There are so so many Haitian Creole idioms and expressions that Haitians use every day in their daily conversations. It's hard to choose the ones used most often. Here are some that you might use on a daily basis:
1.
Be courageous! (Be brave, D'ont be weak)
Mete gason sou ou! (you say that to a man)
Mete fanm sou ou! (you say that to a woman)
2.
I am nervous.
Kè m sou biskèt.
3.
I am hungry.
Ti trip mwen ap vale gwo trip mwen.
4.
to be upset/angry (Fè move san)
Why are you upset/angry?
Poukisa w'ap fè move san?
5.
To be in trouble (pran nan twa wa)
You're in trouble.
Ou pran nan twa wa
or
I'm in trouble
M pran nan twa wa.
6.
To go to bed (monte kabann)
I'm tired, I'm going to bed.
M fatige, m pral monte kabann.
Pran kabann, on the other hand, may mean that you are ill
to be sick
7.
The gist of the conversation (Nannan koze a)
I am just getting to the good part and you want to leave.
Mwen fèk ap antre nan nannan koze a, enpi ou vle ale.
8.
Talk to the hand (pale ak pòch dèyè)
I am ignoring your rambling.
Ak pòch dèyè m w'ap pale.
9.
To be stubborn (fè wòklò)
You're being stubborn.
W'ap fè wòklò.
10.
to pursue restlessly (lage nan dengonn)
Oh geez! This woman is a pain in my ass!
Mezanmi o! Fi sa lage nan dengonn mwen!
11.
To Calm down (mete dlo nan diven)
Why don't you calm down! Relax!
Mete dlo nan diven w tande!
12.
Really quickly! (nan de tan twa mouvman!)
I'll give this to you in no time at all!
M'ap ba ou li nan de tan twa mouvman
13.
It's about time (li te lè, li te tan, or li lè li tan)
It's about time you let this go.
Li lè li tan pou kite sa tonbe.
There are more idioms and expressions at the following link. You may visit it from time to time as we will add more.
Haitian Creole idioms and expressions
Haitian Creole ↔ English Reference, Look up Haitian Creole and English Words
1.
Be courageous! (Be brave, D'ont be weak)
Mete gason sou ou! (you say that to a man)
Mete fanm sou ou! (you say that to a woman)
2.
I am nervous.
Kè m sou biskèt.
3.
I am hungry.
Ti trip mwen ap vale gwo trip mwen.
4.
to be upset/angry (Fè move san)
Why are you upset/angry?
Poukisa w'ap fè move san?
5.
To be in trouble (pran nan twa wa)
You're in trouble.
Ou pran nan twa wa
or
I'm in trouble
M pran nan twa wa.
6.
To go to bed (monte kabann)
I'm tired, I'm going to bed.
M fatige, m pral monte kabann.
Pran kabann, on the other hand, may mean that you are ill
to be sick
7.
The gist of the conversation (Nannan koze a)
I am just getting to the good part and you want to leave.
Mwen fèk ap antre nan nannan koze a, enpi ou vle ale.
8.
Talk to the hand (pale ak pòch dèyè)
I am ignoring your rambling.
Ak pòch dèyè m w'ap pale.
9.
To be stubborn (fè wòklò)
You're being stubborn.
W'ap fè wòklò.
10.
to pursue restlessly (lage nan dengonn)
Oh geez! This woman is a pain in my ass!
Mezanmi o! Fi sa lage nan dengonn mwen!
11.
To Calm down (mete dlo nan diven)
Why don't you calm down! Relax!
Mete dlo nan diven w tande!
12.
Really quickly! (nan de tan twa mouvman!)
I'll give this to you in no time at all!
M'ap ba ou li nan de tan twa mouvman
13.
It's about time (li te lè, li te tan, or li lè li tan)
It's about time you let this go.
Li lè li tan pou kite sa tonbe.
There are more idioms and expressions at the following link. You may visit it from time to time as we will add more.
Haitian Creole idioms and expressions
Haitian Creole ↔ English Reference, Look up Haitian Creole and English Words
Wow! This is good. Thanks! :)
ReplyDeleteI just read this phrase in a Kont Kreyòl "nan yon tan kat mouvman". Does this mean the same thing as the above phrase "nan de tan twa mouvman"?
ReplyDeleteYes, it's the same idea.
DeleteHow does yon tan kat mouvman fit into the context of the kont Kreyòl that you are reading?
Se te yon istwa sou yon ti gason ki gen yon pyebo. Manman-li pa t renmen li kom li renmen fre-l. Konsa, when he was sad he would go the the shore and watch the water. One day yon toti came and took tigason-an on an undersea adventure. When the adventure was over toti-a te di ti gason-an "hold on tight to my neck". Then the books says nan yon tan kat mouvman, they were back on the sand.
ReplyDeleteThere is actually some vocabuary in the story I do not know and can't find on google translate but I cant seem to submit questions anymore. :(
I just want to say I think your work here is great and it is appreciated tout bon!
Mèsi :)
DeleteI have heard that story about the boy and his "PYEBO".
I'm not sure why you're unable to ask questions.
I think the site might be in "EDIT" mode.
I'll check it out. Thanks for telling me.
You can try asking questions soon again.
Pase bon jounen.