conj. not expressed.
v., okwebaza, okweyanza; t. you, weebale! pl. mwebale! thank-offering, ekirabo eky'okwebkza.
okwebaza.
be, okusaanira okwe bazibwa.
conj. then, thereupon. interj. response to weebale, thank you. ebyo nga bikyali awo that being the case; meanwhile.
q. v.). Bbalaza, Monday.
q.v. cf. kabongeera.
o- (bu/-) beauty; goodness; good; quality, as an adv. well; nicely; effectively; properly, oluguudo lw'obulungi- bwansi, public highway, road built by communal effort, lit. good of the country. Obulungi, bukira obugagga (prov.) Virtue is better than wealth, cf. -lungi, omu- lungi, nnalulungi.
o- adv. in vain; to no purpose; empty-handed, with nothing; naked, abawala ab'obusa, single/unmarried girls. Tali busa (or Tali yekka). He is not alone (implying that he is relying on the aid of spirits, that there is more to his situation than meets the eye, etc.). cf. -sa.
e- plur. amalembwe (li/ma) large kirembwe (a kind of large ant). Enswa emu ekira eddembwe. (prov.) One nswa (small, edible termite) is better than a large, inedible ant. Usefulness cannot be measured by size, cf. ekirembwe, ssekirem- bwe.
e- plur. amalimbwe (li/ma) excrement of birds (in larger amounts than is expressed by kaiimbwe, q.v.).
e- (n/n) [S«>.] upper story; upstairs. mu ggoloofa, upstairs, ennyumba eya ggoloofa, a house of more than one story.
e- plur. atnawolezo (li/ma) place where clothes are washed. Less common than ekyolezo, q.v. cf. yoza, yoleza.
etc. Abakazi ba gumira nnyo enjala okusinga abasajja. Women endure hunger more easily than men.
a- no plur. (ka/bu) orneriness, ill- natured disposition; bumptiousness, quality of being loud and bumptious. Omunafu ayinza kababba. (prov.) An idle person excels in boastful talk. It is easier to talk about something than to do it. Alina aka- babba or Wa kababa. He is a loud-mouthed person.
a- (ka/bu) gift from a suitor to parents of the intended bride; token of thanks, gift of appreciation; reward, gratuity, tip. cf. siima.
more than enough. Emmere afunye ya kifikkirizi. He has got more than enough food. cf. fikka.
e- (ki/bi) deserted house; deserted place. Omukadde akira ekifulukwa. (prov.) An old feeble tenant is better than an empty house. Half a loaf is better than no bread, cf. fuluka.
e- (ki/bi) strip of cloth or piantain bark used as a patch, ekipaapi ky'ekibatu, palm of the hand (esp. One larger than the usual size).
exceed, be more than; be superior to. Asuubira, akira aloota. (prov.) He who hopes is superior to the person who merely dreams (presumably because hope is followed by action).
e- (ki/bi) night, nighttime, adv. at night, in the plur. period, era, times, mu biro bino, these days, in the present period. Akutwala ekiro omusiima bukedde. fprov.J He rouses you to effort at night but you are thankful to him in the morning, cf. kaakiro, ekyekiro.
e- (ki/bi) error, flaw, wrong (of a more permanent nature than that expres sed by kisobyo). Enkola ey'okusosola mu bantu eriko ebisobu bingi. The practice of discrimination against people has many evil aspects, cf. sobya.
armed robber ( a neologism which is much stronger than omubbi). kukuba kkondo (or bwakkondo), to commit armed robbery (esp. at night), cf. obwakkondo.
do to a high degree (used in association with a previous verb. Often rendered in English by very much or a similar adverbial phrase.) Yeebaza n'akokkwa. He expressed very profuse thanks.
q.v.)
etc. v.tr. appl. be in charge of fa department, an organization); be older than. Ankulira. He is older than I or He is my boss, kukuliramu engalo, to have the habit of petty theft/pilfering.
bend over (so that the head is lower than the knees); beg everywhere.
watch over; guard; protect; maintain, keep, okukuuma ekyama, to keep a secret, okukuuma olu- bugo (nga lubaale mubbe), to guard the bark- cloth (after the lubaale has been stolen), to close the barndoor after the horse has been stolen. Akuuma omwami akira akuuma ente. (prov.) He who looks after a chief is better off than he who looks after a cow.
e- (ki/bi) the top bananas on a bunch. They are often much larger than the rest and ripen first.
e- (ki/bi) respite, time off. Akabimbi akatono, kakira ekyosi. (prov.) A little bit of cultivating is better than doing nothing. cf. yosa.
sound (of drums); sound an alarm. Ennpma ezirawa ezo zaaki? What are those drums beating for? Ebigambo bikira ejinoma okulawa. (prov.) Words travel more quickly than the sound of drums.
lukwata.
o- adv. leaning to one side; askew; awry, okugwa olubege, to lean to one side, tilt. Omusajja alina olubege. The man has one shoulder higher than the other.
o- (lu/n) wick (e.g., of a lamp): Less common than olutambi, q.v. cf. ^enfuuzi.
0- (lu/n) Luganda, the language of Buganda; without caps, brotherhood; relationship. ow'oluganda, relative, relation; member of a brotherhood, amawanga agali mu luganda olumu ne Bungereza, the British Commonwealth, plur. ejinanda, relations, relatives. Ab'oluganda bita, bikonagana ne bitayatika. (prov.) Relatives are like calabashes, they knock together but do not break. Blood is thicker than water, cf. Obuganda, Omuganda, sseruganda.
0- no plur. (lu/n) the language of the Ssese Islands. It is closer to Lunyoro than to Luganda.
o- no plur. (lu/n) presumption; vanity; showing off; tendency to attempt what is beyond one's power, okukola ebintu eby'olwetumbu, to bite off more than one can chew. cf. tumbuka.
look about; be in doubt. Kino nkyogera awatali kumagamaga. 1 say this with all certainty /without reservation. Ayogera omu amagamaga. lit. He who speaks alone looks sideways, i.e., the testimony of two is better than that of one.
A- adv. in the Kiganda manner. Yeeyanza Amaganda. He gave thanks in the Kiganda manner, i.e., by prostrating himself on the ground, cf. -ganda.
a-: from linnya, ascend, q.v. Used in the phrase: Olabye malinnya amakka ga- naabula. You have managed to climb up, but you will have a hard time coming down. It is easier to get into trouble than to get out of it.
e- (n/n) kind of spotted tick which is far more dangerous to cattle than the usual ticks.
precedes the final digit in numbers higher than twenty, abantu asatu mu babiri, thirty-two people.
o- (mu/ba) poor person. Enkoko y'omwavu teggwa meebaza. (prov.) lit. A poor man's chicken has no end of thanks. If a poor man gives you something he wants to be thanked for it repeatedy. cf. -yavu, yavuwala, obwavu.
e- (n/n) leopard. Ekika ky'Engo, the Leopard Clan. Bwe nnamusanga, nnali ?dde ku n~c crikc sm-.vsna. When I •met him he was in a furious state of mind, lit. 1 was like one who had fallen upon a leopard with a cub. Ekitta engo kigiyinga buzito. (prov.) That which kills the leopards is heavier than the leopard, cf. Wango.
e- (n/n) advantage; excess; surplus; interest, kulya mu banno nkizo, to excel/ do better than your friends. Yatulyamu enkizo. He did better than we. He got the best of us. cf. Ikira.
e- (n/n) hartebeest. The word is of Lunyoro origin and much less frequently used than Luganda ennangaazi, q.v.
indeed, truly; very. Weebale nnyo nnyini. Thank you very much indeed. Mugezi nnyini. He is really/truly very clever, nnyini when used to reinforce a noun is often rendered -self (-selves) or very. Njagala okulaba omwami ye nnyini. I want to seek the chief himself, olunaku olwo lwennyini, that very day.
e- (n/n) a number (of units) less than ten; excess, some in addition (with the number not explicitly expressed). With the -a of rel. some odd, some in excess of, some few. ssiringi ttano ne ssente ez'en- susuuba, five shillings and some odd cents. Abaana ababaddeyo baabadde mu nsusuuba. The children who were there were less than ten. cf. suusuuba.
the highest mountain in Africa, abantu abasinga obungi, most people. Ekisinga togendayo. The best thing is for you not to go there. Additional examples: Asinze omusango. He has won his (court) case. Omusinze gumusinze. He has lost his case. Osinze. You are right. You have won ( said by one giving in after an argument). Akbsinga akukubya gw'olina. (prov.) He who excels you/is stronger than you beats you with (the stick, omuggo implied) which you have. Might makes right.
ekitambaala.
promenade, walk leisurely. Olutaalataala lukira oluliira ku nkoligo. (prov.) lit. A skinny dog(olubwa, implied by -lu-) which runs free is better off than one which eats (well but is) under a leash.
less common than sutama, q.v.
tnpadde) v.tr. give, waayo (with the encl. -yo) give away; give up; offer, kuwa mukisa, to give a blessing to, to bless, kuwa ngalo, to applaud, kuwa mukongo, to wave down a vehicle with one's hand, kuwa mutwe mubi, to cause bad luck to. kuwa matooke bwala, to eat heartily, kuwa muntu mutwe, e.g., Mukasa mu kuvuga eggaali tewali amuwa mutwe. There is no one who can equal Mukasa in bicycle riding. Ompadde, ssebo! Thank you very much, lit. you have given me, sir.
etc., declare openly to. Akwatulira akira akugeya. (prov.) Me who tells you to your face is better than he. who slanders you behind your back.
nnyenze) v.tr. stir and dissolve; dilute; mix. okuyenga enfuufu, to stir up dust; to play in the dirt (of children). Omukisa omuzaale gukira omuyengere edda- gala. (prov.) Good fortune/luck is better than that obtained by mixing medicines.
less Common than yubuka, q.v.
construct; fig. edify, okwebaza eyazimba, lit. to thank the one who built (the house) = to sleep, go to sleep. Zimba ennene! Taku- beerako. (prov.) lit. Build a big (house). He doesn't help you with it. This describes cf. amaziika, ezziika.
let become overgrown; exterminate; destroy. cf. omuzisa, nnamuzisa. a person who engages in talk rather than action.
to return stolen goods. Kizzeeyol greetings and thanks for a present (e.g., to a potter who brings you a new pot).
v.i. be encumbered; be overburdened; have more than one can handle; become entangled.
to involve oneself in obligations beyond one's capacity; to go into debt; to ‘bite off more than one can chew.'
0- more correctly spelled Omunyolo (mu/ba) a native of Bunyoro; loosely a member of any of several Bantu tribes (other than the Baganda) in Uganda.
(la) Mr. Edible Rat. Ekkubo limu lyassa Wamusu. (prov.) lit. One road killed Mr. Edible Rat (since because of the regularity of his habits the hunters were able to determine his position). It is always desirable to have more than one way of solving a problem, cf. omusu.
Ar.f\ horse, less commonly used than embalaasi, q.v.
okubigaabigana n'ebigambo, to be bursting to talk, be anxious to speak but refrain from doing so (out of fear, etc.) cf. bibigana.
= foreg.
v.i. appear/develop prematurely; occur earlier than normal. Envi zaamutuuba. His hair became gray prematurely. Ekirevu kyamutuuba. He developed a beard prematurely.
ekikere kyayaza ennyama ku mutwe. (prov.) That which is inedible does not fail to become more abundant, the the frog has more flesh on the head (than elsewhere). Perhaps = the best things are the least abundant. okwala inf.
njigulizza) v.i. stand in a position in which one hip is higher than the other, okutuula ng'oyigulizza, to sit with one hip in a higher position than the other.