Beach & Activities

1. Tasi ibun iha ne'ebé?

   Ta-si i-bun i-ha ne-e-be?

   Where is the beach?

   Usage

   Beaches around Dili and Atauro Island are the top destinations in East Timor

   Grammar Note

   "Ne'ebé" = "where". Beach / shore / coast is "tasi ibun"; "praia" is not used.

2. Bele nani iha ne'e ka lae?

   be-le na-ni i-ha ne-e ka la-e

   Is it allowed to swim here?

   Grammar Note

   "Ka lae" = "or not?" — a common question tag in Tetum. "To swim" is "nani"; "nahe" means to spread out / lay flat.

3. Tasi ne'e furak tebes

   ta-si ne-e fu-rak te-bes

   This sea is very beautiful

   Grammar Note

   "Tebes" means "really/truly/very" — a common intensifier in Tetum.

4. Ikan barak iha ne'e

   i-kan ba-rak i-ha ne-e

   There are many fish here

   Usage

   East Timor's coral-rich waters are a world-class diving destination

   Grammar Note

   "Barak" means many/a lot. It functions as a quantifier in Tetum.

5. Hakarak aluga kadeira

   ha-ka-rak a-lu-ga ka-dei-ra

   I want to rent a chair

   Grammar Note

   "Kadeira" (from Portuguese "cadeira" = chair). Many Tetum nouns are Portuguese loanwords.

6. Bilheti roo ba Atauro folin hira?

   bi-lhe-ti roo ba a-ta-u-ro fo-lin hi-ra

   How much is the boat to Atauro Island?

   Usage

   Atauro Island, ~25km from Dili, is renowned as one of the world's best diving spots

   Grammar Note

   "naran" means "name", not "price". The word for price is "folin" (or "presu"). "roo" = boat, "bilheti" = ticket.

7. Bee iha ne'e moos ka lae?

   be-e i-ha ne-e mo-os ka la-e

   Is the water here clean?

   Grammar Note

   "Bee" = water (native Tetum). "Moos" = clean/clear (native Tetum vocabulary).

8. Loro matan sei tun

   lo-ro ma-tan sei tun

   The sun is about to set

   Grammar Note

   "Sei" is a future/progressive auxiliary and "tun" = to descend. The word for sun is "loro matan" ("loron" is a day). The completive "ona" is not combined with future "sei".

9. Bele luku iha ne'e ka lae?

   be-le lu-ku i-ha ne-e ka la-e

   Can one dive here?

   Usage

   East Timor is one of Asia's best diving destinations with pristine coral reefs

   Grammar Note

   "Dive (scuba)" is "luku"; there are also "luku nain" (diver) and "instrutór luku" (dive instructor). The Portuguese form "mergulho" is not used.

10. Hau hakarak ba haree loro matan tun

    hau ha-ka-rak ba ha-ree lo-ro ma-tan tun

    I want to go see the sunset

    Grammar Note

    "Hau" = "I/me". Sunset is "loro matan" (sun) + "tun" (descend). "aimoruk" means medicine and "fuik" means wild; neither has anything to do with sunset.

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