Are Haitians understanding your sentences?
Have you ever said, for example: “Pou pase twazan mwen vle eseye pou vizite Ayiti. Ki sa Ayiti ye?” only to hear a Haitian say: “Plètil? Ki sa?” and look at you dumbfounded?
Do you feel like you’ve finally expanded your vocabulary, you’ve memorized hundreds of words, and yet Haitians are still not fully understanding you?
Even after a simple “ou gade bèl jodi a” or “jwi jounen ou”, do you feel that you are not being understood?
If you answered yes, you are not alone. Even intermediate learners have felt the same way.
You will love the 3 tips below to help you speak as Haitians speak. Save this to your Haitian folder.
Btw the Haitian sentences above are incorrect. How should you say them in Kreyòl?
- For the past 3 years I’ve been trying to visit Haiti. What is Haiti like?
- You look good.
- Enjoy your day.
When to use "se te"?
Are you asking yourself: Wait! I thought you showed us that we should never use “se te” in the past tense?
It’s true that we gave you some examples of when not to use “se te”. However, if you feel comfortable with the previous 4 “Se Rules”, you should be ready for the next advanced rule!
Se Rule #5
“Se” becomes “se te” in the past tense
– remember Rules #1, 2 & 4
– do not use “se te” before a verb
Past tense = talking about something that has already happened (eg. Mwen te rele ou.)
Verbs = action words (eg. fè, bay, gen)
You can access all the “se” rules in the series How To Use “Se” Correctly.
Enis te mache nan pak la. ✓
Eunice walked in the park.
Sentences below are all correct.
I wanted Jacques.
The Roman empire was a large empire.
Yve te manje pwason. ✓
Yve ate fish.
Sentences below are all correct.
The meeting started at night.
Dessalines was the first Haitian king.
Notice that other than the two sentences that are incorrect, all the other sentences are correct. As you can see, there are many different ways to express one idea.
Maybe you’re asking yourself: Why did we not use “te” in some of the sentences which are clearly in the past tense? Find the answer on our website.
Write down 10 sentences while using “se te”. Then, as suggested above, share them with a native speaker and ask for feedback.
Improve Your Pronunciation: i
How do you pronounce the letter i in the Haitian word: piblisite (it means publicity, advertisement, commercial) ? Is the first i “softer” then the second i?
If you answered yes, you can verify your answer on our website.
Watch the i video to see and hear exactly how to pronounce it correctly.
A, La, An, Lan, Nan
“Why do Haitian use these 5 words multiple times in a sentence? I see and hear them all the time. Google Translate doesn’t always translate these words. What are they and how to use them?”
These are the questions that many students have asked us.
Would you like to know the answer?
We are happy to share the part of the answer in the video below. It is a taste of our group class.
Stay tuned for more videos like this one.
Reading Practice: Depatman Latibonit
Depatman Latibonit
Li se youn nan dis depatman jewografik e administratif Ayiti. Vil prinsipal la se Gonayiv. Depatman Latibonit plase premye an grandè epi dezyèm an popilasyon.
Lizyè
Depatman Latibonit bòne nan zòn nò pa depatman Nòdwès ak Depatman Nò, osid pa Depatman Lwès, alès pa depatman Sant, e alwès pa gòlf Lagonav. Abitan depatman Latibonit yo pote non Latibonisyen (pou gason yo) oswa Latibonisyèn (pou fi yo).
Kot touristik
Kot depatman Latibonit yo plat epi kouvri ak raje, sitou nan zòn Lanbouchi Lestè ak Latibonit. Nan lòt zòn depatman an ou ka wè wòch sou kot yo. Se nan depatman Latibonit ou jwenn labe Gonayiv, Labe Gran-Pyè, labe Sen Mak ant Tab Odjab epi kap Sen Mak.
Zòn istorik ak touristik
a) Yo batize oswa onore Goyaniv ak non sa a: Site Lendepandans.
an) Ravin Koulèv ki se prensipal kote gwo batay gason pa kanpe ant lame fransè kòmande pa Jeneral Rochanbo epi lame endijèn yo sou zòd Jeneral Tousen Lovèti.
b) Ti Rivyè Latibonit se kote Anri Kristòf te konstwi yon palè ak 365 pòt. Tout moun dwe vizite l. Toupre l, ou jwenn Kretapyewo ki temwaye gwo kokennchenn batay glorye lame endijèn yo sou lame Fransè yo.
ch) Bitasyon Jòj, toupre Gonayiv, se kote yo te arete Jeneral Tousen Lovèti.
d) Desalin, yo te konn rele Machan (fransè: Marchand) sou dominasyon Fransè a tounen kapital Ayiti a an 1805 sou anprè Desalin.
e) Vyebak, toupre Pon Sonde, se kote Jeneral Tousen Lovèti te touye kolonèl Brisbàn (fransè: Brisbane) an Desanm 1794.
Prodiksyon agrikòl
Nan mòn yo, abitan yo plante kafe. Nan Plèn Lestè se diri ki rapòte. Plèn Latibonit chanje ak richès plizyè danre. Se la w jwenn gran plantasyon diri ak koton. Lavale Latibonit pwodwi bannann, mayi, patat, elatriye. Nan kot yo menm, se aktivite lapèch ak esplwatasyon sèl sitou nan Gonayiv ak Gran Salin ki bay lajan.
Lot bagay enteresan
a) Depatman Latibonit posede 2 pò: pò Gonayiv la ak pò Sen Mak la ki louvri pou komès nasyonal ak komès entènasyonal. Apati pò Gonayiv la, Ayiti voye vann aletranje kafe Enri, kafe Gwomòn ak kafe Plezans. Apati pò Sen Mak la, Ayiti voye vann aletranje kafe ak pit Dekawo.
an) Biwo Min Ayiti idantifye mab nan Gwomòn; min lò, min kwiv, ak min ajan nan Meme epi Kaseyis (Gonayiv) ki evalye 156 milyon epi 250 milyon dola Ameriken.
b) Men kèk moun ki sot Depatman Latibonit ki te rive okipe pòs prezidan oswa premye minis. Prezidan Sensinatis Lekont sot Sen Michèl. Prezidan epi Premye Minis Rene Preval sot Mamelad. Prezidan Dimasè Estime sot Vèrèt. Prezidan Nisaj Sajè sot Sen Mak. Prezidan Èta Paskal Twouyo sot Gonayiv.
In your own words, what did you learn about Depatman Latibonit?
What questions would you love to ask a Latibonisyen or a Latibonisyèn?
Write them out and share them with a Haitian. We would love to hear or read your answers too. Feel feel to reply directly to this email.
Original Source: Diksyonè Ilistre Lang Ayisyen by Édition Konbit. ISBN: 978 2 9809640 84. Google Maps.
Additional Videos
Practice
What questions would you love to ask a Latibonisyen or a Latibonisyèn?
Write them out and share them with a Haitian.
Send Us Your Answers
Feel free to send us your answers to the questions.
