1- HAITIAN CREOLE ALPHABET
2- WORD ORDER
1 Basic S + V Mwen dòmi. I sleep.
2 Direct object S + V + DO Mwen li liv sa a. I read that book.
3 Indirect object S + V + IO + DO Mwen bay ti gason an liv la. I give the boy the book.
4 Beneficiary S + V + pou + beneficiary + DO Mwen achte yon liv pou li. I buy a book for him.
5 IO pronoun S + V + IO pronoun + DO Mwen ba li liv la. I give him the book.
6 Adjective S + V + Adj Liv la gwo. The book is big.
7 Adverb S + V + Adv Li li vit. He reads quickly.
8 Direct object + adverb S + V + DO + Adv Mwen li liv sa a vit. I read that book quickly.
9 Time adverb S + Time + V Mwen travay jodi a. I work today.
10 Place adverb S + V + Place Li rete la. He lives there.
11 Prepositional phrase S + V + Place phrase Liv la sou tab la. The book is on the table.
12 DO + preposition S + V + DO + Place phrase Mwen mete liv la sou tab la. I put the book on the table.
13 Determiner + noun N + Det Liv sa a nouvo. This book is new.
14 Determiner + adjective + noun Adj + N + Det Gwo liv sa a nouvo. This big book is new.
15 Numeral + noun Num + Adj + N Gen de nouvo liv la. There are two new books there.
16 Conjunction Clause + Conj + Clause Mwen li, epi li ekri. I read, and he writes.
17 Conjunction + objects S + V + DO + Conj + S + V + DO Mwen li liv la, epi li ekri yon lèt. I read the book, and he writes a letter.
18 Present passive S + ap + passive V Liv la ap li. The book is being read.
19 Passive + agent S + V + pa + agent Liv la li pa Mak. The book is read by Mark.
20 Passive + IO S + V + IO Yo bay ti gason an liv la. The book is given to the boy.
21 Passive + IO + agent S + V + IO + pa + agent Yo bay ti gason an liv la pa pwofesè a. The book is given to the boy by the teacher.
22 Passive + adverb S + Time + ap + V Liv la ap li jodi a. The book is being read today.
23 Passive + preposition S + ap + V + Place Liv la ap mete sou tab la. The book is being put on the table.
24 Passive + agent + adverb S + Time + V + pa + agent Liv la li jodi a pa Mak. The book is read today by Mark.
25 Passive + agent + IO + adverb S + Time + V + IO + pa + agent Yo bay elèv la liv la jodi a pa pwofesè a. The book is given to the student today by the teacher.
26 Perfect passive S + te + V Liv la te li. The book was read / has been read.
27 Perfect passive + agent S + te + V + pa + agent Liv la te li pa Mak. The book was read by Mark.
28 Future passive S + pral + V Liv la pral li. The book will be read.
29 Future passive + agent S + pral + V + pa + agent Liv la pral li pa Mak. The book will be read by Mark.
30 Modal passive S + dwe + V Liv la dwe li. The book must be read.
31 Negative S + pa + V + DO Mwen pa li liv sa a. I do not read that book.
32 Negative passive S + pa + V + pa + agent Liv la pa li pa Mak. The book is not read by Mark.
33 Yes/no question Èske + S + V + DO? Èske ou li liv sa a? Do you read that book?
34 Passive question Èske + S + ap + V? Èske liv la ap li? Is the book being read?
35 Agent question Kiyès ki + V + DO? Kiyès ki li liv sa a? Who reads that book?
36 IO question S + V + DO + kiyès? Ou bay liv la kiyès? To whom do you give the book?
37 Imperative V + DO Li liv la! Read the book!
38 Imperative + IO V + IO + DO Bay ti gason an liv la! Give the boy the book!
39 Passive imperative Fè + S + V Fè yo li liv la! Let the book be read!
40 Infinitive / gerund pou + V pou li to read / reading
41 Infinitive + DO pou + V + DO pou li liv la to read the book
42 Passive infinitive pou + V + pa + agent pou li pa moun yo to be read by the people
43 Purpose S + V + pou + V Mwen manje pou m jwe. I eat to play / in order to play.
44 Relative clause N + relative clause Liv mwen li a enteresan. The book that I read is interesting.
45 Passive relative N + relative clause + agent Liv Mak li a enteresan. The book that is read by Mark is interesting.
46 Conditional / if Si + clause, clause Si mwen gen tan, mwen ap li. If I have time, I will read.
47 Conditional + passive Si + passive clause, clause Si yo li liv la, yo ka aprann anpil bagay. If the book is read, many things can be learned.
48 Reported speech S + speech verb + clause Li di li t ap li. He said that he was reading.
49 Reported question S + speech verb + si + clause Li mande si mwen t ap li. He asked if I was reading.
50 Reported command/request S + mande + person + pou + V Li mande m pou m li liv sa a. He asked me to read that book.
ADVERBS:
1 Manner Adverb + Verb / usually after the verb Mwen li liv la vit. I read the book quickly.
2 Place Place expression + Verb / usually after the verb Mwen li liv la lakay. I read the book at home.
3 Time Time expression + Sentence / beginning, middle, or end Mwen li liv la yè. I read the book yesterday.
4 Frequency Frequency adverb + Verb / usually before the verb Mwen souvan li liv. I often read books.
5 Frequency + be Subject + Frequency adverb + be + Predicate Li toujou kontan. He is always happy.
6 Frequency + auxiliary Subject + pa janm + Verb Mwen pa janm wè sa. I have never seen that.
7 Degree Degree adverb + Adjective Sa trè bon. This is very good.
8 Degree + verb Verb + Degree adverb Mwen renmen sa anpil. I really like this.
9 Sentence adverb Sentence adverb + Clause / usually beginning Erezman, mwen genyen. Fortunately, I won.
10 Comment adverb Comment expression + Clause / usually beginning Pou m di laverite, mwen pa konnen. Honestly, I don't know.
11 Linking adverb Linking adverb + Clause / usually beginning or between clauses Mwen te fatige; sepandan, mwen te kontinye travay. I was tired; however, I continued working.
12 Direction Directional expression + Verb / often after the verb Li soti deyò. He went outside.
13 Definite frequency Definite frequency expression + Verb Mwen ale la chak jou. I go there every day.
14 Duration Duration expression + Verb Mwen te etidye pandan de zèdtan. I studied for two hours.
15 Purpose pou + Infinitive/Verb / purpose clause Mwen ale la pou m aprann. I am going there to study.
INDIRECT OBJECT:
1 Basic indirect object S + V + IO + DO Mwen bay Jan liv la. I give John the book.
2 Indirect-object pronoun S + V + IO pronoun + DO Mwen ba li liv la. I give him/her the book.
3 Indirect object with a person S + V + person + DO Mwen voye Mari yon lèt. I send Mary a letter.
4 Indirect object with a noun phrase S + V + NP + DO Mwen bay pwofesè a liv la. I give the teacher the book.
5 Indirect object with a definite noun S + V + N + Det + DO Mwen bay timoun nan yon jwèt. I give the child a toy.
6 Indirect object with an indefinite noun S + V + yon + N + DO Mwen bay yon timoun yon liv. I give a child a book.
7 Indirect object with plural noun S + V + N + yo + DO Mwen bay timoun yo liv yo. I give the children their books.
8 Recipient S + V + recipient + DO Mwen voye li yon mesaj. I send him/her a message.
9 Recipient with bay S + bay + recipient + DO Mwen bay li lajan. I give him/her money.
10 Recipient with voye S + voye + recipient + DO Mwen voye li yon lèt. I send him/her a letter.
11 Recipient with montre S + montre + recipient + DO Mwen montre li foto a. I show him/her the picture.
12 Recipient with rakonte S + rakonte + recipient + DO Mwen rakonte li istwa a. I tell him/her the story.
13 Recipient with esplike S + esplike + recipient + DO Mwen esplike li pwoblèm nan. I explain the problem to him/her.
14 Recipient with preposition S + V + DO + pou + recipient Mwen achte yon liv pou li. I buy a book for him/her.
15 Beneficiary S + V + DO + pou + beneficiary Mwen achte yon kado pou li. I buy a gift for him/her.
16 Beneficiary noun S + V + DO + pou + NP Mwen prepare manje pou timoun yo. I prepare food for the children.
17 Beneficiary pronoun S + V + DO + pou + pronoun Mwen fè manje pou li. I make food for him/her.
18 Purpose/benefit recipient S + V + pou + person Mwen travay pou fanmi mwen. I work for my family.
19 Transfer recipient S + V + recipient + DO Mwen prete li machin nan. I lend him/her the car.
20 Loan recipient S + V + recipient + DO Mwen prete Jan lajan. I lend John money.
21 Communication recipient S + V + recipient + message Mwen ekri li yon lèt. I write him/her a letter.
22 Speech recipient S + V + recipient + information Mwen di li verite a. I tell him/her the truth.
23 Teaching recipient S + V + recipient + lesson Mwen anseye timoun yo franse. I teach the children French.
24 Showing recipient S + V + recipient + DO Mwen montre pwofesè a travay mwen. I show the teacher my work.
25 Offering recipient S + V + recipient + DO Mwen ofri li yon kafe. I offer him/her a coffee.
26 Serving recipient S + V + recipient + DO Mwen sèvi li manje. I serve him/her food.
27 Sending recipient S + V + recipient + DO Mwen voye li yon mesaj. I send him/her a message.
28 Giving recipient S + V + recipient + DO Mwen bay li liv la. I give him/her the book.
29 Returning recipient S + V + recipient + DO Mwen remèt li lajan an. I return the money to him/her.
30 Taking something to someone S + V + DO + bay + recipient Mwen pote liv la bay pwofesè a. I take the book to the teacher.
GENITIVE:
1 Basic possession Possessor + N liv Jan John's book
2 Possessor after noun with de N + de + possessor liv de Jan John's book / the book of John
3 Personal possessive determiner Possessive + N liv mwen my book
4 2nd-person possession Possessive + N liv ou your book
5 3rd-person possession Possessive + N liv li his/her book
6 1st-person plural possession Possessive + N liv nou our book
7 2nd-person plural possession Possessive + N liv nou your book
8 3rd-person plural possession Possessive + N liv yo their book
9 Possessor as proper name N + proper name machin Jan John's car
10 Possessor as noun phrase N + possessor NP machin pwofesè a the teacher's car
11 Possession with de N + de + NP machin de pwofesè a the teacher's car
12 Part-whole Part + de + whole yon pati nan kay la a part of the house
13 Quantity of noun Quantity + de + N anpil de liv many books
14 Container/content N + de + content yon vè dlo a glass of water
15 Material N + de + material yon tab bwa a wooden table / table of wood
16 Origin/source N + de + source dlo de sous la water from the spring
17 Author/creator N + de + creator liv de Victor Hugo Victor Hugo's book
18 Work/creation relationship N + de + creator mizik de atis la the artist's music
19 Relationship N + de + person manman de Jan John's mother
20 Family relationship N + possessor frè mwen my brother
21 Body-part possession N + possessor men mwen my hand
22 Body-part with definite noun N + possessor + Det men Jan an John's hand
23 Definite possessive N + possessor + Det liv mwen an my book
24 Plural definite possessive N + possessor + yo liv mwen yo my books
25 Demonstrative + possession N + possessor + Det/Demonstrative liv mwen sa a this book of mine
26 Possessive + adjective N + Poss + Adj liv mwen an gwo my book is big
27 Possessive + numeral N + Poss + numeral de liv mwen yo my two books
28 Double possession N + Poss + de + NP liv frè mwen an de Jan my brother's book by John
29 Abstract relationship N + de + NP lanmou de yon manman a mother's love
30 Characteristic/quality N + de + NP bote de fanm nan the woman's beauty
31 Measure Measure + de + N yon kilo de diri a kilo of rice
32 Age/time relationship N + de + time yon timoun de senk an a five-year-old child
33 Place association N + de + place moun de Pòtoprens a person from Port-au-Prince
34 Institutional association N + de + institution direktè de lekòl la the school's director
35 Membership/association N + de + group manm de ekip la a member of the team
36 Origin of object N + de + source kado de manman mwen a gift from my mother
37 Possessor with pronoun N + pronoun kay li his/her house
38 Possessor with plural pronoun N + yo kay yo their house
39 Nominalized possession sa + Possessive sa mwen an mine / the one that is mine
40 Independent possessive sa + Possessive Sa a se pa mwen. This is not mine.
INDEPENDENT:
1 1st singular mwen se pou mwen mine
2 2nd singular ou se pou ou yours
3 3rd singular li se pou li his / hers
4 1st plural nou se pou nou ours
5 2nd plural nou se pou nou yours
6 3rd plural yo se pou yo theirs
WAS GOING TO:
was going to / planned to S + te pral + V M te pral ale. — I was going to leave.
was going to / was in the process of S + t ap + V M t ap ale. — I was going / was going to go.
was about to / was on the point of S + te prèt pou + V M te prèt pou ale. — I was about to leave.
2- NOUNS
Singular indefinite yon + N yon liv a book
Singular definite N + Def. liv la the book
Plural indefinite N / kèk + N kèk liv some books
Plural definite N + yo liv yo the books
Numeral Num + N de liv two books
bare N liv books / books generally
kèk + N kèk liv some books
plizyè + N plizyè liv several books
anpil + N anpil liv many books
de + N de liv two books
twa + N twa liv three books
A Haitian Creole noun can occur without an article. The absence of an article can express a generic, indefinite, or non-specific meaning depending on context.
3- ADJECTIVES
1 attributive N + Adj liv enteresan interesting book
2 definite attributive N + Adj + Def. liv enteresan an the interesting book
3 plural attributive N + Adj + yo liv enteresan yo the interesting books
4 predicative S + Adj Liv la enteresan. The book is interesting.
5 negative S + pa + Adj Liv la pa enteresan. The book isn't interesting.
6 intensified S + Adj + anpil Liv la enteresan anpil. The book is very interesting.
7 intensified S + trè + Adj Liv la trè enteresan. The book is very interesting.
8 excessive S + twò + Adj Liv la twò long. The book is too long.
9 sufficient S + Adj + ase Liv la long ase. The book is long enough.
10 comparative S + pi + Adj + pase Li pi gwo pase li. It is bigger than it.
11 superlative pi + Adj + Def. pi gwo a the biggest
12 emphatic Se + Adj + S + Adj Se bèl li bèl. He/she is really beautiful.
13 relative N + ki + Adj + Def. liv ki bèl la the book that is beautiful
14 group noun Adj + yo jèn yo the young
15 material N + an + material tab an bwa wooden table
16 color N + color machin wouj red car
17 nationality N + nationality manje Ayisyen Haitian food
18 adjective coordination N + Adj + ak + Adj yon kay gwo ak bèl a big and beautiful house
TO BE VERB:
I am happy. Mwen kontan.
You are happy. Ou kontan.
He is happy. Li kontan.
She is happy. Li kontan.
We are happy. Nou kontan.
You are happy. Nou kontan.
They are happy. Yo kontan.
So:
Mwen se kontan ❌
Mwen kontan ✅
3. Present “to be” — location
For location, Haitian Creole generally uses la or a location expression rather than se.
English Haitian Creole
I am here. Mwen la.
You are here. Ou la.
He is here. Li la.
She is here. Li la.
We are here. Nou la.
You are here. Nou la.
They are here. Yo la.
With a specific location:
Mwen nan kay la.
= I am in the house.
Li lekòl.
= He/she is at school.
4. Past “was/were” — identity
The past of se is commonly expressed with te.
Structure
Subject + te + se + noun
However, in ordinary Haitian Creole, se often contracts/disappears in past contexts, especially with noun predicates.
English Haitian Creole
I was a teacher. Mwen te pwofesè.
You were a teacher. Ou te pwofesè.
He was a teacher. Li te pwofesè.
She was a teacher. Li te pwofesè.
We were teachers. Nou te pwofesè.
You were teachers. Nou te pwofesè.
They were teachers. Yo te pwofesè.
For emphasis/identification, se can still appear in appropriate constructions.
5. Past “was/were” — adjective
Structure
Subject + te + adjective
English Haitian Creole
I was happy. Mwen te kontan.
You were happy. Ou te kontan.
He was happy. Li te kontan.
She was happy. Li te kontan.
We were happy. Nou te kontan.
You were happy. Nou te kontan.
They were happy. Yo te kontan.
6. Past “was/were” — location
Structure
Subject + te + location
English Haitian Creole
I was here. Mwen te la.
You were here. Ou te la.
He was here. Li te la.
She was here. Li te la.
We were here. Nou te la.
You were here. Nou te la.
They were here. Yo te la.
Example:
Mwen te nan kay la.
= I was in the house.
7. Past progressive “was/were being / was/were doing”
Haitian Creole uses:
te ap
Subject + te ap + verb
English Haitian Creole
I was working. Mwen t ap travay.
You were working. Ou t ap travay.
He was working. Li t ap travay.
She was working. Li t ap travay.
We were working. Nou t ap travay.
You were working. Nou t ap travay.
They were working. Yo t ap travay.
For an adjective/state, te is normally sufficient:
Mwen te kontan.
= I was happy.
8. Future “will be” — identity
For future identity:
pral / va
English Haitian Creole
I will be a teacher. Mwen pral pwofesè.
You will be a teacher. Ou pral pwofesè.
He will be a teacher. Li pral pwofesè.
She will be a teacher. Li pral pwofesè.
We will be teachers. Nou pral pwofesè.
You will be teachers. Nou pral pwofesè.
They will be teachers. Yo pral pwofesè.
Using va:
Mwen va pwofesè.
= I will be a teacher.
Yo va pwofesè.
= They will be teachers.
9. Future “will be” — adjective/state
English Haitian Creole
I will be happy. Mwen pral kontan.
You will be happy. Ou pral kontan.
He will be happy. Li pral kontan.
She will be happy. Li pral kontan.
We will be happy. Nou pral kontan.
You will be happy. Nou pral kontan.
They will be happy. Yo pral kontan.
Also:
Mwen va kontan.
= I will be happy.
10. Future “will be” — location
English Haitian Creole
I will be here. Mwen pral la.
You will be here. Ou pral la.
He will be here. Li pral la.
She will be here. Li pral la.
We will be here. Nou pral la.
You will be here. Nou pral la.
They will be here. Yo pral la.
11. Future progressive — “will be doing”
Structure
Subject + ap + verb
or with an explicitly future reference:
Subject + pral + ap + verb
For example:
Mwen pral ap travay.
= I will be working.
But Haitian Creole normally prefers context-appropriate aspectual constructions rather than mechanically translating English will be + -ing.
12. Conditional “would be”
The conditional marker is:
ta
Structure
Subject + ta + adjective/noun expression
English Haitian Creole
I would be happy. Mwen ta kontan.
You would be happy. Ou ta kontan.
He would be happy. Li ta kontan.
She would be happy. Li ta kontan.
We would be happy. Nou ta kontan.
You would be happy. Nou ta kontan.
They would be happy. Yo ta kontan.
With a noun:
Mwen ta pwofesè.
= I would be a teacher.
13. “Would have been”
For a hypothetical past state:
ta + te
English Haitian Creole
I would have been happy. Mwen ta te kontan.
You would have been happy. Ou ta te kontan.
He would have been happy. Li ta te kontan.
She would have been happy. Li ta te kontan.
We would have been happy. Nou ta te kontan.
You would have been happy. Nou ta te kontan.
They would have been happy. Yo ta te kontan.
The exact form can vary with context and style, but ta te is the basic combination for hypothetical past situations.
14. Perfect “has/have been”
Haitian Creole can express completed states with fin.
Structure
Subject + fin + adjective/state
English Haitian Creole
I have been ready. Mwen fin pare.
You have been ready. Ou fin pare.
He has been ready. Li fin pare.
She has been ready. Li fin pare.
We have been ready. Nou fin pare.
You have been ready. Nou fin pare.
They have been ready. Yo fin pare.
But fin fundamentally indicates completion, so it should not automatically be treated as an exact English present-perfect equivalent in every context.
15. Past perfect “had been”
Structure
Subject + te fin + adjective/state
English Haitian Creole
I had been ready. Mwen te fin pare.
You had been ready. Ou te fin pare.
He had been ready. Li te fin pare.
She had been ready. Li te fin pare.
We had been ready. Nou te fin pare.
You had been ready. Nou te fin pare.
They had been ready. Yo te fin pare.
16. “Be about to”
This is particularly important because you asked about “was about to” earlier.
Structure
Subject + te prèt pou + verb
English Haitian Creole
I was about to leave. Mwen te prèt pou ale.
You were about to leave. Ou te prèt pou ale.
He was about to leave. Li te prèt pou ale.
She was about to leave. Li te prèt pou ale.
We were about to leave. Nou te prèt pou ale.
You were about to leave. Nou te prèt pou ale.
They were about to leave. Yo te prèt pou ale.
Present:
Mwen prèt pou ale.
= I am about to leave.
Future/imminent:
Mwen pral ale.
= I am going to leave / I will leave.
17. “Be going to”
Present/future intention
Subject + pral + verb
English Haitian Creole
I am going to leave. Mwen pral ale.
You are going to leave. Ou pral ale.
He is going to leave. Li pral ale.
She is going to leave. Li pral ale.
We are going to leave. Nou pral ale.
You are going to leave. Nou pral ale.
They are going to leave. Yo pral ale.
Past:
Subject + te pral + verb
Mwen te pral ale.
= I was going to leave.
18. “There is / there are”
This is a different “be” construction.
Haitian Creole commonly uses:
gen
English Haitian Creole
There is a book. Gen yon liv.
There are books. Gen liv.
There is a problem. Gen yon pwoblèm.
There are many people. Gen anpil moun.
Past:
Te gen yon liv.
= There was a book.
Future:
Pral gen yon liv.
= There will be a book.
19. “To be” — all major forms together
Using kontan = happy:
English Haitian Creole
I am happy Mwen kontan.
You are happy Ou kontan.
He is happy Li kontan.
She is happy Li kontan.
We are happy Nou kontan.
You are happy Nou kontan.
They are happy Yo kontan.
I was happy Mwen te kontan.
You were happy Ou te kontan.
He was happy Li te kontan.
She was happy Li te kontan.
We were happy Nou te kontan.
You were happy Nou te kontan.
They were happy Yo te kontan.
I will be happy Mwen pral kontan.
You will be happy Ou pral kontan.
He will be happy Li pral kontan.
She will be happy Li pral kontan.
We will be happy Nou pral kontan.
You will be happy Nou pral kontan.
They will be happy Yo pral kontan.
I would be happy Mwen ta kontan.
You would be happy Ou ta kontan.
He would be happy Li ta kontan.
She would be happy Li ta kontan.
We would be happy Nou ta kontan.
You would be happy Nou ta kontan.
They would be happy Yo ta kontan.
20. Negative “to be”
Haitian Creole uses pa for negation.
Present
English Haitian Creole
I am not happy. Mwen pa kontan.
You are not happy. Ou pa kontan.
He is not happy. Li pa kontan.
She is not happy. Li pa kontan.
We are not happy. Nou pa kontan.
You are not happy. Nou pa kontan.
They are not happy. Yo pa kontan.
Past
Subject + pa t + adjective
English Haitian Creole
I wasn't happy. Mwen pa t kontan.
You weren't happy. Ou pa t kontan.
He wasn't happy. Li pa t kontan.
She wasn't happy. Li pa t kontan.
We weren't happy. Nou pa t kontan.
You weren't happy. Nou pa t kontan.
They weren't happy. Yo pa t kontan.
Future
Subject + pap + ...
English Haitian Creole
I won't be happy. Mwen pap kontan.
You won't be happy. Ou pap kontan.
He won't be happy. Li pap kontan.
She won't be happy. Li pap kontan.
We won't be happy. Nou pap kontan.
You won't be happy. Nou pap kontan.
They won't be happy. Yo pap kontan.
21. Question forms of “to be”
Yes/no questions
Haitian Creole commonly uses Èske.
English Haitian Creole
Am I happy? Èske mwen kontan?
Are you happy? Èske ou kontan?
Is he happy? Èske li kontan?
Is she happy? Èske li kontan?
Are we happy? Èske nou kontan?
Are they happy? Èske yo kontan?
Past:
Èske ou te kontan?
= Were you happy?
Future:
Èske ou pral kontan?
= Will you be happy?
22. WH-questions with “to be”
English Haitian Creole
Who am I? Kiyès mwen ye?
Who are you? Kiyès ou ye?
Who is he? Kiyès li ye?
Who is she? Kiyès li ye?
Who are they? Kiyès yo ye?
What is this? Kisa sa ye?
What is that? Kisa sa ye?
Where am I? Ki kote mwen ye?
Where are you? Ki kote ou ye?
Where is he? Ki kote li ye?
Where are they? Ki kote yo ye?
Here ye is particularly important.
Kiyès ou ye?
literally ≈ “Who are you?”
4- PRONOUNS
1sg Mwen li. I read.
2sg Ou li. You read.
3sg Li li. He/she reads.
1pl Nou li. We read.
2pl Nou li. You read.
3pl Yo li. They read.
3. Direct-object pronouns
Haitian Creole does not have separate accusative forms.
The same pronouns occur after the verb.
Person Haitian Creole English
1sg Li wè mwen. He/she sees me.
2sg Li wè ou. He/she sees you.
3sg Li wè li. He/she sees him/her/it.
1pl Li wè nou. He/she sees us.
2pl Li wè nou. He/she sees you.
3pl Li wè yo. He/she sees them.
Pattern
Subject + Verb + Object pronoun
4. Indirect-object pronouns
Recipient pronouns are generally expressed by word order, bay, or another appropriate preposition.
English Haitian Creole
Give me the book. Ban mwen liv la.
Give you the book. Ba ou liv la.
Give him/her the book. Ba li liv la.
Give us the book. Ban nou liv la.
Give them the book. Ba yo liv la.
Important forms include:
ban mwen = give me
ba ou = give you
ba li = give him/her
ban nou = give us / give you plural
ba yo = give them
5. Prepositional / oblique pronouns
After prepositions, the ordinary personal forms are used.
Function Haitian Creole English
with me avèk mwen with me
with you avèk ou with you
with him/her avèk li with him/her
with us avèk nou with us
with you avèk nou with you
with them avèk yo with them
for me pou mwen for me
for you pou ou for you
for him/her pou li for him/her
for us pou nou for us
for you pou nou for you
for them pou yo for them
from me nan men mwen from me
from him/her nan men li from him/her
6. Possessive pronouns / possessive determiners
Haitian Creole normally puts the possessor after the noun.
Person Possessive form Example English
1sg mwen liv mwen my book
2sg ou liv ou your book
3sg li liv li his/her book
1pl nou liv nou our book
2pl nou liv nou your book
3pl yo liv yo their book
Unlike English, the possessive does not precede the noun:
liv mwen = my book
not:
mwen liv ❌
7. Definite possessive constructions
A definite marker can be added after the possessive noun phrase.
Person Haitian Creole English
1sg liv mwen an my book
2sg liv ou a your book
3sg liv li a his/her book
1pl liv nou an our book
2pl liv nou an your book
3pl liv yo a their book
The form of the definite marker depends on the phonological environment:
a / an / la / lan / nan
8. Independent possessive pronouns
Haitian Creole does not have a dedicated set equivalent to English:
mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs
The most important independent possessive construction is:
se pou + pronoun
Person Haitian Creole English
1sg se pou mwen mine
2sg se pou ou yours
3sg se pou li his / hers
1pl se pou nou ours
2pl se pou nou yours
3pl se pou yo theirs
Examples:
Liv sa a se pou mwen.
= This book is mine.
Machin sa a se pou li.
= This car is his/hers.
Kay sa a se pou nou.
= This house is ours.
9. Reflexive pronouns
Haitian Creole commonly uses tèt + personal pronoun.
Structure
tèt + possessive/personal form
Person Haitian Creole English
1sg tèt mwen myself
2sg tèt ou yourself
3sg tèt li himself / herself / itself
1pl tèt nou ourselves
2pl tèt nou yourselves
3pl tèt yo themselves
Examples:
- Mwen wè tèt mwen. — I see myself.
- Li blame tèt li. — He/she blames himself/herself.
- Nou ede tèt nou. — We help ourselves.
- Yo defann tèt yo. — They defend themselves.
10. Reciprocal pronouns
The main reciprocal construction is:
youn lòt
= each other / one another
Haitian Creole English
Yo renmen youn lòt. They love each other.
Nou ede youn lòt. We help each other.
Yo pale youn ak lòt. They speak to each other.
Nou respekte youn lòt. We respect each other.
Other forms can be built with prepositions:
youn ak lòt — each other / one another
youn pou lòt — for each other
youn nan lòt — one of the others
11. Demonstrative pronouns
Haitian Creole has several demonstrative constructions.
sa a
= this / that
Haitian Creole English
sa a this / that
sa yo these / those
Examples:
Sa a bon.
= This is good.
Sa yo bèl.
= These/those are beautiful.
12. Demonstrative noun phrases
Structure Haitian Creole English
N + sa a liv sa a this/that book
N + sa yo liv sa yo these/those books
sa a sa a this/that one
sa yo sa yo these/those
13. Interrogative pronouns
Haitian Creole English
kiyès who / whom
kisa what
kisa ki what / what is it that
ki which
ki moun which person / who
ki sa what
konbyen how many / how much
kilès which one / who
Examples:
Kiyès ou wè?
= Whom/who do you see?
Kisa ou vle?
= What do you want?
Ki moun sa a?
= Who is this person?
Ki liv ou vle?
= Which book do you want?
Konbyen ou genyen?
= How many/how much do you have?
14. Relative pronouns
Haitian Creole primarily uses:
ki
= who / which / that
Haitian Creole English
moun ki vini an the person who came
liv ki sou tab la the book that is on the table
fanm ki travay la the woman who works
kay ki gwo a the house that is big
The relative marker ki is generally invariant.
15. Relative pronoun as subject
Structure
N + ki + V
Haitian Creole English
moun ki vini an the person who came
timoun ki dòmi an the child who is sleeping
fanm ki travay la the woman who works
16. Relative object
Haitian Creole can use ki with an object gap.
Haitian Creole English
liv mwen li a the book that I read
moun mwen wè a the person whom I saw
machin li achte a the car that he/she bought
Notice that Haitian Creole can use a construction without an overt relative pronoun before the verb:
liv mwen li a
literally something like:
book I read the
= the book that I read.
17. Indefinite pronouns
Haitian Creole English
yon moun someone / a person
kèk moun some people
nenpòt moun anyone / anybody
tout moun everyone / everybody
okenn moun nobody / no one / anyone
pèsonn nobody / no one
yon bagay something
nenpòt bagay anything
tout bagay everything
pa gen anyen nothing
anyen anything / anything at all
chak moun everyone / each person
chak bagay each thing
lòt moun other people
lòt bagay something else / other things
18. “Someone / anyone / everyone / nobody”
English Haitian Creole
someone yon moun
somebody yon moun
anyone nenpòt moun
anybody nenpòt moun
everyone tout moun
everybody tout moun
no one pèsonn / okenn moun
nobody pèsonn / okenn moun
Examples:
Yon moun vini.
= Someone came.
Nenpòt moun ka fè sa.
= Anyone can do that.
Tout moun konnen sa.
= Everyone knows that.
Pèsonn pa vini.
= Nobody came.
19. “Something / anything / everything / nothing”
English Haitian Creole
something yon bagay
anything nenpòt bagay / anyen
everything tout bagay
nothing anyen / pa gen anyen
Examples:
Mwen vle yon bagay.
= I want something.
Ou ka pran nenpòt bagay.
= You can take anything.
Mwen konnen tout bagay.
= I know everything.
Mwen pa wè anyen.
= I don't see anything.
20. Negative pronouns
Haitian Creole uses negative constructions with pa.
pèsonn
= nobody/no one
Pèsonn pa vini.
= Nobody came.
anyen
= anything/nothing depending on negation
Mwen pa wè anyen.
= I don't see anything.
okenn + noun
Mwen pa gen okenn liv.
= I don't have any book.
21. Emphatic pronouns
Personal pronouns can be emphasized with constructions such as:
mwen menm — I myself / me personally
ou menm — you yourself
li menm — he/she himself/herself
nou menm — we ourselves
yo menm — they themselves
Haitian Creole English
Mwen menm, mwen dakò. I personally agree.
Ou menm, kisa ou vle? You, what do you want?
Li menm, li pa dakò. He/she, for his/her part, doesn't agree.
Nou menm, nou pare. We ourselves are ready.
Yo menm, yo ale. They themselves went.
22. Pronoun + menm
This is particularly useful for emphasis.
Person Haitian Creole English
1sg mwen menm I myself
2sg ou menm you yourself
3sg li menm he/she himself/herself
1pl nou menm we ourselves
2pl nou menm you yourselves
3pl yo menm they themselves
23. Pronouns with se
Se is particularly important in identification and cleft constructions.
Haitian Creole English
Se mwen. It's me.
Se ou. It's you.
Se li. It's him/her.
Se nou. It's us.
Se yo. It's them.
Emphatic:
Se mwen menm.
= It's me / I am the one.
Se li menm.
= It's him/her.
24. Pronouns with ye
Ye occurs especially in identification and WH-question constructions.
Haitian Creole English
Mwen se kiyès? Who am I?
Kiyès mwen ye? Who am I?
Kiyès ou ye? Who are you?
Kiyès li ye? Who is he/she?
Kiyès nou ye? Who are we?
Kiyès yo ye? Who are they?
25. Pronouns in questions
Function Haitian Creole English
who? Kiyès? Who?
whom? Kiyès? Whom?
whose? Pou kiyès? Whose?
what? Kisa? What?
which? Ki...? Which...?
which person? Ki moun? Which person/who?
how many? Konbyen? How many?
how much? Konbyen? How much?
26. “Whose?” — possessive question
Haitian Creole does not have a special genitive pronoun equivalent to English whose.
Common constructions include:
Pou kiyès...?
Haitian Creole English
Pou kiyès liv sa a ye? Whose book is this?
Pou kiyès machin sa a ye? Whose car is this?
Pou kiyès kay sa a ye? Whose house is this?
Also:
Kiyès liv sa a ye?
can occur in contexts where possession is clear, but pou kiyès is an especially transparent way to express “whose?”
27. Pronouns in comparison
English Haitian Creole
taller than me pi wo pase mwen
bigger than you pi gwo pase ou
better than him pi bon pase li
faster than us pi rapid pase nou
older than them pi gran pase yo
The ordinary personal-pronoun forms are used after pase.
28. Pronouns with prepositions
Preposition 1sg 2sg 3sg 1pl 2pl 3pl
pou pou mwen pou ou pou li pou nou pou nou pou yo
avèk avèk mwen avèk ou avèk li avèk nou avèk nou avèk yo
san san mwen san ou san li san nou san nou san yo
sou sou mwen sou ou sou li sou nou sou nou sou yo
nan nan mwen nan ou nan li nan nou nan nou nan yo
ak ak mwen ak ou ak li ak nou ak nou ak yo
5- VERB TENSES
Ø simple/non-past Mwen li. I read.
ap progressive Mwen ap li. I am reading.
te past Mwen te li. I read/did read.
t ap past progressive Mwen t ap li. I was reading.
pral prospective/future Mwen pral li. I am going to read.
va future Mwen va li. I will read.
fin completed Mwen fin li. I have finished reading.
te fin past completion Mwen te fin li. I had finished reading.
ta conditional Mwen ta li. I would read.
ka ability/possibility Mwen ka li. I can read.
dwe obligation Mwen dwe li. I must/should read.
prèt pou imminent action Mwen prèt pou li. I am about to read.
pa negation Mwen pa li. I do not read.
pa t past negation Mwen pa t li. I did not read.
pap negative future Mwen pap li. I will not read.
6- PASSIVE TENSES
Simple Liv la li. The book is read.
Progressive Liv la ap li. The book is being read.
Past Liv la te li. The book was read.
Past progressive Liv la t ap li. The book was being read.
Future Liv la va li. The book will be read.
Prospective Liv la pral li. The book is going to be read.
Completed Liv la fin li. The book has been read.
Past completed Liv la te fin li. The book had been read.
Future completed Liv la pral fin li. The book will have been read.
Conditional Liv la ta li. The book would be read.
Negative Liv la pa li. The book is not read.
Past negative Liv la pa t li. The book was not read.
Progressive negative Liv la pa ap li. The book is not being read.
Future negative Liv la pap li. The book will not be read.
7- NEGATION:
Present negative S + pa + V Mwen pa li. I do not read.
Progressive negative S + pa ap + V Mwen pa ap li. I am not reading.
Past negative S + pa t + V Mwen pa t li. I did not read.
Past progressive negative S + pa t ap + V Mwen pa t ap li. I was not reading.
Future negative S + pap + V Mwen pap li. I will not read.
Future pral negative S + pa pral + V Mwen pa pral li. I am not going to read.
Future va negative S + pa va + V Mwen pa va li. I will not read.
Completed negative S + pa fin + V Mwen pa fin li. I have not finished reading.
Past completed negative S + pa te fin + V Mwen pa te fin li. I had not finished reading.
Conditional negative S + pa ta + V Mwen pa ta li. I would not read.
Conditional progressive negative S + pa ta ap + V Mwen pa ta ap li. I would not be reading.
Ability negative S + pa ka + V Mwen pa ka li. I cannot read.
Obligation negative S + pa dwe + V Mwen pa dwe li. I must/should not read.
Past intention negative S + pa t pral + V Mwen pa t pral li. I was not going to read.
About-to negative S + pa t prèt pou + V Mwen pa t prèt pou li. I was not about to read.
Present passive negative P + pa + V Liv la pa li. The book is not read.
Present progressive passive negative P + pa ap + V Liv la pa ap li. The book is not being read.
Past passive negative P + pa t + V Liv la pa t li. The book was not read.
Past progressive passive negative P + pa t ap + V Liv la pa t ap li. The book was not being read.
Future passive negative P + pap + V Liv la pap li. The book will not be read.
Prospective passive negative P + pa pral + V Liv la pa pral li. The book is not going to be read.
Future passive negative P + pa va + V Liv la pa va li. The book will not be read.
Completed passive negative P + pa fin + V Liv la pa fin li. The book has not been completely read.
Past completed passive negative P + pa te fin + V Liv la pa te fin li. The book had not been completely read.
Conditional passive negative P + pa ta + V Liv la pa ta li. The book would not be read.
Conditional progressive passive negative P + pa ta ap + V Liv la pa ta ap li. The book would not be being read.
8- QUESTIONS:
Yes/No S + V? Ou li? Do you read?
Formal Yes/No Èske + S + V? Èske ou li? Do you read?
Who subject Kiyès ki + V? Kiyès ki vini? Who is coming?
Who object Kiyès + S + V? Kiyès ou wè? Who do you see?
What object Kisa + S + V? Kisa ou li? What are you reading?
Which Ki + N + S + V? Ki liv ou li? Which book are you reading?
Where Ki kote + S + V? Ki kote ou rete? Where do you live?
When Kilè + S + V? Kilè ou vini? When are you coming?
Why Poukisa + S + V? Poukisa ou ale? Why are you leaving?
How Kijan + S + V? Kijan ou fè sa? How do you do that?
How many/much Konbyen + N + ...? Konbyen liv ou genyen? How many books do you have?
What kind Ki kalite + N + ...? Ki kalite liv ou renmen? What kind of books do you like?
Whose Pou kiyès + N + ye? Pou kiyès liv sa a ye? Whose book is this?
Alternative A oswa B? Te oswa kafe? Tea or coffee?
Tag Statement + pa vre? Ou vini, pa vre? You are coming, aren't you?
Embedded yes/no ... si + S + V Mwen pa konnen si li vini. I don't know if he/she is coming.
Embedded WH ... WH + S + V Mwen konnen ki kote li rete. I know where he/she lives.
1 ki which / what
2 kisa what
3 ki sa what
4 kiyès who / whom
5 ki moun who
6 ki kote where
7 kilè when
8 ki lè what time
9 poukisa why
10 pou ki sa why / for what
11 kijan how
12 ki jan how
13 konbyen how many / how much
14 ki kalite what kind / what type
15 pou kiyès for whom / whose
16 bay kiyès to whom
17 avèk kiyès with whom
18 de kiyès from/about whom; whose — context-dependent
19 nan ki in which
20 sou ki on/about which
21 pou ki for which
22 avèk ki with which
23 ki moun ki who
24 ki sa ki what
25 konbyen tan how long / how much time
26 konbyen fwa how often / how many times
27 depi kilè since when
28 jiska kilè until when
29 pou konbyen tan for how long
30 ki jou which/what day
31 ki mwa which/what month
32 ki ane which/what year
33 ki non what name
34 ki rezon what reason
35 pou ki rezon for what reason / why
36 ki objektif what purpose
37 pou ki objektif for what purpose
38 nan ki fason in what way
9- ADVERBS:
1 kounye a now
2 kounye-a now
3 jodi a today
4 yè yesterday
5 demen tomorrow
6 aswè a tonight / this evening
7 maten an this morning
8 apremidi a this afternoon
9 lannuit at night
10 lendi on Monday
11 talè soon / shortly
12 talè konsa very soon / shortly
13 pita later
14 pita konsa a little later
15 bonè early
16 bonè nan maten early in the morning
17 anvan before
18 apre afterward / after
19 deja already
20 ankò again / still
21 toujou still / always
22 poko not yet
23 janm ever
24 pa janm never
25 yon fwa once
26 de fwa twice
27 nenpòt lè anytime
28 nenpòt ki lè at any time
29 chak jou every day
30 chak semèn every week
31 chak mwa every month
32 chak ane every year
33 lòt fwa another time
34 kèk fwa sometimes
35 pafwa sometimes
36 souvan often
37 raman rarely
38 detanzantan occasionally
39 yon jou one day
40 jou sa a that day
41 jou apre the following day
42 nan tan lontan in the past
43 lontan long ago / for a long time
44 dènyèman recently
45 resamman recently
46 byento soon
47 imedyatman immediately
48 touswit immediately / right away
49 menm lè a at the same time
50 an menm tan at the same time
51 antretan meanwhile
52 pandan sa meanwhile / during that
53 finalman finally
54 nan fen a finally / at the end
55 apre sa afterward / after that
56 anvan sa before that
57 depi lè sa a since then
58 depi lontan for a long time / long ago
59 depi kounye a from now on
60 jouk koulye a until now / so far
2. Frequency adverbs
# Haitian Creole English
61 toujou always
62 souvan often
63 pafwa sometimes
64 kèk fwa sometimes
65 detanzantan occasionally
66 raman rarely
67 prèske pa janm hardly ever
68 pa janm never
69 janm ever
70 chak fwa every time
71 chak jou every day
72 chak semèn every week
73 chak mwa every month
74 chak ane every year
75 yon fwa once
76 de fwa twice
77 plizyè fwa several times
78 anpil fwa many times
79 tout tan all the time
80 detanzantan from time to time
3. Place and location adverbs
# Haitian Creole English
81 isit here
82 isit la here
83 la there
84 la a there
85 laba over there
86 lòtbò over there / on the other side
87 nenpòt kote anywhere
88 tout kote everywhere
89 okenn kote nowhere
90 lòt kote elsewhere
91 andedan inside
92 anndan inside
93 deyò outside
94 andeyò outside / beyond
95 anlè above / upstairs
96 anba below / underneath
97 devan in front
98 dèyè behind
99 bò kote beside / nearby
100 toupre nearby
101 lwen far
102 nenpòt bò anywhere / any side
103 toupatou everywhere
104 nenpòt kote anywhere
105 okenn kote nowhere
106 bò isit around here
107 bò la around there
108 bò laba over there
109 anlè a up above
110 anba a down below
4. Manner adverbs
# Haitian Creole English
111 byen well
112 mal badly
113 vit quickly / fast
114 dousman slowly / gently
115 fò loudly / hard
116 ba quietly / softly
117 fasil easily
118 difisil with difficulty
119 ansanm together
120 apa separately
121 dirèkteman directly
122 endirèkteman indirectly
123 seryezman seriously
124 vrèman really / truly
125 reyèlman really / actually
126 nòmalman normally
127 anjeneral generally / usually
128 espesyalman especially
129 prensipalman mainly
130 sitou especially / mainly
131 egzakteman exactly
132 apeprè approximately
133 klèman clearly
134 evidamman obviously
135 natirèlman naturally
136 volontèman voluntarily
137 aksidantèlman accidentally
138 entansyonèlman intentionally
139 sekrètman secretly
140 ouvètman openly
141 lib freely
142 avèk prekosyon carefully
143 ak anpil atansyon carefully
144 an silans silently
145 anjeneral generally
146 alamen by hand
147 fasafas face-to-face
148 youn apre lòt one after another
149 youn ansanm ak lòt together with one another
5. Degree and intensity adverbs
# Haitian Creole English
150 trè very
151 anpil very much / a lot
152 twò too / excessively
153 ase enough / fairly
154 plis more
155 mwens less
156 prèske almost
157 apèn barely
158 sèlman only
159 jis just / only
160 sitèlman so much / so
161 tèlman so / so much
162 toutafè completely / entirely
163 nèt completely / entirely
164 nèt ale completely / entirely
165 absoliman absolutely
166 totalman totally
167 konplètman completely
168 ekstrèmman extremely
169 anpil anpil very much
170 yon ti jan a little
171 yon ti kras a little
172 yon ti jan plis somewhat more
173 yon ti jan mwens somewhat less
174 konsiderableman considerably
175 ase byen quite well
176 pi plis much more
177 pi piti less / smaller in degree
178 plis toujou even more
179 mwens toujou even less
6. Approximation and quantity
# Haitian Creole English
180 apeprè approximately
181 anviwon about / approximately
182 prèske almost
183 plis oswa mwens more or less
184 alantou around / approximately
185 konsa approximately / like that
186 yon jan somewhat / in a way
187 yon ti jan somewhat / a little
188 ase enough / fairly
189 anpil a lot / much
190 ti kras little
191 yon ti kras a little
7. Certainty and truth
# Haitian Creole English
192 sètènman certainly
193 siman surely / certainly
194 sèten certainly / surely
195 vrèman really / truly
196 reyèlman really / actually
197 toutbon really / truly
198 toutbonvre truly / really
199 san dout undoubtedly
200 san okenn dout without any doubt
201 evidamman obviously
202 klèman clearly
203 absoliman absolutely
204 definitivman definitely
205 toutafè completely / absolutely
206 vreman really / truly
207 natirèlman naturally / of course
208 anfèt in fact
209 aktyèlman actually / currently
210 tout bon genuinely / really
8. Probability and possibility
# Haitian Creole English
211 petèt perhaps / maybe
212 pwobableman probably
213 siman surely / probably
214 sanble apparently / seemingly
215 aparamman apparently
216 gen anpil chans probably / there is a good chance
217 petèt wi perhaps yes
218 petèt non perhaps not
219 posib possibly
220 li posib it is possible
221 aparamman apparently
222 dapre tout aparans apparently / judging by appearances
9. Negation adverbs and negative expressions
# Haitian Creole English
223 pa not
224 pa janm never
225 poko not yet
226 pa ankò no longer / not anymore
227 pa ditou not at all
228 okennman in no way
229 ditou at all
230 ni ... ni ... neither ... nor ...
231 san without
232 prèske pa hardly / almost not
233 pa nesesèman not necessarily
234 pa vrèman not really
235 pa twò not very / not too
236 pa ase not enough
237 pa ankò ditou not at all anymore
Important: pa is fundamentally a negation particle, rather than an ordinary lexical adverb. pa janm, poko, pa ankò, etc. function as negative adverbial expressions.
10. Focus and limitation
# Haitian Creole English
238 sèlman only
239 jis just / only
240 menm even / same / indeed
241 sitou especially / mainly
242 espesyalman especially
243 sèlman sa only that
244 menm tou also / even
245 menm jan likewise / in the same way
246 se sèlman it is only
247 plis toujou even more
248 mwens toujou even less
249 omwen at least
250 omaksimòm at most
251 omwen konsa at least approximately
252 sèlman si only if
253 sitou lè especially when
11. Addition and inclusion
# Haitian Creole English
254 tou also / too
255 ankò also / again
256 anplis additionally / moreover
257 plis additionally / more
258 menm even
259 menm tou also / even
260 ansanm together
261 anplis de sa in addition to that
262 an menm tan at the same time
263 pa sèlman not only
264 pa sèlman ... men tou not only ... but also
12. Sequence and order
# Haitian Creole English
265 dabò first / initially
266 an premye first
267 premye first / firstly
268 apre sa afterward
269 answit afterward / next
270 apre afterward
271 finalman finally
272 anfen finally / in the end
273 anvan sa before that
274 apre sa after that
275 depi lè sa a since then
276 pandan sa meanwhile
277 antretan meanwhile
278 an menm tan simultaneously
279 youn apre lòt one after another
280 youn apre lòt la one after the other
281 anvan tout bagay first of all
282 an jeneral generally / overall
13. Result and consequence
# Haitian Creole English
283 konsa thus / in this way
284 se konsa thus / that's how
285 kidonk therefore / thus
286 donk therefore / so
287 alò so / then
288 se poutèt sa therefore / that's why
289 poutèt sa because of that / therefore
290 kòm rezilta as a result
291 rezilta a se the result is
292 konsa tou likewise / thus also
14. Contrast and concession
# Haitian Creole English
293 sepandan however
294 kanmenm nevertheless / anyway
295 toutfwa nevertheless / however
296 malgre sa despite that
297 kanmenm still / nevertheless
298 poutan however / nevertheless
299 an kontrè on the contrary
300 okontrè on the contrary
301 menm si even if / even though
302 malgre tout sa despite all that
303 malgre sa nevertheless / despite that
15. Interrogative adverbs
# Haitian Creole English
304 kijan how
305 kòman how
306 ki jan how
307 kilè when
308 ki lè when / what time
309 kote where
310 ki kote where
311 poukisa why
312 pou ki sa why / for what reason
313 konbyen how much / how many
314 depi kilè since when
315 jouk kilè until when
316 konbyen fwa how many times
317 a ki pwen to what extent
16. Relative / indefinite adverbial expressions
# Haitian Creole English
318 kote where
319 nenpòt kote wherever / anywhere
320 tout kote everywhere / wherever
321 okenn kote nowhere
322 kilè when
323 nenpòt kilè whenever
324 nenpòt lè whenever
325 kijan how
326 nenpòt kijan however / in whatever way
327 nenpòt jan however / in any way
328 konbyen however much / how many
329 nenpòt konbyen however many / however much
17. Comparative adverbial expressions
# Haitian Creole English
330 plis more
331 mwens less
332 pi plis more
333 pi mwens less
334 menm jan equally / in the same way
335 menm jan ak just as / like
336 otan as much / as much as
337 plis pase more than
338 mwens pase less than
339 otan ke as much as
340 menm jan an likewise
341 pi byen better
342 pi mal worse
343 pi vit faster
344 pi dousman more slowly
18. Modal / speaker-attitude adverbs
# Haitian Creole English
345 petèt perhaps
346 pwobableman probably
347 siman surely
348 sètènman certainly
349 vrèman really
350 reyèlman really / actually
351 evidamman obviously
352 definitivman definitely
353 absoliman absolutely
354 san dout undoubtedly
355 aparamman apparently
356 sanble seemingly / apparently
357 natirèlman naturally / of course
358 anfèt in fact
359 franchman frankly
360 onètman honestly
361 erezman fortunately
362 malerezman unfortunately
363 chansman fortunately / luckily
364 dapre mwen in my opinion
365 selon mwen according to me / in my view
19. Discourse adverbs and sentence connectors
# Haitian Creole English
366 donk so / therefore
367 kidonk therefore
368 alò then / so
369 ebyen well / then
370 byen well
371 bon well / okay
372 anfèt in fact
373 an reyalite in reality / actually
374 anjeneral generally
375 an patikilye particularly
376 anplis moreover / additionally
377 sepandan however
378 poutan however
379 kanmenm nevertheless
380 toutfwa however
381 finalman finally
382 anfen finally
383 anvan tout bagay first of all
384 pa egzanp for example
385 an reyalite actually / in fact
386 an brèf briefly / in brief
387 an jeneral generally
388 an prensip in principle
389 an patikilye particularly
390 an premye firstly
391 an konklizyon in conclusion
20. Adverbial expressions with an
# Haitian Creole English
392 anjeneral generally
393 an premye firstly
394 anfen finally
395 an menm tan at the same time
396 an silans silently
397 an piblik publicly
398 an prive privately
399 an kachèt secretly
400 an reyalite actually
401 an prensip in principle
402 an patikilye particularly
403 an jeneral generally
404 anvan beforehand / before
405 answit afterward
406 an brèf briefly
407 an detay in detail
408 an menm tan simultaneously
409 an total in total
410 an pati partly
411 an gwo roughly / broadly
21. Adverbial expressions with ak
# Haitian Creole English
412 ak anpil atansyon carefully
413 ak prekosyon cautiously
414 ak fasilite easily
415 ak difikilte with difficulty
416 ak kè kontan happily
417 ak tristès sadly
418 ak fòs forcefully
419 ak dousè gently
420 ak vitès quickly / at speed
421 ak presizyon precisely
422 ak anpil respè respectfully
423 ak entansyon intentionally
424 ak tout kè wholeheartedly
22. Manner expressions with jan / fason
# Haitian Creole English
425 konsa like this / thus
426 konsa a this way
427 konsa tou likewise
428 menm jan similarly / in the same way
429 menm jan an in the same way
430 nan fason sa a in this way
431 nan fason sa in that way
432 nan yon fason in a way
433 nan okenn fason in no way
434 nenpòt jan in any way
435 jan sa dwe fèt as it should be done
436 jan sa ye as it is
437 janm ever
438 nenpòt kijan however / in whatever way
23. Common emphatic/reduplicated adverbial forms
Haitian Creole also uses reduplication and intensified expressions to make an adverbial meaning stronger.
# Haitian Creole English
439 dousman dousman very slowly / little by little
440 vit vit very quickly
441 byen byen very well / thoroughly
442 anpil anpil very much
443 ti kras ti kras little by little
444 youn youn one by one
445 youn apre lòt one after another
446 tout bon tout bon really / truly
447 piti piti little by little
448 grenn pa grenn one by one / individually
449 pa pa step by step
450 jou apre jou day after day
451 ane apre ane year after year
452 fwa apre fwa time after time
10- CONJUNCTIONS:
1 ak and / with
2 avèk and / with
3 e and
4 epi and / then
5 epitou and also / furthermore
6 osi also / too
7 tou also / too
8 oswa or
9 oubyen or
10 oubyen ... oubyen either ... or
11 swa ... swa either ... or
12 ni ... ni neither ... nor
13 ni nor / neither
14 men but
15 sepandan however
16 poutan however / nevertheless
17 kanmenm nevertheless / nonetheless
18 toutfwa however / nevertheless
19 okontrè on the contrary
20 donk so / therefore
21 kidonk therefore / thus
22 alò so / then
23 se poutèt sa therefore / that's why
24 paske because
25 poutèt because of / due to
26 poutèt sa therefore / because of that
27 akoz because of / due to
28 akòz because of / due to
29 se paske it is because
30 se poutèt it is because of
31 konsa thus / so
32 se konsa thus / that's how
33 pou so that / in order to
34 pou ... in order to
35 pou ke so that
36 pou ... pa so as not to
37 afin pou so that / in order that
38 depi since / as long as
39 depi ke since / provided that
40 si if
41 si se if it is
42 si ... if ...
43 si se pa if it is not
44 sof si unless
45 amwenske unless
46 amwens ke unless
47 eksepte si except if / unless
48 sèlman si only if
49 depi provided that / as long as
50 depi ke provided that
51 depi toutotan as long as / provided that
52 toutotan as long as
53 toutotan ke as long as
54 si ... alò if ... then
55 si ... donk if ... therefore/then
56 menm si even if / even though
57 menm lè even when
58 menm lè a even when / at the same time
59 byenke although / even though
60 malgre although / despite
61 malgre sa despite that / nevertheless
62 malgre ke although
63 kanmenm nevertheless
64 sepandan however
65 poutan nevertheless
66 toutfwa nevertheless
67 menm jan just as / in the same way
68 menm jan ak just as / like
69 menm jan ... just as ...
70 tankou like / as
71 menm jan avèk just as / in the same way as
72 pase than / rather than
73 plis pase more than
74 mwens pase less than
75 otan ke as much as
76 menm jan ak as ... as / just like
77 pi ... pase more ... than
78 mwens ... pase less ... than
79 pi plis pase more than
80 pito pase rather than
81 olye de instead of / rather than
82 olye pou instead of / rather than
83 olye ke rather than
84 anvan before
85 anvan ke before
86 anvan pou before / before doing
87 anvan sa before that
88 apre after
89 apre sa after that
90 apre ke after
91 depi lè since the time
92 depi lè sa a since then
93 lè when
94 lè sa a when / at that time
95 lè ... when ...
96 lè sa when that / when
97 lè konsa when / at such a time
98 pandan while / during
99 pandan ke while
100 pandan tout tan while / throughout the time
101 pandan tan while
102 toutotan as long as
103 toutotan ke as long as
104 jiskaske until
105 jouk until
106 joukke until
107 jouk tan until the time
108 jouk tan sa a until that time
109 depi ... jouk from ... until
110 depi ... rive from ... until
111 chak fwa whenever / every time
112 chak fwa ke every time that
113 chak fwa whenever
114 tout fwa every time / whenever
115 nenpòt lè whenever
116 nenpòt ki lè whenever
117 nenpòt lè ke whenever
118 chak fwa li every time that he/she
119 pandanstan meanwhile / while
120 antretan meanwhile
121 pandan sa meanwhile / while that
122 jouk lè until when
123 jouk lè sa a until then
124 anvan tout bagay first of all / before anything else
125 anvan sa before that
126 apre sa after that
127 answit afterward / then
128 epi apre sa and afterward
129 epi lè sa a and then
130 lè sa a then / at that point
131 konsa so / thus
132 konsa tou likewise / thus also
133 se poutèt sa therefore / that's why
134 se sa k fè that's why
135 se sa ki fè that's what makes / that's why
136 poutèt sa therefore / because of that
137 se konsa that's how / thus
138 donk therefore / so
139 kidonk therefore
140 alò then / so
141 se pou sa that's why / therefore
142 kòm rezilta as a result
143 kòm konsekans consequently
144 konsekamman consequently
145 an konsekans consequently
146 se poutèt sa consequently
147 paske because
148 paske se because it is
149 akoz because of
150 akòz because of
151 poutèt because of
152 grasa thanks to / because of
153 gras ak thanks to
154 se gras ak it is thanks to
155 akòz lefèt ke due to the fact that
156 poutèt lefèt ke because of the fact that
157 se paske it is because
158 se akòz it is because of
159 lefèt ke the fact that
160 akoz lefèt ke because of the fact that
161 se sa k fè that's why
162 paske because
163 kòm as / since / because
164 piske since / because
165 paske because
166 etandone given that / since
167 konsideran considering that
168 dapre lefèt ke given the fact that
169 pou rezon ke for the reason that
170 se poutèt it is because of
171 se akòz it is due to
172 yon fason pou so that / in such a way that
173 yon fason pou ke so that
174 yon fason pou in order to
175 yon fason ke in such a way that
176 pou kapab in order to be able to
177 pou evite in order to avoid
178 san without
179 san ke without
180 san yo pa without them
181 san li pa without him/her
182 san mwen pa without me
183 san ou pa without you
184 san nou pa without us
185 san ... pa without ...
186 olye pou instead of
187 olye ke rather than
188 olye de instead of
189 pito rather / preferably
190 pito ke rather than
191 pito pase rather than
192 swa either
193 swa ... swa either ... or
194 oubyen or
195 oswa or
196 oubyen ... oubyen either ... or
197 ni neither / nor
198 ni ... ni neither ... nor
199 pa sèlman ... men tou not only ... but also
200 non sèlman ... men tou not only ... but also
201 kit ... kit whether ... or
202 kit ... kit se whether ... or whether
203 kit whether
204 si wi ou non whether or not
205 si ... oswa whether ... or
206 swa ... swa whether ... or
207 kèlkeswa si regardless of whether
208 kèlkeswa regardless of / whatever
209 nenpòt any / whatever
210 nenpòt si regardless of whether
211 nenpòt jan however / no matter how
212 nenpòt kijan however
213 nenpòt kote wherever
214 nenpòt kilè whenever
215 nenpòt lè whenever
216 nenpòt sa whatever
217 nenpòt moun ki whoever
218 nenpòt moun whoever / anyone
219 kèlkeswa moun ki whoever
220 kèlkeswa sa whatever
221 kèlkeswa kote wherever
222 kèlkeswa lè whenever
223 kèlkeswa jan however
224 kèlkeswa kantite however much / however many
225 ki that / which / who
226 sa ki what / that which
227 moun ki whoever / the person who
228 kote ki where / the place that
229 lè ki when / the time that
230 depi ki lè since when
231 kote where
232 lè when
233 kijan how
234 jan how / the way
235 paske because
236 piske since / because
237 byenke although
238 menm si even if / even though
239 si if
240 sof si unless
241 amwenske unless
242 jiskaske until
243 pandan ke while
244 anvan ke before
245 apre ke after
246 pou ke so that
247 san ke without
248 malgre ke although
249 etandone ke given that
250 depi ke since / provided that
11- PREPOSITIONS:
1 a to / at / in / toward
2 ak with / by / and
3 avèk with / by
4 ap at / in the process of (in certain constructions)
5 an in / into / by
6 nan in / at / into
7 de of / from / about
8 di of / about (restricted/older or fixed usage)
9 depi since / from
10 pou for / to / in order to
11 san without
12 sou on / onto / about / over
13 anba under / below
14 anlè above / on top of
15 devan in front of / before
16 dèyè behind / after
17 bò beside / by / near
18 bò kote beside / next to
19 toupre near
20 lwen far from
21 ant between / among
22 nan mitan in the middle of / among
23 nan mitan ... among / between
24 alantou around
25 otou around
26 andeyò outside / beyond
27 andedan inside
28 anndan inside
29 atravè across / through
30 pase through / past
31 jouk until / up to
32 jiska until / up to
33 jiskaske until (also conjunction)
34 sou kote beside / aside
35 kont against
36 poukont by oneself / alone
37 selon according to
38 dapre according to
39 konsènan concerning / regarding
40 sou sijè concerning / on the subject of
41 konsènan sa concerning that
42 anrapò ak in relation to
43 parapò ak compared with / in relation to
44 fas ak facing / confronted with
45 fasafas ak face-to-face with
46 gras ak thanks to
47 akòz because of / due to
48 akoz because of / due to
49 poutèt because of / due to
50 nan plas instead of / in the place of
51 olye de instead of
52 olye pou instead of / rather than
53 sou non in the name of
54 an favè in favor of
55 an plas in place of
56 anvan before
57 apre after
58 pandan during / for
59 depi since / from
60 jouk until / up to
61 ansanm ak together with
62 ansanm avèk together with
63 anplis de in addition to
64 apa de apart from / besides
65 eksepte except
66 sof except / apart from
67 san konte excluding / not counting
68 avèk èd with the help of
69 grasa thanks to / through
70 pa by / through / via / per
71 pa mwayen by means of
72 mwayen by means of
73 nan mwayen by means of (less usual)
74 sou baz on the basis of
75 dapre sa according to that
76 dapre mwen according to me / in my opinion
77 selon mwen according to me / in my opinion
78 selon sa according to what
79 an favè de in favor of
80 anfas opposite / across from
81 anfas ak opposite / facing
82 bò kote beside / next to
83 toupre near
84 pre near
85 lòtbò across / on the other side of
86 lòt bò on the other side of
87 anwo above / upstairs
88 anba below / under
89 nan fon at the bottom of / deep in
90 nan tèt at the top of / on top of
91 nan do behind / at the back of
92 nan figi in front of / in the face of
93 nan direksyon toward / in the direction of
94 nan direksyon pou toward
95 sou wout pou on the way to / about to
96 sou wout on the way / along the road
97 sou bò on the side of
98 bò ... by / beside
99 bò lanmè by the sea
100 bò dlo by the water
101 nan peyi in the country of
102 nan vil in the city
103 nan kay in the house
104 nan lekòl at school
105 nan travay at work
106 nan mitan among / in the middle of
107 nan direksyon in the direction of
108 anndan inside
109 andedan inside
110 andeyò outside / beyond
111 deyò outside of
112 anlè above / on top of
113 anwo above
114 sou tèt on top of
115 anba underneath
116 anba tèt underneath (literal/locational)
117 devan in front of
118 dèyè behind
119 bò kote beside
120 ant between / among
121 alantou around
122 otou around
123 atravè across / through
124 andedan ... inside
125 andeyò ... outside / beyond
126 lwen far from
127 toupre close to
128 pre near
129 kont against
130 sou on / about
131 anba under
132 anlè above
133 devan in front of
134 dèyè behind
135 bò beside
136 ant between
137 nan in / at
138 an in / into
139 a to / at
140 de from / of
141 pou for / to
142 avèk with
143 ak with
144 san without
145 sou on / over
146 depi since / from
147 jouk until
148 pa by / via
149 selon according to
150 dapre according to
Location prepositions
Haitian Creole English
nan in / at
an in / into
sou on / on top of
anba under
anlè above / on top of
anwo above
andedan inside
anndan inside
deyò outside
andeyò outside / beyond
devan in front of
dèyè behind
bò beside / by
bò kote beside / next to
toupre near
pre near
lwen far from
ant between / among
nan mitan in the middle of / among
alantou around
otou around
anfas opposite / across from
anfas ak opposite / facing
atravè across / through
lòtbò across / on the other side
lòt bò on the other side
sou kote beside / to the side
nan fon at the bottom of
nan tèt at the top of
nan do at the back of / behind
sou tèt on top of
Time-related prepositions
Haitian Creole English
anvan before
apre after
pandan during
depi since / from
jouk until / up to
jiska until / up to
depi ... jouk from ... until
depi ... rive from ... until
nan in / during
nan fen at the end of
nan kòmansman at the beginning of
nan mitan in the middle of
anvan sa before that
apre sa after that
depi lè sa a since then
jouk lè sa a until then
Cause / reason
Haitian Creole English
akoz because of
akòz because of / due to
poutèt because of
gras ak thanks to
grasa thanks to
se poutèt it is because of
se akòz it is due to
akòz lefèt ke due to the fact that
poutèt lefèt ke because of the fact that
Relation / reference
Haitian Creole English
sou about / concerning
konsènan concerning
dapre according to
selon according to
anrapò ak in relation to
parapò ak in relation to / compared with
fas ak facing / confronted with
sou baz on the basis of
sou sijè concerning / on the subject of
sou non in the name of
an favè in favor of
kont against
Exception / exclusion
Haitian Creole English
eksepte except
sof except
apa de apart from / besides
san konte excluding / not counting
eksepte pou except for
sof pou except for
apa pou apart from / except for
Instrument / means / agent
Haitian Creole English
ak with / by means of
avèk with
pa by / via / through
pa mwayen by means of
grasa through / thanks to
avèk èd with the help of
ak èd with the help of
san without
Examples:
- Mwen ekri ak yon plim. — I write with a pen.
- Mwen voye mesaj la pa imel. — I sent the message by email.
- Li fè travay la avèk èd frè li. — He/she did the work with the help of his/her brother.
Purpose
Haitian Creole English
pou for / to
pou ... in order to
pou kapab in order to be able to
pou evite in order to avoid
afin pou in order to
yon fason pou in order to / so that
nan objektif pou with the aim of
nan bi pou with the aim of
pou rezon for the purpose/reason of
Comparison
Haitian Creole English
pase than
plis pase more than
mwens pase less than
menm jan ak like / just as
otan ke as much as
tankou like / such as
parapò ak compared with
an konparezon ak in comparison with
olye de instead of
olye pou rather than
pito pase rather than
Compound prepositional expressions
Haitian Creole English
bò kote beside / next to
nan mitan among / between
anfas opposite
anfas ak opposite / facing
alantou around
sou tèt on top of
nan fon at the bottom of
nan tèt at the top of
nan do behind
nan direksyon toward
nan direksyon pou toward
anrapò ak in relation to
parapò ak in relation to / compared with
fas ak facing / confronted with
fasafas ak face-to-face with
ansanm ak together with
ansanm avèk together with
anplis de in addition to
apa de apart from
san konte excluding
gras ak thanks to
akòz because of
akoz because of
poutèt because of
sou baz on the basis of
sou non in the name of
an favè in favor of
nan plas in place of
olye de instead of
olye pou instead of
pa mwayen by means of
avèk èd with the help of
nan fen at the end of
nan kòmansman at the beginning of
depi lè since the time of
jouk lè until the time of
sou wout on the way / along
sou wout pou on the way to / about to
12- DETERMINERS
1 la the — singular definite, after consonant
2 a the — singular definite, after certain vowels
3 an the — singular definite, after nasal-final forms
4 lan the — variant of la after nasal contexts
5 nan the — variant of la after certain nasal contexts
6 yo the / the ... plural
7 sa a this / that
8 sa that / this
9 sa yo these / those
10 sila this one / that one
11 sila a this one / that one
12 sila yo these ones / those ones
13 lòt other / another
14 lòt la the other
15 lòt yo the others
16 chak each / every
17 tout all / every
18 tout ... yo all the ...
19 kèk some / a few
20 kèk ... some ...
21 nenpòt any / any kind of
22 nenpòt ki any / whatever
23 nenpòt yon any one / any
24 okenn no / none / any (in negative contexts)
25 okenn ... no / not any
26 anpil many / much
27 plizyè several
28 ase enough / sufficient
29 plis more
30 mwens fewer / less
31 toutan all / the whole time (context-dependent)
32 tout kalite all kinds of
33 anpil nan many of
34 kèk nan some of
35 pifò most
36 pifò nan most of
37 majorite the majority of
38 yon kantite a quantity / a number of
39 yon pakèt a lot of / a bunch of
40 yon seri a series of / a number of
41 yon gwoup a group of
42 yon ti kantite a small amount/number of
43 yon kantite a certain quantity/number
44 kantite the amount/number of
45 chak youn each one
46 chak moun each person / everyone
47 chak bagay everything / each thing
48 chak kote every place
49 chak fwa every time
50 tout moun everyone / everybody
51 tout bagay everything
52 tout kote everywhere
53 tout tan all the time
54 okenn moun nobody / no person
55 okenn bagay nothing / no thing
56 okenn kote nowhere
57 youn one / a certain one
58 yon a / an / one
59 yon sèl one single / only one
60 yon lòt another / another one
61 yon sèten a certain
62 sèten certain / certain ones
63 plizyè several
64 de two
65 twa three
66 kat four
67 senk five
68 sis six
69 sèt seven
70 uit eight
71 nèf nine
72 dis ten
73 premye first
74 dezyèm second
75 twazyèm third
76 dènye last
77 pwochen next / following
78 ansyen former / previous
79 menm same
80 menm ... lan the same ...
81 tout kalite all kinds of
82 nenpòt kalite any kind of
83 kèk kalite some kinds of
84 okenn kalite no kind of
85 anpil kalite many kinds of
86 lòt kalite other kinds of
87 tout moun all people / everyone
88 kèk moun some people
89 anpil moun many people
90 plizyè moun several people
91 nenpòt moun anyone / anybody
92 okenn moun nobody
93 tout bagay everything
94 kèk bagay some things
95 anpil bagay many things
96 plizyè bagay several things
97 nenpòt bagay anything
98 okenn bagay nothing
99 tout tan all the time
100 kèk fwa some times / sometimes
101 anpil fwa many times
102 plizyè fwa several times
103 nenpòt lè any time
104 nenpòt ki lè any time / whenever
105 okenn lè no time
106 chak lè every time / each time
107 tout peyi every/all country/countries
108 kèk peyi some countries
109 anpil peyi many countries
110 plizyè peyi several countries
111 nenpòt peyi any country
112 okenn peyi no country
113 tout lòt all the others / all other
114 chak lòt every other
115 youn lòt one another / each other
116 youn nan one of
117 youn ladan yo one of them
118 youn nan yo one of them
119 okenn nan none of
120 kèk nan yo some of them
121 anpil nan yo many of them
122 plizyè nan yo several of them
123 tout nan yo all of them
124 pifò nan yo most of them
1. Definite articles
Haitian Creole's most distinctive determination system is the postposed definite article.
Form Basic meaning Example
la the liv la — the book
a the kay la / context-dependent phonological variant
an the moun nan / context-dependent variant
lan the fanm lan — the woman
nan the moun nan — the person
yo the / plural definite liv yo — the books
The basic idea is:
Noun + definite article
liv la = the book
kay la = the house
moun nan = the person
timoun yo = the children
The choice among la, a, an, lan, nan is strongly affected by the sound at the end of the noun or noun phrase.
Plural definite
N + yo
liv yo = the books
machin yo = the cars
timoun yo = the children
2. Indefinite determiner
The primary indefinite determiner is:
Haitian Creole English
yon a / an / one
Examples:
Haitian Creole English
yon liv a book
yon kay a house
yon moun a person
yon chen a dog
yon fanm a woman
yon can also mean one:
Mwen gen yon liv.
I have one/a book.
Unlike English, Haitian Creole does not have separate a/an forms.
3. Demonstrative determiners
Haitian Creole English
sa this / that
sa a this / that
sa yo these / those
sila this one / that one
sila a this one / that one
sila yo these ones / those ones
A particularly common construction is:
N + sa a
liv sa a = this book / that book
kay sa a = this house / that house
moun sa a = this person / that person
Plural:
N + sa yo
liv sa yo = these/those books
timoun sa yo = these/those children
The distinction between this and that is often supplied by context rather than by separate obligatory grammatical forms.
4. Universal determiners
Haitian Creole English
tout all / every
chak each / every
tout ... yo all the ...
chak youn each one
tout moun everyone
tout bagay everything
tout kote everywhere
tout tan all the time
chak fwa every time
chak moun each person
chak bagay each thing
Examples:
Tout timoun yo vini.
All the children came.
Chak elèv gen yon liv.
Each student has a book.
5. Indefinite determiners
Haitian Creole English
kèk some / a few
plizyè several
anpil many / much
nenpòt any
nenpòt ki any / whatever
okenn no / any (under negation)
sèten certain
yon sèten a certain
yon kantite a certain amount/number
yon seri a number/series of
yon pakèt a lot of
yon gwoup a group of
Examples:
Kèk moun vini.
Some people came.
Plizyè elèv absan.
Several students are absent.
Anpil moun renmen mizik.
Many people like music.
Ou ka chwazi nenpòt liv.
You can choose any book.
Mwen pa wè okenn moun.
I don't see anyone.
6. Negative determiners
Haitian Creole English
okenn no / any
okenn moun nobody / no one
okenn bagay nothing
okenn kote nowhere
okenn liv no book / any book
okenn lòt no other
pa gen okenn there is/are no / there isn't/aren't any
pa gen okenn ... there is/are no ...
The very important construction is:
pa + gen + okenn + noun
Pa gen okenn liv sou tab la.
There is no book on the table.
7. Partitive / quantity determiners
Haitian Creole English
anpil many / much
kèk some
plizyè several
pifò most
mwens less / fewer
plis more
ase enough
yon kantite an amount / a number
yon pakèt a lot of
yon seri a number of
yon ti kantite a small amount/number
tout all
kèk nan some of
anpil nan many of
plizyè nan several of
pifò nan most of
tout nan all of
Examples:
Anpil moun pale kreyòl.
Many people speak Creole.
Kèk elèv rive bonè.
Some students arrived early.
Pifò moun dakò.
Most people agree.
8. "Other / another" determiners
Haitian Creole English
lòt other
yon lòt another
lòt la the other
lòt yo the others
tout lòt all other / all the others
chak lòt every other
okenn lòt no other
Examples:
Mwen vle yon lòt liv.
I want another book.
Pran lòt liv la.
Take the other book.
Lòt moun yo ale.
The other people left.
9. "Same" determiner
Haitian Creole English
menm same
menm ... lan the same ...
menm bagay the same thing
menm moun the same person
menm jan same way
Example:
Nou gen menm liv la.
We have the same book.
10. Numeral determiners
Cardinal numbers can determine a noun directly.
Haitian Creole English
yon one
de two
twa three
kat four
senk five
sis six
sèt seven
uit eight
nèf nine
dis ten
onz eleven
douz twelve
trèz thirteen
katòz fourteen
kenz fifteen
sèz sixteen
disèt seventeen
dizuit eighteen
diznèf nineteen
ven twenty
trant thirty
karant forty
senkant fifty
swasant sixty
swasanndis seventy
katreven eighty
katrevendis ninety
san hundred
mil thousand
milyon million
milya billion
Examples:
Twa timoun ap jwe.
Three children are playing.
Dis liv sou tab la.
Ten books are on the table.
11. Ordinal determiners
Haitian Creole English
premye first
dezyèm second
twazyèm third
katriyèm fourth
senkyèm fifth
sizyèm sixth
setyèm seventh
wityèm eighth
nevyèm ninth
dizyèm tenth
dènye last
pwochen next / following
ansyen former / previous
Examples:
Premye elèv la reponn.
The first student answered.
Dezyèm liv la pi bon.
The second book is better.
12. Personal possessive determiners
Haitian Creole normally expresses possession with a possessive pronoun/possessive phrase following the noun, rather than with an English-style pre-nominal determiner.
Haitian Creole English
mwen my / mine
ou your / yours
li his / her / its
nou our / ours
yo their / theirs
Examples:
Haitian Creole English
liv mwen my book
liv ou your book
liv li his/her book
liv nou our book
liv yo their book
With definiteness:
Liv mwen an = my book / the book of mine
Kay li a = his/her house
Liv yo a = their book
Thus the pattern is commonly:
Noun + possessive + definite article
or simply:
Noun + possessive
depending on the construction and context.
13. Interrogative determiners
Haitian Creole English
ki which / what
ki ... which ...
ki moun which person / who
ki bagay what thing / what
ki kalite what kind of
ki kantite how much / how many
konbyen how many / how much
ki lòt which other
ki premye which first
ki dènye which last
Examples:
Ki liv ou vle?
Which book do you want?
Ki moun ki vini?
Which person / who came?
Ki kalite manje ou renmen?
What kind of food do you like?
14. Universal/indefinite pronoun-like determinative expressions
These are extremely important in Haitian Creole even though they are not always classified as simple determiners.
Haitian Creole English
tout moun everyone
tout bagay everything
tout kote everywhere
tout tan all the time
chak moun everyone / each person
chak youn each one
chak bagay everything / each thing
kèk moun some people
kèk bagay some things
kèk kote some places
nenpòt moun anyone
nenpòt bagay anything
nenpòt kote anywhere
nenpòt lè anytime
okenn moun nobody
okenn bagay nothing
okenn kote nowhere
youn one
youn nan one of
youn nan yo one of them
lòt la the other one
lòt yo the others
15. Quantifier + definite noun constructions
Haitian Creole frequently combines quantifiers with the definite plural marker yo:
Haitian Creole English
tout moun yo all the people
tout timoun yo all the children
kèk moun yo some of the people
anpil moun yo many of the people
plizyè moun yo several of the people
lòt moun yo the other people
tout liv yo all the books
kèk liv yo some of the books
anpil liv yo many of the books
plizyè liv yo several of the books
13- IF CONDITIONAL
Zero / general Si + present, present Si ou manje, ou plen. If you eat, you get full.
First / real future Si + present, pral + V Si ou vini, mwen pral ede ou. If you come, I will help you.
First / future Si + present, va + V Si ou vini, mwen va ede ou. If you come, I will help you.
Negative real Si + pa + V, pap + V Si ou pa vini, mwen pap ale. If you don't come, I won't go.
Second / hypothetical Si + te + V, ta + V Si mwen te rich, mwen ta vwayaje. If I were rich, I would travel.
Negative hypothetical Si + pa t + V, pa ta + V Si mwen pa t rich, mwen pa ta vwayaje. If I weren't rich, I wouldn't travel.
Hypothetical progressive Si + te + V, ta ap + V Si mwen te la, mwen ta ap travay. If I were there, I would be working.
Hypothetical ability Si + te + V, ta ka + V Si mwen te gen tan, mwen ta ka vini. If I had time, I could come.
Hypothetical obligation Si + te + V, ta dwe + V Si mwen te vle ale, mwen ta dwe travay. If I wanted to go, I should work.
Third / unreal past Si + te + V, ta te + V Si mwen te konnen, mwen ta te vini. If I had known, I would have come.
Negative unreal past Si + pa t + V, pa ta te + V Si mwen pa t konnen, mwen pa ta te vini. If I hadn't known, I wouldn't have come.
Mixed: past → present Si + te + V, ta + present/state Si mwen te etidye, mwen ta gen travay. If I had studied, I would have a job.
Mixed: present → past Si + te + state, ta te + V Si mwen te pi rich, mwen ta te achte li. If I were richer, I would have bought it.
Polite/hypothetical request Si + ta + V, ... Si ou ta kapab, ede mwen. If you could, help me.
would read ta + V Mwen ta li.
would be reading ta ap + V Mwen ta ap li.
would have read ta te + V Mwen ta te li.
would be able to read ta ka + V Mwen ta ka li.
would have to read ta dwe + V Mwen ta dwe li.
would not read pa ta + V Mwen pa ta li.
would not be reading pa ta ap + V Mwen pa ta ap li.
would not have read pa ta te + V Mwen pa ta te li.
would not have been reading pa ta te ap + V Mwen pa ta te ap li.
would not be able to read pa ta ka + V Mwen pa ta ka li.
would not have to read pa ta dwe + V Mwen pa ta dwe li.
would not want to read pa ta vle + V Mwen pa ta vle li.
would not need to read pa ta bezwen + V Mwen pa ta bezwen li.
would not be going to read pa ta pral + V Mwen pa ta pral li.
would not be about to read pa ta prèt pou + V Mwen pa ta prèt pou li.
would be read ta + V Liv la ta li.
would be being read ta ap + V Liv la ta ap li.
would have been read ta te + V Liv la ta te li.
would have been being read ta te ap + V Liv la ta te ap li.
would not be read pa ta + V Liv la pa ta li.
would not be being read pa ta ap + V Liv la pa ta ap li.
would not have been read pa ta te + V Liv la pa ta te li.
would not have been being read pa ta te ap + V Liv la pa ta te ap li.
would be able to be read ta ka + V Liv la ta ka li.
would not be able to be read pa ta ka + V Liv la pa ta ka li.
would have to be read ta dwe + V Liv la ta dwe li.
would not have to be read pa ta dwe + V Liv la pa ta dwe li.
1 si if basic condition Si ou vini, mwen pral ede ou.
2 lè when time condition Lè ou vini, mwen pral ede ou.
3 kilè when? asks about time Kilè ou vini?
4 ki lè what time? asks exact time Ki lè ou vini?
5 chak fwa whenever / every time repeated condition Chak fwa li vini, nou pale.
6 nenpòt lè whenever / anytime any time Ou ka vini nenpòt lè.
7 kou as soon as immediate time condition Kou li vini, rele mwen.
8 depi since / from starting point; sometimes “as soon as” Depi li rive, di mwen.
9 anvan before earlier condition/time Anvan ou ale, manje.
10 apre after later condition/time Apre ou fin manje, nou pral ale.
11 jiskaske until endpoint Mwen pral tann jiskaske li vini.
12 jiska until / up to endpoint Rete la jiska demen.
13 menm si even if / even though concession Menm si lapli tonbe, mwen pral ale.
14 sof si unless / except if exception Mwen pral ale sof si lapli tonbe.
15 sèlman si only if necessary condition Mwen pral vini sèlman si ou rele mwen.
16 toutotan as long as / so long as continuing condition Ou ka rete toutotan ou respekte règ yo.
17 depi provided that / as long as condition Depi ou travay, ou ka rete isit la.
18 si sèlman if only wish/regret Si sèlman mwen te gen plis tan!
19 nan ka in case precaution Pran yon parapli nan ka lapli tonbe.
20 kit ... kit ... whether ... or ... alternatives Kit ou vle, kit ou pa vle, mwen pral ale.
21 kèlkeswa si regardless of whether unrestricted condition Kèlkeswa si li vini, nou pral kòmanse.
22 kèlkeswa kiyès no matter who unrestricted person Kèlkeswa kiyès ki vini, mwen pral pale avè l.
23 kèlkeswa sa no matter what unrestricted thing Kèlkeswa sa ki rive, mwen pral ede ou.
24 kèlkeswa kote no matter where unrestricted place Kèlkeswa kote ou ale, mwen pral jwenn ou.
25 kèlkeswa kilè no matter when unrestricted time Kèlkeswa kilè ou vini, pòt la ap louvri.
26 kèlkeswa jan no matter how unrestricted manner/degree Kèlkeswa jan li difisil, mwen pral eseye.
27 nenpòt moun whoever / anyone unrestricted person Nenpòt moun ka vini.
28 nenpòt bagay whatever / anything unrestricted thing Nenpòt bagay ka rive.
29 nenpòt kote wherever / anywhere unrestricted place Ou ka ale nenpòt kote.
30 an nou di suppose / let's say hypothetical assumption An nou di ou rich; kisa ou ta fè?
14- COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE
more pi + adjective
more … than pi + adjective + pase/ke
less … than mwens + adjective + pase/ke
as … as osi + adjective + ke
not as … as pa osi + adjective + ke
more noun plis + noun
less/fewer noun mwens + noun
the most pi + adjective + nan + group
the least usually pi piti / pi ba / pi ra, depending on meaning
one of the most youn nan ... ki pi + adjective
among the most pami ... ki pi + adjective
much more anpil + pi + adjective
much less anpil + mwens + adjective/noun
slightly more yon ti jan pi + adjective
slightly less yon ti jan mwens + adjective
more and more pi ... chak jou / de pli zan pli
less and less mwens ... chak jou / de pli zan pli mwens
the more…the more plis..., se plis...
the less…the less mwens..., se mwens...
the more…the less plis..., se mwens...
the less…the more mwens..., se plis...
better pi bon / pi byen
worse pi move / pi mal
best pi bon an
worst pi move a / pi mal la
very/extremely trè / anpil / vrèman / ekstrèmman + adjective
15- RELATIVE CLAUSES
who/that — subject N + ki + V moun ki vini an
who/that — object N + ki + S + V + a moun ki mwen wè a
that — object N + ke + S + V + a liv ke mwen li a
whose N + ki gen / ki + possessed noun + pronoun moun ki gen yon machin
where N + kote + clause + a kay kote mwen rete a
when N + lè + clause + a jou lè mwen vini an
the reason why rezon ki fè + clause rezon ki fè mwen vini
the way/how jan + clause jan ou pale a
what sa ki / sa ke + clause sa ki rive a
whoever nenpòt moun ki + clause nenpòt moun ki vini
whatever nenpòt sa ki + clause nenpòt sa ki rive
wherever nenpòt kote + clause nenpòt kote ou ale
no matter who kèlkeswa kiyès ki + clause kèlkeswa kiyès ki vini
no matter what kèlkeswa sa ki + clause kèlkeswa sa ki rive
no matter where kèlkeswa kote + clause kèlkeswa kote ou ale
no matter when kèlkeswa kilè + clause kèlkeswa kilè ou vini
no matter how kèlkeswa jan + clause kèlkeswa jan li difisil
ki general relative marker who/which/that
ke object relative marker whom/which/that
sa ki free relative what/that which
sa ke free object relative what/that which
kote place relative where
lè temporal relative when
ki lè interrogative time expression what time
jan manner relative how/the way
fason manner way/manner
ki fè reason relative why/the reason that
poukisa reason interrogative why
nenpòt moun ki free-choice human relative whoever
nenpòt sa ki free-choice thing relative whatever
nenpòt kote free-choice place wherever
nenpòt lè free-choice time whenever
kèlkeswa kiyès ki unrestricted person no matter who
kèlkeswa sa ki unrestricted thing no matter what
kèlkeswa kote unrestricted place no matter where
kèlkeswa kilè unrestricted time no matter when
kèlkeswa jan unrestricted manner no matter how
REDUCED:
1 Present active reduced relative N + k ap + V + definite marker moun k ap travay la the person working
2 Present active N + ki ap + V + definite marker moun ki ap travay la the person who is working
3 Past active N + ki te + V + definite marker moun ki te vini an the person who came
4 Past progressive N + k t ap + V + definite marker moun k t ap pale a the person who was speaking
5 Past progressive full N + ki t ap + V + definite marker moun ki t ap pale a the person who was speaking
6 Completed action N + ki fin + V + definite marker moun ki fin manje a the person who has finished eating
7 Past completed N + ki te fin + V + definite marker moun ki te fin manje a the person who had finished eating
8 Adjectival modifier N + Adj + definite marker liv enteresan an the interesting book
9 Resultative / participial modifier N + participial/resultative form + definite marker pòt fèmen an the closed door
10 Resultative N + resultative form + definite marker machin kraze a the broken car
11 Locative modifier N + prepositional phrase + definite marker liv sou tab la the book on the table
12 Place modifier N + nan + place + definite marker moun nan kay la the people in the house
13 avèk modifier N + avèk + N moun avèk machin nan the person with the car
14 Purpose / infinitive modifier N + pou + V yon liv pou li a book to read
15 Purpose with explicit subject N + pou + pronoun + V yon liv pou mwen li a book for me to read
16 Ability modifier N + ki ka + V moun ki ka ede nou a person who can help us
17 Hypothetical ability N + ki ta ka + V bagay ki ta ka itil something that could be useful
18 Prospective modifier N + ki pral + V moun ki pral vini an the person who is going to come
19 Future modifier N + ki va + V moun ki va vini an the person who will come
20 Temporal modifier N + clause + definite marker jou mwen te vini an the day I came
21 Temporal lè modifier N + lè + clause + definite marker jou lè mwen te vini an the day when I came
22 Manner modifier jan + clause + definite marker jan ou pale a the way you speak
23 fason modifier fason + clause fason li fè sa a the way he/she does that
24 Possessive-type modifier N + ki gen + N kay ki gen twa chanm nan the house with three rooms
25 Free relative sa ki + V + definite marker sa ki rive a what happened
26 Free object relative sa ke + S + V + definite marker sa ke mwen wè a what I saw
27 Whoever nenpòt moun ki + V nenpòt moun ki vini whoever comes
28 Whatever nenpòt sa ki + V nenpòt sa ki rive whatever happens
29 Wherever nenpòt kote + clause nenpòt kote ou ale wherever you go
30 Whenever nenpòt lè + clause nenpòt lè ou vini whenever you come
31 No matter who kèlkeswa kiyès ki + V kèlkeswa kiyès ki vini no matter who comes
32 No matter what kèlkeswa sa ki + V kèlkeswa sa ki rive no matter what happens
33 No matter where kèlkeswa kote + clause kèlkeswa kote ou ale no matter where you go
34 No matter when kèlkeswa kilè + clause kèlkeswa kilè ou vini no matter when you come
35 No matter how kèlkeswa jan + clause kèlkeswa jan li difisil no matter how difficult it is
36 Prepositional relative reduction N + PP liv sou tab la the book that is on the table
37 Active ki ap → k ap N + k ap + V fanm k ap danse a the woman dancing
38 Past ki t ap → k t ap N + k t ap + V moun k t ap tann yo the people who were waiting
39 Adjective reduction N + Adj moun malad la the sick person
40 Resultative reduction N + resultative form fenèt kraze a the broken window
41 Location reduction N + PP timoun anba pye bwa a the children under the tree
42 Purpose reduction N + pou + V bagay pou manje something to eat
16- REPORTED SPEECH AND DIRECT SPEECH
Statement S + di + (ke) + clause
Past statement S + te di + (ke) + clause
Yes/no question S + mande + si + clause
WH-question S + mande + WH-word + clause
Command S + di + person + pou + V
Negative command S + di + person + pou pa + V
Request S + mande + person + pou + V
Advice S + konseye + person + pou + V
Suggestion S + sijere + pou + clause
Invitation S + envite + person + pou + V
Promise S + pwomèt + (person) + ke + clause
Warning S + avèti + person + ke/pou + clause
Thought S + panse/kwè + ke + clause
Conditional reported speech S + di + ke + si + condition + result
Reported negative S + di + ke + pa + clause
17- INFINITIVES AND VERBAL NOUNS
1 Basic infinitive V Mwen vle ale. I want to go.
2 Modal infinitive ka + V Mwen ka ale. I can go.
3 Obligation infinitive dwe + V Mwen dwe ale. I must go.
4 Ability infinitive kapab + V Mwen kapab ale. I am able to go.
5 Want + infinitive vle + V Mwen vle ale. I want to go.
6 Beginning + infinitive kòmanse + V Mwen kòmanse travay. I begin to work.
7 Continuing + infinitive kontinye + V Mwen kontinye travay. I continue working.
8 Trying + infinitive eseye + V Mwen eseye konprann. I try to understand.
9 Planning planifye pou + V Mwen planifye pou vwayaje. I plan to travel.
10 Deciding deside pou + V Mwen deside pou ale. I decide to go.
11 Purpose pou + V Mwen vini pou ede ou. I came to help you.
12 In order to pou + V Li travay pou viv. He works in order to live.
13 For + subject + infinitive pou + S + V Li vle pou mwen ale. He wants me to go.
14 Negative infinitive pou pa + V Li vini pou pa pèdi tan. He comes so as not to waste time.
15 Noun + infinitive N + pou + V yon liv pou li a book to read
16 Progressive ap + V Mwen ap li. I am reading.
17 Past progressive t ap + V Mwen t ap li. I was reading.
18 Future progressive va ap + V Mwen va ap li. I will be reading.
19 Conditional progressive ta ap + V Mwen ta ap li. I would be reading.
20 Activity/gerund-like V Mwen renmen li. I like reading.
21 Gerund subject V + predicate Travay difisil. Working is difficult.
22 After + gerund apre + V Apre manje... After eating...
23 Before + gerund anvan + V Anvan ale... Before leaving...
24 Without + gerund san + V San pale... Without speaking...
25 After having + V apre fin + V Apre fin manje... After having eaten...
26 While + V-ing pandan + S + ap + V Pandan li ap manje... While he is eating...
27 See/hear + bare V V + object + V Mwen wè li kouri. I see him run.
28 See/hear + V-ing V + object + ap + V Mwen wè li ap kouri. I see him running.
18- SUBJUNCTIVE
V infinitive-like/basic verb
pou + V to V / in order to V
pou + S + V for S to V / that S V
pou + S + pa + V that S not V
ke + clause that-clause/content clause
fòk + S + V must / it is necessary that
vle + pou + S + V want S to V
mande pou + S + V ask that S V
ensiste pou + S + V insist that S V
enpòtan pou + S + V important that S V
nesesè pou + S + V necessary that S V
pè pou + S + V fear that S may/will V
pou + S + ka + V so that S can V
kite + S + V let S V
ann + V let's V
si + te + V ... ta + V hypothetical
si + te + V ... ta te + V counterfactual
19- TAG QUESTIONS
Negative question S + pa + V? Ou pa vini? asks whether the statement is negative
Negative question with Èske Èske + S + pa + V? Èske ou pa vini? explicit yes/no question
Tag question S + V, pa vre? Ou vini, pa vre? seeks confirmation
Negative tag S + pa + V, pa vre? Ou pa vini, pa vre? seeks confirmation of a negative statement
20- MODAL WORDS
1 ka can; may; be able to; possibility
2 kapab can; be able to
3 kap can; be able to; capable of
4 abitye be accustomed to; usually; tend to
5 dwe must; have to; should; ought to
6 gen pou have to; be supposed to
7 fò must; have to; necessary
8 fòk must; it is necessary that
9 nesesè necessary
10 bezwen need; need to
11 pa bezwen need not; do not have to
12 ta dwe should; ought to
13 ta would; conditional
14 ta ka could; might; would be able to
15 ta kapab could; would be able to
16 ta dwe should; ought to; would have to
17 ta vle would like; would want
18 ta renmen would like
19 te ka could; might have; was able to
20 te kapab could; was able to
21 t ap ka would be able to; was going to be able to
22 t ap kapab would be able to
23 pral be going to; be about to
24 pral gen pou be going to have to
25 pral dwe be going to have to
26 prèt pou be about to; be on the point of
27 sou wout pou be on the way to; be about to
28 gen entansyon intend to
29 entansyon intention
30 vle want to; wish to
31 ta vle would want; would like
32 renmen like; would like
33 ta renmen would like
34 swete wish; hope; would like
35 espere hope; expect
36 bezwen need
37 gen bezwen need; have need of
38 gen dwa may; be allowed to; have the right to
39 dwa right; entitlement; permission
40 pèmèt allow; permit
41 otorize authorize; permit
42 gen pèmisyon pou have permission to
43 pèmisyon permission
44 entèdi forbid; prohibit; be forbidden
45 pa gen dwa must not; may not; be forbidden to
46 pa dwe must not; should not
47 pa sipoze be not supposed to
48 sipoze be supposed to; be expected to
49 sipoze ap be supposed to be doing
50 sipoze fè be supposed to do
51 gen pou be supposed to; have to
52 gen obligasyon pou be obliged to
53 obligasyon obligation
54 oblije have to; be forced to
55 fò have to; necessarily
56 fòk it is necessary that; must
57 li nesesè it is necessary
58 li enpòtan pou it is important to
59 li obligatwa pou it is mandatory to
60 obligatwa mandatory; obligatory
61 nesesè pou necessary to
62 pa nesesè pou unnecessary to; need not
63 pa obligatwa pou not mandatory to
64 pi bon pou better to
65 li pi bon pou it is better to
66 ta pi bon pou it would be better to
67 ta dwe should; ought to
68 dwe should; ought to; must
69 ta dwe should probably; ought to
70 ou ta dwe you should
71 li ta dwe he/she should
72 nou ta dwe we should
73 yo ta dwe they should
74 fòk ou you must
75 fòk li he/she must
76 fòk nou we must
77 fòk yo they must
78 ou oblije you have to
79 li oblije he/she has to
80 nou oblije we have to
81 yo oblije they have to
82 kapab be capable of
83 pa kapab cannot; be unable to
84 pa ka cannot; may not
85 pa ka fè cannot do
86 pa kapab fè cannot do; be unable to do
87 ka posib may be possible
88 posib possible
89 enposib impossible
90 li posib pou it is possible to
91 li posib ke it is possible that
92 li enposib pou it is impossible to
93 li enposib ke it is impossible that
94 petèt perhaps; maybe
95 petèt ke perhaps; maybe
96 ka may; might
97 ta ka might; could
98 ta kapab might; could
99 sanble seem; appear
100 sanble ke it seems that
101 parèt appear; seem
102 parèt ke it appears that
103 genlè apparently; probably
104 gen chans there is a chance; likely
105 gen chans pou be likely to
106 gen anpil chans pou be very likely to
107 gen ti chans pou be unlikely to
108 pwobab probable; likely
109 pwobableman probably
110 sètènman certainly
111 sètèn certain
112 sèten certain; sure
113 asire assure; ensure
114 asireman certainly; surely
115 san dout undoubtedly
116 definitivman definitely
117 vrèman really; indeed
118 sèt certain/sure, in expressions
119 mwen sèten I am sure
120 li sèten it is certain
121 pa gen dout there is no doubt
122 pa gen dout ke there is no doubt that
123 preske almost
124 prèske almost
125 sanble seem
126 sanble li it seems he/she
127 dwe must; presumably
128 dwe genyen must have
129 dwe ap must be doing
130 ta dwe should presumably
131 sipoze supposedly; be expected to
132 sipozeman supposedly
133 aparaman apparently
134 nòmalman normally; presumably
135 natirèlman naturally; naturally expected
136 evidamman obviously; evidently
137 san dout undoubtedly
138 petèt maybe
139 pwobableman probably
140 sètènman certainly
141 obligatwa obligatory
142 entèdi forbidden
143 pa gen dwa not allowed
144 pa pèmèt not permitted
145 pa dwe must not; should not
146 pa sipoze not supposed to
147 pa oblije do not have to
148 pa bezwen do not need to
149 pa nesesè unnecessary
150 pa nesesè pou need not
151 pa gen nesesite pou there is no need to
152 pa gen obligasyon pou have no obligation to
153 lib pou free to
154 gen libète pou have the freedom to
155 lib free; permitted
156 dakò pou agree to; be willing to
157 vle want; be willing
158 pa vle refuse; do not want
159 refize refuse to
160 aksepte agree/accept to
161 konsanti consent; agree
162 pare pou ready to
163 dispoze willing; prepared
164 dispoze pou willing to
165 pare ready
166 pare pou be ready to
167 ezite hesitate
168 oze dare
169 pa oze dare not
170 kouraje have the courage to
171 gen kouraj pou have the courage to
172 rive manage to; succeed in
173 jere manage to
174 reyisi succeed in
175 eseye try to
176 tente attempt to
177 fè efò pou make an effort to
178 chèche seek/try to
179 planifye pou plan to
180 gen plan pou plan to
181 gen pwojè pou plan/intend to
182 gen entansyon pou intend to
183 deside decide to
184 pran desizyon pou decide to
185 espere hope to
186 swete wish to
187 reve dream of; wish to
188 anvi want to; feel like
189 gen anvi feel like; want to
190 ta renmen would like
191 ta vle would like; would want
192 ta swete would wish; would like
193 ta prefere would prefer
194 prefere prefer
195 ta pito would rather
196 pito rather; better
197 pi pito preferably; rather
198 bezwen need
199 ta bezwen would need
200 t ap bezwen would be needing / would need
201 ta nesesè would be necessary
202 ta dwe would have to
203 ta oblije would have to; would be forced to
204 ta gen pou would have to
205 ta fòk would be necessary that
206 si if
207 si ta if ... would
208 si li ta if he/she would
209 si mwen ta if I would
210 si nou ta if we would
211 si yo ta if they would
212 ta would; hypothetical
213 ta ka could; might
214 ta kapab could; might be able to
215 ta dwe should/would have to
216 ta vle would want
217 ta renmen would like
218 ta pito would rather
219 ta preferab would be preferable
220 preferab preferable
221 ta posib would be possible
222 ta enposib would be impossible
223 ta sanble would seem
224 ta sanble ke it would seem that
225 ta ka rive could happen
226 ta ka genyen could have
227 ta dwe genyen should/must have
228 ta dwe ap should/must be doing
229 te dwe had to; must have
230 te oblije had to; was forced to
231 te gen pou had to; was supposed to
232 te kapab could; was able to
233 te ka could; might
234 pa t kapab could not; was unable to
235 pa t ka could not; was unable to
236 t ap would; was going to; used to be doing
237 t ap ka would be able to
238 t ap kapab would be able to
239 t ap dwe would have to / was supposed to
240 t ap gen pou would have to
241 pral going to
242 t apral was going to
243 te pral was going to
244 ta pral would be going to
245 pral bezwen will be going to need
246 pral oblije will have to
247 pral gen pou will have to
248 pral dwe will have to
249 sipoze supposed to
250 te sipoze was supposed to
251 t ap sipoze was supposed to be
252 ta sipoze would be supposed to
253 pral sipoze will be supposed to
254 sanble seem
255 sanble ap seem to be doing
256 sanble pral seem to be going to
257 sanble ta seem like it would
258 gen chans pou likely to
259 gen posiblite pou have the possibility of
260 gen posibilite pou be possible to
261 gen risk pou risk being; be at risk of
262 riske risk; may possibly
263 ka rive may happen; can happen
264 ta ka rive might happen
265 kapab rive can happen; may happen
266 posib pou possible to
267 posib ke possible that
268 pwobab pou likely to
269 pwobab ke likely that
270 gen anpil posibilite pou very likely to
271 gen anpil chans pou very likely to
272 gen yon chans pou have a chance to
273 pa gen anpil chans pou unlikely to
274 pa fasil pou unlikely/not easy to
275 difisil pou difficult to
276 fasil pou easy to
277 posib possible
278 enposib impossible
279 inevitab inevitable
280 obligatwa obligatory
281 nesesè necessary
282 preferab preferable
283 rekòmande recommended
284 li rekòmande pou it is recommended that
285 li konseye pou it is advised that
286 konseye advise; recommend
287 rekòmande recommend
288 ta bon pou it would be good to
289 bon pou good to; advisable to
290 li ta bon pou it would be good to
291 li ta pi bon pou it would be better to
292 li saj pou it is wise to
293 saj pou wise to
294 pa saj pou unwise to
295 li enpòtan pou it is important to
296 enpòtan pou important to
297 li nesesè pou it is necessary to
298 li obligatwa pou it is obligatory to
299 fòk must; it is necessary that
300 fòk se it must be
301 fòk gen there must be
302 dwe gen there must be; must have
303 dwe genyen must have
304 ta dwe gen there should be
305 ta dwe genyen should have
306 ka gen there may/can be
307 ka genyen there may/can be
308 ta ka gen there might/could be
309 ta ka genyen there might/could be
310 pa ka gen there cannot be
311 pa kapab gen there cannot be
312 bezwen gen need to have
313 dwe fè must/should do
314 ka fè can/may do
315 ta fè would do
316 ta ka fè could/might do
317 ta dwe fè should do
318 oblije fè have to do
319 fòk fè must do
320 gen pou fè have to do
321 bezwen fè need to do
322 pa bezwen fè need not do
323 pa dwe fè must not/should not do
324 pa gen dwa fè must not/be forbidden to do
325 sipoze fè be supposed to do
326 ta vle fè would like to do
327 ta renmen fè would like to do
328 ta pito fè would rather do
329 kapab fè be able to do
330 pa kapab fè be unable to do
331 eseye fè try to do
332 rive fè manage to do
333 refize fè refuse to do
334 oze fè dare to do
335 pa oze fè dare not do
336 pare pou fè be ready to do
337 dispoze fè be willing to do
338 pral fè be going to do
339 prèt pou fè be about to do
340 gen entansyon fè intend to do
341 gen plan pou fè plan to do
342 espere fè hope to do
343 swete fè wish to do
344 anvi fè want to/feel like doing
345 ta ka rive fè might manage to do
346 ta kapab fè could be able to do
347 ta oblije fè would have to do
348 ta gen pou fè would have to do
349 ta nesesè pou fè it would be necessary to do
350 ta bon pou fè it would be good to do
351 ta pi bon pou fè it would be better to do
352 li posib pou fè it is possible to do
353 li enposib pou fè it is impossible to do
354 li nesesè pou fè it is necessary to do
355 li obligatwa pou fè it is mandatory to do
356 li rekòmande pou fè it is recommended to do
357 li konseye pou fè it is advisable to do
358 pa nesesè pou fè it is unnecessary to do
359 pa obligatwa pou fè it is not mandatory to do
360 pa gen nesesite pou fè there is no need to do
21- THERE IS / HAVE / BE
There is a book. Gen yon liv. There is a book.
There isn't a book. Pa gen liv. There isn't a book.
Is there a book? Gen yon liv? Is there a book?
Isn't there a book? Pa gen yon liv? Isn't there a book?
There was a book. Te gen yon liv. There was a book.
There wasn't a book. Pa t gen liv. There wasn't a book.
Was there a book? Te gen yon liv? Was there a book?
Wasn't there a book? Pa t gen yon liv? Wasn't there a book?
There is going to be a book. Pral gen yon liv. There is going to be a book.
There isn't going to be a book. Pa pral gen liv. There isn't going to be a book.
There will be a book. Va gen yon liv. There will be a book.
There won't be a book. Pap gen liv. There won't be a book.
There would be a book. Ta gen yon liv. There would be a book.
There wouldn't be a book. Pa ta gen liv. There wouldn't be a book.
There would have been a book. Ta te gen yon liv. There would have been a book.
There wouldn't have been a book. Pa ta te gen liv. There wouldn't have been a book.
I have Mwen gen yon liv. I have a book.
You have Ou gen yon liv. You have a book.
He/She has Li gen yon liv. He/She has a book.
We have Nou gen yon liv. We have a book.
You have Nou gen yon liv. You have a book.
They have Yo gen yon liv. They have a book.
I don't have Mwen pa gen yon liv. I don't have a book.
I had Mwen te gen yon liv. I had a book.
I didn't have Mwen pa t gen yon liv. I didn't have a book.
I will have Mwen va gen yon liv. I will have a book.
I am going to have Mwen pral gen yon liv. I am going to have a book.
I won't have Mwen pap gen yon liv. I won't have a book.
I would have Mwen ta gen yon liv. I would have a book.
I wouldn't have Mwen pa ta gen yon liv. I wouldn't have a book.
I would have had Mwen ta te gen yon liv. I would have had a book.
I wouldn't have had Mwen pa ta te gen yon liv. I wouldn't have had a book.
IMPERATIVES:
1 Basic command V Ale! Go!
2 Negative command pa + V Pa ale! Don't go!
3 Command + object V + O Li liv la! Read the book!
4 Negative + object pa + V + O Pa li liv la! Don't read the book!
5 Let me kite mwen + V Kite mwen ale. Let me go.
6 Let me contracted kite m + V Kite m ale. Let me go.
7 Let him/her kite li + V Kite li vini. Let him/her come.
8 Let them kite yo + V Kite yo ale. Let them go.
9 Let's ann + V Ann ale! Let's go!
10 Let's not ann pa + V Ann pa ale. Let's not go.
11 Causative command fè + S + V Fè li vini! Make him/her come!
12 Obligation command S + dwe + V Ou dwe ale. You must go.
13 Necessity command fòk + S + V Fòk ou ale. You must go.
14 Directive pou + S + V Pou ou rete la. You are to stay there.
15 Polite command tanpri + V Tanpri, chita. Please sit down.
16 Polite negative tanpri + pa + V Tanpri, pa ale. Please don't go.
17 Polite request èske + S + ka + V? Èske ou ka ede mwen? Can you help me?
18 Reflexive command V + tèt + possessive Pran swen tèt ou! Take care of yourself!
19 Directional command V + location Vini isit la! Come here!
20 Command + indirect object V + IO + O Bay mwen liv la! Give me the book!
24. Most important imperative patterns
Direct command
V!
Vini! — Come!
Negative command
Pa + V!
Pa vini! — Don't come!
Let's
Ann + V
Ann ale! — Let's go!
Let's not
Ann pa + V
Ann pa ale. — Let's not go.
Let someone
Kite + person + V
Kite li ale. — Let him/her go.
Make someone
Fè + person + V
Fè li ale! — Make him/her go!
Strong obligation
Fòk + person + V
Fòk ou ale. — You must go.
Polite command
Tanpri + V
Tanpri, vini. — Please come.
Polite request
Èske + person + ka + V?
Èske ou ka vini? — Can you come?