Vocabulary
The language has vocabulary from various sources, though the dominant source language is English.
Non-English words:
Kalaw Kawaw Ya: yawo goodbye, matha only/very, mina really/truly, babuk crosslegged, aka granny, puripuri magic action/spells/products/medicines etc. (from the early Kauraraigau Ya word puri, in modern Kala Lagaw Ya the word is puyi).
Meriam Mìr: baker (bakìr] money (beside the more general baks), watai (wathai) bamboo break-wind fence.
Austronesian (Malay, Filipino, Samoan, Rotuman, etc.) : thalinga ear, bala brother, male friend, thuba coconut toddy, makan eat, dudu sit, kaikai eat, nene granny, datho grandfather
Portuguese: pikinini child, sabe know, understand, know how to, can
Read more about this topic: Torres Strait Creole
Famous quotes containing the word vocabulary:
“A new talker will often call her caregiver “mommy,” which makes parents worry that the child is confused about who is who. She isn’t. This is a case of limited vocabulary rather than mixed-up identities. When a child has only one word for the female person who takes care of her, calling both of them “mommy” is understandable.”
—Amy Laura Dombro (20th century)
“The vocabulary of pleasure depends on the imagery of pain.”
—Marina Warner (b. 1946)
“One forgets words as one forgets names. One’s vocabulary needs constant fertilizing or it will die.”
—Evelyn Waugh (1903–1966)