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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:

blisekl, v.r.s.permitted to do something, but grudgingly.
a
e
a
el
See also:
chelid, v.r.s.(neck) turned to one side; (something) twisted or wrung.
a
a
a
er
a
a
el
el
el
er
me
ng
el
See also:
chellungel, v.r.s.carried (off) on the shoulders; carrying someone or something on the shoulders.
a
mla
a
a
See also:
iliuch, v.r.s.opened; cut open.
a
mla
el
el
a
a
See also:
klbadel, v.r.s.told; informed.
a
mla
mla
me
ng
el
See also:
kloi, v.r.s.(boat) placed on supports.
a
mla
a
ng
mla
er
a
er
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:

beremall, v.a.s.(fish) is to be allowed to spoil slightly before wrapping and barbequeing.
a
el
mo
el
See also:
chemechemall, v.a.s.is to be urinated on.
See also:
esemall, v.a.s.is to be tried out/challenged.
a
el
el
mo
mo
er
a
er
a
er
a
bo
a
See also:
ledokel, v.a.s.is to be stretched out or placed lengthwise.
See also:
sechesechall, v.a.s.is to be stuffed; (gun) is to be cocked or set.
a
a
a
See also:
sikesall, v.a.s.(raft, canoe, etc.) is to be poled.
a
el
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
rubakelder; old man; chief; foreign man; boyfriend; husband.bekerubaksmell like an old man.
chemaiongdragonfly.chemaiong prone to moving from one boyfriend or girlfriend to another.
klukuktomorrow; the next or following day.klukuk be tomorrow; be the next or following day.
chimhand; arm; front paws (of animal); help; assistance; manual labor; person sent to help.chimhand; arm; front paws (of animal); help; assistance; manual labor; person sent to help.
bidokelhives.bidokel broken out in hives.
chemadechcoconut sap.chemadechcoconut sap.
diablongdevil.diablongterrible; awful; (person) evil.

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
moded
a
: Palauan of moded a rengul'>
a
(person is) easygoing/even-tempered.
titmekl
a
: Palauan of titmekl a rengul'>
a
timid; scared.
ngodech
er
a
: Palauan of ngodech er a rengul'>
er
a
find something strange, different or suspicious.
meduch
a
: Palauan of meduch a rengul'>
a
hard-working; conscientious; strong-willed; persevering.
mekurt
a
: Palauan of mekurt a rengul'>
a
(someone's) feelings hurt.
oltamet
er
a
: Palauan of oltamet er a rengul'>
er
a
pull at someone's heartstrings; mean a lot to someone.
blekebek
a
: Palauan of blekebek a rengul'>
a
pleasant/nice (in personality); congenial.


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