Thursday, September 1, 2011

The many ways to say "ONE" in Haitian Creole

one: youn, en, yon sèl, yon grenn, yon

yon
one caryon machin
one house yon kay
one life yon lavi

Yon sèl
Only one God yon sèl Bondye
Only one fatheryon sèl papa
Only one friendyon sèl zanmi

Yon grenn
Just one shoeyon grenn soulye
Just one eyeyon grenn je
Just one childyon grenn timoun
Just one single childyon sèl grenn timoun

En
Used when counting numbers as in: 1, 21, 31, 41, etc...

Youn does not modify the noun.
A car
Youn machin (incorrect)
Yon machin (correct)

Youn comes after the verb or at the end of a sentence.
I need one. → Mwen bezwen youn.
Give me one. → Ban'm youn.
I got one, thanks! → Mwen jwenn youn, mèsi!




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