Palauan Language Online: Palauan-English Dictionary

mei
/me

, v.i.

come; arrive.

mei a okedongel a chad; mei er tiei, mei me kulekoi, ka mei.

be

v.imp.

be a ta er a telengtengil a tekoi el mengai er a tekoi el mei; be bong, be metengel.

ble

v.past.hypothetical

mera

cont.

mei er a

merekung
/merkung

v.i.pred.

is about to come or arrive.

mermang
/meremang

v.inch.

meremang a merael mei; ngar er a omerolel el mei; dumiang er a dmuil.

mlei
/mle

v.past

came; arrived.

mlei a mla mei me ngar tiang; skoki a mlei er a tutau.
mle a melekoi er a rrekui; Bung a mle tmuu; ng mle mekerang?

mlera

cont.

mlei er a

be kbong

expr.

goodbye; I'm leaving.

me e mong

expr.

pass by; go on; "(in a direction) towards me and then keep going (past me)."

nguu el mei

expr.

bring.

ta el buil er mla me e mong

expr.

one month ago.

Examples:

A Toki a mle sensei.

> Toki was a teacher.

Ngii el siseball a di mle ngii el mengai a chesmerel.

> The gate opened for them by itself.

Ng meral melemalt a lomechas me ng di mo mas er sel kired el melecholech er ngii.

> It is exactly marked and it is to cut when when we need to saw it.

Ke mlo er a Siabal er oingara me oingarang?

> On what occasions or at what times did you go to Japan?

A chitel a Droteo er a omelamech el dekool a uchul me ng mlo ungil.

> Droteo's giving up smoking is the reason why he got better.

Proverbs:

Ke mera el di medochii el rouar.

> You grab and then you pick it up.

Like telling a joke, you're still telling it yet you laugh like you just heard it.

Ng ko er a ibuchel er a Ngemai el di kiei me a dekedekel.

> He's like the sea urchins between Ngiwal and Melekeok, on the ocean floor with its cover.

The sea urchin can be seen lying quietly on the lagoon floor, occasionally with a leaf like a hat covering its head. Applied to a man who acquires a wife or great wealth without working for it.

Ng ko er a remechas el kerekikl er a klukl me a rames.

> Like an old woman who is cautious about coughing and breaking wind.

Among elderly women, it seems, coughing sometimes produces the unwanted effect of breaking wind. The idiom may be applied to any action that might produce an undesirable side effect, such as a hasty decision at a political meeting. As a caution, it suggests the need for leaders to consider all the consequences.

Ng okouik me ng obached, e a lokouim eng diak lobached.

> If it is my lunch it can be divided, if it is yours then it cannot

Two men habitually trapped fish in the same region of the lagoon. One would occasionally ask the other to join him at lunch, the other would always refuse. One day the man who refused arrived with no lunch. When the usual invitation was extended the man refused, saying that, anyway, he had no lunch. The invitation was insistently pressed until the reluctant one gave in. As they split the taro between them the one who shared made the above statement. The idiom is a mild rebuke of a retentive person

Ng ko er a Ngerechebal, el ka lsingd er a Imeliik me a ka lsingd er a Ngerekebesang.

> He's like Ngerechebal Island, which is neither closer to Imeliik nor closer to Ngerekebesang.

i.e. He's indecisive or not clearly taking sides. A person who is "on the fence," changeable and indecisive. The saying may also be applied to a partly westernized Palauan.

More Examples:

Ng mle chetil lomengur e kmo ng smecher.

> He did not want to eat and said he's sick.

Ng soak el di merael e ng di kmal mera el meringel a sils.

> I like to walk its just that the sun is scorching.

Ke mera el ko er a aika el char er a Kosiil!

> You are so like them seaweeds at Kosiil!

Aki dirrek el di milrael el mo er a skuul a lechull me a lsils.

> We did walk to school every day, rain or shine.

Tia el otngeklel a chutem el mo er a mera el chad er tia el kebliil a kma el mle ungil omesodel el dimlak a uldikel er ngii.

> The return of the land to the original clan members went well as planned without any disruptions.

mellemau

, v.s.

blue; green; black and blue; bruised.
mellemau a bedengel a toachel; a blai a melelemau, oumellemau.

oumerang

, v.i.

believe; trust.
oumerang a ngar er ngii a klaumerang er ngii, oumerang er a chelid.

Palauan Language Online: Palauan-English Dictionary

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