English–Tetum Dictionary

Browse common English words and their Tetum translations, with parts of speech and example sentences. Use this dictionary to look up everyday vocabulary or as a starting point for learning Tetum.

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Browse common Tetum vocabulary

Word	Part of speech	Translation	Example
I	pronoun	ha'u	I am ready now. Ha'u prontu agora.
you	pronoun	o	You are my friend. O mak hau-nia belun.
he	pronoun	nia	He is at school. Nia iha eskola.
she	pronoun	nia	She is my sister. Nia mak hau-nia alin feto.
we	pronoun	ami	We work every day. Ami servisu loron-loron.
they	pronoun	sira	They live in the city. Sira hela iha cidade.
what	pronoun	saida	What is your name? Ita-nia naran saida?
where	adverb	iha ne'ebé	Where do you live? O hela iha ne'ebé?
when	adverb	bainhira	When will you come? O sei mai bainhira?
who	pronoun	see	Who is that man? Mane ne'e see?
why	adverb	tanba sa	Why are you sad? Tanba sa o triste?
how	adverb	oinsá	How do you know? O hatene oinsá?
to have	verb	iha	I have two books. Ha'u iha livru rua.
to do	verb	halo	They do the work well. Sira halo servisu di'ak.
to go	verb	baa	We go to school. Ami baa eskola.
to come	verb	mai	Please come tomorrow morning. Favor ida mai aban dadeer.
to see	verb	haree	I see the mountain. Ha'u haree foho.
to know	verb	hatene	She knows the story. Nia hatene istória ne'e.
to think	verb	hanoin	I think about my family. Ha'u hanoin kona-ba hau-nia família.
to want	verb	hakarak	They want more water. Sira hakarak bee barak liu.
to need	verb	presiza	We need a new table. Ami presiza meja foun ida.
to make	verb	halo	She makes good coffee. Nia halo kafee di'ak.
to take	verb	foti	Take the book home. Foti livru ba uma.
to give	verb	foo	Give me the money. Foo osan ba ha'u.
to say	verb	dehan	They say it is true. Sira dehan katak nee loos.
to tell	verb	hatete	Tell me the truth. Hatete loos ba ha'u.
to ask	verb	husu	I ask one question. Ha'u husu pergunta ida.
to find	verb	hetan	We found the lost key. Ami hetan xave lakon ne'e.
to look	verb	haree	Look at the sky. Haree ba lalehan.
to use	verb	uza	I use this chair daily. Ha'u uza kadeira ida-ne'e loron-loron.
to work	verb	servisu	They work in the city. Sira servisu iha cidade.
to eat	verb	han	The child eats rice. Labarik nee han haree.
to drink	verb	hemu	We drink tea tonight. Ami hemu xá ohin kalan.
to sleep	verb	toba	The baby sleeps now. Bebé toba agora.
to walk	verb	la'o	I walk to school. Ha'u la'o ba eskola.
to run	verb	halai	The boy runs fast. Labarik mane nee halai lalais.
to read	verb	lee	She reads a new book. Nia lee livru foun ida.
to write	verb	hakerek	I write my name. Ha'u hakerek hau-nia naran.
to speak	verb	ko'alia	They speak Tetum well. Sira ko'alia Tetun di'ak.
to listen	verb	rona	Listen to the teacher carefully. Rona profesor ho kuidadu.
to hear	verb	rona	I hear the music. Ha'u rona múzika.
to buy	verb	sosa	We buy fresh fish. Ami sosa ikan fresku.
to sell	verb	faan	They sell fruit here. Sira faan ai-fuan iha ne'e.
to pay	verb	selu	I pay for the food. Ha'u selu ba hahán.
to help	verb	ajuda	Please help my mother. Favor ida ajuda hau-nia inan.
to love	verb	hadomi	I love my family. Ha'u hadomi hau-nia família.
to live	verb	hela	They live near the river. Sira hela besik mota.
to die	verb	mate	Old trees die slowly. Ai tuan sira mate neineik.
to learn	verb	aprende	Children learn at school. Labarik sira aprende iha eskola.
to teach	verb	hanorin	They teach the new language. Sira hanorin lian foun.
to open	verb	loke	Open the door now. Loke oda agora.
to close	verb	taka	Close the window, please. Taka janela, favor ida.
person	noun	ema	Every person needs water. Ema hotu-hotu presiza bee.
man	noun	mane	That man is tall. Mane nee aas.
woman	noun	feto	The woman is smiling. Feto nee hamnasa.
child	noun	labarik	The child is sleeping. Labarik nee toba hela.
boy	noun	labarik mane	The boy reads quietly. Labarik mane nee lee hakmatek.
girl	noun	labarik feto	The girl sings softly. Labarik feto nee kanta neneik.
family	noun	família	My family lives here. Hau-nia família hela iha ne'e.
mother	noun	inan	My mother cooks rice. Hau-nia inan te'in haree.
father	noun	aman	My father works hard. Hau-nia aman servisu maka'as.
friend	noun	belun	She is my friend. Nia mak hau-nia belun.
house	noun	uma	Their house is big. Sira-nia uma boot.
home	noun	uma	We are going home. Ami baa uma.
school	noun	eskola	The school is nearby. Eskola nee besik.
city	noun	cidade	This city is busy. Cidade ida-ne'e movimentadu.
country	noun	rai	Our country is beautiful. Ami-nia rai bonita.
world	noun	mundu	The world is changing. Mundu muda hela.
room	noun	kuartu	The room is clean. Kuartu nee moos.
time	noun	tempu	Time passes very quickly. Tempu lao lalais loos.
day	noun	loron	Today is a good day. Ohin loron di'ak ida.
night	noun	kalan	The night is cold. Kalan nee malirin.
morning	noun	dadeer	This morning feels fresh. Dadeer ida-ne'e fresku.
evening	noun	lorokraik	We walk in the evening. Ami la'o iha lorokraik.
week	noun	semana	One week is short. Semana ida badak.
month	noun	fulan	Next month we travel. Fulan oin ami baa.
year	noun	tinan	This year is important. Tinan ida-ne'e importante.
today	adverb	ohin	I am busy today. Ha'u okupadu ohin.
tomorrow	adverb	aban	We will go tomorrow. Ami sei baa aban.
yesterday	adverb	horiseik	She came yesterday morning. Nia mai horiseik dadeer.
now	adverb	agora	Come here now. Mai iha ne'e agora.
sun	noun	loro	The sun is hot. Loro manas.
moon	noun	fulan	The moon is bright tonight. Fulan naroman ohin kalan.
star	noun	fitun	That star is bright. Fitun nee naroman.
sky	noun	lalehan	The sky is blue. Lalehan azul.
earth	noun	rai	The earth is our home. Rai mak ita-nia uma.
fire	noun	ahi	The fire is hot. Ahi manas.
water	noun	bee	Please drink clean water. Favor ida hemu bee moos.
rain	noun	udan	The rain is heavy today. Udan boot ohin.
wind	noun	anin	The wind feels cold. Anin malirin.
tree	noun	ai	That tree is tall. Ai nee aas.
flower	noun	funan	This flower is beautiful. Funan ida-ne'e bonita.
mountain	noun	foho	The mountain is very high. Foho nee aas loos.
river	noun	mota	The river is long. Mota nee naruk.
sea	noun	tasi	The sea is calm today. Tasi hakmatek ohin.
food	noun	hahán	The food smells good. Hahán nee moris di'ak.
bread	noun	paun	I eat bread daily. Ha'u han paun loron-loron.
rice	noun	haree	We eat rice every day. Ami han haree loron-loron.
meat	noun	naan	The meat is fresh. Naan nee fresku.
fish	noun	ikan	They cook fish tonight. Sira te'in ikan ohin kalan.
egg	noun	tolun	I eat one egg. Ha'u han tolun ida.
milk	noun	susu	The child drinks milk. Labarik nee hemu susu.
fruit	noun	ai-fuan	This fruit is sweet. Ai-fuan ida-ne'e midar.
tea	noun	xá	She drinks hot tea. Nia hemu xá manas.
coffee	noun	kafee	I drink coffee every morning. Ha'u hemu kafee kada dadeer.
head	noun	ulun	My head hurts today. Hau-nia ulun moras ohin.
eye	noun	matan	Her eye is blue. Nia-nia matan azul.
ear	noun	tilun	My ear can hear. Hau-nia tilun bele rona.
mouth	noun	ibun	Open your mouth wide. Loke o-nia ibun luan.
nose	noun	inus	My nose is cold. Hau-nia inus malirin.
hand	noun	liman	Wash your hands now. Fasi o-nia liman sira agora.
foot	noun	ain	My foot hurts. Hau-nia ain moras.
name	noun	naran	My name is Maria. Hau-nia naran Maria.
book	noun	livru	This book is new. Livru ida-ne'e foun.
word	noun	liafuan	That word is important. Liafuan nee importante.
language	noun	lian	Tetum is our language. Tetun mak ami-nia lian.
money	noun	osan	I need more money. Ha'u presiza osan barak liu.
work	noun	servisu	This work is hard. Servisu ida-ne'e difísil.
love	noun	domin	Love makes life beautiful. Domin halo moris bonita.
music	noun	múzika	The music is beautiful. Múzika nee bonita.
story	noun	istória	The story is true. Istória nee loos.
way	noun	dalan	This way is easy. Dalan ida-ne'e fasil.
thing	noun	buat	That thing is mine. Buat nee hau-nian.
life	noun	moris	Life is not easy. Moris la fasil.
door	noun	oda	The door is open. Oda loke ona.
table	noun	meja	The table is new. Meja nee foun.
chair	noun	kadeira	This chair is strong. Kadeira ida-ne'e forte.
car	noun	kareta	The car is fast. Kareta nee lalais.
good	adjective	di'ak	This food is good. Hahán ida-ne'e di'ak.
bad	adjective	aat	The weather is bad. Tempu aat.
big	adjective	boot	Their house is big. Sira-nia uma boot.
small	adjective	ki'ik	The room is small. Kuartu nee ki'ik.
new	adjective	foun	I bought a new book. Ha'u sosa livru foun ida.
old	adjective	tuan	That house is old. Uma nee tuan.
long	adjective	naruk	The road is long. Dalan nee naruk.
short	adjective	badak	This week is short. Semana ida-ne'e badak.
high	adjective	aas	That mountain is high. Foho nee aas.
hot	adjective	manas	The tea is hot. Xá nee manas.
cold	adjective	malirin	The water is cold. Bee nee malirin.
happy	adjective	kontente	The child is happy. Labarik nee kontente.
sad	adjective	triste	She feels sad today. Nia triste ohin.
beautiful	adjective	bonita	The flower is beautiful. Funan nee bonita.
easy	adjective	fasil	This book is easy. Livru ida-ne'e fasil.
fast	adjective	lalais	That car is fast. Kareta nee lalais.
slow	adjective	neineik	The old man walks slow. Mane tuan nee la'o neineik.
right	adjective	loos	Your answer is right. O-nia resposta loos.
wrong	adjective	sala	That answer is wrong. Resposta nee sala.
important	adjective	importante	This work is important. Servisu ida-ne'e importante.
true	adjective	loos	This story is true. Istória ida-ne'e loos.
young	adjective	foin-sa'e	She is still young. Nia sei foin-sa'e.
strong	adjective	forte	That man is strong. Mane nee forte.
weak	adjective	fraku	The child feels weak. Labarik nee sente fraku.
red	adjective	mean	The flower is red. Funan nee mean.
blue	adjective	azul	The sky is blue. Lalehan azul.
green	adjective	modok	The tree is green. Ai nee modok.
yellow	adjective	kinur	The flower is yellow. Funan nee kinur.
black	adjective	metan	The car is black. Kareta nee metan.
white	adjective	mutin	The shirt is white. Kamiza nee mutin.
yes	interjection	sin	Yes, I understand now. Sin, ha'u komprende agora.
no	interjection	lae	No, I do not know. Lae, ha'u la hatene.
not	adverb	la	I am not ready. Ha'u la prontu.
and	conjunction	no	Mother and father are here. Inan no aman iha ne'e.
or	conjunction	ka	Tea or coffee is fine. Xá ka kafee di'ak.
but	conjunction	maibé	I am tired, but happy. Ha'u kolen, maibé kontente.
if	conjunction	karik	If it rains, stay home. Karik udan, hela iha uma.
because	conjunction	tanba	I stayed home because rain fell. Ha'u hela iha uma tanba udan.
with	preposition	ho	I came with my friend. Ha'u mai ho hau-nia belun.
without	preposition	la ho	He went without money. Nia baa la ho osan.
for	preposition	ba	This gift is for you. Prezente ida-ne'e ba o.
from	preposition	husi	She came from the city. Nia mai husi cidade.
to	preposition	ba	We walked to school. Ami la'o ba eskola.