Sa ki fè sa? (why?)

Sa ki fè sa? Or Sa k fè sa?, used to ask the question ‘why is that?’

1.

Sa k fè sa menm? – Why is that anyway?

2.

Sa k fè ou toujou ap manje dan’w? – Why are you always grinding your teeth?

3.

Sa’k fè w dekouraje konsa? – Why are you so discouraged?

4.

Si w pa renmen lekòl la, sa’k fè w pa kite l? –If you don’t like the school, why don’t you quit?

5.

Sa k fè w pa di m poukisa w anreta? – Why don’t you tell me why you’re late.

M te pran pán kawoutyou, se sa ‘k fè sa. – I had a flat tire, that’s why.

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

Rete kè pòpòz (Remain Calm) - Audio

Download link: http://limanecasimi.audioacrobat.com/download/adc55445-43d5-cac3-bd14-c9a63bee3b2f.mp3

Listen to audio here: http://www.audioacrobat.com/play/WKpjtc0W

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Mezanmi, Mariette toujou kè pòpòz.  Li pa janm gen kè sote.
Mariette is always calm.  She's never anxious.

Ou menm nenpòt ti bagay kontrarye w. Dis min toujou mare nan fwon w.  Lè w gen pwoblèm, men longè bouch ou.
As for you, anything little thing upsets you.  You always have a frown on your face.  When you have problems, your lips are that long (pouting).

Se lavi a k'ap malmennen m pitit.  Kanta pou Mariette, m pa konnen kouman fè li pa janm kite anyen twouble l.  M'ap mande m kijan l fè l.
Life isn't good to me child.  As for Mariette, I don't know how come she never lets anything trouble her.  I wonder how she does it.

Enben petèt li pa gen okenn tèt chaje nan lavi l.
Well maybe she doesn't have any problems in her life.

Okontrè, dam sa a plen pwoblèm.  Li pa viv lasante. Bòs li toujou ap ba l presyon nan travay li.  E mari l ap fè l pase nan je zegwi.
To the contrary, this woman has a lot of problems.  She's not in good health. Her boss is always giving her pressure at work.  And her husband does not treat her that well.

Petèt li se milyonè, li pa gen pwoblèm lajan.
Maybe she's a millionaire, she doesn't have money problem

Se pa sa.  Moun ki milyonè pa fè kalite dyòb l'ap fè a.  Enpitou bil li men wotè.
That's not it.  Millionaires don't do the type of job she's doing.  And her bills are that high.

Petèt se medikaman li pran pou l kalme l.
Maybe she takes medication to stay calm.

Non. Si l t'ap pran medikaman li ta soule tout tan.  Men li toujou ap souri.  Kèlkeswa sa k pase li li toujou rete trankil.  Li pa janm pèdi sanfwa l.   Kè l pa janm kase. Kè l toujou poze.  Sa k fè sa?
No.  If she was taking medication she'd be drowsy all the time. But she's always smiling.  Whatever happens to her, she is always temperate.  She never loses her cool.  She's never anxious. She's always poised.  Why is that?

Enben, sanble li jwenn sekrè lavi a.
Well it seems that she has found the secret to life.

Sekrè lavi a? Kounye a ou vle di m ou konn sekrè linivè antye?
The secret to life?  Now you mean to tell me that you know the secret of the entire universe?

M pa ka di w m konnen l men m gen yon lide.
I can't tell you that I know it but I have an idea.

Ki sa l ye?  Di m li tanpri pou m ka gen lajwa tou.
What is it? Tell it to me please so that I may also have joy.

Gen yon pwovèb Ayisyen ki di, "Rete trankil se remèd kò".  M panse sekrè lavi a nan pwovèb sa a.  Pa chaje tèt ou, rete kè pòpòz.  Se sekrè a.
There's a Haitian proverb that says, "Being serene is the body's remedy". I think the secret to life is in this proverb. Don't trouble yourself, remain calm.  That's the secret.

Enben konpliman Monchè.  Pou valè moun k'ap chache sekrè lavi a enpi se ou k jwenn ni.  Se pou w vann sekrè sa a bay tout moun konsa nou va rich e mwen finalman va gen kè kontan tankou Mariette.
Well congratulations my dear.  So many people are looking for the secret to life and it is you that finds it.  You must sell it to everyone so that we will be rich and I'll finally be as happy as Mariette.

Eske w sèten Mariette se pa bonnanj ou?
Are you sure Mariette isn't your spirit (alter ego)?

W'ap pase m nan betiz.  M p'ap okipe w.  M'ap rete kè pòpòz.
You're making fun of me.  I won't pay attention to you.  I will stay calm.

Track: Sa nou ye? by Fernand Marlu

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pa viv lasante

pa viv lasante - to be in poor health, to be constantly ill.

Mwen pa viv lasante - I'm in poor health

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hindrance, to hinder

hindrance (nuisance) - kontraryete

to impede, to upset, to disrupt - kontrarye

Vizit yo kontrarye mwen anpil. - Their visit upset me a lot.
Maryaj la kontrarye etid tifi a. - The marriage disrupted the girl's studies.
Lapli a kontrarye jwèt baskèt la. - The rain disrupted the basketball game.
Mizik la ap kontrarye m. Desann volim nan pou m ka konsantre. - The music is disrupting me, turn down the volume so that I can concentrate.

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fè pase nan je zegwi

fè pase nan je zegwi – to mistreat, to treat unfairly, to push around

 

Bòs mwen ap fè m pase nan je zegwi nan travay la. – My boss is treating me unfairly at work

Mari l reyèlman ap fè l pase nan je zegwi. – Her husband is giving her a hard time.

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Can you translate kapab pa soufri

Capable people do not suffer.

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What is dra blan pa sal dra blan?

Dra blan pa sal dra blan - white sheets do not soil white sheets lit.

 

It’s a dangerous belief among a handful of Haitian Christians (I’m not sure if it’s just Haitians.  I don’t know where you heard this). They condemn adultery between a non-Christian and a Christian, but approve of adultery between two Christians.

I know there was a church group in Miami in the late 1980s and early 90s that practiced this – I’m not sure if they’re still around.

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what does "pouba w bade" mean in h creole. thnxs

Does it say "pouba w bade" or "bouda w bade"?

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Kijan ou di "you sound like?" Ak "What do you mean"

You sound like
Ou pale tankou
Ou gen vwa
 
You can also use “sanble” – It seems
 
You sound like a robot.
Ou pale tankou yon wobo.
 
You sound like your mom.
Ou pale tankou manman w.
 
He sounds like girl.
Li gen vwa yon vwa yon ti fi.
 
You sound like your mom (have the same voice as)
Ou gen vwa manman w.
 
The wind sounded like a howling dog.
Van an te soufle, sanble yon chen k’ap wouke.
Van an soufle tankou yon chen  k’ap wouke.
 
What do you mean?
Ki sa ou vle di?

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

“Nou pa bo isit jodi a”.Why isn’t “pa” negative here?

Actually, just having this as an independent sentence, it can be either positive or negative.

Now sometimes we do say, “nou vin pa bò isit jodi a.” Or “Ou pa bò isi?” where “pa bò isi/isit” means “by here” or “in this area”; and “pa” actually translates the English prep. “by”.

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Ki mo nan langue Créole la ki pran cédille anba c a? Eske mwen dwe retire cédille nan nom François lè m’ap ekri an Créole?

Non, pa genyen mo ou ankenn lèt “c” ki pran sediy nan lang Kreyòl la.  Mwen pa wè ankenn rezon ki pou ta fè w retire sediy nan non François a, menm si se Kreyòl ou t’ap pale. Si yon moun vle ekri François an Kreyòl, sa se yon lòt afè.

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

I thought it was interesting that H. Creole word ‘sou’ is used as ‘be in the mood for’. If I say ‘m pa sou manje’ it means ‘I’m not in the mood for food’. Did I get this correctly? Can “sou” be used for other activities?

Yes. I can give you some examples:

1.

M pa sou pale kounye a. – I’m not in the mood for talking right now.

2.

Li pa sou etidye.  Se televizyon ki enterese l. – She’s not interested in studying. She’s interested in watching tv.

3.

Nou pa sou sa. – We’re not in the mood.

4.

M pa sou bò w. – I’m ignoring you.

5.

Misye fè tout sa l te kapab pou atire atansyon ti fi a, men ti fi a pa’t menm sou bò l. – He did all he could to attract the girl’s attention, but the girl was not even interested in him.

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

“they’ll have to dig out his remains…” Google translate is giving me “Yo pral oblije fouye soti rete l” I’m thinking of using the creole word “ko” for remains: “Yo pral oblije fouye soti ko li yo”. Is this correct?

Here, to dig out will translate as "detere" (to unearth)
If Google Translate is not giving you the right translation, try using other words, in this case, "cadaver" or something else.
Here, remains will translate as kadav or zosman

They'll have to dig out his remains. - Yo pral detere kadav li. or Yo pral oblije detere zosman li.(if the body's been buried for a very long time)
and...
No need to use plural "yo" unless you're talking about bones.

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What is Haitian Creole for pillowcase?

pillowcase - sak zorye, tèt zorye, tèdoreye

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If I want to tell someone about something that actually happened, what is a good way to introduce this? M vle di ou yon istwa? Is istwa good here? What if I wanted to tell someone a fabricated story--something I made up—would istwa also work here? What makes most sense in each of these situations?

M vle di ou yon istwa (or M vle rakonte w yon istwa) will work for retelling an event that DID or DIDN'T happened.

But if you say "kont" instead of "istwa" (M vle rakonte w yon kont), the listener will instantly know that the story is fiction.


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