The roof of our twin's home in Haiti was made from the dried peeling from sugar cane. Their father told me the name of this in Haitian Creole when I was there but I've forgotten. Can you help? Thanks Mandaly!!

The names that come to mind are kay pay or chomyè (thatched roof house),  do kay pay (thatched roof), and klisay (wicker-work panel for mud and straw houses).

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

Madanm, Correct me if I am wrong. On the audio part of HC, the speaker says "It is too expensive", but translates it in HC as "Sa a two che". Should not it be in HC "Se two che"? I understand that "se" and "sa a" are fairly much interchangable. M

Yes they could be. Sa and/or Se could mean It or It is.  See this link Se at the beginning of a sentence

Sa a twò chè.
This one is too expensive.
This is too expensive

Se twò chè.
Sa twò chè. see link
Li twò chè.
It's too expensive

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

Merite pa mande...

I do get aggravated when people say this expression.  When people say this, Merite pa mande → merit does not beg (lit.), they usually mean that if you thought they deserved something, they needn't have to beg for it.  Well, unless you're a mind reader now, you can't know what everyone wants.  It always make me think (a lot!) every time someone says that to me.
Another Haitian Creole expression that will make you think also is  Bondye konn bay, men Li pa konn separe → God knows how to give, but he does know how to distribute (lit).  This is an explanation for why some people are rich and others are poor.  Oh yes! God gave plenty, but he just didn't distribute the wealth evenly :)

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

I was wondering if you knew any places where I could find lyrics for Haitian songs. I want to know the lyrics to Sa Bel by Tropiciana and also maybe Decide'w.

Try Zouker.com or even Top Mp3 lyrics.com - You might get lucky with a Creole song.

Sa bèl

Gade kijan w ale kite m

Pou yon flannè ki sot New York

Li te di l’ap marye avè w

Ou te konprann se verite

Li pase yon fo ak sivil

Aprè lindemyèl li ale

Li pa janmen dòmi reve w

Kounye a ou santi w dezole

Jodi a ou vin mande m tounen

Mwen pa ka fè anyen pou ou

Se pou konnen lè w gen menaj

Menm si lòt moun ap fè w pwomès

Se pa pousa pou w kite l

Moun nan ka bezwen pwofite w

Li bay Bondye san konfesyon

Kou l fin twouve w li pati, l kite w

Sa bèl, sa bèl!

Ou gen menaj, ou soufri avè li

Demen nou vi marye

A wi sa bèl o!

Fòk ou pran tèt ou ti cheri

Pa chache yon fòtin rapid

Ou gen menaj ou, kenbe l

Pa koute nèg k ap vin fè w pwomès

W ap mennen avèk menaj ou byen

Ou kite nèg la vin tante w

Kou l fin konnen w, li kite w

Jodia gade ou nan lari

Nan chache fòtin lavi

Gade ou pèdi chans ou ti manman

Nan chache fòtin lavi

Gade ou pèdi chans ou ti cheri

Decide w

Gen lontan m'ap travay

Mwen santi m pa nòmal

Graje kò m pou m kanpe

Sèl mwayen k'ap soulaje m

Se sa k ap fè m byen

Pwoblèm founi nan kò m

M'oblije pran yon lòt dyob

Mizik se pasyon mwen

Se liyè kò mwen ke m renmen

Sonje, m mwen jan avè w

Sipòte mwen toutpatou

Menm si kè m pa kontan, 

Santiman m toujou menm jan

Si w renmen m, banm kouraj, pou m travay

Sonje byen, cheri, mizik se vi mwen

Si m gen fanm mwen

Li pa renmen kote m'ap travay la, li pa bezwen marye

decide, l'a fè sa l vle

Cheri, ou pa bezwen ban m pwoblèm tout tan

Mwen vle, ou vle,  nou vle

Se antant tout tan

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

I just learned that 'an mezi...an mezi... 'translates 'the more....the more...' Is this construction an alternative way of this? "The more the building shook, the more we held." What about 'mwens...mwens...' "The less you work, the less money you make."

Yes, it can be sometimes be used in this case.

an mezi... an mezi
otan... otan
plis... plis

mezi (measure) better translates as much as 
If we were to take this literally:

1. An mezi bilding nan souke, se an mezi nou te kenbe.

    Otan bilding nan souke, se otan nou te kenbe.

    Plis bilding nan te souke, plis nou te kenbe"
    "The more the building shook, the more we held on."

and yes, you can use mwens in that sense. But it would be hard to use "an mezi" to translate "mwens"
2. Nan peyi etazini, plis ou travay mwens kòb ou fè.
    In the US, the more you work, the less money you make.

3. Tande, mwens ou konnen, plis li pi bon pou ou.
    Listen, the less you know the better it is for you.

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

Ki le w ap pale nan nimewo, tankou sis, uit e dis ki le te swiv bay goud e dola; are the final letters on these numbers still written out even though they are not pronounced? Also, could you correct my Kreyol sentence above, so I know what is wrong.

Normally I say  si dola ($6), ui dola ($8), and di dola ($10); and a lot of Haitians do too. That's what I'm used to.  But, some people say karannsis dola ($46), uit dola ($8), or swasanndis dola ($70).

If you do not pronounce the last letter, then you do not write it, but if you do say the last letter, then you should write it.
For example, some people might say:
M peye di dola pou yon hot dog.
others might say.
Hot dog la koute m dis dola.

"Ki le w ap pale nan nimewo, tankou sis, uit e dis ki le te swiv bay goud e dola"
a little correction to your sentence:
"E lè w ap pale osijè nimewo, tankou sis, uit e dis ki swiv goud e dola, ..."
"How about when you're talking about numbers that follow gourdes and dollars, ...'

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

Can you most always shorten the word "oubyen" to "ou", following the same rule as in the word "genyen" to "gen"? I have not heard of "ou" being used as much as "gen". Mwen pa konprann. Mesi anpil.

Actually "ou" is not a shortened form of "oubyen" .
In H. Creole, we say ou (from French "ou"), o, oubyen (from French ou bien), onswa, oswa or ouswa (from French soit) and osnon or osinon (from French ou sinon) all which basically mean "or", "either", "neither", or "rather"

We do use all these translations for "OR" quite often.
You might hear them in sentences such as:

1. Mwen bezwen youn ou de chèz.
    I need on or two chairs.

2. Kilè w'ap tounen?  Novanm ou desanm?
    When will you be back?  November or December?

3. Kilès ou vle?  Ble a oswa wouj la?
    Which one do you want?  The blue or the red?

4.  Ban m onswa kafe ou te.
     Give me either coffee or tea.

5.  Ou kapab sèvi  oubyen Bondye ou Satan. Men ou pa ka sèvi toulede.
     You can either serve God or the devil.  You can't serve both.

6.  Onswa ou renmen'm oubyen ou pa renmen'm.  Li pa ka toulede.
     Either you love me or you don't.  It can't be both.

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

...must have been (in Creole) (te dwe or dwe te?)

I say ...dwe te

1. Li te mouri maten an.  Li dwe te malad kèk tan.
    He died this morning.  He must have been sick for a while.

2. Li pa vle pale ak nou ankò.  Li dwe te tande sa nou te di sou li a.
    She doesn't want to speak to us anymore.  She must have heard what we said about her.

3. Li resevwa bon nòt pou egzamen an. Li dwe te etidye tout lannuit lan.

    She received good grades for the exam.  She must have studied all night.

4. There must have been a reason for change.  Do you know what it is?

    Dwe te gen yon rezon pou chanjman sa a.  Eske ou konnen sa li ye?

5. Ou dwe te renmen l anpil.

    You must have been really in love with him.

6. Ti mimi sa a t'ap pede suiv mwen tout kote m pase..  Li dwe te panse se mwen k manman li.
    This little kitty kept following me wherever I go.  He must have though that I was his mother.

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

This a fair way translation? "Mwen panse, donk, mwen ye" "I think, therefore, I am" Also! How is that Creole chat coming? :)

Bèl bonjou zanmi :)
Grammatically, this translation is fair.  But it would make the best sense if we said, "Mwen panse, donk mwen egziste."

Re: CHAT, I mainly wanted to use it as a forum to chat principally about Creole, Haiti, Haitians, and ...Creole :).  My friends, which provide me with lots of Creole resources, wanted to gather once in a while and chat (in Creole).  The downside, I realized, is that I cannot prevent explicit stuffs or unwanted guest from entering.  So I have decided to do the forums TO BE ANNOUNCED ONLY.  You will only see the little CHAT box when we have a discussion coming.  And I've used it, by appointment only, with a couple of people who are learning Creole.  I hope I'm not being too discriminatory :-\.
Forums are not implemented yet.

Chapo ba!

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

In front of me and behind me - also, to my side? please

devan m (or douvan m) → In front of me
1.  Mwen jwenn li.  Li la a devan mwen.
     I've found it. It's right there in front of me.

2.  Pou jwenn legliz la, swiv wout ki devan w lan enpi w'a wè li.
     To find the church, follow the road in front of you and then you'll see it.

dèyè m → behind me
3.  Fanmi ki rete dèyè nou an se Ayisyen.
     The family who lives behind us is Haitian.

4. Kanpe dèyè m pou w ka trape m si m tonbe.
    Stand behind me so that you can catch me if I fall.

sou kote m (or bò kote m) → to my side, at my side, near me
5. Eske ou konnen non mesye ki kanpe sou kote m nan, nan foto sa a?
    Do you know the name of the man who's standing at my side in his picture?

6.  Si'w bezwen deplase pou yon minit, ou mèt kite valiz ou yo sou kote m nan, m'a veye yo pou ou.
     If you need to move about for a minit, you may leave your bags next to me, I'll watch them for you.

also,
anlè mwen (anlè tèt mwen) → over my head (location)
7. Avyon an pase anlè nou san li pa fè okenn bri.
   The airplane flew over us without making any noise.

anba m → under me.
8. Vwazen ki abite anba nou an toujou ap goumen.
    The neignbors who live under us are always fighting.

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

Nan Estasyon Bis La (At the bus station) - Audio

Click here to download…

Click the PLAY button and follow along :)

 

Nan Estasyon Bis La At the Bus station

-Bonjou madam!

  Hello Ma'am!

-Bonjou mesye!

  Good morning sir!

-Silvouplè, eske ou kapab di mwen ki bis ki ale Okay?

  Please, can you tell me which bus goes to Aux Cayes?

-Bis ki fè wout Okay la, se bis nimewo senk(5) lan.

  The bus that goes to Aux Cayes is the number 5 bus.

-Men, eske ou konnen si bis nimewo senk(5) lan pase deja?

  But, do you know if the number 5 bus went by already?

-Non mesye, bis sa a poko pase deja, paske se li menm m’ap tann tou.

  No sir, that bus had not come by yet, because I am waiting for it too.

-Ahh! Mwen byen kontan tande sa.  Madanm, eske m te mèt chita bò kote w?

  Ah! I'm quite happy to hear that.  Ma'am, May I sit next to you?

-Men wi mesye.  Sa a se yon plas piblik li ye. Ou gen dwa chita nenpòt kote ou vle.

  Of course sir.  This is a public place.  You may sit wherever you want.

-Dakò.   Mèsi anpil.  Eske ou te di mwen ou pral OKAY tou?

 Okay.  Thank you.  Did you tell me that you were also going to Aux Cayes?

-Wi, m’ap fè wout Okay, men mwen prale pi lwen... andeyò nèt!   ...jouk Konble Fò! 

  Yes, I am passing by Aux Cayes, but I am going further.  Way into the countryside!  All the way to Comble Fort!

-Konble Fò? Eske se la ou moun?

 Comble Fort? Is this where you're from?

-Wi m se moun Konble Fò  .  E ou menm, kibò ou moun?

 Yes I'm from Comble Fort.  How about you, Where are you from?

-Enben madanm, mwen pa moun Okay non.  Mwen te fèt Pòtoprens.  Sa a se premye vwayaj mwen Okay.

  Well Ma'am, I'm not from Aux Cayes.  I was born in Port-Au-Prince.  This is my first trip to Aux Cayes.

-Oh. Men...eske mwen mèt  mande ou kisa k’ap mennen w Okay jodi a?

  Oh.  But, can I ask you what's bringing you to Aux Cayes today?

-Wi, Mwen gen yon bon zanmi m ki lopital.  Mwen pral vizite li.

  Yes, I have a good friend in the hospital.  I'm going to visit her.

-Adye Bondye! M’espere se pa anyen ki grav!

 Oh dear! I hope it's nothing serious!

-Non Non!  Se bèl maladi, wi, zanmi mwen te fè.  Li te ansent e kounye la li fèk akouche.  Mwen se bon zanmi li menm ak mari li.  Donk, mwen pral pase de jou avèk yo.

 Oh no.  My friend was stricken with the "good disease".  She was pregnant and now she just gave birth.  I am good friends with her and her husband.  So, I will go spend a couple of days with them.

-Oh se byen sa!  E se kisa mesyedam yo fè menm? Yon ti gason onswa yon tifi?

  Oh how great!  And what did they have? A little boy or a little girl?

-Mesyedam yo te di mwen ke yo fè yon bèl pitit fi.  Yo rele li Mari Madlèn.  Se premye pitit yo.

 They told me that they had a beautiful little baby girl.  They called her Mari Madeleine.  It's their first child.

-Ah! Men bis la ap vini.  Enben mesye, mwen rele Charité.  M’ap ba ou adrès mwen.  Petèt pandan ou Okay, w’a vin vizite m tou nan Konble Fò.  Enpi konsa, n’ava al bwè yon ti  kafe ansanm?

 Ah! Here comes the bus.  Well sir, my name is Charité.  I'll give you my address.  Perhaps while you're in Aux Cayes, you'll come to visit me in Comble Fort.  And in this way, we'll go have some coffee together?

-Dakò.  Mwen ta byen renmen sa. Mwen menm, mwen se Rigaud. Anchante madanm

  Sure.  I would really love that.  As for me, I am Rigaud.  Please to meet you ma'am.

-Enben, Rigaud, se te yon gran plezi pou m rekonèt ou.

 Well Rigaud, it was a real pleasure to meet you.

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

chante kantamwa in Creole?

Kantamwa, from French quant à moi (I for one, as for me)

In Creole, people who chante kantamwa, are  people who are always thinking of themselves.

1. Misye gen senkantan.  Li abite ka manman l toujou.  Li poko menm reyalize anyen nan lavi li, men li toujou ap bat lestomak li, ap chante kantamwa!
     The guy is fifty years old.  He still lives with his mom.  He hasn't done anything in his life yet, but he's always beating on his chest, saying me this me that!

2.  Moun k'ap chante kantamwa pa janm prè pou aprann nan men lòt moun.
     People who are always saying me this me that are never ready to learn from other people.

Othe uses for KANTA (as for) in Haitian Creole.

3. Lè w vwayaje Ayiti ou te mèt manje preske nenpòt bagay, men kanta pou salad kri, pa manyen sa ditou.
    When you travel to Haiti you may eat almost anything, but as for raw salads, don't even touch that.

4.  Tout moun ap viv yon vi pezib nan zòn nan, men kanta pou pèp nan zòn sid yo, yo toujou sou lagè.
     Everyone is living a peaceful life in this area, but as for the people on the south side, they always fighting.

5.  Ou te mèt sòti ak nenpòt moun ou vle, men kanta pou misye, bliye sa!
     You may go out with anyone you please, but as for him, forget about it!

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

ede m ak sa: "Nan pa konprann anye ou lan, tout moun fin pase sou ou"

Nan  | pa konprann anyen            |  ou lan
In      | not understanding nothing  | your the
In your misunderstanding/misjudgment

 tout   | moun   |   fin    | pase   | sou  | ou.
all      | people  | done  | pass  |  on   | you
everyone has passed over you

"Nan pa konprann anyen ou lan, tout moun fin pase sou ou"
"In your naivete, everyone has taken advantage of you"
"Everyone had taken advantage of your naivete."

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

dirèk dirèk?

dirèk dirèk → right on point, precisely
kèk egzanp
1. Pandan mesye a t'ap pale, gen yon mouch ki vin ateri dirèk dirèk sou pwent nen l.
2. Jwè a te choute boul la ki te antre dirèk dirèk nan kan lòt ekip la.  Tout moun rele "Gòl!!!"

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

as much as (in Creole) in "I'll do as much as I can"

as much as (a sufficient amount, the full measure) → mezi (measure)

1. I'll do as much as I can.
    M'a fè mezi m kapab.

2. Eat as much as you can for we won't have snack tonight.
    Manje mezi w kapab paske nou p'ap pran yon goute aswè a.

3.  Take as much as you need.
     Pran mezi w kapab.

4.  Try to rest as much as you can to promote healing in your body.
     Eseye repoze mezi w kapab pou'w ede kò'w jwenn lagerizon.

5. We went to Marianne's party.  We enjoyed ourselves greatly.  We danced as much as we could.
     Nou t'ale nan fèt Marianne nan.  Nou te pran plezi nou nèt. Nou te danse mezi nou te kapab.

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