ta [tá] vb.
1. to say, to state:
Ọ tae vbene o ya de ― “He stated how it happened”
ta-ma ― “to tell, to report to”^, (cf. khaa). talọ plural or reiterative sense of ta: to talk continuously; to narrate; to prattle; to chat.;
2. (with isẹ) to play the isẹ game
Isẹ Ẹdo lọghọ gbe ne a ta ― “Isẹ Edo is very difficult to play”
;
3. (with ile) to make a bet.
taa [tàá] vb.
1. to imitate; to mimick:
Ọ guẹ vbe a taa ọmwan ― “He is good at imitating people.”
;
2. to compare:
Ai ya Edo taa igue ― “You cannot compare Benin with a village.”
tafia [tàfyá] vb.
to be nosy; to meddle; to interfere; to be forward.
Ẹi re iren a tiere; te ọ tafia lele iran ― “It was not him they called, he merely forwardly tagged along with them.”
taintain [tã̀ĩtã̀ĩ] adv.
1. describes use taste of being over-salted:
Uwọnmwẹn na fian taintain ― “This soup tastes heavily over-salted.”
;
2. describes the pungent whiff of urine:
Úkpo na fian taintain ne ahiọ ― “This bed stinks of urine.”
takhirhi [táxìřì] vb.
to perform a single or multiple somersaults in the air.
talọ [tàlɔ́] vb.
1. pl. or reit. sense of ta
1:
Iran gha talọ ― “They are talking.”
;
2. To grumble; to complain:
Ọ gha talọ ighẹ i ma doo tuẹ iran ― “He is complaining that I did not come to visit them.”
: talọ kue ― “to upbraid; to insult”:
Iran hia talọ kue ọre rhunmwunda emwin daan ne ọ ru ― “They all upbraided him for the bad things that he did”
. talọ maa ― “to report to; to lay a complaint with.”
Iran doo talọ ẹmwẹn ọnrẹn maa erhae ― “They came to report him to his father.”
;
3. (idiom) to be mentally deranged or unstable:
Ọ talọ ― “He is mentally unstable.”
tan1 [tã́] vb.
1. to be tall (of human beings):
Ọvbokhan na gha tan ― “This child will be tall.”
;
2. to be long (applies to both time and objects):
Ẹghẹ ne ọ gbe vbe Ẹdo ẹre ọ tan sẹẹ ne ọ khian gbe vbe Eko ― “The period he spent in Benin is longer than what he will spend in Lagos.”
Erhan na ma tan sẹ vbene ima ho ― “This stick is not long enough as we want”: “^This stick is not as long as we would want.”
tan2 [tã́] vb.
1. to spread out:
Iran tan ukpọn ye ovẹn ― “They spread out clothes in the sun.”
;
2. to hang or tie across (e.g. a rope):
Ọ tan irri ye odẹ ― “He tied a rope across the road.”
tantanantan [tã̀tã̀ã̀tã̀] adv.; adj.
describes something that is erect; straight and stiff:
Ọ niẹ egbe rua tantanantan ― “He stretched his body out straight and erect.”
te1 [té] aux
1. almost:
Ọ te de ― “He almost fell.”
;
2. before:
Ozo te kpaọ, ọ keghi tuẹ iran ― “Before Ozo left, he greeted them.”
te2 [té] aux.
1. (with psychic st. vbs, such as hoo ― “like”, “want”; roo ― “think”; etc.): implies that the state expressed in the verb was not attained:
Ọ te hoo ne i wu ― “He had wanted me to die.”
;
2. (with over vbs.): implies that the state or action described in the vb., though attained or accomplished, is still lacking in truth-value or effect, in some respect, and so the clause is usually followed by another clause introduced by sokpan (but):
Ọ te sẹe, sokpan ọ ma gua mwẹn egbe ― “He sewed it alright, but it did not fit me.”
te3 [té] aux
It occurs optionally at sentence initial position to indicate affirmation with a general meaning that may be glossed as: “It is the case that . . . ”
Te ọ yẹ mwẹn ― “It is the case that I like it”
(i.e. I do like it). When it occurs in a sentence ending with the question particle “ra”, te is usually the focus of the question:
Te ọ yẹ ruẹ ra? “Is it the case that you like it? (i.e. Do you like it?)”^
If the answer to such a question is affirmative, then “te” introduces the sentence:
Eẹn, te ọ yẹ mwẹn ― “Yes,I like it.”
If for any reason it is deleted, the high tone on its vowel replaces the low tone of the pronoun:
Ọ yẹ mwẹn ― “It is the case that I like it.”
tee [tèé] vb.
to decorate, to ornament:
Ọ ya efoto tee ughugha ẹre ― “He decorated his room with pictures.”
teitei [téitéi] adv.
describes the fast beat of the pulses in a state of fear or anxiety:
Udu ẹre gha kpee teitei ― “His heart is beating very fast.”
tengbemu [tẽ̀gbémũ̀] vb.
(< tọn ― egbe ― mu) “to lift body” to be haughty; proud; arrogant.
tete [tèté] vb.
to economize, to use sparingly:
Ọ ma rẹn vbe a tete ígho hẹẹ ― “He does not know how to spend money economically.”
tẹ1 [tɛ́] vb.
to fall out of favour with; to fall out of grace:
Ọ tẹ nẹ vbe aro mwẹn; ma vbe ọre i ghi ku ― “She has fallen out of favour with me; she and I are no longer close.”
tẹẹ [tɛ̀ɛ́] int.
an address term, expressive of speakers favourable disposition toward the person addressed while at the same time disfavouring a third person:
Lare, tẹẹ ― “Come (”
good person“, etc.)”
tẹẹn1 [tɛ̃̀ɛ̃́] vb.
to be related to; to have as a blood relative:
Ma vbe ọre tẹẹnrẹn vbe oberha ― “She and I are related paternally.”
tẹẹn2 [tɛ̃̀ɛ̃́] vb.
to file up; to display in a file:
Avbe oleghan tẹẹn dee ― “The prisoners are approaching in a file.”
tẹntẹnẹntẹn [tɛ̃́tɛ̃́ɛ̃́tɛ̃́] adv.
describes the state of being crammed:
Ughugha nii vuọn tẹntẹnẹntẹn ne ẹvbo ― “The room is crammed full of people.”
ti [tí] vb.
to boil (e.g. water):
Gie amẹ ti nẹ u ke mu iyan yọ ― “Let the water boil first before you add the yam.”
(also tin).
ti [tí] vb.
to be plump:
Okhuo na ti vbe egbe hia ― “This woman is plump all over.”
tian [tĩ̀ã́] vb.
to praise:
Ọ tian rẹn ye iwinna ne ọ winnae ― “He praised him for the work that he did.”
tiantian [tĩã̀tiã́] vb.
same as niania.
tie [tìé] vb.
1. to call; to summon:
Tiẹ ẹre gun mwẹn ― “Call him for me (also summon him to me)”
.;
2. to utter; to call out ―
Iran tie eni ẹnrẹn vbe odọ ― “They are calling out his name over there.”
;
3. to read (also tiebe):
Ọ tie ebe ne iran gbẹn giẹe ― “He read the letter that they wrote to him.”
tiebe [tièbé] vb.
(< tie ― ebe) “to read book”: to read; to study ―
Ọ gua tiebe ― “He can read”
(cf. tie).
tiẹbọ [tìɛ́bɔ́] vb.
(< tie-ẹbọ) “to call a deity”: to swear; to swear at (somebody).
Ọ tiẹbọ mẹ ― “He swore at me.”
tighitighi [tìɣìtìɣì] adv.
in a tangled state:
Irri na ye tighitighi ― “This rope is all tangled up.”
tiihẹn [tìhɛ̃́] vb.
to swear at; to curse (a person).
tiko [tìkó] vb.
(< tie ― iko) “to summon a meeting”; to assemble; to hold a meeting.
tila [tìlá] vb.
to belittle; to despise:
Ọ ya aro tila oghian mwẹn rua ― “He used eyes to belittle my enemy: He belittled me with her look.”
tin1 [tĩ́] vb.
to fly:
Elikhukhu tin fua ― “The pigeon has flown away.”
tin2 [tĩ́] vb.
(with ihin) to sneeze (It usually occurs as a single word with ihiin when the two are not discontinuous in a sentence):
Ọ tinhiin kuọ nwẹn ― “He sneezed on me.”
tinniẹ [tynĩɛ̃́] vb.
to be small; tiny:
Ọwẹ ọre tinniẹ ― “Her feet are small.”
tinniẹtinniẹ [tĩ́nyɛ̃́tĩ́nĩɛ̃́] adj.; adv.
(with pl. ref. only) very tiny; minute:
Iran ye tinniẹtinniẹ ― “They are very tiny.”
tisẹ [tísɛ̀] vb.
(< ta ― isẹ) “to play isẹ”: to play isẹ ( a kind of game).
titi [tìtí] vb.
1. to be renowned; famous:
Ọba Ẹdo titi gbe ― “The ruler of Benin is very famous.”
;
2. to be popular, to be in vogue:
Igoru titi gbe vbe obọ ikhuo ― “Gold is very popular among women.”
to [tó] vb.
1. to be peppery hot:
Uwọnmwẹn na waa to ― “This soup is very peppery.”
;
2. to be “effective” (usually of a drug, a charm or a deity):
Ukhunmwun na to gbe ― “This medicine is very effective.”
toba [tòbá] vb.
to stick to; to adhere to ―
Ebae toba mu ọkpan ― “Eba has stuck to the plate.”
tobọ-ọmwan [tòbɔ́ɱã̀] adv.
by oneself; the set of reflexive pronouns are formed by replacing the second-part of the compound: “ọmwan” with the possessive form of the respective pronoun forms:
tobọ-mwẹn ― “by myself.”
tobọ-ruẹ ― “by yourself”
;
tobọ-ọre ― “by himself/herself/itself”
; etc.:
Iran tobọ-iran kie urho ― “They opened the door by themselves.”
tohan [tòhã́] vb.
to be compassionate toward; to be kind to; to pity:
Ọ tohan Ozo rhie ígho nẹ ― “He compassionately gave Ozo some money.”
tohio [tòhió] int.
Introductory formula used by a story-teller to invite an audience to listen to his story: Story-teller: Tohio. Audience: Hia hia kpoo. Story-teller: I ra ta okha ọkpa ma uwa ― (“I am going to tell you a certain story”). Audience: tae tao ighẹ ma danmwẹnhọ ― (“Go on and tell it for we are listening”). And then the story begins.
tohoghe [tòhóɣè] vb.
(< ta ― ohoghe) “to tell a lie”; to lie:
Ọ tohoghe gbe ― “He is fond of lying.”
tokha [tóxà] int.
an exclamation indicating surprise, and requesting for confirmation of what had been said. May be interpreted by expressions such as “Really?”; “Is that so?”, etc.
toto [tòtó] vb.
to revive; to fill out (usually of an emaciated person).
Egbe ẹre fẹko toto dee nẹ ― “Her body is gradually filling out again.”
tọ [tɔ́] vb.
to live long:
Emiamwẹn i khian giẹe tọ ― “Sickness will not let him live long.”
tọlọ1 [tɔ̀lɔ́] vb.
1. to itch:
Egbe hia tọlọ mwẹn ― “All my body is itching me: I am itching all over.”
;
2. to scratch:
Ọ tọlọ eke ne imuẹ na rriọe ― “He scratched where the mosquito bit him.”
tọlọ2 [tɔ̀lɔ́] vb.
(with ohuẹn) to suffer from cough; to cough ―
Ohuẹn tọlọ mwẹn ― “Cough aftlicts me: I have cough.”
tọn1 [tɔ̃́] vb.
1. to be hot (i.e. of high temp.)
Ya ukpọn muẹn ighẹ ọ tọn ― “Carry it with a piece of cloth for it is hot.”
tọn2 [tɔ̃́] vb.
to roast (over open fire):
Ọ tọn ọghẹdẹ ne ima re ― “She roasted plantain for us to eat.”
tọn3 [tɔ̃́] vb.
to fell (a tree); to cut down (usually a tree):
Ọ ma tọn erhan ne i rre evba ọ kẹ gha kọ emwin yọ ― “He did not fell the trees there before he started to grow things in it.”
tọn4 [tɔ̃́] vb.
to bury (something) in the ground:
Ọ tọn ígho ẹre hia ye uwotọ ― “He buried all his money in the ground.”
tọn5 [tɔ̃́] vb.
(with mu) to lift; to carry:
Ọ tọn ihẹ mu yan uhunmwun aga ― “He lifted the load onto the top of the chair.”
tọnnọ [tɔ̃̀nɔ̃́] vb.
1. pl. or iter. sense of tọn
2; tọn
3; tọn
4 and tọn
5:
Iran tọnnọ iyan re ― “They roasted yam and ate”
;
Iran tọnnọ erhan nii hia kua ― “They fell all those trees”
;
Iran tọnnọ ígho iran hia ye uwotọ ― “They buried all their money in the ground”
;
Iran tọnnọ ihẹ mu yan uhunmwun ― “They lifted the loads onto their heads.”
tu1 [tú] vb.
1. to cry:
Ọ kpẹre ne ọvbokhan na ke tu sin ― “It is a long time since this child has been crying.”
;
2. to shout:
Iran tu ne oghọghọ vbe iran mioẹn ― “They shouted for joy when they saw him.”
tu2 [tú] vb.
(of ẹgogo) to strike:
Inu ẹgogo ọ he tu yi? “How many clocks have struck? i.e. what time is it?”
tu3 [tú] vb.
(with asẹn) to emit (spit).
tua [tùá] vb.
1. to tighten; to make firm:
Tua irri ne u ya gba iran ne iran ghẹ kharha kua ― “Tighten the rope with which you tied them so that they may not drop out.”
;
2. to intensify (e.g. effort)
Wa tua yọ ne a rherhe ruẹe foo ― “Intensify your effort so that we may complete it in good time.”
(also tuabọ);
3. to be overly-demanding; to impose excessive pressure:
Iwinna rẹn tua gbe ― “His work is too demanding.”
tuabọ [twàbɔ] vb.
(< tua ― obọ) “to tighten hand”: to intensify effort (in doing something). (also zabọ).
tuakpẹ [twàkpɛ́] vb.
(< tua ― ukpe) “to intensify lip”: to shout; to talk loudly.
Ọ tuakpẹ gbe ― “He shouts too much.”
tuasẹn [tuásɛ̃̀] vb.
(< tu3 ― asẹn) “to emit spit”: to spit.
tuantuantuan [tũ̀ã́tũ̀ã́tũ̀ã́] adv.
describes blinking fast:
Ọ gha bunnọ aro tuantuantuan ― “He is blinking fast.”
tuantuantuan [tw̃ã̀tw̃ã̀tw̃ã̀] adv.
describes a constant gaze:
Ọ gha ghe mwẹn tuantuantuan ― “She is gazing at me continuously.”
tue1 [tùé] vb.
1. to pour out (from a container):
Ọ tue ayọn ye ukpu ― “He poured wine into a cup (from a bottle)”
;
2. to spill:
amẹ tue kue otọ ― “Water spilled onto the ground”
;
3. to leak out; to ooze:
Owẹ ne ọgọ fian mwẹn re ye tue esagiẹn ― “My foot which was cut by a piece of bottle is still oozing blood.”
tue2 [tùé] vb.
(of eto) to comb or brush out and leave unstyled or unplaited:
“Okhuo na tue eto ye uhunmwun gha rrie ore”^ ― “This woman brushed out her hair and went out like that i.e. She went out with her hair brushed out unstyled and unplaited.”
tuẹ [twɛ́] vb.
1. to greet; to salute.
Ọ ma tuẹ ọmwan rhọkpa vbe ọ laọ owa ― “He did not greet anybody when he came into the house.”
;
2. to pay a visit (to a person):
Ọ ya tuẹ ọse ọre ne ọ da biẹ ― “She went to visit her friend who had just had a baby.”
tuẹin [tw̃ɛ́ĩ́] adv.; adj.
describes something very small (also tueintuein for pl. or iter. ref.)
Ehia ye tuẹintuẹin ― “They are all very tiny.”
tuẹintuẹin [tw̃ɛ̃́ĩtw̃ɛ̃́ĩ] vb.
cf. tuẹin.
tuẹyi [twɛ̀yí] vb.
to announce the presence of a person; to seek audience for a person:
Ọ kpẹre nẹ i ghi rre sin; i ma miẹ enọ tuẹyi mwẹn ― “It is a long time since I arrived; I did not find anybody to announce my presence.”
tukẹ [tùkɛ́] vb.
to be small, tiny.
Iyan na tukẹ gbe ― “These yams are too small.”
tukẹtukẹ [túkɛ́túkɛ́] adv.; adj.
describes very tiny things or a manner of doing things in small bits:
Ọ manọ iran tukẹtukẹ ― “He moulded them in little bits.”
tulẹ [tùlɛ́] vb.
1. to run (same as rhulẹ);
2. tulẹmu: to pick up a race; to take off; to start running
tuo [twó] vb.
1. to hang low:
Ọbọtuo na tuo ― “These eaves are low-hanging”^
;
2. (of a garment) to droop low; to be long:
Gi abọ ẹwu na tuo ― “Let the edge of this cloth droop low.”