Can you explain 'lan'. Sometimes I see it and sometimes I don't. It seems to replace 'nan' in all its meanings. Is this true?

It's one of the Haitian Creole singular definite articles.  It usually comes after words that have  nasal sound and end with a consonant.  Some people do use "lan" instead of "nan".
Some people say plim lan, madanm lan, machin lan instead of plim nan, madanm nan, machin nan.

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

Bonjou! Bon dimanch! Tanpri di-mwen ki sa vle di:1. annega 2. ti tak ponmad 3. leve brip Mèsi :)

Dakò :)

1. annega → regarding, concerning

2. ti tak ponmad
    ti tak → a very small amount
   
    a. yon ti tak ponmad
        a small dab of ointment /pomade / hair grease

    b. yon ti tak dlo.
         a small amount of water.

3. leve brip
     brip → suddenly, abruptly, all of a sudden

     a. Li leve brip.
         He got up suddenly.
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Se Jès La ki Konte - It's the thought that counts

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To listen to this audio, click on the play button and follow along :)
 

-Ki dènye fwa ou te resevwa yon kado ou te reyèlman apresye?

  When was the last time you received a gift that you really liked?

-Te m wè.  Nwèl pase, yon zanmi te fè m kado yon bèl foula.  Mwen te twouve li byen itil.

  Let me se.  Last Christmas, a friend gave me a nice scarf.  I found it very useful.

-Eh byen, kòm ou konnen, semèn pase se te fèt mwen.

  Well, as you know, last week was my birthday.

-Wi,  mwen konnen.  Eske ou te renmen kravat mwen te ba ou a?

Yes, I know. Did you like the tie I gave you?

-Wi.  Li ... te bon.   Wi, kòm mwen t’ap di w.   Yon bèl ti dam mwen renmen nan travay la te ban m yon kado pou fèt mwen.

   Yes.  It was ....alright.  Yes, as I was telling you.  A beautiful woman whom I have crush on at work gave me a birthday gift.

-O o! ou resi fè yon menaj?

  Oh you finally have a girlfriend?

-Non li poko menaj mwen.  Li pa menm konnen si m gen santiman pou li.

 No, she's not my girlfriend yet.  She doesn't even know that I have feelings for her.

-O o! sa w’ap tann?  Poukisa w poko mande l soti?

  Well, what are you waiting for?  Why haven't you asked her out?

-Enben koute sa m’ap eseye di w la avan.

  Well, listen to what I'm trying to tell you first.

-Wi. Dakò. Ou t’ap di m li fè w yon kado?   Kisa li te ba ou?

   Yes. alright.  You said she gave you a gift.  What did she give you?

-Li fè m kado yon chapo.

  She gave me a hat.

-Yon chapo?  Yon kado ki montre anpil konsiderasyon

  Oh. a hat?  A thoughtful gift 

-Pa si ou chòv.  M pa konn poukisa li ban m yon chapo

  Not if you're bald. I don't know why she gave me a hat.

-Sa ki gen mal nan sa?  Li ba ou yon kado ki montre li t'ap panse a ou.   Pa vre?

  What's wrong with it?  She gave you a hat which shows that she was thinking of you.  Isn't it true?

-Oubyen... li ban m kado a paske li fatige gade tèt kale mwen.

   Or... she gave me the hat because she's tired of staring at my bald head.

-W'ap mete pase genyen. Li fè ou yon kado. Se jès la ki konte  Kounye a se tou pa w.  Rele l pou  w remèsye l.  Eske ou gen nimewo telefòn ni?

  You're reading between the lines.  She gave you a gift.  It's the thought that counts.  Now it's your turn.  Call her so you can thank her.  Do you have her phone number?

-Wi.  Li te mete nimewo telefon ni nan yon papye anndan chapo a.

  Yes.  She put her phone number in a piece of paper inside the hat.

-O! yon bèl ti dam ke ou renmen fè w kado nimewo telefòn ni kachte nan yon chapo pou fèt ou, enpi w'ap kesyone motif li toujou?  

   O! a beautiful woman which you have a crush on gives you her telephone number wrapped in a hat for your birthday, and you're still questioning her move? 

-Eske ou panse li vle m rele l?

   Do you think she wants me to call her?

-Men wi! Li vle w rele l.  Pouki lòt rezon pou l ta ba ou nimewo telefon ni?

   Of course! She wants you to call her.  Why else would she give you her phone number?

-Alò dakò.  Mwen pral rele li.   Oh tann..... Eske w panse m ta dwe rele l jodi a oubyen demen?

  Ok then. I will call her.  Oh wait.... Do you think I should call her today or tomorrow?

-Gras lamizerikòd pou pòv ti malerèz la Bondye!  Nan kondisyon sa ti dam nan ap  fin granmoun anvan l resevwa apèl sa a!  Wi rele l kounye a!

  God help the poor girl!  In this way she'll be an old lady before she gets that call!  Yes, call her now!

Track: Kè Mwen Kontan by K-Zino 

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

How do you get the concept of 'away' in phrases like 'walked away', 'ran away', or 'flew away'?

We look at these phrasal verbs as expressions or terms which in turn are expressed by its own term in H. Creole. We do not usually translate the verb and then the preposition or adverb that comes after it as if it were two different words.
Some examples:

to walk away → kite
to run away → sove
to fly away → vole ale
to look away → detounen figi
to get away → chape poul, sove, or chape
to throw away → jete
to lock away → fèmen, anfèmen
to stay away → rete lwen

and its the same with other prepositions:
to look after → gade, siveye, pran swen
to run into → kontre ak, kwaze ak
to call off → anile
to turn down → rejte, refize
to break in → kase
etc...

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

what does the word "epav" mean in h. creole and please give at least 3 examples! thank you I've heard this word used ALOT especially in ayiti and Facebook

epav → a bum, a hobo, a tramp, a drifter who doesn't not have a fixed home

Here are your THREE examples :)

1. Fanm sa a se yon epav li ye.  Li dòmi lakay tout moun.
    This woman's a tramp,  She sleeps at everybody's house.

2. Bann epav!  Al chache travay pou n fè.
    Bunch of bums!  Go find some work to do.

3. Si w'ap mache fè epav lakay tout moun, w'ap pèdi respè'w.
    If you're loafing around at everyone's house, you'll lose your respect.

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

please give the creole translation of Read your Bible pray everyday and you will grow strong

"Read your Bible pray everyday and you will grow strong"
"Li labib ou, priye chak jou e ou va byen grandi"
_______________


Read your bible, pray every day
Read your bible, pray every day
Pray every day (2 times)
Read your bible, pray everyday
And you’ll grow, grow, grow
And you’ll grow, grow, grow (2 times)
Read your bible, pray everyday
And you’ll grow, grow, grow


Li la bib ou, priye chak jou
Priye chak jou (2 fwa)
Li la bib ou priye chak jou 
E ou va grandi
E ou va grandi (2 fwa)
Li la bib ou priye chak jou
E ou va grandi
Haitian Creole ↔ English Reference, Look up Haitian Creole and English Words

Will you translate these phrases for me. 1. cheche kraze-rak; 2. lage koukouwouj; and 3. li dewoule a di. Also I know what 'nan kad' means but I am having trouble puting the right English words to it. Can you help? Mesi mesi anpil anpil!!

Dakò :)

1. "chache kraze rak"
    Kraze rak (degèpi or chape poul) → to escape, to break away, to flee, to decamp
    Chache kraze rak → to atempt to flee, to try to make a run for it, to try to break away

2. lage koukouwouj (fè koukourouj) → to hunt for someone, to go after someone
    
3. Li dewoule a di → (I'm not too sure what this exact sentence mean)
    dewoule → unravel, happen, or unroll
   if you had "dewoule a di", I would translate it as "the beginning is tough" or "Getting started is tough".
   but that's not what we seem to have here.

4. Nan kad.
    "kad" → frame, framework, affiliation, league
    Thus the verb "ankadre"→ to frame, to structure

     a. kad yon foto. 
         frame of a picture

     b.  Mwen pa nan kad moun sa yo.
          I'm not affiliated with these people.

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

Èske w ta eksplike sòti tankou yon 'helping verb'? Pa egzamp ki sa vle di egzakteman 'li sòti pè'?

"Li soti pè" sounds to me like "He became a priest."

Other than to go out, to go outside, to come out
Soti or sot is used to say to come from:

1. Mwen soti New York.
    Mwen sot New York.
    I come from New York.

2.  Mwen fèk soti lavil.
     Mwen fèk sot lavil.
     I just came from town.


You can use "soti" as a verb helper here too:

3. Mwen sot wè li.
    I just saw her.

4. Mwen sot pale avè li.
    I just spoke to her.

5. Nou sot benyen nan larivyè a.
    We were just bathing in the river.
     We just come from bathing into the river.


Soti is also used to say to come out as, to become:
6.  Tout timoun ou yo soti byen.
      All your children have become well behaved/grounded kids.

7.  Mwen mete pen yo nan fou a, yo tout soti tou boule.
     I put the bread in the oven, they came out all burned.


We can also use soti to say from one thing to another, from one place to another
8. soti nan yon kote ale nan lòt la
    to come out of one place and go into another.

9.  Mwen te kondui sot New York ale Miami nan yon jou.
     I drove from New York to Miami in one day.

10. Nou te mache soti nan ri Touusaint rive nan ri Dessalines.
      We walked from Toussaint Street to Dessalines Street.

11.  Aswè a n'ava priye soti nevè nan aswè rive jouk senkè nan maten.
       Tonight we'll pray from nine p.m. until five a.m.

12. Distans pou nou kondui soti lakay nou rive lopital la, li te gentan akouche bebe a.
     By the time we drove from our house to the hospital, she already had the baby.

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

Is it grammatically correct to say "Eske ou gen kichòy pou mwen?"

Wi, li kòrèk.  Ou kapab di sa.

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

"If you see me as a Macoute, then I'm a Macoute. If you see me as gay, I'm gay. What you think of me is no problem, as far as I am concerned. You have the right to think what you want. I know who I am, and that's the main thing."

By "...gay...", do you means "...homosexual..."?
Or did you mean "...a jolly person..."?
I'm translating it here as homosexual. That's what it looks like to me.

"Si w gade m tankou makout, donk se sa mwen ye.  Si w gade m pou masisi donk se sa mwen ye tou.  Annega mwen menm, sa'w panse osijè mwen pa trakase m. Ou gen dwa panse sa w vle.  Mwen konn ki moun mwen ye, e se sa ki enpòtan"

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

I'm a bit confused about the placement of pronouns; I thought they usually follow the noun, but then I found this line from RAM's song "Fèy": 'Jou ou wè'm tonbe a, se pa jou a m'koule'. Is this grammatically correct or am I just missing some rule?

From the looks of it, all the pronouns in this sentence are subject pronouns.

Jou |  ou wè     |  m tonbe   |  a    | se pa    | jou a      |  m koule
day |  you see  | I  collapse |  the |  it's not |  the day | I  fail / deteriorate / fail
The day you see me fall is not the day I failed

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

Is there a Creole equivalent for the interj Eew!, or will that work in Creole too?

In Creole it's wouch!

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

Pafwa lè m' li nouvèl-la m wè yo ekri non peyi-yo nan plizyè fason. Pa egzamp lè yo ekri United States yon fwa yo ekri 'Lezetazini' lòt fwa 'etazini' epi lòt fwa tou 'Ozetazini'. Yo trete lòt non peyi yo konsa tou. Ki lès ki diferans-la ant chak youn?

That's a direct results of the French spelling.
French for United States is Etats Unis, thus the H. Creole term Etazini.
French for THE United States is Les Etats Unis, thus H. Creole term Lèzetazini.
and French for IN THE United States is Aux Etats Unis, thus the H. Creole term Ozetazini

many other Haitian Creole words are a combination of French definite article (le, la, les),  French prepositions (à, a la, aux) and French terms.
orevwa (from French Au revoir) → goodbye
ozanj (from French aux anges)→ to be elated
ozabwa (from French aux abois) → to be desperate
alafen (from French à la fin) → finally
alamen (from French à la main) → by hand
lajounen (from French la journée) →  day


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

M' fèk li yon pakèt pawòl nan kèk ti kont Kreyòl (pi presize nan kat kont) ki m' pa ka jwenn yo nan Google (oubyen si m' te jwenn yon signifikasyon li pa fè sans). Tanpri souple èske w' ta ede-m? Men yo ye: 1. kalbas (pou pòte dlo) 2. Kòmè 3. Mouri frèt 4. Rechany 5. Kichòy 6. Manzè 7. Palto 8. Woukoutoukoutou tanmanniga (nan yon chante). 9. Li pa tande pe menm. 10. Òfelin 11. Rale (lè yon figi rale). 12. Bòs (nan yon do) pitikouya sarafino (yon chante) 13. Koube. 14. Bagèt. 15. Lougawou 16. Modi 17. Douvan 18. Miri 19. Rigwaz 20. Kranponnen Mèsi mèsi

Hi :)
When you say "Here they are", no need to add "ye".
We simply say:  Men yo. (Here they are.)

 1. kalbas (pou pòte dlo)  → calabash, gourd.  The Calabash is of the gourd family of vegetables.  They are usually oval shaped, or as round as a medium pumpkin or squash.  They are picked, gutted through a small hole at the spot where the stem would be, dried and used as water container.  Beggars sometimes cut them in half after they are gutted, and use them as a bowl to beg for money or food.  It is also call a kwi when it's in a bowl shape. Poor people use those as plates to eat also.  Some people use them as a bowl to feed dogs.

2. Kòmè (or makòmè) → female friend, female buddy

3. Mouri frèt  (or mouri sibit) → to die cold, to die suddenly

4. Rechany (or derechany) → a spare, extra parts, clothes, extra clothes

5. Kichòy  (or bagay) → thing, something
   
a. Mwen gen yon kichòy pou ou.
    I have something for you.

 b. Ban m yon ti kichòy.
    Give me something.

 c.  Mwen pa gen kichòy pou m ba ou.
      I don't have nothing to give you.

  d. Fè yon ti kichòy pou mwen.
      Do something for me.
   

6. Manzè (or Manmzèl, mademwazèl, madmwazèl) → unmarried woman, Miss.
   
  a. Manzè Sarah malad.
      Miss Sarah is ill.

7. Palto  → a jacket, a parka

8. Woukoutoukoutou tanmanniga (nan yon chante).  → not a meaningful word
     "Woukoutoukoutou" It's the noise that a dove or pigeon would make
     "tanmanniga (or tanmiga, or tanmigamiga)" is not a meaningful word (at least not in Creole),         people might use it in songs.  It might mimic the beating of a drum.

9. Li pa tande pe menm.
    He doesn't want to quiet down / stop at all.
    
    a. pe (verb) → to quiet down
    b. Li pe. → He quieted down.
    c. Tanpri, pe la. → please be quiet

10. Òfelin  → orphan

11. Rale (lè yon figi rale).
     
      a. rale → too pull
      
      b. figi rale → long face, face that looks depressed, sad, chagrined
     
      c. Poukisa figi w rale konsa?
          Why such a long face?

12. Bòs (nan yon do) 
      "Bòs" is a hump
      "Bòs nan yon do" is a hump in the back
      We also say do bosi hunchback

13. Koube
      to bow

      a. Do koube → having a curvature of the spine
     
       b. yon granmou k'ap mache do koube
           an old person walking with a curved back

       c. Mwen koube devan ou.
           I bow before you.

14. Bagèt → a stick
     
       a. yon bagèt pen → a stick of bread
     
       b. yon bagèt, yon bagèt maji → a wand
     
       c. Bagèt pye l byen long.
           Her skinny legs are long

15. Lougawou  → (lit. werewolf) evil people that go out at night with evil intentions.  It is said that they shed their skins and turn into all sort of animals (dogs, frogs, cats, ...). They are every kid's "monster under the bed" in Haiti. It's also a sorcerer.  Lougawou are also called zobob, dyab, chanpwèl, sanpwèl, move je, manbo, hougan.   

16. Modi   → to be cursed, or to curse (lay a curse on)
      
      a. Ou se yon moun ki modi.
          You are cursed.

      c. Bondye te modi li.
          God cursed him.

17. Douvan (or devan) → in front, in front of, forward
       
       a. N'ap vanse douvan.
           We're moving forward.

18. Miri → to mature, to become ripe

19. Rigwaz  → is a whip made of cow hide for disciplining kids usually.  They are sold at the Haitians market

20. Kranponnen   → to scare, to intimidate, to be intimidated

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

Can you explain the use of "OU RIVE KOTE OU TE PRALE A"? I think it means "no" or "no, it will not happen" or something similar.

When it's used that in that way I think it's sarcasm.
It's a funny thing that Haitians always say.  Although literally the phrase means "you've reached your destination",  when used sarcastically it means "One is clearly mistaken", "one has misjudged", or "one is barking up the wrong tree"
Here are some examples:

1.  Si'w panse m'pral rete nan vye kay sa a, ou fin rive kote w ta prale a.
     If you think I'm going to stay in that shabby old house, you're clearly mistaken.

2. Si terowis yo panse yo ka desann Ameriken sou jenou yo, yo fin rive kote yo ta prale a.
    If the terrorists think that they can bring Americans to their knees, they have clearly mistaken.

3. Si manman m kwè m'pral mete rad lèd sa pou al nan fèt la, li fin rive kote l ta prale a.
     If my mom thinks that I'll wear that ugly dress to the party, she's clearly mistaken.

4. Si w panse m'ap kite w mache sou mwen, ou fin rive kote w ta prale a.
     If you think that I'm going to let you walk all over me, you are mistaken.

5.  Si nou panse m'ap pran Nana pou Sizàn*, nou fin rive kote n ta prale a.
     If you think that I can't differentiate between Nana and Sizàn, you're mistaken.
      This really means:     
      If you think I'm that dumb, you have underestimated me.

*Pran Nana pou Sizàn is an expression that means that someone cannot tell the difference between two clearly different things.
*Bay Nana pou Sizàn means that you're tricking someone into taking a fake/bad thing for the real /good thing.
An example:
6. Nou pa'p pran Nana pou Sizàn.
    We will not be tricked.
     I think former president Aristide said that a lot in his speeches.

7.  Yo ban nou Nana pou Sizàn.
      They tried to trick us.
      They did not give us the real deal.
   

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