You have to love (and hate) a language where the same word can mean “to become perplexed” or “to become neat and tidy.” Or when used in a slightly different verb form, can be the same word as that for “camel” which is, of course, a noun! It wasn’t even the word I was looking for, but it is easy to get distracted in this Setswana-English dictionary.
Also, shouldn’t a dictionary, when it gives you the Setswana translation from the English word also have the same word in the Setswana side just to be able to double check the meaning? I wouldn’t normally demand this of this kind of book, but the few times I have cross checked words, I have found that what I thought meant what I thought it meant, well, it meant something slightly or sometimes significantly, different.
In my random wanderings in this book, I have found a word for ogre or giant. That is sure to come in handy. But I couldn’t find the words for destiny or values. If I ever manage to speak this language, it will be oddly selective if this is my go-to book.
Here is a fun example of how words work in Setswana. All I know is that I am very lucky that people speak English here. I was going to tell you that word in Setswana, which I thought was lesego, which means luck, but saying I am lucky is: (again, pick one and look it up on the other side) ke sego, ke tlamu, ke tshego, ke selwa ke naga or ke senogelwa ke dilo. Damn it). And yes, I should be doing something more productive than this with this language learning process, but I am taking a break, okay?!
Let’s look at the word perplex, shall we, since it really does explain my state of mind most of the time when it comes to Setswana.
Perplex (it has a few choices) – akabatsa; kama; tseakanya; tseanya. Okay. Now, used in a sentence:
“These things perplex me” = dilo tse di a nkama. Yep, you get to put an “n” in front of kama. Haven’t learned why yet, but cool.
“I am perplexed by the multitude” (isn’t clear if this means “multitude” of people, beans, or confusing words) = ke akabaditswe ke bontsintsi. Yep more endings added to that darned verb. Way cool.
So let’s flip now to see what these words for perplex say on the Setswana side of things. Hmmmm..I’ll start with kama because it’s the shortest and easiest to remember and say….Yep, here it is. Kama means “to comb.” Well, that certainly is perplexing but it makes much more sense for kama to mean comb than perplexed, right? Wait, though, there is more to kama than meets the eye.
It is also a noun: “a conical piece of clay toy with hollowed ends which, when skillfully thrown into water, makes a smooth, noiseless dip, hence “lo ntse jaaka kama” which means “you have hit the mark, or spoken truly.” So if I ever want to say, “lo ntse jaaka kama” I am saying that, not “jeez dude, you seem perplexed.”
The following entries occur before we return to discussing the tenses in which we can be perplexed: kamaganyo; kamakama (I like the sound of that – have one’s arms full or to hug); kamakamile (has carried lots and lots of things in the arms), kamalala (to be stiff of body, stubborn, or speak frankly); kamaletse (is stiff in the body), kamano (to touch with, but this is a noun??!!), kamatlela and kamatletse (these two are both different tenses for embrace) and then, finally, kamega, which means to become perplexed, become combed AND, to become neat and tidy, followed by kamegile, which is so obviously the past perfect for kamega that I don’t even need to explain that to you, do I?
These words are then followed by kamela, which is singular for camel and then kamela, which means…comb for; be neat and tidy for; perplex; put at a loss and show off. YOU get to choose. I know which definition will almost always apply to me. And like I said, I wasn’t even looking for this gold mine when I found it!
And you all wonder what a person can do without 24/7 television?
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