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Thursday, February 28, 2013

I am wondering about the word RENK in haitian Creole. What is the part of speech? How do I use it (better :)? Can you give me a couple of sentences with RENK (in Creole). Thanks!

Renk, in Haitian Creole, can function as an adverb or an adjective.
Renk → only, just, all, the smallest/slightest

As you can see in #1, use it to modify a verb as in:
M renk gade w ... → I only looked at you...
Nou renk salye l ... → We only greet him....

1. Li pa't malad ditou.  Li renk di m li te gen yon ti tètfèmal, enpi l'al kouche li pa janm reveye.
    He wasn't sick at all.  He only told me that he had a little headache, he went to lie down and he never woke up.

As you can see in sentence #2, use it at the beginning of a sentence as in:
Renk sa'm ta ka di .... → All I could say
Renk sa'm te wè ... → All I saw ....
Renk parèt sèlman ... → Just show up ...

2. Mwen pa konnen sa ou vle m fè.  Renk sa m ka fè pou ou se lapriyè.
   I don't know what you want me to do.  All I could do for you is pray.

3. Fanm sa pa gen anyen serye l'ap regle.  Renk sa l'ap fè sèlman se veye zafè moun pou l'al fè tripotay.
    This woman is doing nothing important.  The only thing she does is spying on people so she can gossip.

As you can see in #4, #5, and #6 use it to modify a noun (in Creole) as in:
Renk di dola mwen genyen → I only have ten bucks.
Renk otograf ou m bezwen → I just need your autograph.

4. Nan pwen w rive la, renk Bondye sèl ki ka sove w.
     At this point, only God can help you.

5. Ki tenten w'ap fè la?  Apa w'ap fè bagay Bouki!  Ou ale lekòl pou sizan, renk yon lane sèlman w rete pou fini, enpi ou vle lage sa?
    What the hell are you doing?  Why are you acting foolishly?!  You go to school for six years, you only have one more year to go and you want to quit?

6.  Sitiyasyon an malouk.  Mari fache.  Madanm move.  Pitit fwase.  Renk youn nan yo di yon mo sèlman, sa va kont pou mennen gwo deblozay.
      The situation is tense.  The husband is upset.  The wife is angry.  The children are hurt.  Just one word from one of them is enough to cause a big racket.

Haitian Creole ↔ English Reference, Look up Haitian Creole and English Words

2 comments:

  1. Mandaly when I saw this I said I had post, did you know in Wolof which is spoken in Senegal the word rekk has the same meaning. I have heard some theories as to wolof being one of the African languages that may have influenced Creole, it seems plausible, Creole and wolof also put the article behind the noun. you are doing such a good job, thank you very much, jeurejef bu bare!

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