Notes on Engwo Grammar
Verbs
In this lexicon, verbs are written in their infinitive forms with the infinitive prefix [é-] simply kept out. For instance, the infinitive verb [é ndē] “to eat” is written simply as [nde] “eat.”
Where a verb is marked for singular and plural, the plural form will mean that the action is either performed by many people, on several objects or by the same subject repeatedly.
Pronouns
The following table presents the subject and object personal pronouns:
Persons |
SubjectPronouns |
Object Pronouns |
||
Direct |
Indirect |
|||
Singular |
1st |
mmɛ̀ |
angú |
ena |
2nd |
ngwò |
awɛ̂ |
engɛ̂ |
|
3rd |
engɔ / è, à, ā |
engɔ |
ebi engɔ |
|
mɔ́ |
mɔ́ |
ebi mɔ́ |
||
Plural |
1st |
ntsɔ̀ (incl.) |
abɔ̂ (incl.) |
ebi ebɔ̀ |
mbyɛ̀ɛ (excl.) |
angbɛ́ɛ |
endyɛɛ |
||
2nd |
mbɔ̀n |
angɔ́n |
endɔn |
|
3rd |
ángɔ / é, ê, á, â |
ángɔ |
ebi ángɔ |
|
àmɔ̀ |
àmɔ̀ |
ebi àmɔ̀ |
||
With the help of the possessive “my,” we are able to recognize 10 noun classes in Engwo. The table on page 35 shows in detail the pronouns. Note that noun class 5 is distinguished from classes 6 and 7 by the noun prefix as seen when you look at the different noun genders presented under the heading ‘Noun Class System.’ Also note that all the pronouns for the different noun classes are found as separate entries in the lexicon.
Demonstrative pronouns have common characteristics especially in their stems:
-ndê “far from addressee and speaker”
-nɔ̂ “near the speaker”
-ngɛ “near the addressee”
Demonstrative pronouns vary according to noun classes.
Adjectives
In general, we have four forms of adjectives in Engwo. They include verbal adjectives (v.adj) that function as verbs and take a verbal auxiliary, plain adjectives (adj) that come after nouns and qualify the nouns as single words, nominal adjectives (n.adj) that function as nouns with nominal agreement prefixes and another set of nominal adjectives that take nominal agreement prefixes, precede the nouns they describe but do not function as nouns. See the adjectives in the following examples.
v.adj Ndɔ́ yinɔ̂ yi tiimi “this house is short
adj Ndɔ́ tìimi tiimi “a short house”
n.adj Ndɔ́ ne etìimi tiimi “the house is a short one”
n.adj2 atíimí ndɔ́ “a short house”
Noun Class System
Based on the possessive “my,” noun class numbers have been allocated for all the nouns in this lexicon. Noun class numbers mean that each noun belongs to a particular group in which they have some common characteristics and all the nouns in that group use one form of the possessive “my.” There are eight forms of the possessive “my,” thus giving us not less than eight different noun classes for both singular and plural nouns. To be specific, Engwo has a total of ten noun classes. Here are examples of nouns grouped according to their classes as each group takes a common form of the 1st person singular possessive pronoun “my”:
Class 1: Nouns belonging to class 1 are singular nouns that take the possessive ngu “my.” Most of them are connected to persons. Their concord prefix is [e-] and the concord consonant is [w-]. Below are examples of class 1 nouns:
ghô ngu “my person” ènɔm ngu “my husband”
èyè ngu “my wife” èsɔ̀rɔ̀ ngu “my friend”
ŋwɔ́ ngu “my child” àfɔ̀n ngu “my wealth”
Class 2: Nouns belonging to class 2 are plural nouns that take the possessive mbú “my.” Their concord prefix is [e-] and sometimes [a-] and the concord consonant is [b-]. Below are examples of class 2 nouns:
bɔ̂ mbú “my people” àndô mbú “my uncles”
ékú mbú “my belongings” bwo mbú “my children”
éla mbú “my things” ayé mbú “my wives”
Class 3: Nouns belonging to class 3 are singular nouns that take the possessive ngú “my.” Their concord prefix is [e-] and the concord consonant is [w-]. Below are examples of class 3 nouns:
ebyé ngú “my cutlass” éwu ngú “my gun”
ekwô ngú “my belt” elɔ́ ngú “my line”
énji ngú “my fart” etsó’ ngú “my voice”
Class 5: Nouns belonging to class 5 are singular nouns that take the possessive ndzá “my” and begin with the vowel e-. Any other word that may begin with a consonant and takes the same form of the possessive ndzá belongs to this class. Their concord prefix is [e-] and the concord consonant is [z-] and [y-]. Below are examples of class 5 nouns:
ebûm ndzá “my belly” ezhú ndzá “my nose”
éshwɔ ndzá “my tooth” égwɔ ndzá “my plantain”
etírí ndzá “my waist” èkɛ̀rɛ̀ ndzá “my pepper”
Class 6: Nouns belonging to class 6 are plural nouns that take the possessive ndzá “my.” Their concord prefix is [a-] and the concord consonant is [z-] and [y-]. Below are examples:
ágwɔ ndzá “my plantains” áshwɔ ndzá “my teeth”
asɔ́rɔ́ ndzá “my friends” áchi ndzá “my in-laws”
akwâ ndzá “my places” atsâ ndzá “my songs”
Class 7: Nouns belonging to class 7 are singular nouns that take the possessive ndzá “my” and begin with the vowel a-. Their concord prefix is [a-] and the concord consonant is [z-] and [y-]. Below are examples of nouns of class 7:
ála ndzá “my thing” àfwɛ̀’ ndzá “my work”
ànà ndzá “my cocoyam” abwó ndzá “my hand”
akó’ ndzá “my fufu” àchwɔ̀ ndzá “my handbag”
Class 9: Nouns belonging to class 9 are singular nouns that take the possessive ndza “my.” Some of the nouns can be uncountable nouns. Their concord prefix is [e-] and the concord consonant is [z-] and [y-]. Below are examples of class 9 nouns:
m̀pwɔ̀ ndza “my cow” ǹchírí ndza “my gun powder”
bú ndza “my goat” ǹgwɔ̀m ndza “my drum”
bó ndza “my dog” ǹchwɔ̀ ndza “my good”
Class 10: Nouns belonging to class 10 are plural nouns that take the possessive ntsá “my.” Some may be uncountable nouns. Their concord prefix is [e-] and the concord consonant is [ts-] and [ch-]. Below are examples of nouns belonging to class 10:
ǹtsàrá ntsá “my play” ńchírí ntsá “my sand”
ǹdìrí ntsá “my clothes” bóró ntsá “my dogs”
kwa’rá ntsá “my fowls” ébíd ntsá “my faeces”
Class 19: Nouns belonging to class 19 are singular nouns that take the possessive mfú “my.” Their concord prefix is [e-] and the concord consonant is [f-]. Below are examples of class 19 nouns:
ébyé mfú “my knife” ńglí mfú “my vein”
énɔ̀rɔ́ mfú “my bird” ḿblɔ̂m mfú “my dove”
éwɔ̧̂ mfú “my gossip” étáa mfú “my heart”
Class 6a: Nouns belonging to class 6a are nouns that take the possessive mu “my.” Most of these nouns are liquids or uncountable nouns. They always begin with a nasal consonant. Their concord prefix is [e-] and sometimes [a-] and the concord consonant is [m-]. Below are examples:
ngúd mu “my oil” ntsɔ́bɔ́ mu “my splinters”
ndím mu “my water” ntsá mu “my broom”
mɔ́m mu “my wine” nglí mu “my veins”
You may begin to wonder why the noun class numbers are not in any counting order. The assigning of numbers to each noun class is guided by past linguistic research on noun classification in African languages and Cameroonian languages in particular where specific numbers have been assigned to specific noun characteristics. This classification for Engwo is done with the help of research carried out by HYMAN, L. (1980) in his book “Noun Classes in the Grassfields Bantu Borderland.”
A pair of numbers like 19/6a (called gender) means that the singular noun in question belongs to class 19 and takes the possessive “mfú” whereas its corresponding plural belongs to class 6a and takes the possessive “mu.” For each gender, the first number used for the singular noun is typically an odd number and the second number used for its plural counterpart is always an even number. Engwo has an exception with class 6a. Here is a list of the noun class numbers and their corresponding forms of the possessive “my”:
Singular Plural
1 ngu 2 mbú
- ngú 6a mu
5 ndzá (e-) 6 ndzá
7 ndzá (a-, etc.) 10 ntsá
9 ndza
19 mfú
Note that “ndzá” occurs three times (5, 7 and 6). Class 5 serves for singular nouns that begin with “e-” and class 7 serves for singular nouns that begin with “a-” or other letters whereas 6 serves for plural nouns that use the possessive ndzá. With the addition of the repeated two classes (5, 7) we therefore have ten noun classes in Engwo. From the pairing of the noun class genders, we are able to realize about 14 noun class genders in Engwo. Below is a presentation of the noun class genders with corresponding examples. This will help the reader to understand the concept of noun classes and noun class gender better.
Noun Class Gender Corresponding Noun
ngu 1/2 mbú èyè / ayé “wife / wives”
ngu 1/6 ndzá èsɔ̀rɔ̀ / asɔ́rɔ́ “friend / friends”
ngu 1/10 ntsá èsô / èsórô “soap / soaps”
ngú 3/6 ndzá ebyé / abyé “cutlass / cutlasses”
ngú 3/10 ntsá ènɔ̀ / ènɔ̀rɔ́ “bamboo / bamboos”
ndzá 5/6 ndzá égwɔ / ágwɔ “plantain / plantains”
ndzá 5/10 ntsá eblâ / éblâ “shoe / shoes”
mu 6a/10 ntsá ngúd / ńgúrú “oil / oils”
ndzá 7/2 mbú ála / éla “thing / things”
ndzá 7/6a mū atsɔ́b / ntsɔ́bɔ́ “splinter / splinters”
ndzā 9/2 mbú m̀pɛ̀ràka / m̀pɛ̀rɛka “plate / plates”
ndzā 9/10 ntsá ǹdi / ǹdìrí “clothes (sg.) / clothes”
mfú 19/6a mū ńglí / nglí “vein / veins”
mfú 19/10 ntsá ébyé / ḿbyéré “knife / knives”
Since there are many words that are used only in the plural or only in the singular, expect to see noun class numbers occurring single without being put in a gender. This is common with abstract nouns, for instance 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 19. Just take a look at these examples. They either do not have a plural or a singular or are usually used in just one form and the other form is ungrammatical;
- èbwò ngu “my finger infection”
- ebûn mbú “my dust”
- egérè ngú “my arrogance”
- ntsɛ̂n mu “my urine”
- abwɛ́m ndzá “my hunting”
- ándɔ́ŋɔ́ ndzá “my greed”
- m̀bog ndza “my envy”
- ǹtsàrá ntsá “my joke”
- èchwê mfú “my yellow soup”
That is why you can find single numbers, in other words, single class genders.
Noun Affixes:
Noun affixes help to determine the gender of the noun, which can either be singular or plural. Noun affixes can simply be presented in a table. The prefixes [e- and a-] are the most recurrent. The letter “r” plus the preceding vowel makes a plural suffix for most nouns that begin with consonants (usually nouns in class 10). The following table shows the prefixes and suffixes;
| Prefixes | ||||
| sing/pl. | Sing. Noun | Pl. Noun | Gender | Gloss |
| e- / a- | ebyé | abyé | 3/6 | cutlass |
| e- / be- | èkùm | bèkùm | 1/2 | quarter head |
| e- / N- | étórótà | ntórótà | 19/6a | star |
| e- / é- | eblâ | éblâ | 5/10 | shoe |
| Ø- / e- | mátà | èmátà | 9/10 | mat |
| a- / e- | azó’ | ezó’ | 7/2 | yam |
| a- / ba- | àkootìmi | bàkootìmi | 1/2 | deaf person |
| ń- / n- | ńdzɔ́d | ndzɔ́d | 19/6a | stick |
| Suffixes | ||||
| sing/pl. | Sing. Noun | Pl. Noun | Gender | Gloss |
| -Ø / -ra | ǹgà | ǹgàrá | 9/10 | healer |
| -Ø / -rɔ | ndɔ́ | ndɔ́rɔ́ | 9/10 | house |
| -Ø / -ro | bó | bóró | 9/10 | dog |
| -Ø / -ru | bú | búrú | 9/10 | goat |
| -Ø / -re | m̀pè | m̀pèrè | 9/10 | type |
| -Ø / -rɛ | m̀bɛ̀ | m̀bɛ̀rɛ́ | 9/10 | rat |
| -Ø / -ri | jî’ | jí’rî | 9/10 | porcupine |
Tone plays an important role in determining the plurals of some nouns. In such cases, only the tones change. See these two examples.
| Sing. | Pl. | Gender | Gloss |
| eblâ | éblâ | 5/10 | “shoe” |
| ńdzɔ́d | ndzɔ́d | 19/6a | “stick” |
With some nouns, the last consonant deletes before the suffix comes at the end. See these two examples.
Sing. Pl. Gender Gloss
ǹtìn ǹtìrí 9/10 “louse”
m̀bìn m̀bìrí 9/10 “testicle”
With some singular nouns that end with a consonant, a vowel follows before the plural suffix is added. See these two examples.
Sing. Pl. Gender Gloss
ǹgwɔ̀m ǹgwɔ̀mɔ̀rɔ̀ 9/10 “drum”
ǹtàm ǹtàmàrá 9/10 “cap”
There are cases where the first morpheme of a compound noun may take the class 10 plural suffix, thus coming in between the two morphemes as if it were an infix but it is not. It is just a compound word with the first morpheme taking the plural suffix. See these two examples.
Sing. Pl. Gender Gloss
ǹjìzhu ǹjìrízhu 9/10 “nostril”
ǹgàkyè ǹgàrakyè 9/10 “healer”
This background knowledge will help you very much in understanding the words that you look up and in learning the language. Another crucial aspect to know on the language concerns possessive pronouns which we present below in table form.
ENGWO POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS
| Noun | Singular Possessive Pronouns | ||||
| English | Engwo | My (class) | Your | His/her/its | |
| friend | èsɔ̀rɔ̀ | ngu (1) | ngwɛ̂ | ngɔ / mɔ | |
| cutlass | ebyé | ngú (3) | ngwɛ̂ | ngɔ / mɔ́ | |
| broom | ntsá | mu (6a) | myɛ̂ | ngɔ / mɔ | |
| things | éla | mbú (2) | mbyɛ̂ | ngɔ / mɔ́ | |
| knife | ébyé | mfú (19) | mfyɛ̂ | ngɔ / mɔ́ | |
| cow | m̀pwɔ̀ | ndza (9) | njyɛ̂ | ngɔ / mɔ | |
| head | ató (7) | ndzá (5, 7, 6) | njyɛ̂ | ngɔ / mɔ́ | |
| shoes | éblâ | ntsá (10) | nchyɛ̂ | ngɔ / mɔ́ | |
| Noun | Plural Possessive Pronouns | ||||
| English | Engwo | Our= in./ex | Your | Their | |
| friend | èsɔ̀rɔ̀ | bɔ̀ / ngbɛɛ | ngɔn | ángɔ/àmɔ̀ | |
| cutlass | ebyé | bɔ̂ / ngbɛ́ɛ | ngɔ́n | ángɔ/àmɔ̀ | |
| broom | ntsá | bɔ̀ / myɛɛ | mɔn | ángɔ/àmɔ̀ | |
| things | éla | bɔ̂ / mbyɛ́ɛ | mbɔ́n | ángɔ/àmɔ̀ | |
| knife | ébyé | bɔ̂ / mfyɛ́ɛ | mfɔ́n | ángɔ/àmɔ̀ | |
| cow | m̀pwɔ̀ | bɔ̀ / njyɛɛ | ndzɔn | ángɔ/àmɔ̀ | |
| head | ató | bɔ̂ / njyɛ́ɛ | ndzɔ́n | ángɔ/àmɔ̀ | |
| shoes | éblâ | bɔ̂ / nchyɛ́ɛ | ntsɔ́n | ángɔ/àmɔ̀ | |
| Singular Noun | Singular Possessive Pronouns | |||||||
| English | Engwo | Mine | Yours | His/hers | ||||
| friend | èsɔ̀rɔ̀ | engu | engwɛ̂ | engɔ / engɔngɔ | ||||
| cutlass | ebyé | èngú | èngwɛ̂ | êngɔ / éngɔngɔ | ||||
| broom | ńtsá | èmfú | èmfyɛ̂ | êngɔ / éngɔngɔ | ||||
| thing | ála | àndzá | ànjyɛ̂ | ângɔ / ángɔngɔ | ||||
| knife | ébyé | èmfú | èmfyɛ̂ | êngɔ / éngɔngɔ | ||||
| cow | m̀pwɔ̀ | endza | enjyɛ̂ | engɔ / engɔngɔ | ||||
| head | ató | àndzá | ànjyɛ̂ | ângɔ / ángɔngɔ | ||||
| shoe | eblâ | èndzá | ènjyɛ̂ | êngɔ / éngɔngɔ | ||||
| Singular Noun | Plural Possessive Pronouns | |||||||
| item | name | Ours | Yours | Theirs | ||||
| friend | èsɔ̀rɔ̀ | ebɔ̀ / engbɛɛ | engɔn | engɔ ángɔ | ||||
| cutlass | ebyé | èbɔ̂ / èngbɛ́ɛ | èngɔ́n | éngɔ ángɔ | ||||
| broom | ńtsá | ebɔ̀ / èmfyɛ́ɛ | èmfɔ́n | éngɔ ángɔ | ||||
| thing | ála | àbɔ̂ / ànjyɛ́ɛ | àndzɔ́n | ángɔ ángɔ | ||||
| knife | ébyé | èbɔ̂ / èmfyɛ́ɛ | èmfɔ́n | éngɔ ángɔ | ||||
| cow | m̀pwɔ̀ | ebɔ̀ / enjyɛɛ | endzɔn | engɔ ángɔ | ||||
| head | ató | àbɔ̂ / ànjyɛ́ɛ | àndzɔ́n | ángɔ ángɔ | ||||
| shoe | eblâ | èbɔ̂ / ènjyɛ́ɛ | èndzɔ́n | éngɔ ángɔ | ||||
| Plural Noun | Singular Possessive Pronoun | |||
| English | Engwo | Mine | Yours | His/hers |
| friends | asɔ́rɔ́ | àndzá | ànjyɛ̂ | ángɔngɔ |
| cutlasses | abyé | àndzá | ànjyɛ̂ | ángɔngɔ |
| brooms | ntsá | amu | amyɛ̂ | engɔngɔ |
| things | éla | èmbú | èmbyɛ̂ | éngɔngɔ |
| knifes | ḿbyéré | èntsá | ènchyɛ̂ | éngɔngɔ |
| cows | m̀pwɔ̀rɔ̀ | èntsá | ènchyɛ̂ | éngɔngɔ |
| heads | etó | èmbú | èmbyɛ̂ | éngɔngɔ |
| shoes | éblâ | èntsá | ènchyɛ̂ | éngɔngɔ |
| Plural Noun | Plural Possessive Pronoun | |||
| English | Engwo | Ours | Yours | Theirs |
| friends | asɔ́rɔ́ | àbɔ̂ / ànjyɛ́ɛ | àndzɔ́n | ángɔ ángɔ |
| cutlasses | abyé | àbɔ̂ / ànjyɛ́ɛ | àndzɔ́n | ángɔ ángɔ |
| brooms | ntsá | ebɔ̀ / amyɛɛ | amɔn | engɔ ángɔ |
| things | éla | èbɔ̂ / èmbyɛ́ɛ | èmbɔ́n | éngɔ ángɔ |
| knifes | ḿbyéré | èbɔ̂ / ènchyɛ́ɛ | èntsɔ́n | éngɔ ángɔ |
| cows | m̀pwɔ̀rɔ̀ | èbɔ̂ / ènchyɛ́ɛ | èntsɔ́n | éngɔ ángɔ |
| heads | etó | èbɔ̂ / èmbyɛ́ɛ | èmbɔ́n | éngɔ ángɔ |
| shoes | éblâ | èbɔ̂ / ènchyɛ́ɛ | èntsɔ́n | éngɔ ángɔ |
| Singular Noun | Logophoric Pronouns | |||
| English | Engwo | His/Her(s) | Their / Theirs | |
| friend | èsɔ̀rɔ̀ | ngbe / engbe | ngɔɔ | engɔ ngɔɔ |
| cutlass | ebyé | ngbé / èngbé | ngɔ́ɔ | éngɔ èngɔ́ɔ |
| broom | ńtsá | mfé / èmfé | mfɔ́ɔ | èmfɔ́ɔ |
| thing | ála | ndzé / àndzé | ndzɔ́ɔ | ángɔ àndzɔ́ɔ |
| knife | ébyé | mfé / èmfé | mfɔ́ɔ | èmfɔ́ɔ |
| cow | m̀pwɔ̀ | ndze / endze | ndzɔɔ | engɔ ndzɔɔ |
| head | ató | ndzé / àndzé | ndzɔ́ɔ | ángɔ àndzɔ́ɔ |
| shoe | eblâ | ndzé / èndzé | ndzɔ́ɔ | éngɔ èndzɔ́ɔ |
| Plural Noun | Plural Possessive Pronoun | |||
| English | Engwo | His/Her(s) | Their / Theirs | |
| friends | asɔ́rɔ́ | ndzé / àndzé | ndzɔ́ɔ | àndzɔ́ɔ |
| cutlasses | abyé | ndzé / àndzé | ndzɔ́ɔ | àndzɔ́ɔ |
| brooms | ntsá | me / ame | mɔɔ | amɔɔ |
| things | éla | mbé / èmbé | mbɔ́ɔ | èmbɔ́ɔ |
| knifes | ḿbyéré | ntsé / èntsé | ntsɔ́ɔ | èntsɔ́ɔ |
| cows | m̀pwɔ̀rɔ̀ | ntsé / èntsé | ntsɔ́ɔ | èntsɔ́ɔ |
| heads | etó | mbé / èmbé | mbɔ́ɔ | èmbɔ́ɔ |
| shoes | éblâ | ntsé / èntsé | ntsɔ́ɔ | èntsɔ́ɔ |
It will be interesting to have a mastery of these interactive questions and answers (in bold type) especially for beginning learners.
Common Interactive Questions
Ngwò wa gà atsó’ Ngwo? “Do you speak Engwo?”
Ɔ̧̀ɔɔ “yes” Ke’ “no”
Éni éné? “How is it?”
É wu nara “It is fine”
Ngwò shi támá? “Good morning (sg.)?”
Mbɔ̀n shi támá? “Good morning (pl.)?”
Ɔ̧̀ɔɔ, ngwò gɛrɛ tama ngwò “yes- and you?”
Ngwò á bwɛrɛ éné? “How did you sleep?”
Anchwɔnchwɔ̀ “well”
Ngwò wa kàma? “Are you healthy?”
Mbɔ̀n ba kàma? “Are you (pl.) healthy?”
Ablî wa kàma? “Is mother healthy?”
Bàbá wa kàma? “Is father healthy?”
Àbwó byɛ́ nyɛ́? “What about the children?”
É ba kàma “they are well”
Ngwò ngɔɔ awé? “Where are you going?”
Mmɛ̀ ngɔ́ɔ̀ a ndɔ “I am going to the house”
Ngwò ngɔ́ɔ̀ a ndɔ? “Are you going to the house?”
Ekúmú ngwɛ̂ na awɛ? “What is your name?”
Ekúmú ngú na Eyɔ́ “My name is EYOH”
Na ngwò wɛ ngɛ? “Who are you please?”
Na mmɛ̀ EYOH “It’s me EYOH”
Ngwò na ŋwɔ́ wɛ̂? “Who’s child are you?”
Ekúmú á̧’ɔ̧̀ ngwɛ̂ na awɛ? “What is your mother’s name?”
Ekúmú á̧’ɔ̧̀ ngu na Dìbɔ́rɔ̀ ANGI EYOH
Ekúmú àtɛ ngwɛ̂ na awɛ? “What is your father’s name?”
Ekúmú àtɛ ngu na Màtyɛ̂ ANJWE EYOH
Ngwò wa ngɔ̀ɔ àŋwɛ̀’rɛ̀? “Do you go to school?”
Ngwò na fwɛ̀’ àyɛ̂? “What do you do?”
Mmɛ̀ wa ngɔ̀ɔ àŋwɛ̀’rɛ̀ “I go to school”
Ngwò na tsɔ̀mɔ awé? “Where do you stay?”
Mmɛ̀ na tsɔ̀mɔ a Yàwúndè “I stay in Yaounde”
Nì wɛ̂? “With who?”
Ngwò wa bɛ̀ɛrɛ àfwɛ̀’? “Do you learn a trade?”
Mmɛ̀ ndɛ̀’ɛ endé ngwò wa nde?
“Should I give food will you eat?”
Ke’ “No”
Ngwò wu le bwo mò? “How many children do you have?”
Bwo fyee “two children”
Ngwò wa ngɔ̀ɔ ndɔ́ngwè? “Do you go to church?”
tɛ̀tɛ̀tɛ̀tɛ̀ “seriously”
Ngwò wu nu ayé? “Have you taken a wife?”
Ngwò wu le ayé? “Do you have a wife?”
Ngwò wu le anɔ́m? “Do you have a husband?”
Á̧’ɔ̧̀ ngwɛ̂ wa a ndɔ? “Is your mother in the house?”
Àtɛ ngwɛ̂ wa a ndɔ? “Is your father in the house?”
A ngɔɔ awé? “Where did he/she go to?”
È wa zè’e èndzóbó tsé? “When will he/she come?”
Mmɛ̀ ke nɛɛ bó “I don’t know”
Á̧’ɔ̧̀ ngwɛ̂ shi klo ekwâ? “Has your mother returned from farm?”
È wa ko ekwâ? “Will he/she sleep in the farm?”
Òóo’ “I don’t know”
Ntsɔ̀ shi afwɔ́mpí’ mbòo? “See you later eh?”
Ntsɔ̀ shi enchwé mbòo? “See you tomorrow eh?”
Ntsɔ̀ shi ànjí tsɛ́rɛ́ mbòo? “See you some other day eh?”
Gàma ebi ablî mbòo? “Greet mother eh?”
Gàma ebi àtɛ mbòo? “Greet father eh?”
Mmɛ̀ kpe amɔɔ! Kɔ̀’ɔ anɔ̂ ngɛ “Hello! Attention please”
Ngwò ne ze’e efwɔ̀ eshím wé ngɛ?
“From which quarter are you please?”
Mmɛ̀ ne ze’e a Ngɛ̀bɛngɛ̀ “I come from Ngebenge”
Na ngwò wɛ ngwò ma ŋwɛ̀’rɛ̀ atsó’ Ngwo ngɛ?
“Are you the one writing the Ngwo language?”
Bɔ̂ akɛkɛ á shi nɛɛ zɔ̀’rɔ̀ gɛ̀rɛ̀ ŋwɛ̀’rɛ̀. Ngwê kpede abɔ̂ ntsɔ̀ le àŋwɛ̀’rɛ̀ Ngwê atsó’ Ngwo
“Many now know how to read and write it. May God help us to have the Bible in Engwo.”
Ezódó ŋwɔ eni ekúmú Ngwê . “The Lord’s name be praised.”
