Bambara/Dioula Dictionary
A - a
a pron. 1 • Second person plural pronoun ('you, your, you all', etc.); vous.
2 • your, yours; votre, vos. Usage: In Jula, one typically uses "a" in greetings regardless of the number of people (e.g., "A ni sɔgɔma!") Emphatic: aw. Variant: a' ‘Orthographic variant’.
à pron. 1 • he, she, it; il, elle.
2 • his, her, its; son, sa. Emphatic: àle.
abada adv. 1 • never (in negative sentences); jamais. Ne ̀ tɛ shɔ̀ dun abada. I never eat beans. Je ne mange jamais de haricots.
2 • forever, eternally (in affirmative sentences); toujours.
n. eternity; éternité. Variant: habada.
àbarika See main entry: barika.
adàmàden n. human being, human; être humain. Variant: hadàmàden.
ala n. God (term used regardless of one's religious persuasion); Dieu (y compris pour les chrétiens).
ala.ka.mùrùjan1 n. rainbow; arc-en-ciel.
ala.ka.mùrùjan2 n. praying mantis; mante religieuse.
alamisa n. Thursday; jeudi. Variant: lamisa.
alatanu n. 1 • praise of God; louange de Dieu.
2 • prosperity; bonne santé, prospérité.
àle pro. third person singular emphatic pronoun (you, your); pronom de la 3ème personne du singulier (forme emphatique). Non-emphatic: à.
àlìjinɛ n. paradise, heaven; paradis. From: Ar. al-janna. Variant: àlìjɛnɛ; àlìjana; àrijinɛ; àrìjana.
àlìjìnɛ̀yiri n. Moringa tree; Moringa.
àlikuranɛ See: kùranɛ.
àlìmami n. imam; imam.
alimɛti n. match; alumette. Syn: takala. From: Fr. alumette. Variant: alimɛtikala.
alimɛtikala n. See: alimɛti ‘match’.
alù Usage: Jula See: aw ‘you (plural)’.
alugù Usage: Jula See: aw ‘you (plural) ; your’.
àmi See: àmiina ‘amen’.
àmiina n. amen (response to all benedictions); amen, ainsi soit-il. From: Ar. amin. Variant: àmi.
an pron. 1 • we; nous.
2 • our; notre, nos. Emphatic: anw.
àni See: ni ‘and’.
anw pron. 1 • emphatic 3rd person plural pronoun (we); nous.
2 • our; notre, nos. Non-emphatic: an. Variant: annu.
araba n. Wednesday; mercredi.
arabu n. Arab (persoṅ); arabe (personne). Variant: larabu.
àrìjinɛ Usage: Jula See: àlìjɛnɛ ‘heaven’.
aw [áẁ] pron. 1 • second person emphatic plural pronoun (you all; your etc.); vous.
2 • your; votre, vos. Non-emphatic: a. Variant: alù ‘Jula’.
àwɔ interj. yes, yeah; oui. Variant: ɔ̀wɔ. Syn: ɔ̀nhɔn ‘Jula’.
àyi interj. no; non. Syn: ɔn-ɔ̀n ‘Jula’.
ayiwa interj. ok, alright, well; bon, d'accord, alors.