abwe.

draw attention to. Nnawuu- gula mbabagulize. I shouted to draw their attention.

spread over; go/ reach all over; get one's share, get enough; participate; be enough to go around (of food). Abaana bonna babunye. All of the children have gotten enough/their share. Amawulire geeyongedde okubuna wonna mu ggwanga. The news continued to spread all over the country, kubuna kkubo, to stagger along the road (like a drunken man). obudde ne bubuna emiwabo, and it was dawning, lit. was scattering in all directions. Eky'abangi kibuna engalo. (prov.) lit. Something used by many people has finger marks. What is used by many is soon spoiled.

take to flight; run, progress (e.g., a project or work); have diarrhea. Emirimu gyabwe giddukana bulungi. Their work is progressing well, eddagala ery'okuddukana, laxative.

consisting of the place formatives e- and wa. to, from or at the house/place of (similar to French chez). Nnenda ewa Mukasa. I am going to Mu- kasa's. Nva wa Mukasa gye banywa omwenge. I am coming from Mukasa's where they are drinking beer. With the possessive prefixes are derived the forms ewaffe (less commonly ewattu), at or to our place; ewammwe (rarely ewannyu), at or to your place, and ewaabwe, at or to their place. See also waaboffe, etc.

be bereaved of; lose; miss, miss out on. oku- fiirwa obulamu, to lose one's life. Leka kufiirwa mukisa guno. Don't miss this opportunity. Abaana bangi bafiirwako bannyaabwe nga bakyali mabujje. Many people lose their mothers while they are still small children.

nzigadde(wo)) v.tr. shut, close; inclose; bring to an end; fig. discontinue. Amawanga ago gajja kuggalawo okukolagana ne Bungereza. These countries will discontinue their cooperation with England. Tumuggaddewo. We have refused him/ turned him down.

e- no plur. (li/ma) red ocher used as a coloring substance. It was formerly smeared by warriors on their canoes and on their bodies.

completed in/at, etc.; be contained, fit in; end up in, wind up in. Ffenna twa- ggweera mu mmotoka. All of us were (able to) fit into the car. Enju yaabwe ejja ku- ggweera mu myezi esatu. Their house will be completed in three months.

e- (li/ma) disease of the eye characterized by a continual flow of tears; conjunctivitis. Ensenke yeegasse n'ejjanga. Ensenke (another disease of the eye) joined with ejjanga. Things went from bad to worse. Matters reached their lowest ebb.

a- (ka/bu) small load/bundle; trouble, danger; scandal in a family, shameful secret which a family wishes to be hushed up. Onsombedde akagugu. You have caused me trouble. Balina akagugu mu nju. They have a skeleton in their closet, cf. omugugu.

a- (ka/bu) loose flesh adhering to a wound; hangnail; fig. edge; brink. Obulamu bwabwe bull ku kalebwerebwe. Their lives are in the balance. Bali ku kalebwerebwe k'okutandika emizannyo. They are on the point/verge of starting the games.

with all one's might. Omulimu guno bagukutte kannabwala. They have put their full effort into this task.

e- crowdedness, usually as an adv. or with the -a of rel. close together, crowded; abundant, plentiful. Ejinaano ya kifuko. The wheat is thickly sown. Aba- karamoja bazimba kifuko. The Karamoja build (their houses) close together, cf. fuka.

e- (ki/bi) measure, measurement; size; build; extent, with the -a of rel. moderate. Kirungi omwenge onywenga gwa kigero. You should drink beer in moderation. Obuyivu bwabwe si bwa kigero eki- bayinzisa okusoma ebitabo bino. Their education is not sufficient to enable them to read these books, cf. ^gera.

e- (ki/bi) celebration; festival; jubilee; party; rejoicing, exultation. Bampi- se ku kijaguzo kyabwe eky'emyaka 25 mu bufumbo. They have invited me to their 25th wedding anniversary celebratiob. c/. j aguza.

e- (ki/bi) wall; partition; room; cell, ebisenge by'enjuki, honeycomb, cells built by bees in their nest. cf. akasenge.

e- (ki/bi) \Lunyankole~\ separate area in a kraal where calves are kept apart from their mothers.

e- with the -a of rel. mediocre; moderate. Embaga yaabwe yabadde ya kiyabayaba. Their wedding was a mediocre (affair), mu ngeri ya kiyabayaba, in a mediocre manner, imperfectly, cf. -yabaya- ba.

make a rustling/swishing noise; scuffle. Amala okwekweka ye atenda banne okukwakwaya. (prov.) He who has already hidden himself blames his comrades who come later for making noise (in their efforts to hide themselves). Those who have arrived forget the difficulties of those still on the road. cf. -kwakwayufu, olukwakwayo, enkwakwayo; kwaya.

to showoff, put oneself in the limelight. Laba erikuleese. Go away. Get out of here, lit. See (the road, ekkubo is implied by eri-) which brought you. Gundi oyo talaba! So-and-so is very proud/putting on airs. Ng'olabye. I am sorry for you now. I sympathize with you. Nkukubye nga ndaba. I have hit you on purpose/intentionally. Obalaba. Say hello to them for us. En- nyumba yaabwe eraba buvanjuba. Their house faces east. Bwali tebunnalaba. It was before dawn (bu- implies obudde). Ndaba ku ki? lit. What do I see? (A friendly greeting to a guest, particularly an unexpected one). Bo bakola nga bwe balabye. They do just as they please, mu kulaba kwange, in my view, according to the way 1 see it. Tandabamu kantu. He despises me/ has no respect for me. Onookiraba. You will be sorry. You will find out, lit. you will see it.

ssekalootera.

o- no plur. (lu/n) pampering; familiarity; impudence, with the -a of rel. very temporary, flimsy, frivolous. Omukwano gwabwe gwa lusuusuuto. Their love affair is a passing thing/built on sand. cf. suusuuta.

o- plur. enjuyi (lu/n) side; faction, eruuyi n'eruuyi, on all sides, on both sides, eruuyi w'ejjinja, the reverse side of the phonograph record. Asula eruuyi eyo. He lives over in that direction. Enjuyi zombi zaawa ebirowoozo byazo. Both groups have their opinion.

o- plur. empawa (lu/n) wings. Ebibuuka bitalagaanye bikubagana empawa. (prov.) (Birds which) fly together without previous consultation knock their wings against each other, cf. ekiwawa.

A- plur. (li/ma) drums used by Muslims in their religious ceremonies.

e- (n/n) descent; way of coming down, empanuka yaabwe ku bukulu, their stepping down from/losing their positions of importance, cf. wanika, wanuka.

o- (mu/mi) kind of wild plant used by women to clean their hands after peeling plantains.

etc. okunaabira mu maaso, to wash one's hands of. Mw. Katende muzibu, mwannyina amunaabidde mu maaso, era amugobye. Mr. Katende is a harsh person; he has washed his hands of his sister and has sent her away. Balina emyenge egya buli kika ne batuuka n'okuginaabiramu ebigere. They have beers of every type in great abundance, lit. they even wash their feet in it.

e- (n/n) harshness, fierceness; arrogance. Ono wa nkanu. He is an arrogant, harsh person. Basaba lwa nkanu. They make their requests in a very rude/demanding way. Ensimbi yawa za nkanu. He paid the money under compulsion, cf. kanuka, obukanu.

e- (n/n) kind of termite, also called white ant. It has wings and is considered a great delicacy, Ebyc bye balafuubanira byoya bya nswa. They are wasting their time. They have a hopeless goal, lit. the things which they are struggling for are the hair of the nswa. Omwangu y'atta enswa. (prov.) The one who is quick to arrive kills the nswa. The early bird catches the worm. cf. obuswa, kaswa, ekiswa, nnamu- nswa.

e- (n/n) way of releasing, kuggya nta mu kintu, to give up/quit/abandon something. n'eby'okusoma babiggyamu enta, and they gave up their studies, cf. ta.

etc.; cut with/using, kusaza ntuuyo bibatu, to sweat very much, wipe off the'sweat with one's palms, kusaza kibiriiti, to light a match. Saagala kubasaza mu mboozi yaabwe. I did not want to interrupt them in their conversation.

nzitunse) v.i. smoke, fume; bum; get heated up; fig• ‘fume,' be angry; struggle, put forth great efforts. Abakozi battunka ne mukama waabwe. The employees are having a very difficult time with their boss.

ye- and yo- differ from other verbs in that their infinitives cannot be predicted from the stem. Some verbs retain the initial y-; the remainder drop it and the ku- of the infinitive is replaced by kw-, e.g., yamba, kuyamba; yagala, kwagala; yenga, kuyenga; yera, kwera; yomba, kuyomba; yokya, kwokya. For verbs of the above type the infinitive is listed immediately after the simple form.

waabommwe, waaboobwe These constructions, usually following a personal noun such as mwana, are composed of the -a of rel. + -bo- + a plur. pron. They are best rendered of (our, your, their) family/ household/clan. Ono ani? Mwana waaboffe. Who is this? He is one of our family, cf. boowo.

e- adv. far, far away, walako, rather far. wala wa, wala ne, prep, phrase, far from, kukuba wala, to shock, produce a bad effect on. Amawulire gano gankuba wala. This news shocked me. kuggya wala, to be of enormous help to. Yanzigya wala. He did everything possible for me. He is responsible for what I am today, kubiba wala (-bi- implies ebigambo), to be well on one's way. Omusomo nguli wala. I am far advanced in my studies. Kaakati babiri wala. They are far along on their journey by now. cf. -ewala.

all of which seem to be related and to have some such common meaning as ‘break, tear, break away (depart), thin out.' They are treated here as separate verbs because even if their ultimate unity is allowed, it would be unwieldy to treat them as a unit. See the following entries: yaba, yabika, yabirira, yabiza, yabula

become known; be expressed; be pronounced; become audible. Amaloboozi gaabwe tegaa- tuka. Their voices were not audible/distinct. okwatuka inf.

o- (mu/ba) hated one, enemy. Empaka ennemeremu zikubya Mukyawe. (prov.) Incessant arguments result in the beating of the hated (wife). Great troubles have their origins in insignificant events. cf. kyawa.

move to and fro; be in a hurry. Ekibalesa ensi yaabwe ne bagenda nsa bavengeetanira mu za bannaabwe kwe kunoonya ensimbi. What has induced them to leave their country and move about in the countries of others is the search for money. okuyengeetana inf.

okutunda omwoyo, to risk oneself or one's life in doing something difficult or dangerous. Okugenda ewaabwe nga kutunda omwoyo ng'enkoko emira ensanafu. Going to their place was taking one's life in one's hands, lit. like the chicken who swallows biting ants. Ebigere bintunze. My feet have betrayed me/led me into trouble, kutunda buliwo, to sell for cash, kutunda layisi, to sell at a bargain price/on a sale.

to prod/poke a fire, keep a fire going; to step on the gas (in driving), okuseesa empale, to pull up one's pants, okuseesa ebigere, to drag the feet, okuseesa omuntu emiggo, to beat a person (with sticks). Ensiri zaata- ndika okutuseesa obunnyo. The mosquitoes began to bite us, lit. push their little teeth. Balamu bas eesa gwaka. (prov.) The living ones keep the fire going. A person is liked as long as he is alive and in a position of respect.

my husband babbaffe our husbands (b)balo your husband babbammwe your husbands bbaawe her husband babbaabwe their husbands bba wa bonna. the husband of all (a title of the Kabaka).

is also used as the first element of hundreds of verb-noun phrases in which it loses its primary meaning and serves merely to give verbal force to the following noun. A few illustrative examples are given here, but since a complete listing would be unwieldy, even if possible, the compounds are listed under their final or noun element. akalulu, vote; okukuba akalulu, to vote, ekikonde, fist; okukuba ebikonde, to box.

o- (mu/ba) war veteran. The Ugandans who took part in World War 2 belonged to the 7th Army. The number ‘seven' used to appear on the sleeves of their uniforms, cf. sevena.

0- (mu/ba) Ekika ky'Ababoobi, the Rainwater Clan (so called, because of their taboo against drinking rainwater or using it for any purpose whatsoever; the related word ekiboobi, is a kind of millipede, which is the second totem of the Clan).

v.i. go beyond; exceed; excel; be on a higher level; get out of line. Bano basooloobye bannaabwe. These individuals have (excelled their comrades. mu nsi ezisoolooba mu 50, in over fifty countries.

v.tr. make friends with. v.i. be in harmony/agreement. Ebirowoozo byabwe nga tebikwana na byaffe. Their views are not in agreement with ours.

occur; fail (in an examination), kugwa butaka, to fail to hit the mark, fail, be unsuccessful, kugwa mu bintu, to hit upon a good thing, have a stroke of luck, get a high or rewarding position, kugwa nsimbi, to go bankrupt, kugwa muntu, to become enamored of/‘fall for' a person, kugwa ku muntu, to backbite/ slander a person in his absence, butagwa kintu, not to miss anything. Omukazi oyo tagwa mikolo. That woman never misses any big occasions, kukigwako, to experience misfortune/tragedy/disaster. Abaana abo bakiguddeko. Those children have really had their share of misfortune, kugwa mu ttaano, to finally receive/get what one has anxiously wished or expected, lit. to fall in five (fingers). Ku Lwomukaaga omu- fumbi w'ettooke ajja kungwa mu ttaano. On Saturday I am getting married/the girl will finally be mine, lit. the cooker of matooke will fall in my five (fingers), kugwa mu buwufu, to follow in the footsteps of; to follow what anotheris saying, ‘catch on.' Yali tannaba kumalayo bigambo ne mmugwa mu buwufu. I understood what he was saying before he was finished talking. Akabenje ak'amaanyi kaaguddewo olunaku lw'eggulo. A serious accident happened yesterday. Kino kyamuguddeko bugwi. This came to him as a great surprise. Ekigambo kino olwamugwa mu kutu... When she heard this..., lit. when this word fell in her ear. Abagenyi baatuguddeko bugwi. The visitors came to us unannounced/unexpectedly.

v.i. appl. 2 pass. have happen to one; have fall on one. Baagwirirwa ekikangabwa mutabani waabwe bwe yafa. They received a terrible shock when their son died. Twagwirirwa ennyumba. Our house fell down or The house fell down on us.

v.i. overflow. Emigga mingi giwaguludde. Many rivers have overflowed (their banks).

my companion; munno, your companion; munne, his/her companion; munnaffe, our companion; munnammwe, your companion; munnaabwe, their companion; bannange, my companions, etc. cf. kinna-, Munno.

e.g., yera, sweep (imperative); okwera, to sweep (infinitive). Verbs of this type are listed under y- rather than e-. Reflexive verbs with the initial e- are listed immediately under their non-reflexive counterparts: esamba, kick oneself, is contained in the entry for samba, kick. Reflexive verbs which do not have non-reflexive counterparts are alphabetized on the basis of their second letter: -ebaka, sleep, is listed under b.

confer; collude, plot together. Abakulu beegeyaamu ne balabira ddala nga omwana waabwe ddala. The elder people conferred together and came to the conclusion (lit. saw) that the child was really theirs. cf. -geyi

-ekuyeeya (-ekuyeeye) v.i. refl. wriggle about (as of termites who have lost their wings); spin around; twist about; fig. be slow in doing something, dally about, shilly-shally.

-abwe poss. pron. & adj. theirs; their.

ente enkobe, a cow purchased by two or more people who combine their resources. cf. koba.

hard; arid (of ground); clear, distinct (of a voice). ensimbi enkalu, (hard) cash, kaawa omukalu, coffee without cream or sugar, omwana omukalu, an outgoing, confiding child, ebintu ebikalu, concrete things, real property, ebikalu ebi- wanvu, long trousers (ekikalu can also be used to signify a woman's dress). Olunge- reza lwabwe si lukalu. Their English is not very good. Baasi oluusi zibadde zigenda nkalu. Sometimes the buses ran empty. Nnamusimba eriiso kkalu. I looked at him sternly, cf. kala, -kalukalu.