Words that confuse

aaba              to come together

aba                father

abaa              put load on something


aban              elders(male)

abaan            burning pain


aabi               come on other behalf

aabie             convenient way or means of coming

abbi               movement

abi                 pants/ skirt

abie               sufficient



abu                many/ numerous/ lot

aboo             cylindrical



aachi             will come

achi               sister in law

achchi           1. pain, 2. very much



aado              has come/ coming

adow             far/ distant


aadu              come

adu                make sound

addu              hurt one’s feet by stepping on something, feel something under feet



aajo               benefit of coming

ajo                 pay for work or services

ajjo                carefully and slowly, fond



ajoo              week

ajju                apearance (of people)



aalyi              coming

alyi                air, wind

alyee             arrow

alyie              pig



alo                 1. day, 2. to drop

alow              bone

allo                salt



aako             place of coming

akko             short or small height

ako               one



aama            do not come

ama              mother

amma           to infect or rub something off to/from something



aami             cat

ami               elder sister

amie             eye

ammi            tail



aane             came

ane               mother



aanii             one who come

anii               mother

aniih             hurry, haste

aniiw            leaf



aapo            1. come out in front, 2. did (someone)come? e.g, Moh aapo? [did he come?]

appo            body



aari              come in turn

ari                cost/ price of something

arie              to string together (as in necklace of beads)

arri               to lay foundation of building



aato             came

ato               grand father/ father in law

atto              ones own, self



aya              good, fair, nice, lovely

ayaa            flesh



babo           assist in carrying load

babbo         pole erected during myoko



baaro         large (flat object)

baro           brother



bido           giving, give

biedo         flowing, flow



bo              to move across, e.g., bone [moved across]

bow           to pull, e.g., bowne [pulled]



bu              to pull out weeds etc.

boo           to burst



cha            to go up

chaa          to split something with knife/sword



che            to argue e.g., chene [argued]

chay          1. to cut (as with scissor) e.g., chayne [cut]; 2. to be pressed from two sides, sandwitch

                  e.g., chayne [pressed something from two sides.]; achay [tight]



chi            to bite

chie          motion in one direction in air or water (as in swimming or moving spear)

chih          extinct



chu          to spit

choo        move infront or direction of head (when something is lying)



da            to stand

daa          to step



du            to sit

doo          v. offer to sell something e.g., doola-do [making enquiry if someone is willing to buy something]

doo          n. collection of rice grains ready for husking



ene           shot

enne         simply



heene        beaten with stick

hine           felt with hand

hinne         pinched



hoi             to happen (borrowed word from Assamese)

hoyee        feeling free from burden or hardship



ji                melt

jih              black



jo              to carry

jow           to cut



ku             ask, e.g., kune [asked]

koo           throw, e.g., koone [threw]



kapyo       good looking, beautiful

kapyow    look/see first/earlier

kappyow  first



lusa           let (us) speak

loosa        1. different groups or herds; 2. one set each (for two or more)



mene        searched

menne      killed



monne      chased

mowne     moved head sidewise

moh ne     was him



nenne       smelled

neneh         bruising

nene       scrubed or hurt due to friction



pa            to cut

paa          to find other’s lost thing



paro        fowl
parow     widening something by cutting

pene        shouted (slogan or war cry)

penne      1. built; 2. transferred properties etc. to legal heir

pen-nehe  how many (house, hut or building)



pi             to cut (by sawing action)

pee          to bark (as of dog)



ri               to throw

rie             to stitch



rii              to buy

riiw           to perch (as of birds)



sii             1. to die; 2. cow

siiw          to scratch



sone         1. played; 2. cracked joke; 3. to have affair e.g., nyimun sone [have affair with girl]

sonne        to move on pole or rope with help of hand

sone-he     how many (rope, stick, pen, thread etc.)



tango        /ta-ngo/ part of something (music etc.) that has not been listen or heard

tanggo       /tang-go/ thing to drink

tanngo       /tan-ngo/ left over drinks (water, juice etc,)

tangoh        stop listening

tanngoh      stop drinking



ta               to hear, listen

taa             1. to cut (with spade, axe); 2. to bite (as of snake)



tarne          to bend or to break something by bending

taarne        puss



tu              to kick

tuh            to pluck

too            to pick

tooh          to push

Sentence Structure in Apatani

Basic sentence patterns in Apatani:

· subject + verb

1. Akki peedo. [dog (is) barking]

2. Ngo luchi. [I shall speak.]

· subject + direct object + verb

1. Ngo lemba chachi (I shall go to village)

2. Ngo lemba chalaa-kendo. (I can go to village)

3. Paat siibin chilo-biine. (Tiger hunted down a goat.)

· subject + direct object + object complement + verb

1. Anku hime mi imi-la-dopa kapa-biine. [Anku found the child asleep.]

· subject + indirect object + direct object + verb

1. Tapu ngiimi pen sonye-he babi. [Tapu brought me two pen.]

· subject + subject complement

1. Yubbey doctor. [Yubbey (is) a doctor.]

2. Lampung hime chikho kone. [Lampung (is) a clever boy.]

· subject + subject complement + verb

1. Lampung hime chikho do. [Lampung is a clever boy.]