conj. nti, nga, mbu.
n., essubi (erisereka enju); old t., enkaajumbe.
v., okusereka; vide okusulikira, okusereekerera.
enkulukuku, ekiswa; some names of the ants may be put into the ki-class to denote the hill built by that ant.
conj. then, thereupon. interj. response to weebale, thank you. ebyo nga bikyali awo that being the case; meanwhile.
-yo, -mu, -wo. ba becomes baa- before such an addition, mbaako kye njogera, if 1 have something to say (note that this does not imply physical pos ses s ion as is often the case when -na is suffexed to -li), abo abanaabaawo enkya, those who will be present tomorrow. Bwe walibaamu amazzi mu mugga, tulivuba. If there is water in the river we will fish. Taliimu. He is stupid or He is not at home.
flay; butcher (an animal); cut up; dismember; dissect; operate on (a patient), okubaaga amatooke, to peel bananas so ineptly that part of the meat is left in the skins.
all the while, all along; lately; on that occasion; already, conj. all the time that, while. Bakira oli ludda wa? Where were you all the while? Bak ira nkugamba ggwe nga towulira! I kept telling you but you wouldn't listen!
keep (someonej company (a sick person, a child, a person who is lonely). Genda obeesebeese omwana aleme kukaaba. Go and stay with the child so that he doesn't cry.
mmenzebenze) v.i. hobble along, walk painfully, walk with the back bent forward, bendegera (-bendegedde, mmendegedde) v. tr. make restitution for; reimburse; pay for (lit. and fig.); be accountable to. Ojja okubende- gera ebinaddawo. You will suffer the consequences (lit. that which will follow). Aliba abatutteyo alimmendegera. Whoever takes them there will have to answer to me for it.
e- usually plur. (ki/bi) spoiled food; leftovers (not neces sarily spoiled). Yagenda wa jjajja kulya bigagu. He went to his grandmother's where he knew that he would be pampered, lit. eat bigagu. cf. gaga.
e- plur. (ki/bi) twitching in the eyelids. (A twitch in the lower lids means that one will receive bad news; a twitch in the • upper lid signifies good news.) Not to be confused with bisulo, dormitories, the plur. of ^eklsulo, q.v.
take on an attractive appearance (esp. of young girls or brides with the added implication that the skin is as fair and healthy as that of a baby).
for which see the grammars. The following usages are important for lexical purposes because the derivatives formed cannot all be included in the dictionary. 1) bu + la ~ negative infinitive, often equivalent to an English noun which is not an infinitive in form. okumanya, to know; obutamanya, not to know; ingnorance. 2) bu + stem of a noun from another class often produc es an adverb which must be rendered by a phrase in English, enkofu, guinea fowl; bukofu, like a guinea fowl, kukaabya bukofu, to make cry like a guinea fowl, i.e., to cause to suffer. 3) bu + reduplicated stem of a noun of another class indicates plurality with the added notions of indefiniteness, scattered state or even contemp t. essomero, school; obusomerosomero, small, scattered schools which are inferior in quality. 4) normal verb form + bu + verb stem + i. Abalala bagamba nti... others say that; Abalala bagamba bugambi nti... others just/ simply/only say that.
make full of; do completely. Amawulire ago gaatubugaanya essanyu. That news filled us with joy.
blaze (of a fire); be burning hot (of a sick person), v.tr. pester; hurry (someone). Leka kumbu- gujja bw'otyo. Don't keep rushing me like that. cf. buga, bbugubugu.
o- (bu/-) dirt, filth (esp. that which collects on the body).
o- (bu/-) kind of tall grass used for thatching and for mashing mbidde.
o- adv. in vain, vainly, unsuccessfully. Kye yava anvaako bukumbu. For that reason he left me empty-handed. He did not get anything from me.
hair); be bent/inclined; be on a slant; stoop, slouch; be poured. Olw'obuwanvu atambula abunduka. Because of his height he walks with a slouch. Ebintu ebiggya mu kiseera ekyo byabundu- kiranga kumu mu Buganda. At that time (all sorts of) new things were coming into Buganda at once.
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.
obs. propose, intend. It has been suggested that this obsolete verb is the simple form from which buulira, buuliri- ra, etc. were derived.
o- adv. like (the game of) mweso. Ate n'ebyafaayo abimanyi bweso. And as for history, he knows that ‘cold'/to the tips of his fingers, cf. omweso.
such as that on a bicycle).
S., what do you have to tell us? Vvaawo olimba! colloq. Go on! You must be joking foften implying that what has been said is perhaps true).
e- adv. long ago, in former times; (with a future verb) in the future, eddako. a short time ago; (with a future verb) later on, in a short time, afterwards, edda n'edda lyonna, always (only with the past). Edda n'edda lyonna wali oli ludda wa? Where were you all that time? Tulibiraba edda. We will see them in the distant future. Tunaagenda edda. We will be going later on (in the near future).
n'emabega tekyaddika, and it is no longer possible to go back. Yagamba nti ewa muganda we teddika. He said that to return to his brother's was out of the question. cf. obuddiro, obuddizo, obutaddira, obu- teddiza, obuzza, akaddannyuma, amadda, amaddira, omuddirirwa, omuddinnano, omuddinnanwa, muzzannanda, lomuzzi, enziramu.
mutilate the forms of the language in a way roughly similar to that employed in speaking pig Latin.
to lose one's head over something; to lose one's sense of values because of something. N'obugagga nno bwe butyo tebubama- langamu nsa. And do not, in that way, let (the desire for) wealth get the better of you/ cause you to lose your perspective. Okuvuma omusomesa kimumalamu ensa eri b'asomesa. To insult the teacher causes him to lose respect in the eyes of the students he is teaching.
pron. & udj. for singular nouns of the n/n class, that (at some distance away), enkumbi eri, that hoe. as a demons, adv. there (some distance away), cf. eyo, eno.
pron. & adj. for singular nouns of the n/n class, this, that (referring usually to something already mentioned), as a demons, adv. there (nearby). cf. eno, eri. deprive of; lose completely. Kijja kumufiiriza omulimu gwe. It will cause him to lose his job.
faayo v.i. care, be concerned/interested; pay attention. Mukasa afa nnyo ku banne. Mukasa cares a great deal/pays attention to his companions. Omwana oyo talina amufaako. That child has no one who cares about him/ no one to take care of him. Nze sifaayo oba Byekwaso anajja oba tajje. I don't care whether B. comes or not.
nnaanyizza), gaan(y)isa (-gaan(y)isizza) v.tr. caus. 1 & 2- make refuse, cause to refuse. Kaddu ye yannaanyisa omulimu. It was because of Kaddu that 1 was refused the job. or It was because of Kaddu that I refused to take the job. Yagaanya lyanyi. He emphatically refused, lit. with force.
nnambye) v.tr. say; say to, tell, kwe kugamba nti..., that is to say, i.e... abantu abalala gamba nga nze, other people such as myself. Mbadde jrinamba nti... I thought/supposed that. Ani agamba? Is there any question at all about that? That is too obvious.
without doubt; out- and-out. Obwo bunyunyunsi ggereggere. That is out-and-out exploitation. Oyo mwana we ggereggere. That is his child without the slightest doubt, omubbi ggereggere, an out-and-out thief. Omuganda ggereggere, a real, genuine Muganda.
e- (li/ma) egg. amagi amasii ke, fried eggs, kukuba za ku magi, to be a coward, act in a cowardly way, lit. strike the hens (enkoko is implied by za) (who are sitting) on the eggs. Kiriba kya nsonyi bwe mulirya eggi. lit. It will be a shame if you eat the egg. This derives from the proverb okulya eggi okwesub.ya omuwula, to eat the egg and miss the meat. The implication is that if one allows an egg to develop into a chicken the gain will be greater. Bulijjo afuna magi mu kubala. He always gets zeros in arithmetic, cf. ekigi.
etc. okuggira essubi, to cut up grass (for thatch- ing)
e- (n/n) [Eng.] drinking glass, tumbler. Ekyo kiri mu ggiraasi. That is quite obvious.
e- (li/ma) finely ground powder made from dried greens such as mpindi, etc. Ky'onkoze entungo ekikola ggobe. You have put me in a bad/difficult/sticky situation. n'amanya nti luno eggobe lya kuggwa mu kibya, and he knew that things would turn out just right, lit. the ggobe would wind up in the bowl.
e- (li/ma) bone, okusimba eggumba egganda, to walk. 01 uvannyuma lw'okuki- gaayagaaya baakizuula mpozzi nga kirimu eggumba. After thinking it over they realized that it might just be true, lit. after chewing it they found that perhaps it had a bone inside, okuggwa ku magumba, to lose weight, become all skin and bones, oku- tunguka ku magumba, to cook thoroughly (of meat). Ebigezo bino birimu eggumba. These examinations are quite difficult, lit. have some bone in them. Kirimu eggumba okugamba nti... It is difficult to maintain that. It is hard to say that. lit. There is a bone in saying that... Omwavu lw'alya ennyama amagumba asansa masanse. (prov.) When a poor man eats meat, he scatters the bones around (to impress others ).
nzigye) v.tr. take; take away/ off/out, etc. (The enclitics -ko, -mu, -wo are frequently suffixed to ggya, performing a role analogous to that of the adverbs following take, i.e., away, off, etc.). Ggyawo ekitanda. fake the bed away.. Ggyako ekikopo. Take the cup off (e.g., of the table), okuggyako, except, excepting, okuggya ku mabeere, to wean, okuggya omwoyo ku kintu, to neglect/forget something. okuggya akagere, to start walking, try one's first steps, okuggya obutiko, to pick mushrooms, okuggyawo omusango, to dismiss a case (at law). Kyanzigya enviiri ku mutwe okulaba nga... It made the hair stand up on my head to see that... Ebigambo bye yayogera byamuggya n'amaziga mu ki- wanga. The things which he said made her cry, lit. took tears from her skull. Temuggya okwo, mugende mu maaso. Don't stop there, go on. Keep up the good work.
etc. kugobera munya mu ssubi, lit. to drive a lizard into the grass/thatched part of a house, i.e., to tell a person to do something which he is very glad to do/which he would want to do anyway.
break up fibers (for rope making); clean out, scrape out (e.g., the insides of a papyrus plant so that the outer fiber may be used for basket making or rope making); groom, trim, clean up (a person or thing).
have room; correspond to; be equivalent; be fitting/suitable/appropriate, omuwendo ogugya mu nsawo ya buli muntu, a suitable price, a price which ‘fits' everyone' s pocketbook. Omukazi gwe yawasa tamugyamu. The woman he married is not suitable for him. Oba nno ezo emboga zigyamu nsimbi ki? I wonder what that cabbage is worth.
be, it is the equivalent of the English prepositions to or from, gye ndi, where I am; to me. Yali afuukidde ddala wa luganda gye ndi. He had become as much as a relative to me. With a change in tone gye becomes an emphatic adv. of place, there, gy'ali (= gye a I i) he is there; he is well (in answering salutations). Idioms: Ekyo kiri gy'ali. That is up to him. Katonda gy'ali! God will avenge me. gye bujja, in the future. God is there = God knows what is best or Nze gye nnali nga jinamba nti ajja. As for me, I kept thinking he would come.
watered down; insipid, tasteless. Yatuwadde omwenge nga gwa jaalaala. He gave us beer that was watered down/diluted.
and I was struck by the idea that... okujjirwa obulwadde/omusujja, to contract an illness/fever. Jjo nnajjirwa omugenyi. Yesterday I had a visitor. Tujjiddwa (said at the arrival of an unwanted guest). Look what the wind has blown in.
nzijudde or njijudde) v.tr. dish up, serve (food); uncover (food). (Ki- ganda food is cooked with a covering of banana leaves and therefore has to be uncovered before eating). Kye nnava nsigala ku bwa kinejjulira. For that reason I remained a bachelor, (kinejjulira means literally it will serve itself.) cf. -jjule, eki- jjulo, kinejjulira, lujjudde.^olujjula, olu- jjuliro,
kabassanya (la) cause of dissension, cause of dispute, lit. that which causes them to kill each other, cf. tta.
a- (ka/bu) second totem of a clan. It differs from the first totem in that there is no taboo against eating it.
a- (ka/bu) small tail (e.g., that of a lizard), cf. omukira.
a- (ka/bu) also enkuli. kind of grass used fcr thatching and making Leeu
(la) lit. protruding structure, something huge/gigantic/sensational. kakundiiri w'olubuto, a huge stomach, kakundiiri w'ennyindo, an enormous nose. Eri embaga yabadde kakundiiri. That wedding reception was a magnificent event.
a- (ka/bu) lit. one-which-de- feats-the-elephant. a kind of small tree, Gardenia thurnbergia. It is so supple in nature that it bends instead of breaking.
soot, small particles of dust that float in the air. cf. munyale.
a- (ka/bu) fiber-producing plant, Hibiscus diversifolius; crisis, difficulty, trouble. Awo akanyamberege we kajjira. That is when the trouble started, akanyamberege akaazaala ekkula, lit. a woman of low estate who brought forth a jewel (formerly used of a commoner whose son became a Kabaka, and later used in a more general sense), cf. ennyamberege.
a- (ka/bu) case brought against a woman demanding that she return to her abandoned husband.
as long as; provided that.
kasookedde conj. since, since the time that. cf. sooka, sookera.
a- (ka/bu) millions; an enormously large number, lit. that which is not easily counted, cf. ^bala.
a- (ka/bu) small chair; small stool. Nnazaalibwa mu njala ‘ani amuwadde a katebe.' I was born during the great famine of the early 1940's, lit. the famine ‘who has given him a chair (so that he can sit down and eat our food)?' cf. ekitebe, entebe.
a- (ka/bu) boggy field; quagmire, soft miry land that yields under the foot. cf. ekiteebe.
a- (ka/bu) top ring in the roof of a thatched hut; fig. pinnacle, acme. Atuuse mu katemyo. He has now reached the pinnacle of success.
a- no plur. (ka/bu) spasm; exhaustion. Olunaku olwo lwatandika n'akasana akayinza n'okusuula omuntu kawansazi. That day started off with sunshine which was capable of throwing a person into a state of exhaustion.
a- (ka/bu) eaglet, young eagle, enkoko ey'akawungu, chicken with plumage resembling that of an eagle, cf. empungu.
a- (ka/bu) a kind of bean which resembles a lima bean but is much smaller, butter bean. Abantu ba kuno baamutwala teyeesibidde na kayindi. The people here sent him packing or (in a political context) they threw him out of office, lit. took him, he did not tie up beans for himself. (Formerly travelers used to take beans of this sort with them on long trips. The person referred to in the example left so quickly that he could not make the usual preparation.)
a- (ka/bu) small elephant; corn weevil, kind of very small insect with a proboscis resembling that of an elephant, cf. enjovu.
a- (ka/bu) kind of mint with a flower like that of the heliotrope.
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.
a- (ka/bu) small gourd used as a ladle or cup; cup. okunywamu akendo, to excel, win, come out on top. Eky'okunywa mu Uganda yonna akendo, kyaamufunyisa sikaala. The fact that he came out first in all Uganda enabled him to get a scholarship. cf. olwendo.