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Palauan Adjectives

The following is a brief discussion about Palauan adjectives. For a longer exploration, please refer to discussions of state verbs in the Joseph Handbooks. According to the official Lewis Joseph grammar book of Palauan, there are no Palauan parts of speech called adjectives. However, Palauan does, of course, have words used to describe other words. In English, we call these words adjectives. Examples of English adjectives are dangerous, beautiful, and hot.

Palauan Resulting State Verbs

In Palauan, words corresponding to English adjectives are called state verbs. There are several types of Palauan state verbs. The most common are resulting state verbs which occur as a result of a verb. Some examples:

Here is a list of seven random Palauan verbs and their resulting state verbs:

ilengel, v.r.s.halted or stopped from the side; headed off.
a
el
el
a
mui
er
a
er
a
See also:
kled, v.r.s.(branch) cut or chopped off.
a
mla
a
a
See also:
klikai, v.r.s.(distance or course) swum.
a
mla
a
el
a
See also:
selumk, v.r.s.(hair) pulled out; torn out
a
mla
mla
a
er
a
a
See also:
ulchoud, v.r.s.looked for.
See also:
uldik, v.r.s.banished; exiled; sent away.
a
mla
mla
er
a
mla
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ulekiai, v.r.s.stopped; restrained.
a
mla
er
a
a
ice
;
er
a
a
See also:

 

Palauan Anticipating State Verbs

Anticipating state verbs in Palauan are like resulting state verbs. However, instead of describing the state of something after a verb has modified it, these describe the state of something before a verb is anticipated to modify it. Here's seven random Anticipating State Verbs:

chechall, v.a.s.(ingredients for betel nut chewing) are to be supplemented with tobacco.
See also:
chesuechesall, v.a.s.is to be splinted.
See also:
kldall, v.a.s.is to be pinched (with fingernails).
See also:
ngebtall, v.a.s.(newborn baby) is to have membrane washed off.
See also:
otematel, v.a.s.is to be pulled at; is to be drawn tight/taut.
a
el
el
a
a
See also:
riokel, v.a.s.is to be swept.
a
el
a
a
a
a
See also:
timetmall, v.a.s.is to be sucked in, on or out; is to be dredged or syphoned; is to be kissed.
a
er
a
a
a
See also:

 

State Verbs with Related Nouns

In English, a common thing to do is to ask 'how XXXX is something,' where XXXX is an adjective. For example, 'how hot is that,' or 'how dangerous is that,' are common English expressions.

This is true in Palauan as well in a form like, 'ng uangarang a kleldelel,' which translates literally perhaps to something like, 'it is like what, its heat,' or figuratively as, 'how hot is it.' The word kleldelel is a possessed noun meaning 'its heat.' See the nouns page for a longer explanation of possessed nouns.

Many of these Palauan nouns have related state verbs which translate to, and are used as, English adjectives. Here is a list of seven random Palauan nouns along with their corresponding state verbs.

Palauan_NounEngish_NounPalauan_AdjEnglish_Adj
bidokelhives.bidokelhives.
chadman; person; human being; living being; someone; somebody; anyone; anybody.chadliver.
olechutellarge bamboo raftolechutel(boat, person) slow-moving
techiirhandnet with handle; cloth or screen for pressing coconut milk; sheath at base of coconut frond (used for pressing coconut milk).mekudem a techerel(person who) understands or catches everything.
dechudechdirt; mud; patching material; filling (for cavity).dechudech dirty; muddy.
burachedskin disease in which white spots spread over body.burachedhaving skin covered with white spots.
temamuuimaginary ghost with ugly face.temamuuimaginary ghost with ugly face.

Reng Idioms as Adjectives

There are many Palauan expressions which use a state verb to describe the Palauan word reng which means spirit or heart. These are idioms which mean their literal and figurative meanings are not the same. Typically, but not always, the figurative meaning describes an emotion. An example is kesib a reng, which literally means a sweaty heart but figuratively it means to be angry. Here is a list of seven random examples of these reng idioms:

PalauanEnglish
olengasech
er
a
: Palauan of olengasech er a rengul'>
er
a
make or get (someone) angry.
betik
a
: Palauan of betik a rengul'>
a
having a deep feeling or affection for; love.
omal
er
a
: Palauan of omal er a rengul'>
er
a
astonish; amaze; impress; cause admiration.
kie
a
: Palauan of kie a rengul '>
kie
a
calm down; stop worrying.
diak
a
: Palauan of diak lemesim a rengul'>
a
stick to one's convictions; not change one's mind.
mekikiid
a
: Palauan of mekikiid a rengul'>
a
unsympathetic; uncaring; uninvolved; emotionless.
mengedecheduch
er
a
: Palauan of mengedecheduch er a rengul'>
er
a
think; say to oneself.