Mo Vokabulè – Vocabulary Words
Pratik - Any regular customer or vendor
Kòmèsan - seller, a person engaging in commerce
Machann - vendor
Madan sara - Vendors traveling to sell their goods
Mamit - informal unit of measure in Haitian open air markets and stores
Ti mamit - about 1 pound
Gwo mamit - about 5 pounds
Bèu/bè - butter or margarine in Haiti (Very few people establish the distinction between them in Haiti)
Sonje - remember
M sonje ou - I miss you (I remember you!)
Pa bliye-m / Pa bliye mwen! - Do not forget me!
Pwovizyon - groceries
Fè pwovizyon - buy groceries
Pito - to prefer, rather
Kwè - to believe
andwi – chitterlings
pwa nwa – black beans
Zepina – spinach
Pitimi – millet
Pile zepis – pound spices
Pinga ou pèdi tan! Do not lose time
Pinga ou mize! Do not stay too long
Sizonnen poul ak pwason an – Season the chicken and fish
Pa bliye achte sitwon – Do not forget to buy lemons
Pran 2 dan lay – take 2 cloves of garlic
Pran 2 pye siv – Take two chives
Melange tout sa avèk yon ti gout pèsi – Mix all that up with a little bit of parsley.
Mete yon ti kras sèl nan manje-a – Put in some salt in the food
Pile pwav la avan ou mete-l nan bouyon an – Pound the black pepper before putting it into the stew
Madan Jak renmen manje pwason fri oswa an sòs – The lady likes to eat fried fish or fish in sauce
Kwit diri kole ak pwa tann – cook rice with peas
Frikase siv ak yon ti pwav. Fri poul la – Fry the chives and some black pepper. Fry the chicken
Kwit yon bon ti diri grennen pou mwen. Sa fè lontan m pa manje sa – Cook some flaky rice for me. I have not eaten it for a long time.
Kwit Legim – Cook vegetables
Bouyi legim – boil vegetables
Fri legim - Fry vegetables
Manje legim kri – Eat raw vegetables
Ayisyen renmen griye epi fri vyann yo – Haitians like to grill and fry their meats
Yo konn prepare-l an sòs tou – They can prepare it in sauce too
Rache zèb nan jaden sa-a – Weed out this garden
Rache zèb nan lakou-a – Weed out the yard
Monchè – man
Wè monchè! – Yeah!
Ane sa-a, nou pral gen bon rekòt mayi. Lapli tonbe anpil – This year, we are going to have a good harvest of corn. It rains a lot.
Lè lapli tonbe nan sezon lapli, gen anpil lavalas – When it rains during the rainy season, there are a lot of floods.
L-ap farinen nan kan an – It is drizzling at the camp.
Anvan sezon lapli –a koumanse, kultivatè yo vini nan mache-a pou achte semans mayi, pitimi ak melon - Before the rainy season, growers come to the market to buy corn, millet and watermelon seeds.
Chak kout Zèklè ak loraj fè-m pantan – Every bolt of lightening and clap of thunder startle me.
Tibebe yo kriye lè yo tande kout zèklè ak loray – Babies cry when they hear bolts of lightening and claps of thunder.
Pafwa lapli pa vini aprè gwo kout zèklè ak loraj nan mwa Out ak Septanm – Rain does not come after the bolts of lightening and claps of thunger in August and September.
Out, Septanm ak Oktòb se sezon siklò-n an Ayiti- August, September and October are hurricane seasons in Haiti.
Debwazman se kòz lavalas an Ayiti. Pa gen pyebwa ak rasi-n fon pou kenbe tè-a anplas – Tree cuttings are the cause of flooding in Haiti. There are no trees with deep roots to hold the ground in place
Lavalas al jete tout bagay nan rivyè yo ki gonfle epi yo touye epi bwote kay, bèt ak moun al jete nan lanmè – Floodings carry everything to the rivers that swell, kill and take houses, animals and people to the sea.
Pafwa nou ka jwenn moun anba gwo labou – Sometimes you can find people buried under thick mud.
M pa kwè ap gen siklòn an Ayiti ane sa-a aprè dega tranbleman de tè a koze nan peyi a – I do not think there will hurricanes in Haiti this year after the devastation brought by the quake in the country.
Eske ou malad? Poukisa ou ap swe konsa? Are you sick? Why are you sweating like that?
Li pa fè cho – It is not hot.
Li fè fret kounye-a – It is cold now
Li fè bon – the weather is fine
Gen move tan – It is stormy
Tan-an mare – it is cloudy
Lè li fè frèt, m mete yon chanday – When it is cold, I wear a sweater.
Sechrès la fini nan Kalifòni – The drought is over in California.
Gen de sezon an Ayiti: Sezon lapli ak sezon sèch – There are two seasons in Haiti: Rainy season and dry season.
Nan peyi tankou Etazuni ak Kanada, gen kat sezon: prentan, ete, otòn ak ivè – In countries such as the United States and Canada, there are four seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall (autumn) and Winter