An exercise in Wabma

WABMA

Wabma                           to see someone

Wabmasi                         refers to seeing someone/must be preceded by

                                      proper prefixes.

Wabmak                         to see them

Wabmasik                       refers to seeing someone/must be preceded by

                                      proper prefixes.

Nwabma                         I see him/her

Nwabmak                       I see them

Gwabma                         you see him/her

Gwabmak                       you see them

Wabman                         he/she sees him/her

Nwabmasi                      reference to seeing him/her/needs prefix cho

                                      in front of it

Nwabmasik                    I don’t see them/needs cho in front

Gwabmasi                      you don’t see him/her  (cho)

Gwabmasik                    you don’t see them  (cho)

Wabmasin                       he/she doesn’t see him/her/them  (cho)

Wabmasimen                  we didn’t or are not going to see h/h or them

                                      needs prefix cho                                

Wabmek                         see (singular) Joe ngi bye wabmek

Wabmegok                     see (they)

Nwabmek                       he/she sees me

Nwabmegok                   they see me

Gwabmek                       he/she sees you

Gwabmegok                   they see you

Gwabmegwnan              he/she sees us

Gwabmegwnanek           they see us

Gwabmegomen              we are seen

Gwabmegwak                he/she sees you people             

Wabma                           to see someone (animate)

Sentences: (translate and fill in the blanks)

Jo ngi ______________ o kwe.

I didn’t see the woman.

Nwi o ____________ o nene.

I’m going to see the man.

Jo ne ggi o ______________ o negdosha?

You didn’t go see the horse.

Ggi o _____________ne o gdanses.

Did you go see your little daughter?

Ngi __________o ndanes.

I went to see my daughter.

Wabek ne gwi ______________o negdosha.

Are you going to see the horse tomorrow?

Gwi o wabma ne o nemosh? ________________________________________________

I saw the dog yesterday. ____________________________________________________

I’m going to see the horse tomorrow.

________________________________________________________________________

I don’t see him.___________________________________________________________

Nmeshomes nwi o wabma.

________________________________________________________________________

Ggi o wabma ne__________________________________________________________

Did you go see your grandfather?

No, I didn’t go see my grandfather.

_______________________________________________________________________

Wnago ___________ggi_______________o__________________________________?

Did you see your grandfather yesterday?

Jo ne John ggi wabmasi?_________________________________________________

Did you see John?______________________________________________________

Multiple choice:

Odankeygo.

            A. 2 people plus 1

            B. plural including

            C. singular excluding

Gwabegas.

            A. horse

            B. a man

            C. cup

Modey.

            A. moody

            B. dirty butt

            C. bottle

Boston.

            A. mail it

            B. an eastern city

            C. load it

Wabmak               to see more than one. (animate)

David and Terry nwi o wabmak

I’m going to go see David and Terry.

Ggi wabmak ne gi wabozoyek

Did you see those rabbits?

Nwi o wabmak gi dabyanek

I’m going to go look at those cars.

Gbye wabmak ne gi negdoshayek

Are you here to look at the horses?

WABMA

Wabma                           to see someone

Wabmasi                         refers to seeing someone/must be preceded by

                                      proper prefixes.

Wabmak                         to see them

Wabmasik                       refers to seeing someone/must be preceded by

                                      proper prefixes.

Nwabma                         I see him/her

Nwabmak                       I see them

Gwabma                         you see him/her

Gwabmak                       you see them

Wabman                         he/she sees him/her

Nwabmasi                      reference to seeing him/her/needs prefix cho

                                      in front of it

Nwabmasik                    I don’t see them/needs cho in front

Gwabmasi                      you don’t see him/her  (cho)

Gwabmasik                    you don’t see them  (cho)

Wabmasin                       he/she doesn’t see him/her/them  (cho)

Wabmasimen                  we didn’t or are not going to see h/h or them

                                      needs prefix cho                                

Wabmek                         see (singular) Joe ngi bye wabmek

Wabmegok                     see (they)

Nwabmek                       he/she sees me

Nwabmegok                   they see me

Gwabmek                       he/she sees you

Gwabmegok                   they see you

Gwabmegwnan              he/she sees us

Gwabmegwnanek           they see us

Gwabmegomen              we are seen

Gwabmegwak                he/she sees you people             

Wabma                           to see someone (animate)

Sentences: (translate and fill in the blanks)

Jo ngi ______________ o kwe.

I didn’t see the woman.

Nwi o ____________ o nene.

I’m going to see the man.

Jo ne ggi o ______________ o negdosha?

You didn’t go see the horse.

Ggi o _____________ne o gdanses.

Did you go see your little daughter?

Ngi __________o ndanes.

I went to see my daughter.

Wabek ne gwi ______________o negdosha.

Are you going to see the horse tomorrow?

Gwi o wabma ne o nemosh? ________________________________________________

I saw the dog yesterday. ____________________________________________________

I’m going to see the horse tomorrow.

________________________________________________________________________

I don’t see him.___________________________________________________________

Nmeshomes nwi o wabma.

________________________________________________________________________

Ggi o wabma ne__________________________________________________________

Did you go see your grandfather?

No, I didn’t go see my grandfather.

_______________________________________________________________________

Wnago ___________ggi_______________o__________________________________?

Did you see your grandfather yesterday?

Jo ne John ggi wabmasi?_________________________________________________

Did you see John?______________________________________________________

Multiple choice:

Odankeygo.

            A. 2 people plus 1

            B. plural including

            C. singular excluding

Gwabegas.

            A. horse

            B. a man

            C. cup

Modey.

            A. moody

            B. dirty butt

            C. bottle

Boston.

            A. mail it

            B. an eastern city

            C. load it

Wabmak               to see more than one. (animate)

David and Terry nwi o wabmak

I’m going to go see David and Terry.

Ggi wabmak ne gi wabozoyek

Did you see those rabbits?

Nwi o wabmak gi dabyanek

I’m going to go look at those cars.

Gbye wabmak ne gi negdoshayek

Are you here to look at the horses?

Some facts about the Potawatomi language

Let’s use it before we lose it!

Bodéwadmi Zheshmowen

Basic lesson on verb forms, conjugation, and tenses.

The Neshnabé language is easy to use and learn. Beginning students must learn that parts of speech define the following:

    What is happening?          Defined by verbs.

    Who is doing the action?    Defined by emphatic pronouns.

    When is/did it occur?       Defined by tense indicators.

There are four primary types of verbs used in Bodéwadmimwen. Beginners are encouraged to gain a good understanding of VAI verb types.

    VAI – verb animate intransitive.

The verb action stays with the one(s) doing it, (subject) it does not transfer (to an object).

Example 1:    I see            Nwabjegé  (VAI)

In the example, the verb is “see” and it is intransitive. This type of verb differs from the two transitive forms shown below.

Example 2:    I see the man.   Nwabma nene  (VTA)

In this example, the verb is “see” and action is transferring to an animate object – man. The subject is “I” the verb is “see” and the object is “man”.

Example 3:    I see the light. Nwabdan waskonénjegen   (VTI)

In this example, the verb is “see” and the action is transferring to an inanimate object – light. The subject is “I” the verb is “see” and the object is “light”.

Conjugation Patterns  

This is a system of attaching either prefixes, prefixes and suffixes, or suffix to describe “who” is doing the verb action. Learn the following affirmative statements.

Nbé – he/she is sleeping/sleeps

Nde nba/nneba    gde nba/gneba    nbé/nbéwag    nde nebamen    gde nebamen       

Nin              gin              win           ninan          ginan

I, me            you              he/she        us (we – u)    us (we + u)

gde nebam/gnebam    nebég/nbéwag

ginwa               winwa

ya all              them 

(Present Tense) – he/she is walking/walks

I am walking                 nde bmosé/nbémsé

You are walking              gde bmose/gbémsé 

He/she is walking            bmosé/bmoséwag

We (excl.) are walking       nde bmosémen/nbémsémen

we (incl.) are walking       gde bmosémen/gbémsémen

Ya all are walking           gde bmosém/gbémsém

They are walking             bmoség

Tense markers: gi – past (did), wi – future indefinte (will), ga/da – future definite (shall). We use tense markers to define when something is/did/or is going to occur. Simply drop the tense marker into the statement between the personal pronoun and the verb. These are some of the tense markers.

Examples using tense markers.

Ngi bmosé            I did walk.

Ggi bmosé            You did walk.

Wibmosé              He/she will walk.

Nwi bmosémen         We (excl.) will walk.

Gwi bmosémen         We (incl.) shall walk.

Gwi bmosém           Ya all shall walk.

Da bmoséwag          They can/could/should walk 

Gi – did – past tense

I worked                      Ngi mikjéwi/ngimikjéwi

You worked                    Ggi mikjéwi/ggimikjéwi

He/she worked                 Mikjéwid/mikjéwiwad

We (excl.) worked             Ngi mikjéwimen/ngimikjéwimen

We (incl.) worked             Ggi mikjéwimen/ggimikjéwimen

Ya all worked                 Ggi mikjéwim/ggimikjéwim

They worked                   Mikjéwiwat

Wi – will/want to – future tense

I will leave                  Nwi maji/nwimaji

You will leave                Gwi maji/gwimaji

He/she will leave             Maji/majiwag

We (excl.) will leave         Nwi majimen/nwimajimen

We (incl.) will leave         Gwi majimen/gwikmajimen

Ya all will leave             Gwi majim/gwimajim

They will leave               Majiwig

Ga/Da – shall – future definite tense

I shall hunt                  Nda giwsé/ndagiwsé

You shall hunt                Gda giwsé/gdagiwsé

He/she shall hunt             Giwsé/giwséwag

We (excl.) shall hunt         Nda giwsémen/ndagiwsémen

We (incl.) shall hunt         Gda giwsémen/gdagiwsémen

Ya all shall hunt             Gda giwsém/gdagiwsém

They shall hunt               Giwséwig

Commonly Used VAI Verbs

He/she leaves                Maji

He/she drinks                Mnekwé

He/she eats                  Wisne

He/she runs                  Bémbeto

He/she hunts                 Giwsé

He/she works                 Mikjéwi

He/she dances                Nimedi

He/she sings                 Négmo

He/she visits                Mbwachewé

He/she buys                  Dawé

He/she gambles               Tadi

He/she drives                Wénkwéngé

Ahau, Shketon ode zheshmowen bwamshe éngetoyak

Ok, Use this language before we lose it!

A sample from a book we did called, Bodewadmi Deshemwen

Nin  (I)   Gin   (you)   Win  (he/she)

Ni je na gin wa           how are ya all?

Ni je na ge win wa        how are they?

Ni je na o                how is he/she?

Ni je na gden wemagnek    how are your relatives?

Ni je na ggetsimnanek     how are your parents?

Ni je na ga zhikayen      how did you make out?

Ni je e’zhechkeyen        what are you doing?

Ni je e’zhechkeye’k       what are ya all doing?

Response: I am good/well/fine.

Nin          nde mno bmades   I am g/w

Gin          gde mno bmades   you are g/w

Win          mno bmadse       s/h is g/w

Ninan        mno bmatsemen    we are g/w

Ginan        gmno bmatsemen   we are g/w

Ginwa        gmno bmadsem     ya all are g/w

Winwa        mno bmatsik      they are g/w

Clans

Mko/mkwa              bear

Jigwe’k               thunder

Gigo                  fish

Nanimwe’              coyote

Moewe’                wolf

Mshike’               turtle

Bkoj bsheke           buffalo

Kno                   eagle

Me’gisi

Mge’shwash

Mbeshkno

Mshiwe’               elk

Wawashkeshi           deer

Seksi             

Wasi                  bullhead/catfish

Nabe                  man

mskwabiskeno          red tailed hawk

Name’                 sturgeon

Negdosha              horse

Bezhgokshi

What is your clan?

Gin              we ni je (o) gdote’m

                 What is your clan

Win              we ni je (o) wdote’men

                 What is h/h clan

Ninan            we ni je (o) ndote’mnan  (excl.)

                 What is our clan

Ginan            we ni je (o) gdote’mnan  (incl.)

                 What is our clan

Ginwa            we ni je (o) gdote’mwa  (ya all)

                 What is ya alls’ clan

Winwa            we ni je (o) wdotemwan

                 What is their clan

Some more on clan(s)

Nin              _________ndote’m

                 My clan is               

Gin              _________gdote’m

                 Your clan is

Win              _________wdote’men

                 H/h clan is

Ninan            _________ndote’mnan

                 Our clan is  (excl.)

Ginan            _________gdote’mnan

                 Our clan is  (incl.)

Ginwa            _________gdote’mwa

                 Ya alls’ clan is

Winwa            _________wdote’mwan

                 Their clan is

Berries for clans:

De’men           strawberry

Mskomen          raspberry

Minen            blueberry

Mkede’men        blackberry

Where do you live?

Gin              ni pi je e’je dayen

                 Where do you live

Win              ni pi je e’je dat

                 Where does h/s live

Ninan            ni pi je e’je ndaygo

                 Where do we live  (excl.)

Ginan            ni pi je e’je gdaygo

                 Where do we live  (incl.)

Ginwa            ni pi je e’je daye’k

                 Where do ya all live

Winwa            ni pi je e’je wda wat

                 Where do they live

I live in:

Nin              __________nde da/e’dayan

                 I live in

Gin              __________gde da/e’dayen

                 You live in

Win              __________wdawat/e’dawat

                 H/s lives in

Ninan            __________nde damen

                 We live in  (excl.)

Ginan            __________gde damen

                 We live in  (incl.)

Ginwa            __________gde dam

                 Ya all live in

Winwa            __________wdawat/e’dawat

                 They live in

Where are you from?

Gin              ni pi je wech byayen

                 Where are you from

Win              ni pi wech byat o

                 Where is h/s from

Ninan            ni pi je wech byayak

                 Where are we from  (excl.)

Ginan            ni pi je wech byaygo

                 Where are we from  (incl.)

Ginwa            ni pi je wech byaye’k

                 Where are ya all from

Winwa            ni pi je wech byawat

                 Where are they from

I am from:

Nin              ________ndochbya

                 I am from

Gin              ________gdochbya

                 You are from

Win              ________wje bye’wak

                 H/s is from

Ninan            ________ndoch byamen

                 We are from  (excl.)

Ginan            ________gdoch byamen

                 We are from  (incl.)

Ginwa            ________gdoch byam

                 Ya all are from

Winwa            ________wje bye’k

                 They are from

Some simple conversations to learn

Weye ne gi wabdan ne i gbiskewagen?                  Has anyone seen my coat?

Weye ne gi wabma o ngwes?                                      Has anyone seen my son?

Ni je pi éwi bidgéyak?                                                    When are we going in?

Ni je pi éwi wisniyak?                                                     When do we eat?

Nedwendan ne anet gapi?                                           You want some coffee?

Nedwendan ne anet mkekwabo?                             You want some coffee?

Nedwendan ne i pwagasen?                                       You want a cigarette?

Nedwendan ne éwdeméyen?                                     You want to smoke?

Ni je épandewebneyen?                                                               What are you looking for?

Énedwendayan anet gapi.                                            I want some coffee

Énedwendayan anet wisnewen.                                I want some food

Mishen i ziwtagen                                                           Give me the salt

Gégo ziwtagnegékén i wisnewen                              Don’t salt the food

Zheton I kewewen                                                          Make a flag

Zheton I wizaw kewewen                                             Make a yellow flag

Zheton nyéwo kewewnen                                            Make four flags

Gdesa ne anet sémau?                                                  Do you have any tobacco?

Cho nensémau ndesasi                                                 I don’t have any tobacco

Éhe, nde sa nensémau                                                   Yes, I have tobacco

Kyénep byan shote!                                                        Quick come here!

Kyénep byak shote!                                                        Quick come here! (plural)

Ni je esh témget zagech?                                              What’s it like outside?

Wi gméyamget ne ngom?                                            Will it rain today?

Ni pi je i zakmogemek?                                                 Where is the bathroom (outhouse)?

Ni pi je i wisnewgemek?                                                Where is the kitchen?

Ndeton anet mingaswenen                                         I have some gifts

Ngi byédonen node mingaswenen                           I brought these gifts

Ébgednoyan ode sémau                                                I put down /offer this tobacco

Ébgednoyan ode nibiwen                                             I put down/offer this water

Nwi ngemo                                                                         I will sing

Nwi madmo                                                                       I will pray

Gwi madmomen                                                              We will pray

Ge Wisnemen                                                                   Let’s eat

Ge binakjegémen                                                            Let’s clean up

Ge bidgémen                                                                     Let’s go in

Ge wéwébdamen                                                            Let’s begin

Gwi bokpedon ne?                                                          You want a break?

Ode se ndekwéyom                                                        This is my wife

Ode se ndeniyem                                                            This is my husband

Nénmoshen i mbish                                                        Hand me the water

Nénmoshen i wiyas                                                         Hand me the meat

Nénmoshen i kemsagen                                                 Hand me that ax

Nénmoshen i jishtegen                                                 Hand me that broom

Nénmoshen I déwégen                                                 Hand me that drum

Gi byédon ne I déwégen?                                             Did you bring a drum?

Gi byédon ne anet gishki?                                             Did you bring some cedar?

Nebyégén ode                                                                  Write this

Gégo nebyégén                                                                Don’t write

Daga mishen gi penik                                                     Please give me the potatoes

Daga byédweshen anet mbish                                    Please bring me some water

Daga mina i kemsagen o Mkwabjegé                      Please give the ax to Mkwabjegé

Daga nénmo i mbop o Kwénago                                Please hand the soup to Kwénago

Daga mina i kewéwen o Wawashkeshikwé           Please hand that flag to Wawashkeshikwé

Daga mina i gishkbojgen o Mzekwagé                     Please hand that saw to Mzekwagé

Ni je éndebendat ode?                                                  Who does this belong to?

Ni je éndebendat ode mkesen?                                 Who does this shoe belong to?

Ni je éndebendat ode wiwkwan?                              Who does this cap belong to?

I yé I ne?                                                                              Is that it?

Éhe, I yé I                                                                             Yes, that’s it

I yé o ne?                                                                             Is that him/her?

Éhe, I yé o                                                                           Yes, that’s h/h

Jibteben shote                                                                  Sit here

Jibtebek ibe                                                                        Sit there (plural)

Jayék ginwa ne nodwak?                                              Can you all hear?

Jayék ginwa ne nodweshen?                                       Can you all hear me?

Éhé nnodan                                                                        Yes, I can hear

Cho wi she nnodansi                                                       I can’t hear

Éhé nnodwen                                                                    Yes, I hear you

Cho wi she nnodwesi                                                     I can’t hear you

Gi nodagé ne?                                                                   Did you hear (news)

Gi wabdan ne ode?                                                         Did you see this?

Gi wabma ne o?                                                               Did you see h/h?

Ngi wabdan i                                                                      I saw it

Cho ngi wabdasin i                                                           I didn’t see it

Ngi nodagé                                                                         I heard

Cho ngi nodagési                                                              I didn’t hear

Ngi zhechké I                                                                      I did that

Cho ngi zhechkési I                                                          I didn’t do that

Ni je éschegéyen?                                                           What are you doing?

Ni je wa zhechkéyak wabek?                                      What will we do tomorrow?

Ni je ga zhechkéyak wnago?                                       What did we do yesterday?

Gkendan ne i?                                                                   Do you know that?

Éhe ngekendan I                                                              Yes, I know that

Gkenma ne o?                                                                   Do you know h/h?

Éhe ngekenma o                                                              Yes, I know h/h