f. woman’s name | sunan mace
Ksham (T) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
ksuw (L) n.m. (pl. ksuwww) market ex mn buwn ksw I’m going to the
market | kasuwa
ktam (L) n.f. (pl. ktammw) ring | zobe
ktl (T) id. indicates giving a blow ex d gudza gdza sh‰sh‰ d tiywsy katl! he took
aim at the rooster and struck him katl! | amsa amo
Kvr (TH) n.f. the principal Miya festival | bikin kavura
kaw (L) v.A1 (v.n. kwak” (f)) fry in oil ex nj s kwa k˘syay she will fry bean
cakes; tlwi b kwaw fried meat | soya, toya
ky dzh” (H) n.m. (pl. ky gh”naw) (f. ky dzku) orphan | maraya
ky (T) n.f. (pl. kyayw) fighting | faa
kay (L) v.A1 (v.n. kyak” (f)) fan (verb) ex ”m ky fifayi she did fanning with a
faifai | yi fifita
kay (HL) v.A1 (v.n. ky (f), kyk” (f)) fight | yi faa
kyrkyar (HHHL) adv.loc behind ex pk”wun kyarkyar my triceps; tln
kyrkyar they are behind | bayan
kyw (TH) n.m. (pl. kywaww) hornet | rina
kdi (H) n.m. (pl. kdyadyw) giant rat (Cricetomys gambianus) | gafiya
ki (H) n.m. (pl. kaw) clay bowl (used as food bowl in former times) | kasko
kdi (L) num. three ex sb” kd three people | uku
kn (H) n.f. (pl. knanw) co-wife ex knaza her co-wife; kn„„m your co-wife;
knan‰z her co-wives | kishiya
krr (THL) n.m. twigs, kindling ex krr d”m twigs, kindling | irare
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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krjiy (L) n.m. chest ex krjiywan my chest | irji
ky (T) n.f. 1. (tr.) tending animals, ex mn n kiy I tended (animals). 2. grazing,
feeding, foraging ex cw t kiy the goats are grazing | kiwo
kiy (L) v.A1 (v.n. kyak” (f)) 1. take, pick up, carry ex mn ky swiyhay I picked up the
load. 2. begin, set to | auka; fara
kiy (HL) v.A1 (v.n. kyk” (f)) 1. bite ex íy kiywn sy the dog bit me. 2. bark (of dog) |
ciza; yi haushi
kyim (L) n.m. (pl. kyimmm) crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus) | kada
k˙ (H) conj., quant.univ. 1. or ex s”naw kidi ko f”
” three or four days. 2. (compounded
with an interrogative word = knd-) every …, any … ex k˙wnky everyone,
anyone; k˙ghjky all the time, anytime (see k˙- compounds for other examples) | ko
k‰ghaj = k‰ghajky (TL) quant.univ. (see ghjky for use as head of a generic
clause) always, whevever, anytime ex nym k˙ghjky he saw us all the time |
koyaushe
k‰mky = k‰mnky (TLHL) quant.univ. (see mky for use as head of a generic
clause) whatever, anything, everything ex mn t k˙mky I ate everything; wan
knws k˙mnky he filled his house with everything | kome, komenene
k‰wyy Ö (ky) (TLH) quant.univ. f. (f. of k‰wna Ö (ky); see wyy Ö (ky)
for head of generic clause) every …, whichever … ex k‰wyya gh”ruw = k‰wyya
gh”ruwky every cow | kowane .
k‰wyyky (TLHL) quant.univ. f. (f. of k‰wnky; see wyy Ö (ky) for head of
generic clause) whoever, anyone ex k˙wyyky nj ya dzm everyone (f) will cook
beans | kowa, kowanene
k‰wna Ö (ky) (TLH) quant.univ. m. (f. k‰wyy Ö (ky); see wyna Ö ky for
head of generic clauses) every …, whichever … ex k‰wn km = k‰wn kmky
every house | kowane .
k‰wnky (TLHL) quant.univ. m. (f. k‰wyyky; see for head of a generic clause)
whoever, anyone, everyone ex k˙wnky b”t say everyone came; Ksham g zara
k˙wnky Kasham will call everyone | kowa, kowanene
k‰ykw = k‰ykwky (TLH) quant.univ. (see ykwky for use as head of a generic
clause) everywhere, anywhere, wherever ex my nay k‰ykw we looked everywhere |
koíina
kciya (L) num. nine ex sb” kcya nine people | tara
kd (TL) adv.loc. south ex gbr ms˘ kd íf Mangla southeast of Mangila |
kudu
k
” (H) n.m. the tree (Gardenia erubescens) | gaue
kufa (HH) v.B (v.n. kf” (f), kfak) forge ex kufa sw tlpy he forged a hoe |
kxera
kf” (T) n.f. potash | kanwa
kukwa (HH) v.B (v.n. kkwak (f)) sharpen (by pounding) ex kukwa tlp he
sharpened the hoe | koa
kukwa (HH) v.B (v.n. kkwak (m)) crow (rooster) ex sh‰sh‰ kkwa sy the rooster
crowed | cara
kkw (LL) interr.adv. how? (seems to be used only in standard greetings--cf. wnkwa)
ex Q; F tlaf kkwa? - A: Nd lfiy. Q: Good morning. (How did you arise?) - A:
Just fine.; Q: N tiya mku kkwa? - A: Nd lfiy. Q: Good afternoon. (How did
you beat the sun?) - A: Just fine. | ina?, yaya?
kula (HH) v.B (v.n. klak”) extract, wrench out, pull out ex mn kla sw dlrkyay I
plucked the chicken | cire, fige
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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kula (HH) v.B (v.n. kl (f), klak) clear bush | yi sassabe
klkul (L) adj. deep ex gr kkul
na deep hole; wh” klkul
ya deep sand; rrarw
klkul
na deep holes | zurfi
kllum (T) adv.time always | kullum
kma (H) part. (topicalizing particle) as for, indeed ex d k”rma ghd” tuws” tstl,
nj kuma dw nj m gsw he took out his fish and gave it to her, but she said that
she wouldn’t accept it | kuma
kmy (TH) n.f. (pl. kmyayw) ear | kunne
kuna (L) v.B (v.n. knk”) vomit ex tt kna kunw he is vomiting | harar
knkl (TH) n.m. (pl. knklalw) cap | hula
kunna (bor) v.B2 bor (v.n. knnk”) light a fire ex knn sy he lit it | kunna
kuns” (bor) v.A2 bor (v.n. knsk”) wrap up, envelop ex kns sw g˘rwy he
wrapped up the kolas | unsa
knt” (T) n.f. bitter tomato Solanum incanum | gauta
kura (L) v.B (v.n. krak”) miss (a shot) ex mn ff wy mm d kuruwny I shot
at the francolin but I missed (she missed to me) | kuskure
krma dzh” (T) n.m. (pl. krmamw) (f. krma dzku) deaf person | kurma
krum (H) n.m. scoop made of calabash fragment | mara
krum (H) n.m. plain tuwo | gayan tuwo
ksam (L) n.m. (pl. ksammw) rat, mouse | bxera, kusu
ksan (T) prep. nearly, almost | kusan
ksy (TH) n.m. (pl. ksyayw) bone | ashi
kt” (H) n.pl. (pl. ktatw) thing(s) | abu, abubuwa
kt” niy atsk”n (H H H) n.? wild animal | naman daji
ktuwur (L) n.m. basket used for transporting chickens, chicken coop | akurki
kuwa (L) v.B (v.n. kwak”) draw water ex d btln d kw(a) by d buwy(a)
kam they were going, drawing water, and bringing it home | jawo ruwa
kwa (LH) part. topicalizing particle ex t Mammn kuw, vkyuws” myyw as for
him, Mamman, he didn’t have a sister | kuwa
kuwr (L) v.A2 (v.n. kwrak”) cut grass (with sickle) ex mn kwr ws nglat” I cut
grass with a sickle | yanke ciyawa
kw (F) interjection come on and…!, just…! (strengthens imperative) ex gsay kw! just
take it! | mana
kwa (H) v.D (v.n. kwhy (f)) lack ex mn kw sw mnnuwny I couldn’t find my
money’; kwhya lfiy
wt illness | rasa
kw (L) part. 1. how about…?, what about …? ex fy kw, fy tsn m? how about
you, what are you going to give me?; wnkwa?, kkw? how?. 2. formative attached
to certain deictics to make question words ex íykw? where? | fa?
kw Ö k (H irreg) conj. if, when (as part of an event sequence, not simply a condition
and a consequence; used only imperfectively, i.e. events not yet completed or habitual
event sequences) ex kw buwatln k, kya ky whi ttlnay when they come,
they will take their things; b kyr kw mra vya gtak” k, tzuws”zy when a
thief finds a door open, he will enter | idan, in
kwcay (bor) v.A2 bor wrest away, snatch ex kwcyan swhi tuwnay he snatched
my things | wace
kw (HL) conj. it is possible that (plus tensed clause) ex kw tl”n buw
mr they
may bring money; kw f m biy maytl”nw you might not see them; kw fa
nytln myyw you cannot have seen them | mai yiwuwa
kwiy (L) n.m. greed | kwadayi
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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kwfa = kwpa (T) prep., conj. (indicates an elapse of time or hiatus after which a time
or activity commences, but sometimes seems to overlap with hr, which always
indicates a time or an an activity continues up to a specified time or end point) 1. until,
only until, after ex kwpa s”nt kd miy b not until it has gone three days do
we uncover it; sw kwpa sw until tomorrow (standard leave taking--sw, q.v.
seems redundant); d w say kwap tntln ynza she follows him to their house to
her place. 2. (with perfective) have to, must ex mm kf”n pyayya dkuna niy
bws” k, kwpa ”n tr tsr but bevore he (the child being weaned) is returned to
the home of his parents, he has to spend two months (at the home of his uncle) | sai
kwkws” (TH) n.m. fodder, leaves of beans, peanuts, corn | harawa
kwkws” zway (TH H) n.? shell of peanuts | kwasfawo(n gyaa
kwkwiy (T) n.m. (pl. kwkwiyayw) granary | rumbu
kwm (H) n.f. mahogany (Khaya senegalensis) | maaci
kwmbal (L) n.m. (pl. kwmballw) stick | sanda
kwmbala íiji (L T) n.? pestle | taarya
kwngwaliy (L) n.m. (pl. kwangwaliyyw) snail | katantanwa
kwngwy (TH) n.m. (pl. kwngwyayw) fingernail | farce
kwpa = kwfa (T) prep., conj. until, not until | sai
kwar (L) v.A1 (v.n. kwrar” (m), kwrak”) cry out, shout ex Dlramb” kwar sy the
dodo cried out | yi ihu
kwrar” (T) n.m. shouting | ihu, kururuwa
kwray (L) adv.man. good fortune, fine ex nd kwray (as response to various
greetings) just fine | lafiya lau
kwrkwadum (L) n.f. (pl. kwrkwad”mmw) Bambara groundnuts (Vigna
suberranea) | gujiya
kwarta (L) v.B2 (v.n. kwrtak”) dig by brushing away dirt | tona. yasa
kwtay (L) n.f. (pl. kwtayyw) dust | ura
kwtla (H?) adv.loc. below, under ex t kwtl ín t”kn it is under the chair; ír
kwtl put it on the ground | asa (da)
kwtla b
” (H H) n.? area below the navel | ciki
kwykway (THH) adj. hard (to the touch) ex zkiy kwyakwyya hard stone | tauri
kwlati (L) n.m. (pl. kwlattw [kwl—ttw]) gourd ladle | ludayi
kwry [kry] (TH) n.m. burnt tuwo | anzo
Kwtat (TL) n.f. woman’s name | sunan mace
kwiy (HL) v.A1 (v.n. kwyk”) catch, hold ex mn kwiiy suw ksamy I caught the rat |
kama, rie
Kwyta (L?) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
kynw (TH) n.m. (pl. kynwaww) smoke | hayai
kyrti (TL) n.m. height, tallness ex sm b kyarti tall man; ím m kyarti tall
woman; sb” sba kyarti tall people | tsawo
Kyraw (L?) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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L
l”l”” (L) adj. weak, soft ex sm ll””na weak person; tk”n lll””ya soft chair |
rashin kxarfi, laushi
lf” (T) n.f. load carried on the back ex a n lf” he carried a load on his back | kaya
l”ha (L) v.B (v.n. lhak”) loosen | sassauta
lm (H) n.f. (pl. lmamw) hut ex lnhwun = ln tuwun my hut’; mn tsgawun lnhwun I stayed in my hut; mn nay ln tuwun I looked at my hut | aki
lma kf” (H H) n.f. forge, smithy | maera
l”mba (L) v.B (v.n. lmbak”) cover with blanket, grass, etc. | rufe
lngr (TH) n.m. the fig tree Ficus polita | durumi
la (L) v.D (v.n. lhiy) get well, recover | warke
lbad” = ghma labad” (L) n.m. shoulder | kafadxa
la” (HH) v.A1 (v.n. lak) mix mud | kwaa
lfiy
wt” (TH) n.? good health ex nd lfiy
wt” nd lfiywát” | lafiya
lh” (T) n.m. (pl. lhahw) jackal (Canis aureus) | dila
lak” (L) v.A1 (v.n. lkak”) fear ex mn lkiya sy I fear him | tsorata
lakuca (HH) v.A2 bor (v.n. lkucak”) tickle ex lakucatl say he tickled her | lakuce
lkumiy (L) n.f. (pl. lkumiyyw) camel (Camelus dromedarius) | rakxumi
lkumi t tsk”n (L T H) n.? giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) | rakxumin dawa
llyuw [l¥lyuw] (L) n.m. clitoris | an tsaka,aniya
lniy (L) n.m. (pl. lmiyyw) bullfrog | bududdugi
lankwasa (bor) v.B2 bor (v.n. lnkwsayak) bend ex mn lankwsa sw zíy I bent
the bow | lankxwasa, tankware
law (L) v.A1 (v.n. lwak”) pick (fruit), pluck ex mn l˘ suw mngwarawy I picked the
mango | cire
lwur (T) n.m. sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) | dankali
ly (H?) n.m. (pl. wtl”my) boy, son ex ly ga”na a small boy; ly nuwun my son |
yaro, a
lay (L) v.A1 (v.n. lhiy) cure, make well ex nk”n nyh l
wn say this medicine cured
me | warkar
lay (HH) v.A1 (v.n. lyak) paint red | shafa wa ja
l = ly (H?) n.m. son, boy | yaro, a
lbedi (T) n.m. (pl. lybyadyadyw) medium-sized basket | kwando
llmbi (HH) n.m. bull calf | marai
l lbi (H? H) n.m. small hut | aki arami
lmbi (H) n.m. (pl. lmbambw) bull | bijimi
lbi (H) n.f. shelter | rumfa
lr (TH) n.m. (pl. lrarw) needle | allura
lvin (L) n.m. charcoal | gawayi
lwr [lwr] (TH) n.m. the fig tree Ficus thonningii | ceiya
Lyz (TL) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
l‰kciy (TL) n.m. time ex ‰ naka l‰kaciy ka during that time; l˙kciy b ts”tsal kw
ma ka, shyknn d fr p˙nkay the time for taxes, when it come, well then he
begins to pay | lokaci
lgud” (T) n.f. red earth | koya
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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Lmay (T) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
lmfshi (T) n.m. breathing ex ”n sw lmfshiyy he breathed | lumfashi
lw (L) v.def. 1. love, like ex mn lwza I love her; mn lw acn nuwun I like my
work. 2. want ex mn lw d” buwsy I want him to go | so
lw” (L) n.m. (pl. lww) occiput | yeya
lyp” (L) n.m. crime, fault | laifi
M
Mdala (L?) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
m” (H) n.m. (pl. maw) castrated goat | taure
mdzay (H) n.f. earth | asa
m”ma (L) v.B (v.n. mmak”) get lost ex mn mma sy I got lost | ata
mna (L) num., interr.quant. how much?, how many? ex mr mn? how much money?;
shw mn? how much oil?; cw mn? how many goats?; zkiy mn? how many
stones? | nawa?
m”na (L) v.B (v.n. mnak”) 1. (before a verb) do again ex d kiya tvi d m”na bytly
he set to walking and took her again; kw mna ts yuw kÖ on the next day…
(when again the dawn broke…). 2. (after a verb, with m added) once again ex kf”n
ts”rk” ta mkuw, d zay(a) kuw mnmy before noon, they put fire to it once
again. 3. fill in where crops fail to germinate ex m mna zuwy he filled in the
sorghum | sake; ofa
mr (H?) n.f. sesame (Sesamum orientale) | rii, nomi
mr”m (L) n.f. (pl. mr”mmw) arrow shaft | kyaure
m”ruw (HH) v.A2 (v.n. mruwk”) twist, wring ex mn mrw sa I twisted it |
murdxe
m”ts” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. mtsk”) sell ex mn mts suw zwy I sold the corn | sayar
mzam, mzan dz”h” (H) n.m. (pl. mzamw) hunter, shooter | maharbi, mafarauci
m (L) interr.pro. what? ex m jik n? what is it?; m mbyra kb” tafa? what tore
your gown?; t”f m? what did he shoot?; f ”hn tbrma naf m? what did
you bind your mat with?; ”m cna m? what kind of work did he do? | me?
m- (T) n.f. (form used with possessor; citation form mh”) mother, aunt (maternal or
paternal) ex mwun my mother; mf” your (m.s.) mother; mma our mother; m
Vziya Vaziya’s mother | uwa, inna
m (H) pro.rel.f. ( sba) (f. of b) 1. one who owns ex m mr rich woman. 2. one who
does ex m yw madwoman; ím m kalak” good-for-nothing | mai
ma (L) v.D (v.n. mhiy (f)) lose; forget ex mn m sw mrnuwny I lost my money |
tar, yar; manta
m Ö -
w (H irreg) negative, aspect (post-verbal, enclosing a complement, if any in
perfective; encloses entire predicate in all other TAMs and sentence types; m has a
long vowel with equational and adjectival predicates, short elsewhere; see ta…-w for
negative subjunctive) general negative for all sentence types except subjunctive ex zartla mw he didn’t call her; Ndwya zar m Kashamuw Nduya didn’t call
Kasham; t m tuwsw he won’t accompany him; t m bta zhkuw he won’t untie
the donkey; Ndwya m dwakw Nduya doesn’t have a horse; wtl”my m
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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íyk”nuw the children are not here; Ndwya d” m
wyahndzhw Nduya is not a
Hausa man; wy m twahuw no one is different | ba Ö ba
mcm (TH) n.m. head pad for carrying load | gammo
mdashi (H) n.f. (pl. mdashshw) okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) | kuewa
mdz” (T) n.f. (pl. mdzadzw) river | kogi
mg”dza (L?) adj. more than a year old ex mg”dza zw (m) sorghum more than a year
old; mg”dza mr (f) millet more than a year old; mg”dza kt” (pl) things more
than a year old | shekararre
mgirbiy (T) n.? harvesting hoe | magirbi
mh” (T) n.f. (citation form; m- with possessor) mother; aunt (maternal or paternal) |
uwa, inna
mha (L) num. six | shida
myw (LH) n.f. millet | maiwa
mak” (L) v.A1 (v.n. mykak (m) mkak”) 1. spend time ex mak” sy he spent time;
sw kwpa mkk” until later (standard leave-taking). 2. stay, settle ex mak” yk”n
he stayed here | jima; zauna
mka k”n (H? T) n.m. thumb | babban yatsa
mkasa (T) n.m. the guinea corn parasite Striga senegalensis or S. hermontheca | uduji
mka ts”my (H? TH) n.m. big toe | babban yatsan afa
mkwakwm (HH) n.? (in wtl” mkwakwm) baby | jinjiri
mkwaya (H) n.f. woman | mace
mlv (TH) n.m. (pl. mlvw) chief, king, leader of a festival | sarki, shugaba
mm (TH) n.f. sicklepod (Senna obtusifolia) | tafasa
mnd”r (L) n.m. (pl. mnd”rrw) spitting cobra | ganshea
mnyw = myyw (TH) existential (negative of y) there is no…, there isn’t any…
ex wyhan mnyw there is nothing; t m
nyw he’s not here | babu
mngana (L) n.m. black scorpion, possibly emperor scorpion (Pandinus emperator) |
duwu
Mngaw (T) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
Mngla (TL) n.m. man’s name, one of the founders of Miya | sunan mutum
mar (HL) v.A1 (v.n. mrk” (f)) 1. get, find. 2. discover that. 3. manage to do | samu
mr”n dz”h” (L) n.m. (pl. mramaw) (f. mr”n dzku) sorcerer | maye, mayya
mr” (L) n.f. (pl. mrw) millet | gero
mriyak (HH) n.f. genet (Genetta genetta) | cimola, inyawara
ms” (T) n.f. (pl. msasw) African catfish (Clarias lazera and other Clarias spp. or
Heterobranchus bidorsalis) [internet has only Clarias gariepinus for ‘African catfish’,
whereas Reed et al. do not mention this species] | tarwaa
ms” (TH) n.f. hemp, kenaf (Hibiscus cannibus) | rama
Msang (TL) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
mts”r (L) num. seven ex sb” mtsr seven people | bakwai
mtsaw, mtsaw (H?) n.m harvest season ex kw
”m mats‰ ka when harvest
season comes | kaka
my (H) n.f. hunger | yunwa
myyw = myy = mnyw (TH) existential there is no…, there isn’t any… ex Q:
g˙r myy? - A: g˙r myyw Q: Aren’t there any kolas? - A: there aren’t any kolas
| babu
m zyÖ? (T L) interr. why? ex m zy f
k”na wa? why did you buy it? | don me?, me
ya sa?
mblam (H) n.m. (pl. mblammw) crowned crane (Balearica pavonina) | gauraka
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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mb”lm” = mb”l”n (L) v.A2 (v.n. mblmak”) blink, wink ex mb”lmiya sy = mb”linya sy she winked at him | kyifta ido
mb”na (L) v.B (v.n. mbn (f), mbnak”) be good, be nice, be beautiful ex wshasham
mb”nata sw the year was good; wn mb”natla sw wùn mb”natla súw | yi kyau
mbrgu (L) n.m. (pl. mbrgwgww) ram | rago
mb”shi (HL) v.A1 (v.n. mbshk”) extinguish ex mn mbsh skuway I put out the fire
| bice
mba (L) v.D (v.n. mbhiy) finish; be finished ex mn mb scanay I finished the work;
cm mbt say the work is finished | are
mb
” (H) n.f. (pl. mb
a
w) thigh | cinya
mbal (HL) v.A1 (v.n. mblk”) 1. pull out, pull off ex mn mbal suw sr”my I drew
out the knife. 2. undress ex mn mbal say I undressed. 3. unhaft; become unhafted ex
mn mbal suw gty I unhafted the axe; mblt s giti = gti mblt s the axe
became unhafted. 4. put out head (grain) | cire; tue; kwae; fid da kai (hatsi)
mbn (H) adj. good, beautiful, nice | kyau, kyakkyawa
mbsak” (L) n.m or f. evil, bad, ugly ex dlyramb” b mbsak” evil dodo; nk”n
malv ta mbsaka haliy this chief has an evil personality | mugu, mugunta
mbsak” (L) n.f. smallpox | agana, ado
mbtl” (L) adj., n.m. near, nearby ex vwagwahi j mbtl” the town is near;
vwagwahi mbtlya nearby town; km mbtlna nearby house; kt” mbtlni
nearby things | kusa, kusanci
mblmbel (L?) adj. in the open, visible ex d sw gdlamby dmb”r nuws t”ds
mblmbely thereupon his (clothes made of) baobab bark were out in the open | a fili
mbidla (HH) v.B (v.n. mbdlak) melt ex shw mbidlat say the oil melted | narke
mby (H) adj. 1. red ex ndwul mbyna red pot; dlrky mbyya red chicken; sb”
mbyni red people. 2. European ex mbyna European man; mbyy European woman;
mbyni Europeans | ja; Bature
mbya sw (H H) n.f. fish with red tail (means “red tail”), probably tigerfish (Hydrocynus
vittatus and probably other H. species) | irin kifi mai jar jela, tsage
mbydl (TH) n.f. cucumber (Cucumis melo) | gurji
mbyar (HL) v.A1 (v.n. mbyrk”) tear, rip; be torn, be ripped ex mbyaran sw kb”
tuwny he tore my gown on me; bb” tuwun mbyrtl sw my gown tore | kece,
yaga
mky = mnky (TL) quant.univ. (only as the head of a generic clause; see k‰mky)
whatever …, anything that … ex t kmaytln g mk, f sh”
y whatever has
spoiled, discard it | kome Ö
mmniy (H) n.pl. (pl. of my) Miya people | Miyawa
mmiy (L) n.f. sore, ulcer | gyambo
mnky = mky (TL) quant.univ. (only as the head of a generic clause; see k‰mky)
whatever …, anything that … ex t wn gam knws mnky, j dydayy
whatever he fillls his house with, it’s just right | kome Ö
mr dzh” (T) n.m. (pl. mr ghnw) (f. mr dzku) vervet monkey (Cercopithecus
aethiops) | ira
mr (H) n.m. (pl. mrarw) metal, money | kui, arfe
miy (L) v.A1 (v.n. myaw (m), myak”) die ex miyta sy he died | mutu
my dz”h” (H) n.m. (pl. mmniy) (f. my dzku) Miya person | Bamiyi
my (H) n.? Miya ethnicity ex mlv” my the chief of the Miyas; vna my Miya
language | Miyanci
Mya (L) n.?, adv.loc. Miya town | garin Miya
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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myaw (L) n.m. death | mutuwa
m
uw (T) n.f. (pl. m
uwaww) python, probably African rock python (Python
sebae) | mesa, muuwa
mku (H) n.f. (pl. mkwakww) sun, daytime ex tyak mku spending the day | rana
mkwa (H) adv.time at midday ex s‰ mkwa they rested at midday | da rana
mtsm (TH) n.f. tamarind (Tamarindus indica) | tsamiya
N
n aux. 1. formative of uncertain function that sometimes appears in negative imperfective
and negative non-verbal sentencs ex nj m nluw jf” nzw she doesn’t love her
husband; m d m n tsn? aren’t you going to give me any?; tard ían tuws”
m nkmw he will find that his wife is not at home; íiyk t” m n ímw
thereupon he no longer has a wife. 2. perhaps the same formative is see in t-n
conditional with non-perfective clauses--see tn |
nn (TH) adv.time today | yau
n”tsay (HL) v.A2 (v.n. ntsyak” (m)) submerge, dive under water ex n”tsya sw ˘
byay he submerged under the water | nitse
n (T) linker ( ny) (f. t) 1. genitive linker for masculine head noun. 2. head of
masculine independent genitive. 3. head of masculine ordinal numeral | -n, na
n (L) interr. (see = w for other types of questions) question marker, apparently
restricted to focused subject equational questions ex Ndwya/fy w jik n? who is
Nduya/who are you? |
na (L) v.D (v.n. nhy (f)) 1. (with ICP) become ripe ex natl”n sy they got ripe; zw
b nws” ripe corn. 2. (no ICP) be done (cooking) ex n sy it is done (cooking) |
nuna
na (L) v.D (v.n. nhiy (f)) be tired ex mn nwan sy I’m tired | gaji
na (T) aux. (directely follows relative pronoun, precedes subject pronoun and other
auxliaries within clause) imperfective verbal auxiliary in relative clauses ex sm b na
d buws the man who will come; ím m na d buwaz the woman who will come;
zhk” m na m”n d íaratl takn whi kn the donkey on which I will put this load |
ní” (H) n.f. bush duiker (Silvicapra grimmia) | gada
na
a (bor) v.B bor (v.n. n
k”) turban (a chief) | naa (sarki)
na
” (HH) v.A1 (v.n. n
ak) sharpen (blade) ex na
” srm he sharpened the knife |
wasa
nk”n (T) det.m. ( nyk”n) (f. tk”n) this, this one | wannan (namiji)
nka (T) det.m. ( nyka) (f. tka) that, that one (distant) | wancan
nnki (TH) n.m. (pl. nnkakw) saliva | yawu
nay (HL) v.A1 (v.n. nyk”) see; look at | gani, duba
ny = n ` (TL) presentative (invariable regardless of complement) here’s …, there’s …
ex ny ywun yka k there’s an elephant (over there); ny ywunnw yka k there
are some elephants (over there); ny knwan íykn k”n here’s my house | ga Ö
nd (T) adv. just, only ex Q: F tlafw kkwa? - A: Nd lfiy. (standard morning
greeting) Q: How did you arise? - A: Just fine.; Q: ín wtl”my? - A: Tln nd”
kwaray. Q: How are the children? - A: They are just fine.; yr nma nd- wty we
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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have exactly the same language; Mngla kuw, kw kla smay sb” niya
knws” k d v nd” brkatai kwi as for Mangila, when the people of his house
swept up the trash, they just dumped it randomly | sai, kawai
ndl”k” (H) n.m. resin, pitch | dano
ndliy (L) n.f. brains | kwanya
nd”m (HL) v.A1 (v.n. ndmk”) surround, go around ex drh nd”n vwagwahi the
road goes around the town | gewaya, kewaye
ndmk” (0H) n.? strolling | yawo
nd”ra (tones?) prep. (from just two examples in texts, with ‘know’) know about ex
mma wy sm m ndra wiyw but one person didn’t know about another one; íiyk k‰wnk s”n sw ndr wyy from that point everone know about the other
one |
nd”r” (HH) v.A2 (v.n. ndrk” [note tone]) 1. find, come across. 2. find that, discover
that ex mn ndr ganzakway tiy sw fuwy I found a hyena had killed the goat
| tarar
ndrjim (L) n.m. dodo covered with long grass and brown mask | Dirzama
nd” (L?) quant. a few ex tmakwy nda a few sheep; sb” nda”/sb” nd =
sb” ndni a few people | kaan
ndzhiy (L) n.m. poverty | tsiya, fatara
ndkway (H) n.f. hooded vulture (Necrosyrtes monachus) | ungulu
ndmy (TL) quant. alone, just…, only ex mn ndmywn just me; t ndmyws”
him alone; my ndmaym only us | kaai
ndmndam [ndndam] (L) adj. heavy ex bhw ndmndanna heavy bag; zkiy
ndmndnya heavy stone; kt” ndmndnni heavy things | nauyi
ndgwe-ndegwe (T) id. indicates walking ex d dza vnatlny ndgwe-ndegwendegwe kwpa nd b ba gwlfu she fell in ahead of them walking along walkwalk-walk until they came before palace | amsa amo
ndiytl” (L) n.m. shallow ex gy ndiytl”na shallow hole; wh” ndbiytliya shallow
grass; kt” ndytl
ni shallow things | mara zurfi
Ndkay (L) n.f. woman’s name | sunan mace
ndyim (L) n.m. (pl. ndyimmw) heel | diddige
ndwul (L) n.m. (pl. ndwulalw) cooking pot ex ndwula rf” pot for miya | tukunya
ndwula ghm (L H) n.? skull | oon kai
Ndwya (L) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
ndyakw” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. ndykwak”) drip ex ndyk say it dripped | iga
ndym (F) quant. all, everything; (as sentence level modifier) completely ex sba ndyn
= sb” ndyntln = ndyn sb all the people; mr ndyn = mr ndynwas” all the
money | duka, duk
ndza (L) v.D (v.n. ndzhiy (f)) become poor ex ndzata sy he became poor | tsiyace
ndzrandzr (HH) n.m. probably the plant Urginea nigritiana | albasar kwai
n ` = ny` (TL) presentative (invariable regardless of complement) here’s …, there’s …
ex n kaf”ma b wn kn dkunf” here it is, the girl’s father has sent us | ga Ö
nglat” (L) n.m. (pl. nglattw) sickle | lauje
ngn (H) n.f. (pl. ngnanw) name ex ngnuwun my name; ngnaf” jy w? what is
your name?; ngnuwun jy Kwrara my name is Kwarara | suna
ngrbbw (TH) n.m. caltrop, puncture vine (Tribulus terrestris) | tsidau
ngrf” (L) n.m. (pl. ngrffw) gums, palate? | dasashi
ngvrk” (TL) n.m. type of bee |
ng (L?) n.m. forked pole | gwafa
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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ngul (HL) v.A1 (v.n. nglk”) peek | lea
nglahm-nglaham (HH) n.m. gamba grass (Andropogon gayanus) | gamba
ngwngwa” (L) n.m. throat (entire throat area) | maogwaro
ngwrak” (L) n.m. trachea, windpipe | maogwaro
ngwarma (HL) v.B2 (v.n. ngwrmk” (m) [note tones]) frown, scowl ex ngwrm
say he frowned; ngwrmk gn t”myrwa my frowning | aure fuska
ngwrtiy (L) n.m. snoring ex t
t m ngwrtiy he is snoring | minshari
ngyrh (TH) n.m. the tree Dychrostachus cinerea | unu
ny (T) linker pl. of (genitive linker for plural head noun, head of independent genitive,
head of ordinal numeral) | -n, na
ny (TL) pro.coll. (associate floating low tone to complement) those associated with.…,
and others like…, & Co. ex ny Ksham Kasham et al.; ny zw í”n mr” things
like sorghm and millet; ny w (ny w
d bwatln?) who all? (who all went?); ny
b
h” one’s family (“father & Co.”) | su .
nyk”n (T) det.pl. these | waannan
nyka (T) det.pl. those | waancan
nyw (TL) det.pl. some, certain (ones), others | wadxansu
nyw (TL) det.pl. some, certain (ones), others | waansu
nja (L) v.D (v.n. njhiy (f)) 1. refuse. 2. be rebellious | i; gagara
nzl (H) n.m. (pl. nzlalw) wooden flute played in hocketing order with four others |
sarewa
nzuw (HL) v.A1 (v.n. nzwk”) close up tight, draw tight | tsuke
P
p”dla (HH) v.B (v.n. pdlak) mix, stir (beer) | dama
p”la (HH) v.B (v.n. plak) jump ex mn pla sy I jumped | yi tsalle
pliy (L) n.m. (pl. pliyyw) ashes | toka
p”na (L) v.B (v.n. pnak” (m)) pay, ransom | biya, fansa
ppn (TH) n.f. (pl. ppnanw) cave | kogo
p”r (HL) v.A1 (v.n. prak” (f)) cut, slaughter | yanka
pram (H) n.m. (pl. prammw) blood | jini
prar” (L) n.m. the shrub Guiera senegaliensis | sabara
p”s” (L) v.A1 (v.n. psak”) bury ex mn ps” sw vyyawy I buried the corpse | binne
p”tl” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. ptlk” (f)) hit (once, to remove dust, etc.), clap ex mn ptl
kmn I clapped my hands | kaa, yi tafi
pa (L) v.D (v.n. phiy = phy) collect, gather ex mn p
sw zwy I gathered up the
corn | tara
pk” (H) n.f. (pl. pkakw) arm (entire arm); wing ex pk” dl”rky chicken wing |
hannu; fiffike
pk” kyarkyar (H LHL) n.? triceps | dantse na asa
pka ndkway (H H) n.f. “vulture wing”, cat’s whiskers the potherp (Gynandropsis
pentaphylla) | gasaya
plakashw (LHL) n.m. hawk | shaho
plgwy (TH) n.f. Sodom apple (Calotropis procera) | tunfafiya
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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pap”ra (LH) v.B2 (v.n. pp”rk” [note tones]) (plac. of par) cut many, slaughter many
ex mn ppr sy I cut many times | yayyanka
pp”ra ki (L H) n.m. potsherd | tsingaro
pp”ra kt” (L H) n.pl. calabash fragment, any broken piece | sakaina, laka
par (L) v.A1 (v.n. prak”) pick (beans) ex mn pr sw dzmy I picked beans | rore
par (L) v.A1 (v.n. prak”) spray ex mn pray by I sprayed water on him | fesa
par (HL) v.A1 (v.n. prk”) implant, haft ex mn par suw gti nuwny mn par suw gìti
nuwnáy | kafa, kwaa
pra (HL) v.B2 (v.n. prk” (f)) cry, make a cry, cry of an animal ex pr sy he
cried; prk” ta duwak” neighing of a horse | yi kuka
prats” (L) n.m. the tree Cassia singueana | runhu
pt” (T) quant. all ex pt”tln all of them; pt” sb” all the people | duka
py (L?) n.f. pond | rafi
pay (HH) v.A1 (v.n. pyak) meet | tare
pí (TH) n.f. (pl. píyayw) branch ex píy dm reshen bishiya | reshe
pler (L) n.m. (pl. plerrw) skin, hide | fata
plera shm (L H) n.? foreskin | loa
plera vn (L H) n.? lip | lee
plm (TH) n.m. pulp | totuwa
ppy (TH) n.m. woven tray | faifai
p (T) id. quickly ex ”m cm pi he did the work quickly | amsa amo
piya (HH) v.B (v.n. pyaw (f), pyak) lie down ex mn pyawn say I lay down |
kwanta
piya (HH) v.B (v.n. pyak) return ex mn pya sy I lay down | koma
pym (TH) n.f. (pl. pymamw) pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo) | kabewa
pyt” (TH) n.m. sweetness ex skwam m piyt” sweet honey | zai
piyay (HH) v.A2 (v.n. pyk [sic]) lay out, spread ex mn pytl say mn pìytlá say |
kwantar
piyay (HH) v.A2 take back, return (tr.) ex Q: f piy
m? - A: mn py
ndwul what
did you take back? - I took back the pot | mayar
puwa (L) v.B (v.n. pwak”) (tr., intr.) hide ex puwata sy he hid; puwa sw mr
nuwsy he hid his money | bxuya, bxoye
puway (L) v.A2 (tr.) hide ex st pway he is hiding it | bxoye
py˘na (H) adj. (pl. py˘ni) (f. py˘ya) white ex mbrgu py‰na white ram; tmku py˙ya
white ewe; tmakw py‰ni white sheep | fari
R
r””n (HH) v.A2 (v.n. r”nk”) seal, patch, stop up | lie
r”dla (L) v.B (v.n. rdl” (f), rdlak”) write | rubuta
rdz (TL) n.f., adv.time in the late afternoon, in the evening ex tywyka r”dz come in
the evening; krf vtl” ny r”dz 5 o’clock in the afternoon | da yamma
rdz (TH) n.m. late afternoon, evening | yamma
rf” (H) n.m. (pl. rfafw) miya | miya
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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r”f”n (HL) v.A2 (v.n. rfyafyn (m), r”f”nk” [note tones]) thatch ex mn r”f”n suw
lmy I thatched the hut | jinka
r”m (HL) v.A1 (v.n. rmk”) eat (meat) ex mr r”n tlwi I ate meat | ci (nama)
r”na (L) v.B (v.n. rm (f), rnak”) copulate (by humans), have sexual intercourse ex r”natla sy = r”natlr”nw he copulated with her | ika, yi jimaíi
r”na (HH) v.B (v.n. rnak) be abundant ex r”natln say they are abundant | yi yawa
r”nts” (HH) v.A2 (v.n. rmats” (f), rntsk”) have a stomach ache ex vwwun jt
r”ntsuwn = r”ntswn sy my stomach aches | ji ciwon ciki
r”tl” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. rtlk”) knock down, throw down | kayar, ka da
rv” (T) n.f. chaff | aiaiyi
r”v”” (HH) v.A2 (v.n. rva” (m), rv”ak) become thin ex mn rv”uwn say I
became thin | rame
r”v”z” (L) v.A2 (v.n. rvazhi (m), r”v”zak”) be fat ex r”v”a”ta sy he got fat | yi iba
ra (L) v.D (v.n. rhiy (f)) exceed, surpass ex rn rw he surpasses me | fi
ra (L) v.D (v.n. rhiy (f)) leak ex ln tuwun st ry (the roof of) my hut leaks | yi yoyo
ra
” (HH) v.A1 (v.n. r
ak (f)) (tr.) moisten; (intr.) get wet ex mn r
”tl say I
moistened it; kb” ra
”tl say the gown got wet | jikxa; jikxu
rcamby (TL) n.m. dodo with shaggy grass and ashes on skin | dodo (iri)
ra” (HH) v.A1 (v.n. rak) decay, spoil ex tlwi ra”t say the meat spoiled | rue
ryai (L) n.m., adj. dampness; cold (to touch) ex by ryayana cold water; lm‰
ryayaya cold soda; kt” ryyani cold things; by suw ryyy ‘the
water is cold | laima; sanyi
rak” (L) v.A1 (v.n. rkak” (f)) chase ex mn rk”tl”n sy I chased them off | kora
ramb” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. rmbk”) bother, upset | dama
rtaya (bor) v.B2 bor (v.n. rtyak) hang ex rty kb” tuws” he hung up his gown |
rataya
rva” (L) n.m. thinness | ramewa
rvazh” (L) n.m. fat, corpulence | tea
raw (HH) v.A1 (v.n. r‰ (f), rwak) request, beg, beseech ex mn r˘yt I beseeched
him; mn rw rwaw I made a beseechment | roa
ryy (TH) n.m. life | rai
rm (H) n.m. shade, shadow | inuwa
rna (bor) v.A2 bor (v.n. rnk”) belittle, despise, scorn ex rnwan sy he belittled
me | rena
rtlyi (T) n.m. necklace | dutsen wuya
r
n (TH) n.m. locust bean cakes used for flavoring | kalwa
rinja (L) v.B (v.n. rnjak”) fish (verb) ex mr rnjb I fishe | yi su
ryj (TL) n.m. (pl. ryjyyw) well (for water) | rijiya
rnna (H) adj. (pl. rnni) (f. rynya; iy is long in feminine, short in masc. and pl.) black
ex m” rnna black castrated goat; fw rynya black goat; cw rnni black goats |
bai
R˘ya (L?) n.m. man’s name (chief of Miya in 1983) | sunan mutum
ruwn” (L) v.A2 (v.n. rwnak”) cool off ex by rwun sy the water cooled off | huce
ruwa (L) v.B (v.n. rwak” (m)) plow, make ridgerows | hua, yi noma
ruway (bor) v.A2 bor (v.n. rwyak) be confused ex mn ruwy sy I was
confused | rudxe
rwun (L) n.m. (pl. rwunnw) wind | iska
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
39
S
s- (Ö -y) aux. see sw |
sba (H) pro.rel.pl. (pl. of b, m) ones who own, ones who do ex sba km
householders; sba yw madmen; sba mr rich people; dzf” sba mr rich males;
tvam sba mr rich women | masu
sb” (H) n.pl. (pl. sbabw) (pl. of sm) people | mutane
s
” (H) n.m. the tree Detarium microcarpum, D. senegalense | taura
s”k”n (HH) v.A2 (v.n. sk”nk”) swallow (verb) | haiye
s”la (HH) v.B (v.n. slak (f)) remain, be left over ex m d slawa? what’s left?; s”la
sy it’s left over | saura
sm (H) n.m. (pl. sb”, sbabw) person, man | mutum
s”n (L) v.A1 (v.n. snak” (f)) 1. know, know how to ex mn snya sy = mn snya
gam I know him; mn sn gan sn ka I know; wiy s”m ma nd”ra wiyuw neither one
knew about the other. 2. (with nd”ra) know about | sani, san da
s”na (HL) v.B (v.n. snw (m) (no gerund)) spend the night, sleep ex my snm yka
we slept there; mn snwn sy = mn sna s”nw I spent the night/slept | kwana, yi
barci
snw (TH) n.m. 1. sleeping; passing the night. 2. a day (24 hour period) ex sn‰ tsr
two days | kwana, barci
sn‰ dm (TH H) n.? dozing | gyangyai
sp”n (H) n.m. (pl. sp”nnw) tuwo, staple food | tuwo
sr”m (L) n.f. (pl. sr”mmw) knife | wua
sr”m m tlym (L H H) n.f. razor (“knife for shaving”) | aska
s”rka (bor) v.B2 bor (v.n. srkk”) stir something into liquid ex nn s”rknyh ‰b I
stirred the medicine into the water | sirka
srth” (TH) n.m. (pl. srthahw) lake | tabki
sa (L) v.D (v.n. shiy (f)) drink; smoke (tobacco) ex m s sbyay I drank water; tt s
tab” he is smoking | sha
sba (bor) v.B2 bor (v.n. sbk) be fond of, be used to ex sb sy he is used to it |
saba da
sb‰ (T) adj. new ex sbo ndwul = ndwul sb‰na new pot | sabo
sb˘da (HL) conj. because, because of; in order that ex saboda wanka because of that;
wy m ya nay sarariy na dnaw sb˘da yaw nza one cannot seen the sky
because of its (locusts) great numbers; d kiy kw d z”za ndyan hay sab˘da
gwn ka santla m kynuww they bring fire and shove it in (pits) because that
pcust does not like smoke; saboda d” gh”dzatl”n wutl” bazam in order that they
become young men (referring to young boys being circumcized) | saboda
sf” (H) n.m. coarse flour; dregs of beer | diddiga, tsaki
ska (bor) v.B2 bor (v.n. skk”) weave cloth ex mn sk sy I wove it | sakxa
sk (bor) v.A2 bor (v.n. skyak) change, do again ex sk sw gliy nuwsy he
changed his behavior; mn sk kab” I changed clothes | sake
sl (H) n.m. white-tailed mongoose (Ichneumia albicauda) | tunku
smay (L) n.m. trash, sweepings | shara
Smb (TL) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
san (L) v.A1 agree ex santa sy he agreed; st snwa sy he agrees | yarda
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sr (L) adv.loc, adj. distant ex kn k j sr ‘the house is far away; km srna a
distant house; vwagwahi srya a distant town’; kt” srni distant things | nesa, da
nisa
sar (L) n.A1 (pl. sr (m), srak”) 1. pour into ex sr by ‰
dk”man pour water into
the gourd bottle. 2. circumcise ex sar sw ly nuwny my son was circumcised |
ura; yi kaciya
saw (L) n.A1 (pl. swak”) rest, breathe, pant ex s˘ sy he rested | huta, yi numfashi
sw (H) n.f. (pl. swawaww) tail | jela, wutsiya
swkiy (H) n.? feeling better (after an illness) ex mn dky suw swkiyy I feel better |
saui
say (L) v.A1 (v.n. syak”) (intr.) be tired, (tr.) tire out ex saya sy he got tired; nk”
can saywan sy this work tired me out | gaji, gajiyar
sy (H) n.f. (pl. syayw) liver | hanta
say (H) aux. contraction of sw Ö -y, q.v. |
shg”d”l (L) n.m. calf; lower leg | sha raa
Shgin [Shgyin] (L?) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
shm (H) n.m. (pl. shmamw) penis | bura
shash”n (HH) v.A2 (v.n. shsh”nk”) smell, sniff | sansana
Shbiy (TL) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
shia (HH) v.B (v.n. shak (f)) 1. throw ex mn sha sw zkiyy I threw a stone’;
mn shf ˘ I agree with what you say. 2. lay eggs ex yt sh tsw she is
laying eggs | jefa, jefar, saka kxwai
shm (T) n.f. (pl. shmamw) farm ex shm tuwun my farm; shim ta Kasham Kasham’s
farm; Ksham shm Kasham is on the farm; vw shim ha bh” on father’s farm |
gona
shnk” (TH) n.m. (pl. shnkakw) tongue | harshe
shndr (TH) n.m. rust | tsatsa
shn” (T) n.m. cold weather ex rwun b shin” cold wind | ari
shinyi (HH) v.A2 (v.n. shnyk” (m)) suck ex tt shny shinyw he is sucking | tsotsa
shp” (T) n.f. spear grass (Imperata cylindrica) | tofa
shrh” (L) n.m. jealousy, envy | kishi, hassada
sh‰
sh‰
(T) n.m. (pl. sh‰
shwaww) rooster | zakara
shw (H) n.m. (pl. shwaww) oil | mai
shw (TL) adj. blue ex kb” shwya blue gown | shui
siya (L) v.B (v.n. syak”) move a bit ex siyata sy à siyata sáy | gusa
siyay (HH) v.A2 hitch up (child on back) ex siyya sy she hitched him up | zakudxa
skutiy (L) n.f. bellows | zugazugi
skwam (H) n.f. (pl. skwammw) honey | zuma
sw (Ö -y) (H L irreg) aux. (tones: If a vowel follows, suw contracts with the vowel
and imposes H tone; otherwise, súw has H and replaces the next tone with L. function:
Cannot be used in negatives, WH or yes/no questions, or sentences with focus;mutually
exclusive with, but similar in function to g- ~ gàm, q.v.) 1. (with a noun or
nominalized phrase, usually with -y) just, only, all that re<crref>mains… (cf. meaning
#3 of gm) ex s-kidtl”n just the third one of them; a iyka suw yayahiyuws-ay all
that remains is weaning him. 2. (in sw k”n(ay)) (then) here is…, (then) here comes…
ex jy d sw k”n lakmiy ttsk”m when here was the giraffe; ny bza sw
kny when here comes her family (“father & Co.”). 3. (in perfective, VERB s-y or
sw NOUN y) sense of definiteness or completion of the verb ex nj s-y he
refused; mr suw mbrgw-y he got a ram; b”sama sw kby he washed a
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
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gown. 4. (sometimes in perfective with intransitive verb, sw alone) sense of
definiteness or completion of the verb ex b”s”ta sw he bathed (= b”s”ta sy). 5.
(in imperfective, s- VERB -y) imparts future meaning to imperfective ex mn s zy I will put it on; t s bt m
-ay he will untie the goat. 6. (with adjective,
quantifier, or nominal predicates) perfectivity, having moved into a state ex t sw
gra b smay he became a prominent person; t suw ts”nts”may it became
fermented. 7. (with ‘have’ predicate, not used with final -ay) perhaps imparts
perfectivity, e.g. “came into possession of” ex Ndwya s- mr = Ndwya g- mr
Nduya has money |
sw (TL) adv.time tomorrow | gobe
T
tbabaw (L) n.m. (pl. tbabawww) bark (of tree) | awo
t”a (HH) v.B (v.n. tbak) close, shut, cover | rufe
tcku (TH) n.f. Gambian oribi (Ourebia ourebi) | batsiya
t”f” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. tytifi (f), tfk”) shoot ex mn tf” suw gwgmay I shot a dove |
harba
tgwar dz”h” (L?) n.m. (pl. tgwarw) (f. tgwar dzku) leper | kuturu
t”ka (L) v.B (v.n. tkak”) accompany ex t”kawan bhya kanwn he accompanied me
to my house | raka
tk”m (L) n.f. (pl. tk”mmw) chair, stool | kujera
t”k”n (HH) v.A2 (v.n. tk”nk” (m)) 1. beat (drum) ex t”kn suw gngamy ‘he beat
a drum. 2. touch ex t”knwn sy he touched me. 3. cling to | kadxa (ganga); taa,
mae
tkit”ki (T) n.m. silence | shiru
t”la (HL) v.B (v.n. tllk”) enter ex mn tlawn sy I entered | shiga
tlp” (L) n.f. (pl. tlppw) hoe for cultivating | fartanya
t”ma (L) v.B (v.n. tm (f), tmak”) sing ex t”ma st”may he sang | rera
tmku (TH) n.f. (pl. tmakwy) sheep, ewe | tinkiya
tmb”zm (HH) n.m. spirit | iska
tmyar (L) n.m. (pl. tmarrw) forehead | goshi
tn ( ) (T) prep., conj. since, from the time that ex tn bazara t was”nws” htln
hr bahy mtsaw from the hot season, he will spend the year with them up until the
harvest season | tun
t”n” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. tnk”) remember | tuna
tnni (L) n.m. thinking | tunani
t”n
” (HH) v.A1 (v.n. tn
ak) go close along ex mn tn
uwn t bngo I went
close along the wall | raa
t”nz” (L) v.A2 (v.n. twaz” (m), tnzak”) plant ex mn tnz” sw zwy I planted
sorghum | shuka
tr (L) n.pl. peers, age-mates ex tr”wun my peers; nkin tr”wun these peers of mine;
trma our peers; tra Kasham Kasham’s peers | tsararraki, saíoíi
t”r (HL) v.A1 (v.n. trk”) sew | inka
t”ra (L) v.B (v.n. tirk” (f), trak”) whisper, slander | raa
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tratsniy (TL) n.f. gizzard of chicken | undu
t”ray (HH) v.A2 (v.n. trayak”) greet ex t”raywan sy he greeted me | gayar
triy (H) n.m. dirt (on clothes, etc.) | azanta, daua
t”ry” (HH) v.A2 (v.n. tryk” (m)) pound in mortar ex t”ry suw zwy she pounded
sorghum | daka
ttl” (H) n.m. cotton (Gossypium spp.) | auduga
t”va (L) v.B (v.n. tvi (m), tvak”) walk, travel ex ty t”va tv he is walking | tafi, yi
tafiya
tvam (L) n.pl. (pl. of ím) women, wives ex nkin tvam these women | mata
t (T) linker f. ( ny) (m. n) 1. genitive linker for feminine head noun. 2. head of
independent genitive. 3. head of ordinal numeral | -r, ta
t (L) aspect hortative auxiliary |
ta (L) v.D (v.n. thiy) 1. eat (tuwo) ex mn t sw sp”ny I ate tuwo. 2. defeat,
conquer. 3. achieve goal | ci
t Ö -
w (L) negative, aspect (see maÖw for negation of all other clause types)
negative for subjunctive ex ty t zrw he should not call; f ta ra w”huw don’t
soak the clothes | ba Ö ba
t (H irreg) conj. (used when conditional clause is not understood as a narrative
sequence; see tn for non-perfective conditional clauses; see kwÖk for sequential
sense) 1. (introducing perfective clause ending in k) if ex t mbnatla s ían k, t˘
tln m tiy viyazaw d” baytly if the woman is beautiful, well they won’t kill her.
tjeu take her away; ta ”m ma dabra naka ba shimuw, to, shm tuws” d
llacyzy the that farm owner doesn’t come up with a plan, well his farm will be
ruined. 2. (introducing perfective concessive conditional, no k at the end) even if, no
matter if ex mn ta mar gm m‰t m ghraza, mn glw even if I get an old car, I
want it | idan, in
tb” (T) n.m. (pl. tbabw) tobacco (Nicotiana rustica; N. tabacum), cigarette | taba
tab”na (L) v.B2 (v.n. tybyaben (m), tb”nak”) abuse, berate, insult, disparage,
denigrate, malign ex mn tb”naya sy I abused him | zaga
tbrma (LH) n.m. palm leaf mat | tabarma
t bb” (T L) n.? elephantiasis of the scrotum | gwaiwa
tbaf” (H) n.m. grass | ciyawa
tbas” (H) n.m. wound | rauni
thy (TH) n.f. food (of animals or people) ex thy tuwun my food (cf. thywun ‘my
eating’) | abinci
tk”n (T) det.f. ( nyk”n) (m. nk”n) this, this one | wannan (mace)
tka (T) det.f. ( nyka) (m. nka) that, that one | waccan
tku (L) v. defective (masc. sg. imperative of ba; f.sg. imper. tk”m, pl. imper. tka , 1st
pl. imper. tmy) go! | jeka/ki/ku, mu je
tl (H) n.m. (pl. tlalw) beer ex tla zw guinea corn beer | giya
tal (HH) v.A1 (v.n. tlak (f)) winnow with wind ex tal sw zwy she winnowed
sorghum | shea
tlmy (TH) n.f. worm | tsutsa
tmas” (L) n.m. itching | aiayi
tambaye (bor) v.A2 bor (lovee is indirect object) ask ex d tmbaytla nj lw w n
they ask her which one she loves’ | tambaya
tn (H irreg) (used when conditional clause is not understood as a narrative sequence; see
t for perfective conditional clauses; see kwÖk for sequential sense) 1. (introducing
non-perfective clause ending in k) if ex f tn s bf kn k, f k”na kam b rf
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
43
if you are going to go home, by some vegetables; t˘, tn suw wnka ka, mm shin
tuwun gyy well, if that’s how it is, well there’s this famr of mine. 2. (introducing
non-perfective concessive conditional, no k at the end) even if, no matter if ex mn
tn g tlwun piy, n m gam bankwna ín ty even if I will be leaving early, I
will say good-bye to him | idan, in
tnjm (TL) id. indicates falling | amsa amo
tans” (HL) v.A2 (v.n. tmas” (m), tnsk”) itch ex tanswn sy I feel itchy | ji
aiayi
tnw (TL) conj. if it’s a case of ex tnw Kaf a kafwn mn, tnuw Gru kafwun mn whether it’s a case (of going to) Kafi, it’s me who is sent, or if it’s a
case (of going to) Bauchi, it’s me who is sent |
ts” (H) n.f. winter thorn (Faidherbia albida) | gawo
tt”fy (TH) n.f. (pl. tt”fyayw) beer strainer | mataci
tat”ha (HL) v.A2 (v.n. tt”hk”) strain, filter ex mn tth tal I strained beer | tace
tat”ray (HH) v.A2 exchange greetings | gaisa
ttabr (TLH) n.f. domestic pigeon | tantabara
ttsy (LH?) n.f. large red chili peppers (Capsicum annum) | tattasai
ttas” (L) n.f. chicken’s crop | maoo
tts” (H) n.f. tweezers | matsefata
ttsiy (L) n.f. (pl. ttsiyyw) tendon, vein | jijiya
tatuwa (L) v.A2 (v.n. ttuwak”) wipe out bowl with finger ex mn ttuwa tl”rky I
wiped out the calabash with my finger | sudxe
ty (HH) v. defective (imperative of bay;,pl. imper. tyy, 1st pl. imper. tyiym) take (it
there)! | kai!
tfir (H) n.m. fig trees Ficus gnaphalocarpa, F. sycomorus | aure
tmbr dzh” (TH) n.m. (pl. tmb ghnaw) (f. tmbr dzku) gazelle (Gazella
rufifrons) | barewa
tr (H) n.m. (pl. trarw) moon, month | wata
ttelw (TH) n.f. cornstalk flute | sirii
ttyl (TH) n.m. fruit bat Eidolon helvum | jemage
tiy (L) v.A1 (v.n. tyt” (f), tyk”) 1. beat, hit, kill ex mn tytla sy I beat her. 2. (with
day) spend the day ex mn tye mku yk I spent the day there | doka, kashe; wuni
tyatl” (L) n.m. (pl. tyatltlw) kunu | kunu
tyin (L) n.f. (pl. tyimmw) tooth | haori
tyin tvy (L T H) n.? incisors | haoran cizo
tyin twma (L T H) n.? molar | haoran taunawa
tyiy (L) n.m. (pl. tyiyyw) hand plow, hoe for banking ridgerows | garma
tzh” (T) n.m. gunea worm | kurkunu
tl”ma (L) v.B (v.n. tlym (m), tlmak”) shave ex mn tlmaya sw ghmuwsy I
shaved his head | aske
tlpy (TH) n.m. (pl. tlpyayw) leaves ex tlpy mas
” leaves of hemp; tlpy nuwun
my leaves | ganye
tlrf” (L) n.m. (pl. tlrffw) forest | kurmi
tlrky (TH) n.f. (pl. tlrkayayw) calabash, gourd bowl | warya
tlrky by (TH TH) n.f. gourd cup | moa
tl”rp” (HH) v.A2 (v.n. tlrpak) embrace ex tl”rp” sw wn tuwsy he embraced his
daughter | runguma
tla (L) v.D (v.n. tlhiy (m)) lift, pick up | aga
tla (H) v.D (v.n. tlhy (f)) stand up, wake up ex mn tlwn say I stood up | tashi
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tlak” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. tlykyki (m), tlkk”) scrape, abrade, scratch (to relieve itch) ex
mn tlk” suw twatwnay I scraped by body | kankare, karce, sosa
tlrwan (L) n.m. (pl. tlrwannw) root | saiwa
tlwiy (L) n.m. (pl. tlwiyyw) meat, flesh, muscle ex tlwiywan my muscles; tlwiy
nuwun my meat | nama
tlwiy ntsk”n (L T H) n.? wild animal | naman daji
tlwiy pk” (L H) n.? biceps ex tlwiy pkuwun my biceps | wanji
tlwiy shag”d”l (L L) n.? calf (of leg) | sha raa
tliy (HL) v.A1 (v.n. tlyk”) squeeze, press out | matsa, matse
tluw” (HH) v.A2 (v.n. tlwk”) wet mix ex mn tlw fra I mixed fura | dama
tlya” (HH) v.A1 (v.n. tli (f), tlyak) hoe, cultivate ex mn tlyi sw shn
tuwny I cultivated my farm’; m tlyi he farmed | yi noma, nome
tlyaw (L) v.A1 (v.n. tlyw (f), tlywak”) etch, trace designs ex tlyaw sw tlrkyay
he etched the calabash | zana
t‰, t˘ (F, L) interjection OK, well | to
tsa (L) v.D (v.n. tshiy) give | bayar
ts”f” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. tsfk”) dry up ex ws” tsf” say the grass dried up | bushe
ts”ga (L) v.B (v.n. tsg” (f), tsgak) sit down ex mn tsgawan sy I sat down; mlv
t
tsge the chief is seated | zauna
ts”gay (L) v.A2 seat ex ts”gaytl”n sy he seated them | zaunar
ts”gay (HH) v.A2 (v.n. tsgayak) (+ tspr) urinate; (+ yiy have diarrhea ex ts”gay sw tsp”ry he urinated; tt tsgaya e he has diarrhea | yi fitsari; yi
zawayi
ts”ma (HH) v.B (v.n. tstsm (f), tsmak) swear (t0) | rantse
tsmy (TH) n.f. (pl. tsmyayw) foot | afa
tsnts”m (L) adj. sour ex tl tsntsnna sour beer; lm‰ tsntsnya sour citrus’, kùt”
tsntsnni ‘sour things’, tàl j tsnts”n; kt” tsntsnni sour things; tl j tsnts”n the
beer is fermented; t suw tsnts”may it is sour/fermented | tsami
tspr (TH) n.f. urine | fitsari
tsr (L) num (in counting tsr) two ex sb” tsr two people | biyu
ts”r (?) v.A1 rake, sweep | share
ts”r (HL) v.A1 (v.n. tsts”r, tsrk”) stop, stand ex f tsrk sy you stopped; tsrtla
s mkw it’s midday (the sun has stood) | tsaya
tsrdy (TH) n.f. (pl. tsrdyayw) space between two huts filled by a wall | kusa
ts”rt” (HH) v.A2 (v.n. tsrtak) pick (peanuts) from vines, pull off ex mn tsrt” zwy
I picked corn | cire
tsry” (HH) v.A2 (v.n. tsryk”) step on ex mn tsrya sk”t”rwy = mn tsry
k”t”r I stepped on a scorpion | taka
tsa” (HH) v.A1 (v.n. tsak) extend, stretch ex mn tsuwn say I stretched | mie
tsgwa” (L) n.m. limping ex tt tsgwa” he is limping | dxingishi
tsk”m (H) n.f. (pl. tsk”mmw) the bush | daji
tsr (H) n.f. the tough grass Cymbopogon gigantea | tsaure
tsatsiya (HL) v.B2 ask repeatedly | tattambaya
tswar (L) n.f. exchanging ex my n sw tswary we exchanged | musaya
tsiy (HL) v.A1 (v.n. tsyk”) (tr., intr.) burn ex mn tsiy swasay I burned grass; ws”
tsiy say the grass burned | one
tsiy (HL) v.A1 (v.n. tsyk”) ask ex tsywn mn he asked m; tsy tsiyw he asked a
question | tambaya
tsiya (HH) v.B (v.n. tsyak (m)) dig | tona
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tsyaku (L) n.f. (pl. tsyakwkww) ridgerow | kunya
tsoa (HL) v.B2 (v.n. tswa” (m), ts˘k”) carve ex ts‰ ji = ts‰ sw jay he
carved wood | sassakxa
ts‰h‰ (T) adj. old (thing) ex ts‰ho km = kn ts‰h‰na old house | tsoho
tsway (L) n.m., adv.time morning ex sw tsway until morning | safe
tugur (HH) v.A2 (v.n. tgurak) wither ex zway tugurtl say the guinea corn withered
| yanwana
tku (L) v. defective (v.n. bwk” (f)) (m.sg. imper. of b”, buw; f.sg. imper. tkam, pl.
imper. twka) come! | yaka, yaki, ku zo
Tkwal (HH) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
tuwr” (bor) v.A2 bor (v.n. twrk”) push ex mn twr” sy I pushed it | tura
tw (H) n.m. (pl. twaww) arrow | kibiya
twah”(-tuwah”) (L) adj. different ex Vnm n Wshir twh”-tuwah” Miya and
Siri are different (languages) | daban
twatw (HH) n.f. 1. body; ex twatws his body; my tb”na twatwma we
abused each other. 2. each other (reciprocal) | jiki; juna
tway (HL) v. defectice (masculine and feminine singular imperative of buway; pl.
imper. , 1st pl. imper. twiym) bring! (imperative) | kawo!
ty
(TL) interjectiion exclamation of surprise or dismay | tabi
tykun (L) n.f. rain shower, esp. in the early morning | marka
tymtyam (TH) adj. odiferous, smelly, having a stench ex hm b ta tyamtyamni
smelly food | wari,oyi
tyan (HH) v.A1 stink ex tyantn say it stinks | yi wari
tywlln (TH) n.m. (pl. tywllmamw) cattle egret (Bubulcus ibis) | balbela
V
vah” (H) n.f. the potherb Ceratotheca sesamoides, false sesame | karkashi
vg”d” (L) n.f. (pl. vgddw) pants | wando
vn (H) n.m. (pl. vnanw) 1. mouth. 2. language ex vna my Miya language. 3. (with
expressed location) in front of, ahead of ex mn vna Kasham I’m in front of Kasham;
mn vnuws” I am in front of him; mn tsrwn vna km I stopped in front of the
house | baki, harshe
vn (H) n.f. (pl. vnanw) grinding quern | dutsen nia
vnah” (L) adv.loc. in front, first ex tln vnah” they are in front | a gaba, na farko
vna kw (H H) n.? flame | harshen wuta
vna mdz” (H T) n.f. riverbank | bakin kogi
vna sb” (H H) n.? language ex vna my Miya (languages) | harshe
vna sk (H L) n.f. story | tatsuniya
vriy (l) n.f. crying, cry (of various animals) ex tt vriy he is crying; vriya duwak”
neighing; vriya zhk” braying | kuka
v”rk” (HH) v.A2 (v.n. vrkk” (f)) give birth to, beget ex v”rk ly she bore a son;
yt vrka vrkw she is giving birth | haifa
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vrk” (H irreg) n.m. (pl. wtl”m) (vrk” phrase initial; see examples for tonal behavior)
boy, son ex vrk” nuwun my boy; nk”n vrk” this boy; mb” vrk” thigh of a boy
| yaro
vrk” dm (T H) n.? (pl. wtl” dm) fruit | an icce
vrk” km (T H) n.m. finger | yatsa
vrk” ts”my (T TH) n.m. toe | yatsan afa
vtam (H) n.f. false locust (Prosopis africana) | kxirya
v”vaya v.A2 pour repeatedly | zuzzuba
vzh” (H) n.f. sickness | cuta
va (L) v.D (v.n. vhiy (m)) (tr., intr.) pour, spill ex mn v sw mry I poured out
millet; by vta sy the water spilled | zuba
vki (L) n.f. (pl. dwan) (m. ys”) sister, close female relatives of same generation ex
vkya mwun my maternal aunt; vkya bwun my paternal aunt; vkyaza her sister |
íyaruwa
var (L) v.A1 (v.n. vrak”) singe ex mn vr tlw I singed the meat | babbake
var (HL) v.A1 (v.n. vrk”) run, run away ex nj vr say she ran away | gudu
vray (L) n.m. (pl. vrayyw) 1. seed ex vray nuwan my seeds (for planting); vray
zw sorghum seeds. 2. kind, type. 3. one’s blood relatives ex vraywan my relatives
(NOT ‘my kind’ or ‘my seeds’) | iri; zuriya
v
shi (L?) n.m. brother boyfriend | saurayi, anuwa
v
tl” (L) num. five ex sb” v
tl” five people | biyar
Vziya (L) n.m. man’s name | sunan mutum
vrdm (TL) n.m. type of small squirrel | kurege (iri)
vy (H) n.m. (pl. vyayw) doorway ex vya lm door of the hut | ofa
vyaw (L) n.m. (pl. vyyw) corpse | gawa
vyayw (HH) n.m. (pl. vyayuwww) fireplace, cooking tripod | murhu
vw (H) n.f. (pl. vwaww) 1. stomach, belly ex nj vw she is pregnant. 2. pregnancy.
3. inside, among | ciki, cikin
vuw (HL) v.A1 (v.n. vwk”) (intr.) boil ex by vuw say the water boiled | tafasa
vwa (H) n.loc. formative used with certain words referring to places |
vwagwahiy (H T) n.f. (pl. vwagwahiyyw) town, village | gari,auye
vwa shm (HH T) n.f. farm ex vw shim ha bh” on father’s farm | gona
vwshi = ghma vuwshi (L) n.m. (pl. vwshshw) rubbish heap | juji
vy (TH) n.m. buttocks | uwawu
vyyvyay (THL) adj. slippery, slimy ex mdeshi j vyyyavyay okra is
slimy | yaui
W
-w (H) negative, aspect see m Ö -w, t Ö -w | ba
wh” (T) n.f. (pl. whahw) sand | yashi
w
, w (L) interr.pro. (w when clause final; see w for examples) who?, whom? ex w
jik n? who is it?; w zratln? = w
d zratln? who called them?; w
jy
zruwsa? who will call him? | wa?
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
47
w = (L) interr. ( is by far the most frequent; see n for focussed subject equational
questons) question marker of any type of question (yes/no, constituent--na only in
constitent questions) ex wna jirk d” uwy wa? which monkey sustained a
fracture?; tukusm gam, m jy ”man wnk”n wa?! hedgehod, is it you has been
treating me thus?! |
wciya (TH) pro.f. (f. of wn) so-and-so | Wance
w” (H) n.m. (pl. waw) faeces, excrement, shit | kashi
wk” (H) n.m. (pl. wkakw) a lie | arya
wn (T) prep. like ex wn mn like me; wn fwy like you (ms); wn Kasham like
Kasham; wn Ndwya like Nduya; wn m” lika a goat | kamar
wan (L) v.A1 (v.n. wnak”) (tr., intr.) fill, fill with; be full ex mn wn sy I filled it;
ndwul wan sy the pot is full | cika
wn (TL) det. the, the one in question ex dgy ky fy o tl”rky d kiya zrf
wn d ary o when she scooped up flour in the calabash, she took that silver and
put it inside for him; my gm sw ín Mmmn wny we met up with that
Mamman; tway fy wana mn sw bring that flour so I might drink | -n/-r
wn (TL) pro.m. (f. wcya) so-and-so | Wane, Wance
wnka (H) adv.man. thus ex tln d t mka ntln wnk they were living like that;
tvam kw nay wnka k s mry when the women saw things were like that, they
would run away; saboda wanka because of that | haka
wnk”n (H) adv.man. thus ex dga tluws, ptl kab” wankn when he arose, he shook
his gown thus | haka
wnkwa (T) interr.adv.man. how?, by what means? ex f kwy zhk” wnkwa? how/by
what means did you catch the donkey? | yaya?
wnkw
ky (TL) quant.univ. however …, no matter how… ex f ta gh”mak gm
wnkw
ky, n nay gm however you climb up, I will watch | ko yaya Ö
wr (H) n.m. festival, celebration, holiday ex wra Kavr the Kav”ra festival | biki, salla
wrawaraty (LH) n.m. cockroach | kyankyaso
wray (bor) v.A2 bor (v.n. wryak) select out ex mn wry sw fuw tuwny I
removed my goat (from the group) | ware
was” (L) v.A1 (v.n. wshashi (m), wsak”) swell ex w wasu wsw it swelled |
kumbura
ws”n (L) n.m. 1. year ex c‰nk”n ws”n di f” it is now 40 years. 2. rainy season ex
jy wasm in the rainy season; rei j ws”m it is cold during the rainy season |
shekara, damina
was”na (L) v.A2 (v.n. wshasham (m), ws”nak”) spend a year ex was”nata sy it
lasted a year | shekara
wsay (L) n.f. salt | gishiri
wshasham (L) n.m. (pl. wshashammw) 1. rainy season ex whsasham mbnata
sw the rainy season has been good. 2. year | damina, shekara
wyna = wna (L) interr. adj. m. (pl. wyni) (f. wyya) which one?, which…? | wanne?,
waneÖ?
wyna Ö ky (L) quant.univ. ( wyni) (f. wyya Ö ky; used only as the head of a
generic clause; see k‰wna Ö (ky)) every …, any … | kowane
wyya (L) interr. adj. f. (pl. wyni) (f. of wyna ) which one?, which…? ex wyya d
za ? which one (f. thing) broke?; f k”na wyy tl”rkya? which calabash did you
buy? | wanne?, wane.?
wyya Ö ky (L) quant.univ. ( wyni) (f. counter part of wyna Ö ky; used only as
the head of a generic clause; see k‰wyy Ö (ky)) every …, any … ex t t gan
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
48
wy vuwgwhiyky, d kwiya s”by whatever town they conquered, they would
capture people (as slaves) | kowaceÖ
w (L) interr.pro. (form used when non-initial; see w) who?, whom? ex tab”na we?
who did he abuse?; Ndwya k”na tlwy we? who did Nduya buy meat for?; n zaka
kn h we? whose house did you enter?; n baka Kn˙ ín w? who did you go
to Kano with? | wa?
wky = wnky (TL) quant.univ. (used only as the head of a generic clause; see
k‰wnky) whoever …, anyone who … ex t zra gam Kasham wky/wnky,
t m nayw whoever calls Kasham, he will not answer; Ndwya t zr gam wky,
t m hayw whoever Nduya called, he would not answer | kowa
wlewl (HHL) n.m. wild hunting dog (Lycaon pictus) | kyarkeci
wna = wyna (L) interr. adj. m. (pl. wyni) (f. wyya) which one?, which…? ex wna
jirk d” uwy wa? which monkey sustained a fracture | wanne?, waneÖ?
wnky = wky (TL) quant.univ. (used only as the head of a generic clause; see
k‰wnky) whoever …, anyone who … ex t zra gam Kasham wky/wnky,
t m nayw whoever calls Kasham, he will not answer; f tn g zara wnky, t
zuwaf” zuww whoever you call, he will ignore you | kowa
wr (H) n.m. (pl. wrarw) neck | wuya
wy (T) det.m. ( nyw) (f. wya) a,an, a certain (one), another (one) | wani, wata
wiy (HL) v.A1 (v.n. wyk”) shout, cry out ex mn
wyaz wyw I am calling out to
her | yi ara, yi ihu
wiya (HH) v.B (v.n. wyak) jump down ex wiya sy she jumped down; wr b wya
d”b” wrestling festival (festival of jumping into the arena) | dira
wyahn dzh” (HH) n.m. (pl. wya sb”) (f. wyahn dzku) Hausa person | Bahaushe
wytsuwy (T TL) adv.time day after tomorrow | jibi
w” (H) n.f. locust bean tree (Parkia biglobosa) | orawa
wlum (L) n.m. sprouted grain for brewing beer | soko
wn (H) n.f. (pl. wtl” tvn) girl; daughter ex wn gyaiya little girl; wn tuwun my
daughter | yarinya, íya
wn (H) n.? playing (only as object of ”m ‘do’) ex wtl”mi n sw wnay the
children played | wasa
wuna (L) v.B (v.n. wnak”) move ex wuna sy he moved | gusa, yi motsi
wna baday (H L) n.? (pl. wnabadayyw) small basket | kwando arami
wunay (HH) v.A2 (v.n. wnayk”) stir thick substance ex wuny sw sp”ny =
wuny sp”n she stirred tuwo | tua, motsar
wunay (HH) v.A2 (v.n. wnayak (f)) sprain ex mn wnay wnyw I got a sprain |
gurdxe
wura (L) v.B (v.n. wr (m), wrak”) copulate (of animals) ex mbrgu wura sw
tmakwy the ram copulated with the ewe | yi barbara
wur” (HH) v.A2 (v.n. wrak”) sip | kura
wrum (L) n.m. (pl. wrummw) knee | gwiwa
wus” (L) v.A1 (v.n. wsak”) chip, pinch off piece ex ndwul wus”ta sy the pot chipped
| algace
Wshir (L?) n.?, adv.loc. Siri town | Siri
wt (TH) num. one; a, a certain; the same ex sn wut one person; yr nm nd
wty we speak the same language; wt once, one time; mn bwn gKan‰ wt I have been to Kano once | aya
wtl” (L) n.pl. (used as the first element of numerous compounds) child(ren); small | an,
íyar
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
49
wtl” bazan (H L) n.pl. (pl. of bndz”h”) young men | samari
wtl” ghrwiy (H L) n.? calf (of cow) | marai
wtl” mkwakwm (H HH) n.m. baby | jinjiri
wtl” my (H H) n.pl. (pl. of ly, wn) children, offspring ex wtl” niywan my children |
yara, íyaíya
wtl” tvm (H L) n.pl. (pl. of wn, bzaniy) girls | íyan mata
wtl” zham (H TH) n.pl. bird | tsuntsu
wyak d”b” (LLH HH) n. wrestling match | kokawa
Y
yddny (TH) adv.man.rel. how + indirect question | yadda
yagu (L) v.A1 (v.n. ygwak”) mix dry substances ex mn ygwa sw mry ín zw
I mixed millet and sorghum | garwaya
yky (TL) n.m. war | yai
ymm (TLH) adv.loc. west | yamma
yn (H) n.m. grave ex ynwas” my grave’; ynza her grave; yntln their grave | kabari
yarda (L) v.B2 (v.n. yrdak”) agree ex mn yrda sy I agre | yarda
ys” (H) n.m. (pl. dwan) (f. vki) brother, close male relatives of same generation ex
ys” bwun paternal uncle; ys”za her brother | dxanuwa
ywun (H) n.f. (pl. ywunnw) elephant (Loxodonta africana) | giwa
ykwa = íykwa (T) interr.adv.loc. where? ex fy bafiy ykwa? where are you going?;
f b”kw ykw? where did you come from? | ina?
ynf” (L) n.f. the plum tree Vitex doniana | inya
ykwky (TL) quant.univ. (only as the head of a generic clause; see k‰ykw)
wherever …, anywhere that … ex my ta bam gn ykwky, kwfa miy nayy
wherever we went, we would see him | koíina
yw (H) n.f. madness, insanity | hauka
yw (H) n.? dawn ex yw ts sy the dawn has come | gari, yanayi
Z
z”k” (HL) v.A1 (v.n. zkk”) thresh (on ground or in mortar) ex mn zk zw I
threshed sorghum | sussuka
zkiy (L) n.f. (pl. zkiyyw) 1. stone ex zkiy ge
iya small stone (for throwing, etc.). 2.
hill | dutse
zkiya ghns (L L) n.? hail | anara
zlam (H) n.m. (pl. zlammw) rainbow | bakan gizo
z”na (L) v.B (v.n. znak”) lay out to dry ex mn zna sw kby I lay the gown out to
dry | shanya
Miya-English-Hausa Dictionary
50
z”za (L) v.B (v.n. zhzhi (f), zzak”) skin, flay ex mn zza sw mbrgwy I flayed
the ram | fee
z”za (L) v.B (v.n. zzak”) put in/on repeatedly | sassaka
za (L) v.D (v.n. zahy) 1. be enough ex z sw it’s enough; hmbta zn sy the food
is sufficient for me. 2. be up to, be strong enough for | isa (intr., tr.)
za (L) v.D (v.n. zahy (f)) enter ex mn zwan sy I entered; tt zws” zw he entered |
shiga
za (L) v.D (v.n. zahy) put, put on ex mn z sw kby I put on a gown | sa, saka
zí” (H) n.f. (pl. zíaíw) bow (for shooting) ex kwmbala zí” zá’” | baka
zab” (L) v.A1 (v.n. zb” (f), zbak”) dance ex zab” szabay s/he danced | yi rawa
z
a (L) v.B2 (v.n. z
ak”) choose ex z
a sw mlvy they chose a king | zaa
za
” (HH) v.A1 (v.n. z
ak) frighten, scare ex mn z
iy say I scared him | razana,
tsorata
zfiy (T) n.m. hot, heat ex kuw j zfiy the fire is hot; ndwul b zfiy hot pot; kt”
sba zfiy hot things | zafi
zga (T) n.? common-law marriage |
zgariy (L) n.m. mischief | rigima
zny (TL) n.f. woman’s wrapper (not a traditional article of Miya clothing) | zane
zniy (L) n.m. eyebrow, eyelashes | gira, gashin ido
zar (L) v.A1 (v.n. zhrar” (m), zrak”) call, summon; (+ nduw call by a name) | kira
zay (HH) v.A1 (v.n. zyak) 1. put in ex zay sw ghuwy à zay súw ghàuwáy. 2.
cause ex m zyÖ why…?; bm b zyÖ the reason why… | sa
zaz”ma (L) v.B2 (v.n. zz”mak”) coax ex mn zz”maya ta b”t I coaxed him to enter |
lallashe
zha (L) v.D (v.n. zhhiy) 1. come upon someone unaware, burst in on ex mn zhf say I
came upon you unawares. 2. (with wiyhan) be one’s concern ex wyhan zhy maw
it’s none of his business; wywan zhm mw I couldn’t care less; ywar nuws” j
zhk” he chatters too much | samun wani ba da shirinsa ba, ìruwan waniî
zhbd (TH) n.f. civet cat (Viverra civetta) | jibda
zhk” (L) quant. much, many | da yawa
zhk” (T) n.m., n.f. (pl. zhkakw) donkey | jaki
zhm (TH) n.? (in wtl” zham) bird | tsuntsu
zhrak” (L) n.m. pied crow (Corvus albus) | hankaka
zhrar” (L) n.m. calling | kira
zhw (T) n.m. rope | igiya
zhzh”k” (H) n.m. (pl. zhzh”kkw) porcupine (Hystrix cristata) | beguwa
zhiga (L) v.B (v.n. zhg” (f), zhgak”) praise, shout praises of | yaba, yi kirari
zhym (TH) n.m. owl (Ptilopsis leucotis) | mujiya
ziyr” (L) v.A2 (v.n. zyrak” (f)) pass ex ziyr” sy he passed | wuce
zukut” (HH) v.A2 (v.n. zkutk”) push | tura
zw (H) n.m. (pl. zwaww) guinea corn, sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) | dawa
zuw (L) v.A1 (v.n. zwak”) 1. (tr.) leave ex zuwm km he left us at home. 2. ignore.
3. let, allow. 4. postpone, put off ex my zw sw bhiyy I put off the trip | bari,
yale, fasa
zway (H) n.f. (pl. zwayyw) peanuts, groundnuts (Arachis hypogaea) | gyaa
zw gam (H L) n.m. maize, corn (Zea mays) | masara
APPENDICES 1
APPENDIX I: PRONOUNS
Independent pronouns (8:§1.1)
Singular
Plural
mn
fy [fw:]
mc”/mciy
t/ty
nj/njy
1
2m
2f
3m
3f
1
2
my
hn
3
tln
Verbal Subject Clitics (8:§1.2)
1
2m
2f
3m
3f
1p
2p
3p
Perfective
Subjunctive
Negative
Subjunctive
Focused Subject
Perf. I; Imperf.
(w. no AUX)
Focused
Subject
Perf. II
Imperfective w.
AUX
Condit.
Future
mn
f
m
()
()
mn
f
m
Ø
d
(nj) d
mn
f
m
ty
nj
mn
fy
mc
t
nj
"
"
"
"
mn d
f "
m "
t
"
nj "
mn + AUX
f
"
m
"
t”
"
nj”
"
n
f
?
()
()
my "
hn "
tln "
my "
hn "
tln "
miy
h”n
tl”n
y
?
()
my
my
n
n
((tln) ) (tln) d
ta
"
"
t
"
my t
hn "
tln t
"
"
"
Intransitive Copy Pronoun Clitics (5:§4.1)
Verbal TAM’s (Perfective)
Nominal TAM’s (Subjunctive)
H H Class
‘X turned’
Other classes
‘X bathed’
H H Class
‘that X turn’
Other classes
‘that X bathe’
1 sg.
2 m.sg.
2 f. sg.
mn ghdza-wn say
f gh”dza-k say
m gh”dza-kn say
mn bsu-wan sy
f b”s”-ku sy
m b”s”-k”n sy
3 m.sg.
3 f.sg.
gh”dza-t say
gh”dza-tl say
b”s”-ta sy
b”s”-tla sy
mn gh”dza-wn
f gh”dza-f
m gh”dza-ghn
[ghdzn]2
d gh”dz-uws
d gh”dza-z
mn b”su-wun
f b”sa-f”
m b”sa-gh”n
[bsn]1
d b”s-uws”
d b”sa-za
(plural persons on next page)
1 References in parentheses are to Russell G. Schuh, A Grammar of Miya, Linguistics Volume 130,
University of California Press, 1998.
2The sequence /agh”C/ is realized phonetically as [C]. See 2:§1.2.2.
51
Appendices
my ghdza-m say
n gh”dza-k say
gh”dza-tl
n say
1 pl.
2 pl.
3 pl.
my bs”-m say
n b”s”-ka sy
b”s”-tl”n sy
52
my gh”dz-m
n gh”dza-n
d gh”dza-tl
n
my b”s-ma
n b”sa-n
d b”sa-tl
n
Direct Object Pronoun Clitics (5:§4.2)
Verbal TAM’s (Perfective)
Nominal TAM’s (Subjunctive)
H H Class
‘he untied …’
Other classes
‘he called …’
H H Class
‘that he untie …’
Other classes
‘that he call …’
zar-wan sy
zar-f” sy
3 m.sg.
3 f.sg.
b”ta-wn say
b”ta-f
say
b”ta-gh
n say
[btn]1
b”ta-y say
b”ta-tl say
zar-ya sy
zar-tla sy
d b”tu-wn
d b”ta-f
d b”ta-gh
n
[btn]1
d b”t-uws
d b”ta-z
d zar-uwn
d zara-f”
d zara-gh”n
[zrn]1
d zar-uws”
d zara-za
1 pl.
2 pl.
3 pl.
b”ta-m say
b”ta-n say
b”ta-tl
n say
zar-ma sy
zar-na sy
zar-tl”n sy
d b”t-m
d b”ta-n
d b”ta-tl
n
d zar-ma
d zara-n
d zara-tl
n
1 sg.
2 m.sg.
2 f. sg.
zar-gh”n sy
Indirect Object Pronoun Clitics (5:§4.3)
1 sg.
2 m.sg.
2 fsg.
3 m.sg.
3 f.sg.
1 pl.
2 pl.
3 pl.
L Tone Class Verb
H L Tone Class Verb
‘he called the boy for …’
zar-a-n sw vrk-y
zar-a-f
suw vrk-y
zar-a-gh
n suw vrk-y
[zrn]1
zar-a-y suw vrk-y
zar-a-tl suw vrk-y
‘he got money for …’
mar--n sw mr-y
mar--f sw mr-y
mar--ghn sw mr-y
[mrn]1
mar--y sw mr-y
mar--tl sw mr-y
zar-a-ma sw vrk-y
zar-a-n suw vrk-y
zar-a-tl
n suw vrk-y
mar--ma suw mr-y
mar--n sw mr-y
mar--tln sw mr-y
Independent Genitive Pronouns (8:§1.4)
SING ULAR
1
2m
2f
3m
3f
PLURAL
Masculine
Feminine
Plural
nwun
nf”
ngh”m
[nm]1
nws”
nz
twun
tf”
tgh”m
[tm]1
tws”
tz
nywan
nyf”
Masculine
Feminine
Plural
nma
2p nn
tma
tn
nyma
nyn
ntln
ttln
nytln
1p
nyim
nywas”
nyz
3p
Appendices
53
Direct Genitive Pronoun Clitics (10:§3.1.1)
mb” (f)
ngr (f)
gam (f)
pram (m)
tn (m)
kyar (m)
‘thigh’
‘leg’
‘jaw’
‘blood’
‘nose’
‘back’
mb”wun
2m mbaf”
mbagh”m
2f
[mbn]1
3m mbuws”
3f mbaza
ngarwn
ngarf”
ngargh”m
[ngarm]1
ngarws”
ngarza
a
gamuwun
gamaf”
gamagh”m
[gamm]1
gamuws”
gamaz
pramwan
pramf”
pramgh”m
[pragh”m]
pranwas”
pranza
tnwn
tnf
tnghm
[tnyn]2
tnws”
tnz
kyarwn
kyarf
kyarghm
mbma
2p mban
3p mbatln
ngarma
ngarn
ngartln
gamma
gaman
gamatln
pramma
prann
prantln
tmm
tnn
tntln
kyarma
kyarn
kyartln
1
1p
kyarws”
kyarz
Linked Genitive Pronouns (10:§3.3.1)
Masculine
Singular
1
2m
2f
3m
3f
Feminine
Plural
nwun
nf”
ngh”m
[nn]1
nws”
nz
1
2
Singular
nma
nn
1
2m
2f
3
ntln
3m
3f
Plural
Plural
twun 1
tf”
2
tgh”m
[tn]1
tws” 3
tz
tma
tn
Singular
1
2m
2f
ttln
3m
3f
Plural
nywan
1
nyf”
2
nygh”m
[nyin]3
nywas” 3
nyz
nyma
nyn
nytln
Demonstrative Adjectives and Pronouns (10:§2.2)
Near
Far
Masculine
Feminine
Plural
nk”n
nka
tk”n
tka
nykin
nyka
Indefinite Adjectives and Pronouns (10:§2.3)
Masculine
wy
Feminine:
wya
Plural:nywy
3
Underling /gh/ is palatalized to [y] in the environment of morphological palatalization and/or /y/
(2:§1.2.2).
Appendices
54
APPENDIX II: VERB CLASSES
The paradigms in this Appendix illustrate all the forms characteristic for all the verb
classes described in Chapter 4 and all the TAM’s described in Chapter 5. They are
divided into two large formal classes: Verbal TAM’s and Nominal TAM’s (see 5:§1
for this distinction). Within each of these paradigms, the verbs are listed according to the
following eleven classes:
L Ca “L” MONO-VERBS, 4:§1.2.3.4
H Ca “H” MONO-VERBS, 4:§1.2.3.5
L CVCa
L
L
CVC CVC©
H H CVCa
H
H
H CVC H CVC©
H L CVCa
H L
L H
CVC CVC©
“L” POLY-VERBS of the final a class 4:§1.2.3.1
“L” POLY-VERBS of the final Ø class “H H” POLY-VERBS of the final a class 4:§1.2.3.2
“H H” POLY-VERBS of the final Ø class “H L” POLY-VERBS of the final a class
4:§1.2.3.3
“H L” POLY-VERBS of the final Ø class The CVC and CVC” examples of the “final Ø classes” are phonologically predictable
variants, but both are included with Verbal TAM’s to show how tones are distributed
when the verb roots have one and two syllables respectively. With Nominal TAM’s, all
verbs have final -a, thus neutralizing all termination distinctions.
The citation form of the example verbs for each Verb Class is the gerund (4:§2.2).
Gerunds are the simplest reference for tone class. For each class, there is a transitive verb
to illustrate the form with no clitics (Ø Object), the IO Pronoun clitic, and the DO
Pronoun clitic and an intransitive verb to illustrate the Intransitive Copy Pronoun
(ICP). Aside from Imperatives, which by definition can have only subjects which
include 2nd person, the forms are those which would have a non-nominal 3rd masculine
singular subject (‘he VERB’). Type of subject never affects the form of the verb itself.
The pronominal clitics are third masculine singular in all cases except ICP for
Imperatives, which, again, can have only 2nd person subjects. Tones on the third
masculine singular clitics are representative of tones for all clitics whose tones are
determined by lexical verb tone rather than having inherent tone (see 4:§1.2.2 for tonal
classes of clitics).
The illustrative TAM’s are the following:
Appendices
55
Verbal TAM’s
Nominal TAM’s
Imperative (5:§2.1.1)
Perfective (5:§2.1.3)
Hortative (5:§2.1.3)
Imperfective with Totality s-…-y (5:§2.2.3.5)
Subjunctive (5:§2.2.2)
Perfective with focused subject (5:§2.2.1)
Negative Imperative/Horative/Subjunctive (5:§3.3)
The only important TAM forms which are not included are the Counterfactual
(5:§2.1.4) and the Conditional Future (5:§2.2.5), for which I do not have full paradigms.
The negative Perfective (5:§3.1) is identical to the Perfective with m (COMPLEMENTS)
-w following the verb. Negative Imperfective (5:§3.4) is identical to the Imperfective
illustrated here, but with the discontinuous negative m-…-w replacing the s-…-y
Totality.
VERBAL TAMS
TAM
Verb Class
Ø object
Imperative
L Ca
tshiy ‘give’
ts-y
tsy-y
tsym-y
ts-ya
tsy-y
tsym-y
H Ca
ts
tsy
tsym
kwhy ‘lack’
z-ku
zy-ka
zy-m
tlhy ‘stand up’
kwy4
kwyy
kwymy
tkak”
‘accompany’
?5
kw-y
kwy-y
kwym-y
tl-k
tly-k
tly-m
tsgak” ‘sit down’
tka-y
tkiy-y
tkiym-y
tka-ya
tkiy-ya
tkiym-y
tsga-ku
tsgiy-ka
tsgiy-m
• singular
• 2 plural
• 1 plural
L CVCa
IO pronoun
DO pronoun
ICP
zhiy ‘enter’
L CVC
tka
tky
tkiym
zrak” ‘call’
zra-y
zriy-y
zriym-y
zr-ya
zriy-ya
zriym-y
L CVC”
zr
zry
zriym
bsak” ‘wash’
bo-ku
bwiy-ka
bwiy-m
bsak” ‘bathe’
bsa-y
bsiy-y
bsiym-y
bs”-ya
bsiy-ya
bsiym-y
H H CVCa
bs”
bsy
bsiym
btak ‘untie’
bs”-ku
bsiy-ka
bsiy-m
ghdzak ‘turn’
bta
bty
btiym
bta-y
btiy-y
btiym-y
bta-y
btiy-y
btiym-y
ghdza-k
ghdziy-k
ghdziy-m
bwak” ‘go out’
(continued on next page)
Ø object forms of this verb include the Totality suffix -a;y (7:§2). Vaziya would not give this verb in
the affirmative Imperative without this suffix.
5Kwa; ‘lack’ was the only transitive H class monoconsonantal verb I found. Vaziya could make no sense
of this verb with an Indirect Object.
4The
Appendices
Imperative
(continued)
56
H H CVC
lak ‘chop’
ala-y
liy-y
liym-y
l-y
liy-y
liym-y
H H CVC”
l
ly
liym
rak ‘moisten’
--------6
dzriy-k
dzriy-m
rak ‘decay’
ra-y
riy-y
riym-y
r”-y
riy-y
riym-y
H L CVCa
r”
rby
riym
-------------7
r”-k
riy-k
riy-m
snw ‘spend night’
-------------
-------------
-------------
sna-k
sniy-k
sny-ma
tsrk” ‘stop’
tsr-k
tsriy-k9
H L CVC
mrk” ‘get’
mr
mry 8
mr-y
mr-y
[
mry-y
mry-y
[
[
]
mrym
[
H L CVC”
dzrak ‘scatter’
]
_ ]
mryma-y
[ – – – _]
_ ]
mryma-y
[ – – – _]
tfk” ‘shoot’
tf
tfy
[
]
tfym
[
]
TAM
Verb Class
Ø object
Perfective
L Ca
tshiy ‘give’
H Ca
ts
kwhy ‘lack’
tsry-m
[
]
ísk” ‘be sated’
tf-y
tfy-y
tf”-y
tfy-y
ís”-k
ísy-k
[
[
[
_ ]
_ ]
_ ]
tfyma-y
[– – – _ ]
tfyma-y
[– – – _ ]
ísy-ma
[– – – ]
IO pronoun
DO pronoun
ICP
zhiy ‘enter’
tsa-ya
za-ta
tlhy ‘stand up’
kwa-y
L CVCa
kw
---------3
tkak” ‘accompany’
tla-t
tsgak” ‘sit down’
t”ka
zrak” ‘call’
t”ka-y
t”ka-ya
L CVC
ts”ga-ta
ghrak” ‘grow old’
zar
zara-y
zar-ya
ghar-ta
6The only intransitive
7I found no transitive
tsa-y
verb of this type that I found requires a plural subject.
verbs and only two intransitive verbs in this class. The intransitive verb here is the
only multiconsonantal verb I found where a regular gerund (*s©;na;k©) was not accepted. The form
s©;na;w is a deverbal noun (4:§2.3).
8See 4:§1.2.3.6.2 for the unusual contour tone associated with the plural Imperative suffix -iy with H L
class verbs.
9The tones I transcribed for this form are HHL, as given here. Expected would have been HFL or H!HL.
This could be a transcription error—cf. 4:§1.2.3.6.2.
Appendices
Perfective
(continued)
57
L CVC”
bsak” ‘wash’
b”s”
btak ‘untie’
b”sa-y
b”s”-ya
H H CVCa
b”s”-ta
ghdzak ‘turn’
b”ta
lak ‘chop’
b”ta-y
b”ta-y
H H CVC
gh”dza-t
dzrak ‘scatter’4
al
rak ‘moisten’
ala-y
al-y
H H CVC”
dzar-tln
rak ‘decay’
ra”
-------------5
raa-y
ra”-y
H L CVCa
ra”-t
snw ‘spend night’
-------------
-------------
H L CVC
------------mrk” ‘get’
s”n-t
tsrk” ‘stop’
mr
tfk” ‘shoot’
mar-y
mr-y
H L CVC”
tsr-t
ísk” ‘be sated’
t”f
t”f-y
t”f-y
í”s-t
IO pronoun
DO pronoun
ICP
TAM
Verb Class
Ø object
Hortative
L Ca
tshiy ‘give’
H Ca
t tsa
kwhy ‘lack’
bsak” ‘bathe’
zhiy ‘enter’
t tsa-y
t tsa-ya
t za-ta
tlhy ‘stand up’
t kwa-y
L CVCa
t kwa
---------3
tkak” ‘accompany’
t tla-t
tsgak” ‘sit down’
t t”ka-y
t t”ka-ya
L CVC
t t”ka
zrak” ‘call’
t ts”ga-ta
bwak” ‘enter’
t zar
bsak” ‘wash’
t zara-y
t zar-ya
L CVC”
t boo-ta
bsak” ‘bathe’
t b”s”
btak ‘untie’
t b”sa-y
t b”s”-ya
H H CVCa
t b”s”-ta
ghdzak ‘turn’
t b”ta-y
t b”ta-y
H H CVC
t b”ta
lak ‘chop’
t gh”dza-t
dzrak ‘scatter’4
t al
rak ‘moisten’
t ala-y
t al-y
H H CVC”
t dzar-tln
rak ‘decay’
t ra”
-------------5
t raa-y
t ra”-y
H L CVCa
t ra”-t
snw ‘spend night’
-------------
-------------
H L CVC
------------mrk” ‘get’
t s”n-t
tsrk” ‘stop’
t mr
tfk” ‘shoot’
t mar-y
t mr-y
H L CVC”
t tsr-t
ísk” ‘be sated’
t t”f
t t”f-y
t t”f-y
t í”s-t
Appendices
58
NOMINAL TAMS
TAM
Verb Class
Ø object 10
Imperfective
L Ca
tshiy ‘give’
(+ s-…-y
Totality)
H Ca
t s- tsy
kwhy ‘lack’
IO pronoun8
DO pronoun
ICP
zhiy ‘enter’
t s- ts-yy
t s- ts-uws-y
t s- z-ws-y
tlhy ‘stand up’
t s- k-ws-y
L CVCa
t s- kwy
---------3
tkak” ‘accompany’
t s- tl-ws-y
tsgak” ‘sit down’
t s- tk-yy
t s- tk-uws-y
L CVC(”)
t s- tky
bsak” ‘wash’
t s- tsg-uws-y
bsak” ‘bathe’
t s- bsy
btak ‘untie’
t s- bsa-yy
t s- bs-uws-y
H H CVCa
t s- bs-uws-y
ghdzak ‘turn’
t s- btay
lak ‘chop’
t s- bta-yy
t s- bt-uws-y
H H CVC(”)
t s- ghdz-uws-y
rak ‘decay’
t s- lay
-------------5
t s- la-yy
t s- l-uws-y
H L CVCa
t s- r-uws-y
snw ‘spend night’
------------mrk” ‘get’
-------------
-------------
H L CVC(”)
t s- sn-uws-ay
tsrk” ‘stop’
t s- mry
t s- mra-yy
t s- mr-uws-ay t s- tsr-uws-ay
IO pronoun
DO pronoun
TAM
Verb Class
Ø object
ICP
Subjunctive
L Ca
tshiy ‘give’
d tsw
kwhy ‘lack’
d tsa-y
d ts-uws”
H Ca
d z-uws”
tlhy ‘stand up’
d k-uws
L CVCa
d kwaw
---------3
tkak” ‘accompany’
d tl-uws
tsgak” ‘sit down’
d t”kaw
bsak” ‘wash’
d t”ka-y
d t”k-uws”
L CVC(”)
d ts”g-uws”
bsak” ‘bathe’
d b”saw
btak ‘untie’
d b”sa-y
d b”s-uws”
H H CVCa
d b”s-uws”
ghdzak ‘turn’
d b”taw
lak ‘chop’
d b”ta-y
d b”t-uws
H H CVC(”)
d gh”dz-uws
rak ‘decay’
d alaw
-------------5
d ala-y
d al-uws
H L CVCa
d ra-uws
snw ‘spend night’
------------mrk” ‘get’
-------------
-------------
H L CVC(”)
d s”n-ws
tsrk” ‘stop’
d marw
d mar-y
d mar-ws
d ts”r-ws
zhiy ‘enter’
Ø object and IO pronoun object forms both end in -a and the Totality suffix is -ay. The abutting a’s
coalesce to give “Cay”. There is no non-arbitrary way to decide where the morpheme boundary is, so I
have written these forms with no morpheme division between verb form and Totality suffix.
10The
Appendices
TAM
Verb Class
Ø object
Perfective w.
focused
subject
L Ca
tshiy ‘give’
t d
tsw
H Ca
DO pronoun
ICP
zhiy ‘enter’
t d
tsa-y
t d
ts-ws”
t d
z-ws”
tlhy ‘stand up’
kwhy ‘lack’
t d
kw-uws
L CVCa
t d
kww
tkak” ‘accompany’
---------3
t d
tl-uws11
tsgak” ‘sit down’
t d
tkaw
bsak” ‘wash’
t d
tka-y
t d
tk-uws”
L CVC(”)
t d
tsg-uws”
bsak” ‘bathe’
t d
bsaw
btak ‘untie’
t d
bsa-y
t d
bs-uws”
H H CVCa
t d
bs-uws”
ghdzak ‘turn’
t d
b
taw
lak ‘chop’
t d
b
ta-y
t d
b
t-uws
H H CVC(”)
t d
gh
dz-uws
rak ‘decay’
t d
law
-------------5
t d
la-y
t d
l-uws
H L CVCa
t d
r-uws
snw ‘spend night’
------------mrk” ‘get’
-------------
-------------
H L CVC(”)
t d
marw
t d
mar-ya9
t d
mar-ws”9
t d
s”n-ws
tsrk” ‘stop’
IO pronoun
DO pronoun
TAM
Verb Class
Ø object
Negative
Hortative/
Imperative/
L Ca
tshiy ‘give’
Subjunctive
H Ca
f ta ts-w
t ts-w
kwhy ‘lack’
• 2 ms subj.
• 3 ms subj.
IO pronoun
59
t d
ts”r-ws”9
ICP
zhiy ‘enter’
f ta ts-ws-uw
t ts-ws-w
f ta z-f-w
t z-ws-w
tlhy ‘stand up’
f ta kw-uws-w
t kw-uws-w
L CVCa
f ta kww
---------3
t kw-w
tkak” ‘accompany’
f ta z-f-w
t z-ws-w
tsgak” ‘sit down’
f ta t
k-y-w
t tka-y-w
f ta t
k-ws-w
t tk-uws-w
L CVC(”)
f ta t
ka-w
t t
ka-w
bsak” ‘wash’
f ta ts
g-f-w
t tsg-uws-w
bsak” ‘bathe’
f ta b”sa-y-w
t bsa-y-w
f ta b”s-uws-w
t bs-uws-w
H H CVCa
f ta b”s-w
t bs-w
btak ‘untie’
f ta b”sa-f-w
t bs-uws-w
ghdzak ‘turn’
f ta bt-y-w
t bt-y-w
f ta b
t-uws-w
t b
t-uws-w
H H CVC(”)
f ta b
ta-w
t b
ta-w
lak ‘chop’
f ta gh
dza-f-w
t gh
dz-uws-w
rak ‘decay’
f ta la-y-w
t la-y-w
f ta l-uws-w
t l-uws-w
H L CVCa
f ta al-w
t la-w
-------------5
------------t r-uws-w
snw ‘spend night’
-------------
-------------
-------------
f ta gh
dza-f-w
t gh
dz-uws-w
tsrk” ‘stop’
H L CVC(”)
f ta tsa-y-w
t tsa-y-w
mrk” ‘get’
f ta mar-w
t mar-w
f ta mar-y-w fa ta mar-ws-uw
t mar-y-w
t mar-ws-uw
f ta ts”ra-f-w
t ts”r-ws-uw
11The final L is probably a transcription error for downstepped H—cf. t© d©; b-uws©; ‘HE went’. The
final L domain shown for the H L CVC(©) verbs may be the same error—cf. the Negative Hortative
counterparts.