Appendix:Basic Tswana glossary
Spend
| Translation | Phrase (formal) |
Phrase (informal) |
|---|---|---|
| Hello, Sir. | Dumela rra. /dumɪla r̩ra/ |
|
| Hello, Madam. | Dumela mma. /dumɪla m̩mo/ |
|
| Hey! | Eitha! /ɪ.itʰa/ | |
| How are you? | O tsogile jang? /ʊ t͡sʊŋilɪ d͡ʒaŋ/ |
Le kae? /lɪ ka.ɪ/ |
| I'm well. | Ke tsogile sentle. /kɪ t͡sʊŋilɪ sɪnt͡ɬɪ/ |
Re teng. /rɪ tɪŋ/ |
| Ga ke re sepe. /χa kɪ rɪ sɪpːɪ/ | ||
| Thank you. | Ke a leboga. /kɪ a lɪbʊχa/ |
Ke itumetse. /kɪ itumɪt͡sɪ/ |
| Please. | Tswee-tswee. /t͡swɪ.ɪ t͡swɪ.ɪ/ | |
| What is your name? | Leina la gago ke mang? /lɪ.ina la χaχʊ kɪ maŋ/ |
O mang? /ʊ maŋ/ |
| My name is... | Leina la me ko... /lɪ.ina la mɪ kʊ/ | |
| I need help. | Ke kopa thuso. /kɪ kʊpa tʰusʊ/ | |
| May I help you? | A nka go thusa? /a n̩ka χʊ tʰusa/ | |
| What is ... in Tswana? | ... ke eng ka Setswana? /kɪ ɪŋ ka sɪt͡swana/ | |
| I like... | Ke rata... /kɪ rata/ | |
| I don't like... | Ga ke rate... /χa kɪ ratɪ/ | |
| I want... | Ke batla... /kɪ bat͡ɬa/ | |
| I don't want... | Ga ke batle... /χa kɪ bat͡ɬɪ/ | |
| Let's go. |
A re tsamaye. /a rɪ t͡samajɪ/ |
A re vaye. /a rɪ vajɪ/ |
| Stay well. (Said to a person staying) |
Sala sentle. /sala sɪnt͡ɬɪ/ |
|
| Go well. (Said to a person leaving) |
Tsamaya sentle. /t͡samaja sɪnt͡ɬɪ/ |
|
| Good night. | Boroko. /bʊrʊkʊ/ |
|
| Sleep well. | Robala sentle. /rʊbala sɪnt͡ɬɪ/ |
|
| Bye! |
Šarp! /ʃarp/ | |