How do you say "Happy Anniversary"(marriage)? Also how do you say it with the number of years married (Happy 7th Anniversary)?

Happy wedding anniversary → Bòn anivèsè maryaj
Happy 7th anniversary → Pase yon bon setyèm anivèsè.
Happy seventh wedding anniversary → Pase yon bon setyèm anivèsè maryaj.

It's our wedding anniversary. → Se anivèsè maryaj nou.
It's our tenth wedding anniversary → Se dizyèm anivèsè maryaj nou.



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

Can you explain what is gwo zizi?

gwo zizi (gwo je, afre) → envious, covetous, someone who desires to possess everything he lays eyes on.
pa egzanp, ou kapab di:
Ala madanm gen gwo zizi!  L'ap travay pou $10 pa è, enpi l bezwen achte yon kay $500,000 dola.

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

"to be in jam", would you say 'li se nan problem."

Wi, ou kapab itilize mo ...pwoblèm, men gen plizyè lòt fraz ki ka di sa pi byen:

I'm in a jam.
Mwen pran nan twa wa.
Mwen pran nan mera.
Men m pran nan moulen.
De pye m nan yon grenn soulye.
M'antrave
M chire
M bannann
Mwen nan yon move enpas

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

Kijan ou kapab di "it is what it is" nan Kreyòl?

It is what it is.
Sa li ye a se sa.
or
Sa l ye a se sa.

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

Hey Mandalie, I was looking for the translation for black sheep, I found MOUTON NWA. but what i really wanted to say is black sheep of the family. Is there an expression for this? mesi.

An original H. Creole expression for "black sheep of the family" is gate ras. This expression literally means "spoil race" (as in someone who spoil the family name or someone who gives the family a bad name)

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

"Se jou koulèv mouri ou konn longè l"

Wi kanta sa.
Lè yon moun mouri, ou va wè longè kòd fanmi l.
Gen de lantèman ki genyen yon ti kras moun. E gen lantèman ki pa gen menm yon kote pou pike zepeng.
"Lè koulèv mouri, ou wè longè li."

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

Bonjou ankò! Se TiWil sòt Amsterdam. Eske ou gentan li "Zig Lavi"? Se yon lòt liv sòt Koleksyon Souf Nouvo a. Selon mwen menm, se pi difisil liv landan (?nan) koleksyon an. Si ou deja li li, mwen ta vle diskite li. Mèsi!

Bèl bonswa "TiWil".  Mwen toujou kontan tande w :)
M'espere ke zafè etid ou ap byen mache, e ke ou jwenn òpòtinite pou w fè yon ti detant detanzantan.
.
Wi, mwen te resevwa liv Zig Lavi a, sa gen kèk semèn. Mwen te li e reli l ankò. Se defitivman youn nan liv prefere mwen. Otè a pouse w pou gen anpil senpati pou li nan istwa a.  Tout pandan m t'ap li liv la, mwen t'ap espere pou yon finisman....e, mwen pa't desi.  Mwen mete liv sa nan menm kategori ak Rete Kote Lamèsi nan sans difikilte Kreyòl la.  Mwen konprann pouki liv sa ta yon ti jan difisil pou li (pou yon etranje). Li gen anpil ekspresyon ki pa ka tradui motamo ladan l, e se pa tout mo nan liv sa ke w va jwenn nan yon diksyonè.  Kreyòl misye se Kreyòl granmoun lontan, men li pa twò di pou dekode.

Mwen ta byen renmen tande kisa ki koze difikilte sa yo pou ou?
Dakò, kenbe a.

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

What is "pa mande Bondye"?

That depends.
It can be literal (Do not ask God)
Or it can be the expression Heaven forbid, or God forbid

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

Yon machin ize onswa yon machin nèf? (AUDIO)

Download link
Click here to download…

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

 

-Bonswa madam, kisa m ka fè pou ou jodi a?

 Hello ma'am, what can I do for you today?

-Bonswa mesye! M’ap chache achte yon machin nèf.

 Good afternoon sir! I'm looking to buy a new car.

-Ah! ou vini bon kote.  Ki kalite machin w’ap chèche?  Yon touteren?

 You've come to the right place.   What type of car are you looking for?  An SUV?

-Non, mwen bezwen yon ti machin ekonomik.

 No, I need a small economical car.

-Dakò. M kapab ede w ak sa. Nou genyen plizyè bèl ti machin nan sal ekspozisyon nou an.  M sèten ou va jwenn sa w'ap chache a.   Kijan kredi ou ye?

 Oke.  I can help you with that.  We have many nice little cars in our showroom.  I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for.  How's your credit?

- Mwen poko etabli kredi isi.  Mwen se yon nouvo rezidan.

   I haven't yet established credit here.  I'm a new resident.

-Ah mwen wè.  Ki kote w te abite avan sa?

  Ah I see. Where did you live before that?

- Anvan sa mwen te abite Ayiti.

 Before that I lived in Haiti.

-Donk, ou fèk vin abite nan peyi a?
  So, you just came to live in the country?

-Wi.

-Mwen wè.  Eske w’ap travay?

  I see. Are you  working?

-Wi, mwen apenn jwenn yon dyòb.  Se pousa mwen bezwen yon machin pou m ka fè trajè travay la.

  Yes, I just found a job.  That's why I need a car to do the work commute.

-Nan peyi bò isit, achte yon machin san w ponko gen ni dosye kredi, ni antesedan travay ka difisil anpil, preske enposib,  sèlsi ou ta vle peye lajan kontan.
In this country, buying a car without having a credit or work history can be very difficult, almost impossible, unless you would want to pay cash.

-O non! m pa kwè m’ap gen mwayen peye kach pou yon machin nèf!  
  Oh no! I don't think I'll have the means to pay cash for a new car! 

-Sanble ou gen lide w fikse sou yon machin nèf.  Poukisa w pa achte yon machin dezyèm men?

   It seems you have your mind set on a new car.  Why don't you buy a second-hand car? 

-Ah! Machin dezyèm men se traka!  Lè w achte yon machin konsa, se tèt chaje yon lòt moun w achte.
  Second-hand cars are trouble!  When you buy such a car, you're buying someone else's headache.  

-Non non, se pa toujou vre.  Nou gen anpil machin ize ki efikas menm jan ak yon machin nèf. Ou mèt eseye youn.  W'a wè pou tèt pa'w.
 Oh no, That's not always true. We have many used cars that are as efficient as a new car.  You may test drive one.  You'll see for yourself.

-Men wi.  Mwen ta renmen fè sa.
  Sure.  I'd love to do that.

-Ki kalite machin ou ta renmen eseye?
  What type of car would you like to test drive?

-Mwen ta renmen eseye yon machin ki resan, ki dirab, ki pa gen anpil mileyaj sou li, ki p’ap lage m nan lari, ki bèl ni anndan ni deyò, e fò l ta gen garanti.
 I'd like to try a car that is recent, durable, with low mileage, that will not leave me stranded, which is pretty inside and out, and it must have warranty.

- Ou konn sa w vle.  Kòm mwen di w, ou vini bon kote.  Nou genyen machin w'ap chache a.  Vin al eseye li.
   You do know what you want.  Like I said, you've come to the right place.. I have the car that you're looking for.  Let's go try it out.

-Dakò mèsi mesye.
 Okay.  Thank you sir.

Track:  Lajan sa a by Manno Charlemagne
  Haitian Creole ↔ English Reference, Look up Haitian Creole and English Words

Ki sa vle di "kesekwann kesedjo'?

kesekwann kesedjo → "this, that and so on", "this and that", "etc....",  "blah blah blah", trivial conversation

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

Does ‘manje pawòl’ also have the same meaning as in the English expression to ‘eat one’s words’ which means to admit that something you said was wrong?

I have not heard it like that.
But people do say bwè or vale pawòl (maybe "...manje" too)

M'ap fè w vale sa'w di a.
I'm going to make you swallow what you said.
I'm going to prove you wrong.
and also:
I will make you regret what you said.
or
I'll make you pay for what you said.
Or
You'll be sorry because of what you said. (It's about someone being vindictive about what someone else say:)

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

Caress, stroke, dandle, fondle?

caress (dandle, fondle) → karese, ancheri, kajole, and andyoze
stroke → pase men

He was stroking the child's hair.
Li t'ap pase men nan tèt timoun nan.

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

What's the best way to communicate the idea of teamwork? And how would you translate "We want this organization to function as a team." And "Everyone needs to be a team player." Or would you recommend something other than the "team" metaphor? Is there a clearer word picture to use? Any ideas are appreciated!

Our favorite terms for teamwork are tèt ansanm, pote kole, men kontre or kole zepòl  they all mean team effort, pulling together, or working togetther.  
"We want this organization to function as a team."
"Nou vle tout moun mete tèt ansanm pou òganizasyon sa a mache."
"Nou vle tout moun pote kole pou fè òganizasyon sa a mache."
"Nou vle tout moun fè yon men kontre pou òganizasyon sa a byen fonksyone."
"An nou kole zepòl nou pou fè òganizasyon sa a mache."

and you can also use other words like kolabore, kolaborasyon, tèt kole, or konbit.
"An nou travay tèt kole pou fè òganizasyon sa a mache."
"An nou fè yon konbit zefò pou fè òganizasyon sa a mache."
"Nou vle tout moun kolabore ansanm pou fè òganizasyon sa a mache."
etc...

UPDATE
also add: kèk konbit, yon konbit (a "konbit" is group of people that gets together to work on a project)
Haitian Creole ↔ English Reference, Look up Haitian Creole and English Words

What's the difference between vole, voltije and sote?

vole → to fly
vòltije → to leap, to bounce, to fly away
sote → to skip, to jump over, to hop

sote also mean to skip as in:
You may skip one day when taking your meds
Ou mèt sote yon jou lè w'ap pran medikaman ou.

sote also means to be startled or spooked as in:
You startled me.  
Ou fè m sote.

Or

I was startled when I saw the snake.
Mwen te sote lè m te wè koulèv la.

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

Doesn't 'kras' mean dirt or residue? What does it mean here? "Neg la pa kras we l."..mesi.

yes kras mean dirt or residue as in:
Foubi kontwa a pou w ka retire kras yo.
Scrub the counter to remove the dirt.

But kras also means small amount, little as in:
Mwen pa pè yon ti kras.
I am not scare a little
I'm not the least bit scared

or

ti kras pa ti kras
little by little

so
Nèg la pa kras wè l.
The man doesn't see it a little.
The man didn't see it at all.

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