Colours and qualities in Romani: word list
All 21 words of unit 6, “Colours and qualities”, of the Čiriklo course, from A to Z, with English translations.
| Romani | English |
|---|---|
| aľe | but |
| bachtalo | happy |
| baro | big |
| belavo | blue |
| cikno | small |
| goďaver | clever |
| igen | very |
| kalo | black |
| lačho | good |
| lolo | red |
| nasvalo | ill |
| nevo | new |
| parno | white |
| phuro | old |
| sasto | healthy |
| šargo | yellow |
| šukar | nice, beautiful |
| terno | young |
| the | and |
| zoralo | strong |
| žeľeno | green |
Grammar and culture tips
Endings -o, -i, -e
Adjectives end in -o in the masculine (baro kher – big house), in -i in the feminine (bari fameľija – big family) and in -e in the plural (bare čhave – big boys).
Softening
In the feminine, d, t, n and l before -i become soft (palatal – think of the ny sound in canyon): cikno → cikňi, kalo → kaľi, lolo → loľi, terno → terňi.
Šukar never changes
Some adjectives have only one form: šukar čhavo (a good-looking boy), šukar čhaj (a good-looking girl).
Borrowed colours
The colours belavo (blue), šargo (yellow) and žeľeno (green) end in -o in both genders: šargo phabaj – a yellow apple, even though phabaj is feminine. In the plural they end in -a.
Learn it with Čiriklo
This word is taught in unit 6, “Colours and qualities”, of the free app Čiriklo, where you hear it – also slowed down – and practise it in short lessons. The app’s explanations are in Czech.
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