Te

Warm-up

  • Te ka di i ye?

  • I b'à min tuma jumɛn?

  • I bɛ mun kɛ i ka te la?

  • I kelen b'à min walima i n'i teriw b'à min ɲɔgɔn fɛ?

  • I bɛ mun dun/ɲimi ni te ye?

None for now!

Text

CONTEXT: Abi is a student of Bambara. As she walks home after class, her neighbor who is sitting with some friends drinking tea calls out to her.

ADAMA: Abi, na yan!
ABI: Munna ?
ADAMA: Na te min!
ABI: N ye dɔ min kaban. N bɛ ka kalan kɛ sisan (1).
ADAMA: Kalan?! E bɛ ka mun kalan?
ABI: Bamanankan kɛ!
ADAMA: Sabali! Kana ban.
ABI: Te mɔna wa?
ADAMA: Ɔwɔ, sukaro b’à la fana!
ABI: Ayiwa, n bɛ dɔ min. I ni ce!

ADAMA: Abi, come here!
ABI: Why?
ADAMA: Come drink tea!
ABI: I drank some already. I am studying now (1).
ADAMA: Studies?! What are you studying?
ABI: Bambara, but of course!
ADAMA: Come on! Don't refuse.
ABI: Is the tea ready?
ADAMA: Yes, it's got sugar too!
ABI: Alright, I'll drink some. Thanks!

Vocab

te
tea
dɔ
some
kaban
already (< ka ban 'to finish')
kɛ
particle that marks an assertion (cf. "man" in English; e.g., "That's how it is, man!")
ka sabali
to have patience; to forgive; to be indulgent [NOTE: You can learn more about sabali in this street interview video that I did]
ka ban
to refuse
ka mɔ
to ripen; to become ready [prepared food or drinks]
sukaro
sugar

None for now!

Notes

    1. Light-verb constructions: Bambara verbs are generally transitive (meaning they require a direct object; e.g., N bɛ cɛ fo = I greet the man) or intransitive (meaning they do not require a direct object (e.g., N bɛ taa = I go). When verbs are intransitive, they are given in citation form with the infinitive marker ka preceding them (e.g., ka taa = to go). When they transitive, they are given in citation form with k'à preceding the verb (e.g., k'à fo = to greet sb). This is the result of a contraction of ka and à (lit. 'it'). The word à thus is a placeholder for a required direct object. When a verb is transitive (e.g. k'à kalan = to read something), but you want to use it intransitively (that is, without specifying what you read, for instance), you need to do a "light verb construction" using the helper verb kɛ, which literally means 'to do'. So instead of saying N ye kitabu kalan ('I read the book'), you would say N ye kalan kɛ (lit. "I did studying"). In some cases, you may need to make a change to verb so that it can be used as direct object noun. For instance, N bɛ to dun ('I eat tô') → N bɛ dumuni kɛ ('I eat' [lit. 'I do eating/food']). These need to be learned on a case-by-case basis.

None for now!

Comprehension

- Munna Abi ko à tɛ te min?

- Munna Abi bɛ sɔn ka te min?

Activity

Imagine that Adama has just started preparing to make the tea when he calls out to Abi. How would he try to convince Abi? What would Abi do? Use at least 5 things from the vocab and/or notes. Create the scene!

Feedback