Simple sentences
Now that you know how to read Toki Pona, it’s time to learn words and sentences!
Here are some words for things and actions:
soweli
land animal, like a cat, dog, cow, mouse, elephant
land animal, like a cat, dog, cow, mouse, elephant
waso
bird, like a pigeon, goose, owl
bird, like a pigeon, goose, owl
pipi
insect, like a beetle, ant, butterfly, spider
insect, like a beetle, ant, butterfly, spider
kasi
plant, like a clover, birch tree, cactus, moss
plant, like a clover, birch tree, cactus, moss
moku
to consume
to consume
lukin
to see
to see
sona
to know
to know
A very common kind of sentence is called a “subject-verb-object” sentence. This means that one thing (the subject) does something to another thing (the object). Let’s make a few sentences:
soweli li moku e kasi.
The animal eats plants.
soweli li moku e kasi.
The animal eats plants.
waso li moku e pipi.
The bird eats bugs.
waso li moku e pipi.
The bird eats bugs.
pipi li lukin e soweli.
The insect sees an animal.
pipi li lukin e soweli.
The insect sees an animal.
waso li sona e kasi.
The bird knows the tree.
waso li sona e kasi.
The bird knows the tree.
Here’s what we can learn:
- The word order is the same as in English: subject, verb, object.
- li is a particle that starts the verb.
- e is a particle that starts the object.
- The English translation includes words and word-pieces like “the”, “an”, “-s”, but those are guesses! The Toki Pona sentence doesn’t specify if we’re talking about “a bird” or “the bird”. In longer conversations, it becomes pretty clear!
( li and e may seem unnecessary at first. We will learn about why they are required, but to do that, we first need to learn more about parts of speech!)