Haitian Creole/Se
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The concept expressed in English by the verb "to be" is expressed in Haitian Creole by two words, se and ye.
The verb se (pronounced "say") is used to link a subject with a predicate nominative:
Haitian Creole | English |
---|---|
Li se frè mwen | he is my brother |
Mwen se yon doktè | I am a doctor |
Sa se yon pye mango | That is a mango tree |
Nou se zanmi | we are friends |
The subject sa or li can sometimes be omitted with se:
Haitian Creole | English |
---|---|
Se yon bon ide | That is a good idea |
Se nouvo chemiz mwen | This is my new shirt |
For the future tense, such as "I want to be", usually vin "to become" is used instead of se.
Haitian Creole | English |
---|---|
L ap vin bòfrè m | He will be my brother-in-law |
Mwen vle vin yon doktè | I want to become a doctor |
Sa ap vin yon pye mango | That will become a mango tree |
N ap vin zanmi | We will be friends |
"Ye" (pronounced "yay") also means "to be", but is placed exclusively at the end of the sentence, after the predicate and the subject (in that order). This happens especially with question words:
Haitian Creole | English |
---|---|
"Ayisyen mwen ye" = "Mwen se Ayisyen" | I am Haitian |
Ki moun sa ye? | Who is that? |
Kijan ou ye? | How are you? |
The verb "to be" is not overt when followed by an adjective or prepositional phrase, that is, Haitian Creole has stative verbs. So, malad means "sick" and "to be sick":
Haitian Creole | English |
---|---|
M gen yon zanmi malad | I have a sick friend. |
Zanmi mwen malad. | My friend is sick. |
Ou nan kay la. | You are in the house. |