ddugavu. very b., ddugavuzigizigi. be b., okuddugala. go b. (fruit), okuswankula.
okuddugaza, okubabira, okuziga.
omuweesi.
e- (li/ma) hollow-stemmed perennial mountain bamboo, Arundinaria alpina. It is black in color as opposed to nkaawo which is yellow.
plur. bibbumbuzzi) black and yellow boring wasp, mason wasp. cf. bumbujja.
lit. it jumps over (buuka) the trunk of a cut-down plantain (mugogo).
o- (bu/-) blackness; darkness; less commonly dirtiness, cf. ddugala, -ddugavu.
o- adv. like an nziziiri (a kind of black beetle), kuddugala buziziiri, to be extremely black.
e- plur. amalibu (1 i/m a) gap; breach. Omwana ow'amalibu agema enkuba. (prov.) A child with teeth missing prevents rain (from falling). Ow'amalibu akiina ow'engereka. (prov.) The person with missing teeth derides the person who has teeth which overlap. The pot calls the kettle black.
nzirugadde) v.i. be or become black/dark blue; darken; be or become dirty.
ddugavuzigizigi.
cf. embogo.
black person, cf. ddugala.
a- (ka/bu) kind of small black waterfowl, cf. fubutuka.
a- (ka/bu) black-capped finch.
a- (ka/bu) kind of small black ant with a sharp sting, cf. ensolosozi.
as an adv. as black as pitch, with the -a of rel. jet black; pitch dark, agale aga kazigizigi, huge, pitch black clouds. Wabweru kazigizigi yali akutte okufa. It had become completely dark outside, cf. zigizigi.
e- (ki/bi) kind of large black ant. Ekika ky'Ekinyomo, the Black Ant Clan. Nze sisiika binyomo. colloq. I am not just joking, lit. frying ants.
e- (li/ma) kind of large black caterpillar.
o- plur. embaawo (lu/n) plank, board; blackboard; bench (e.g., in a schoolroom); bench (of parliament), olubaawo oluddugavu, blackboard. Yali musajja musazi wa mbaawo. He was a carpenter, lit. cutter of boards.
become bruised and swollen (of a bodily part).
o- (lu/n) small black cormorant, darter.
o- (lu/n) long stick; peg; skewer; blackhead. kuyita ku luti, to have a narrow escape. cf. ^omuti.
o- plur. empeesa (lu/n) shift of work in a forge/blacksmith's shop. cf. Iweesa.
e- (laorn/n) black-shouldered kite.
African blackwood or African ebony, Dalbergia melanoxylon.
e- (n/n) black rail; water-hen.
e- with the -a of rel. hard and black (of plantains attacked by a kind of parasite).
e- (n/n) kind of bamboo, brown in color, as opposed to bbanda which is black.
e- (n/n) kind of large black ant which eats termites, enkolooto y'ebintu, a large amount of baggage/luggage.
blackish; very dark. cf. ekiyonga.
pied wagtail, ekijanjaalo ekya nnamunye, kind of bean, so called because its black and white stripes are suggestive of the bird.
e- (n/n) kind of lake bird, black stork or hammerhead.
e- (n/n) viper; black mamba.
e-, (n/n) core of a small boil; blackhead (on the nose or face); dark surface layer of a knife which is worn away when it is sharpened; first milk after childbirth.
e- (n/n) jet-black water insect which flits to and fro over the water; fig. very dark person.
e- the form of -ddugavu, black, used before nouns of the n/n class and plural nouns of the lu/n class, engatto enzirugavu, black shoes.
e- (n/n) kind of black insect which drips moisture off trees; mistletoe, Viscum album, cf. ddugala, ddugaza.
e- (n/n) manner/way of translating; translation, cf. vvuunula. nzizi, e- plur. of oluzzi, q.v. nziziiri, e- (n/n) a kind of black beetle found near bodies of water, cf. obuziziiri.
rub dry, wipe; mop; polish (e.g., furniture); clean (e.g., a blackboard).
e- (li/ma) forge; blacksmith's shop.
small black cormorant, cf. ssemirindi.
jet-black, very black.
used with -ddugavu. enviiri enzirugavu tibitibi, very black hair. also with okusiba. Omuguwa agusibye tibitibi. He has tied the rope very tightly.
collective) also kiwakka, plur. biwakka. large black evil-smelling ant which preys on nswa (termites). Wakka awunya, nga ggwe omulumbye ku nswa ze. (prov.) (If you say that) the wakka smells, it is you that disturbed him feeding on his nswa. If you remain in dirt you cannot expect to stay clean.
obudde ne bukwata be zigizigi, and it became pitch dark. Kiddugavu zigizigi. It is very black. cf. kazigizigi.
o- (mu/mi) kind of hardwood tree, Pseudospondias microcarpa. It has black fruit, resembling olives, which are not eaten under ordinary circumstances, cf. enziru.
(la) black mangabey monkey.
purplish-black in color, used for tying packages, with the -a of rel. deep purplish-black, cf. yunga.
inflammatory leaflets usually distributed at night; blackmail note. The lit. meaning is: night (kiro) takes (-kitwala) the poor man (omunaku).
o- (mu/mi) bellows (instrument used by a blacksmith).
o- (mu/ba) one who practices a form of black magic characterized by wild dancing, raising the bodies of the newly-dead and eating portions thereof. These activities occur at night, cf. sera, obusezi.
o- (mu/mi) blacksmith's charges.
o- (mu/ba) worker in metal, smith, blacksmith, cf. ^weesa.
to resolve with determination, used in sentences of the following pattern: Bwe siikwase mmese eno olwa leero nga nziga ngalo. I'll be damned if I don't catch that rat today.
-ddugaalirivu, obuddugavu, kaddugala, Omuddugavu, enzirugaze. See also ekizima & zigizigi.
among other things, to dance naked at night and to disinter corpses); be a bad omen. v.tr. bewitch, put a hex on. cf. obusezi, omusezi.
v. tr. burn; scorch; expose to fire and blacken; smoke (barkcloth).
very black/ dark. Abaddugavu kagongolo, very dark Africans, cf. eggongolo.
(la) kind of black soldier ant which bites fiercely. Eyawukana ku mugendo y'efuuka kaasa. (prov.) lit. (The nsan afu) which separates itself from the trail becomes a kaasa (an ant which is even fiercer). (Said of someone who flouts the accepted standards of the community and engages in questionable conduct.)
-etukuta (-etukuse) v.i. refl. get bruised; turn black and blue; become swollen (after a blow).
darkish, rather black, cf. ddugala.
engatto enzirugavu, black shoes, cf. ddugala, obuddugavu, Omuddugavu, enzirugavu.