Dictionary of Louisiana Creole

The contents of this website remain the intellectual property of the following authors: Albert Valdman, Thomas A. Klingler, Margaret M. Marshall, Kevin J. Rottet

• Warning: There has been no censoring of the data, including offensive language or racial slurs.
• Orthography: Entries use the modern Kouri-Vini Orthography; however, the examples retain their original orthography based on Haitian Creole from the book. There are also several examples written in a French Orthography; these have also been left as is in the book. Additionally, the acute (à) and circumflex (â) when used for stress, preterit, or disambiguation, have not been included separately (i.e., aren't used).
• There are several variants for certain sounds that have not been included in the variants for entries. Please use the variants in quotations in place of the others when searching for words with the following sounds:
  • use "s" for /s/ ← s, ç
  • use "è" for /æ/ ← æ, è
  • use "i" for /ɪ/ ← ì, i
  • use "an" for /ã/ ← an, am, en, em
  • use "on" for /ɔ̃/ ← on, om
  • use "in" for /ɛ̃/ ← in, im
• Parts of Speech abbreviation correspondences:
  • adj. = Adjective
  • adv. = Adverb
  • adv.phr. = Adverbial Phrase
  • art.def. = Definite Article
  • art.indef. = Indefinite Article
  • conj. = Conjunction
  • dem. = Demonstrative
  • det. = Determiner
  • det.poss. = Possessive Determiner
  • f. = Feminine
  • int. = Interjection
  • interr.phr. = Interrogative Phrase
  • m. = Masculine
  • n. = Noun
  • n.phr. = Noun Phrase
  • num.card. = Cardinal Number
  • num.ord. = Ordinal Number
  • onom. = Onomatopoeia
  • pl. = Plural
  • place n. = Place Name
  • prep. = Preposition
  • pron. = Pronoun
  • pron.indef. = Indefinite Pronoun
  • pron.refl. = Reflexive Pronoun
  • pron.rel. = Relative Pronoun
  • prop.n. = Proper Noun
  • ptcl. = Preverbal Particle
  • sg. = Singular
  • v. = Verb
  • v.aux. = Auxiliary Verb
  • v.cop. = Copular Verb
  • v.intr. = Intransitive Verb
  • v.mod. = Modal Verb
  • v.phr. = Verb Phrase
  • v.refl. = Reflexive Verb
  • v.tr. = Transitive Verb
• Sources abbreviation correspondences (post-1960):
  • gen = (BT + CA + NE + PC + ST)
  • AN = Ancelet 1994
  • BT = Bayou Teche, field data
  • CA = Côte des Allemands, field data
  • DC = Clifton 1980
  • DT 77 = Tentchoff 1977
  • GY = Guidry, Richard
  • HW = Hebert Wiltz
  • MO 60 = Morgan 1960
  • MO 69 = Morgan 1969
  • MO 72 = Morgan 1972
  • NE = Neumann 1985
  • PC = Pointe Coupee, field data
  • ST = Saint Tammany, field data
  Sources abbreviation correspondences (pre-1960):
  • BD = Broussard 1942
  • BI = Bienvenu 1933
  • BO = Bourgeois 1927
  • DU = Durand 1930
  • FO T# = Fortier 1895
  • FO 1887 = Fortier 1887
  • GC1 = Cable 1886a
  • GC2 = Cable 1886b
  • JR = Jarreau 1931
  • KB = Krehbiel 1962
  • LA = Lavergne 1930
  • ME = Mercier 1881
  • ME 90 = Mercier 1890
  • ME 91 = Mercier 1891
  • PE = Perret 1933
  • T# = Neumann 1987 Text # (T12–T17 are satirized Creole, use with caution)
  • TM = Marie Augustin
  • TN = Tinker 1935
  • TP = Trappey 1916
  • WO = Marguerite Wogan

Website created by William S. Morales.

5139 entries found

• grimas PC ( n. ) lagrimas CA
  1. Face; grimace.
     Li te gen vilen lagrimas. Li te pa kontan. He had an awful face. He wasn’t happy. (CA) •an grimas adj.phr. (PC). Making a face; qui fait une grimace. Li tou an grimas. Li pa gen en vayan figi on li , to ka wa li an grimas, li pa satisfe. He’s making a face. He doesn’t have a pleasant face. You can see he’s making a face, he is unhappy. (PC) •fe enn grimas v.phr. (PC); fe lagrimas (CA). To make a face, scowl; faire une grimace. Piti-afe enn grimas . The child made a face. (PC); Li fe vilen lagrimas. He scowled. (CA) ♦ Moune mouri touzoufé grimace, et mo pa ouâ grimace on so figur. Dead people are always scowling, and I saw no scowl on his face. (T3) See examples
• grimasé PC ( v.intr. )
  1. To make a face; faire une grimace.
     Le e grimase. Li an grimas bo maten-la, sa ennen a twa to an grimas? He’s making a face this morning. What’s wrong with you, you’re making a face? (PC) See examples
• grimi BT, CA, PC ( n. ) grimiy BT
  1. Tiny piece, crumb; petit morceau, miette.
     En ti grimi d vyonn. A tiny piece of meat. (BT); Dòn-mwa en grimi gato. Give me a tiny piece of cake. (CA) See examples
• grin No sources ( n. )
  1. Craziness, unprovoked anger; folie, colère non-provoquée. •gen en gren d foulri
     v.phr. (BT). To be mad at s.o. for no good reason; être fâché contre qn sans raison évidente. Li gen gren. Li gen en gren d foulri. He is mad at me for no good reason. (BT) See examples
• grin CA ( n. )
  1. Grain; grain, •disel a gro gren
     n.phr. Coarse grained salt; sel à gros grains, cf. disèl •diri gren lon n.phr. Long grain rice; riz à grains longs. cf. diri See examples
• grinad CA, PC ( n. ) gadnad PC grènad PC
  1. Pomegranate; grenade.
     Mo pans to ja wa grènadz. O lan chèmen, i pann kòm sa, grènad. I think you’ve already seen pomegranates along the road, they hang down like that. (PC); To trouv grenad dan bwa-la. Ye vyen jón kan se tan pou manje ye. You find pomegranates in the woods. They get yellow when it’s time to eat them. (CA) ♦ Raisins apé grimpé, grénades apé grossi. The grapes are climbing, the pomegranates are getting big. (T27) See examples
  2. Passion fruit, may pop; fruit de la grenadille, du fruit de la passion. (Passiflora incamata). (PC) REM: According to Holmes 1990: 107, liane de grenade is the name of the passion flower plant, grenade of the fruit; he says the pomegranate is called grenadine in Louisiana French.
• grinpé CA, PC, ST ( v. ) granpé PC
  1. To climb; grimper.
     Li granpe dan dibwa-la. He climbed up the tree. (PC); Si to jis touch en tal fromi rouj, ye va sòrti e grenpe apre twa e mèrd twa. If you just touch a red ant hill, they’ll come out and climb on you and bite you. (CA) ♦ Lapen li te malen, li grenpe don kre mirye jiska o bout miry e-la. Rabbit was cunning, he climbed into the hollow of a mulberry tree all the way to the tip of the tree. (LA) See examples
• grinsé No sources ( v.tr., v.phr. ) ’grinncér so dints’ No sources
  1. To grind one’s teeth; grincer ses dents.
     ♦ Compère lou comancé rire é grincer so dents. Brer Wolf began to laugh and to grind his teeth. (ME 90) See examples
• grip NE, PC, ST ( n. ) lagrip CA, PC
  1. Cold, flu, influenza; grippe, rhume.
     Sa se ede kase lè grip. That helped to break up a cold. (PC); Mo malad'. Mo gen lagrip. I’m sick. I’ve got the flu. (CA); Mo te gen en grip. I had a case of the flu. (ST) See examples
  2. Headache; mal à la tête. (PC)
• griv CA, PC ( n. )
  1. American robin; rouge-gorge américain. (Planesticus migratorius migratorius) (PC)
  2. Any yellow or red-breasted bird; n’importe quel oiseau à la poitrine jaune ou rouge. (CA)
• griyad PC ( n. )
  1. Thin slice of meat; petite tranche de viande.
     Mo te gen kèk griyad mo mete dan en chodyè e mo kwi. I had a few small pieces of meat, I put them in a pan and I cooked them. (PC) See examples
  2. Salted meat; viande salée.
     O griyad , se lavyòn sale sa. Oh, [griyad], that’s salt meat. (PC) See examples
  3. Dish made of grilled inner organs; plat composé d’abats grillés. (PC)
  4. Strips of meat (e.g. seven steaks) cooked in tomato gravy; tranches de viande cuites dans une sauce tomate. (PC)
• griyanté CA, PC ( v.tr. ) griyoté CA
  1. To nibble; grignoter.
     Mo griyante sa. Manje en vye ti bren andan lan. I nibbled on it, ate just a little bit. (PC) ; Mo te pa fen jodi. Mo te jich ap griyante mo manje. I wasn’t hungry today. I was just nibbling at my food. (CA) • Tan li rivé, li ouâ Compair Bouki apé guignoté ein dizo. When he arrived, he saw Brer Bouki nibbling on a bone. (T4) See examples
• griyon CA ( n. )
  1. Cricket; grillon.
     Tou lanwit griyon-y t ape chante . All night long the crickets were singing. (CA) See examples
• griyé CA, NE ( v.tr. )
  1. To grill, roast; griller, rôtir.
     Mo rou ape fe griye onho en ti feu. My roux is grilling over a little fire. (NE); Mo mèt mo morso lavyann dan mo lapwal e mo griye li. I put my piece of meat in my frying pan and I grill it. (CA) ♦ M’a ‘trapé tits bougues-yé et m ‘a coupé yé dans tits moceaux et ma grillé yé dans mo difé! I’m going to catch the little boys and cut them in little pieces and grill them on my fire. (BD) See examples
• grizat CA ( adj. ) grizad PC
  1. Grayish; grisâtre.
     E l fèmèl la li pa gen bar nwa la, li grizad, li gri, li tate gri parey konm en rob nwa le gen tat gri. And the female does not have black stripes, she is grayish, she has gray spots just like a black dress that has gray spots. (PC); Mo lave mo ròb me li toujou grizat. Li pa lave prop. I washed my dress but it’s still grayish. It didn’t wash clean. (CA) See examples
• grizonné BT, ST ( v.intr. )
  1. To turn gray; grisonner.
     Me chveu te ape grizonne. My hair was turning gray. (BT); Mo labarb grizonne. My beard turned gray. (ST) See examples
• gro CA, MO 60, PC ( adj. ) gros (f.) PC gros NE
  1. Big; grand, gros.
     Se en gro danbwa an bitasyon-la. There’s a big swamp on this plantation. (PC); Poul-la so lafal gro e mayi. That chicken’s craw is full of com. (CA) •Quand li nain, li té pas plis gros qué to pouce. Ça fait, yé pélé li Tit Poucette. When he was bom he was no bigger than your thumb. So they called him Tom Thumb. (BD) •gro kreol n.phr. Broad Creole; gros créole, cf. kreyòl. •gro ladjèl n.phr. Bigmouth, loudmouth; gueulard, cf. djœl •gro lafyev n.phr. High fever; forte fièvre, cf. fyèv •gro lapli n.phr. Heavy rain; pluie forte, cf. laplui • gro larjan n.phr. A lot of money; beaucoup d’ argent, cf. larjan • gro latèt n.phr. Big-head, conceited; crâneur, vaniteux, cf. tèt •gro lòrtèy n.phr. Big toe; gros orteil, cf. òrtèy •gro misyeu n.phr. Big shot; gros bonnet, gros chien. cf. misyeu •gro-moun n.phr. Rich people; gens riches. cf. monn • gro-neve n.phr. Grandnephew; petit-neveu. cf. neve •gro nèg n.phr. Creole as spoken by blacks on the German Coast; créole parlé par les noirs de la Côte des Allemands. cf. nèg •gro-papa adj.phr. Big, big old; grand. • So jié té apé cléré on ein gro popa carancro ki té jouké on ein vié diboi sec. His eyes were fixed on a big old black bird which was perched in an old dry tree. (T6) •gro chyen n.phr. Big shot, large landowner; gros chien, propriétaire de grandes terres, cf. chyen See examples
  2. Tall; grand.
     Ye te plu gro ke mon . They were taller than I was. (PC) See examples
  3. Big, important; grand, important.
     Lòt boug-la k te jouwe regle pou gro blan-ye. The other guy who played regularly for the important whites. (PC) See examples
  4. Eldest; aîné, plus âgé.
     Mo gro gason . My oldest boy. (PC) See examples
  5. Fat; gros, gras.
     Li gro e li gra e li an bon sante . He is big and fat and in good health. (PC) See examples
• gro-bèk CA ( n. ) gran-bék PC
  1. Big sun-gazer, American bittern; couac, butor d’Amérique.
     (Botourus lentiginosus ). Dibwa-mare, se la ou gro-bèk e zegrefe ye nik . In button-bush is where American bitterns and egrets make their nests. (CA) REM: This bird is also known as garde-soleil, couac, butor and biorque in Louisiana (RD), •gro-bèk-preri n. (CA); gro-bèk-Iapleri (CA). Big sun-gazer, American bittern; butor d’Amérique, couac. (Botaurus lentiginosus). See examples
• gro-rouj PC ( n. )
  1. Solution of crushed red brick and water, used for cleaning and waterproofing; solution de brique broyée et d’eau, utilisée à nettoyer et à rendre étanche.
• grolé PC ( adj. )
  1. Half-cooked, hard; moitié cuit, dur.
     Patat grole, mwòyen kwi en peu. Half-cooked potatoes. They’re only partly cooked. (PC) See examples
• Grond-Pwint NE ( place n. )
  1. Grande Pointe.
• grondé No sources ( v.tr. )
  1. To scold; gronder.
     ♦ Mo palé grondé toi pou ça. I’m not going to scold you for that. (ME) See examples
• gront-o NE ( n. ) grant-o MO 60
  1. Flood; inondation.
     ♦ Ein annain vini quand yé té gain lagrand’eau. A year came when they had a flood. (BD) See examples
• gronyé BT ( v.intr. ) grony PC gronyin CA gronñin CA
  1. To roll, rumble (of thunder); gronder, rouler (en parlant du tonnerre).
     Sa sanmb laplu. Wè, tonnèr-lan grony. It looks like rain. The thunder is rumbling. (PC) ♦’ Tonnerre grondé, laplie tombé, crapeau crié, ç’ain vié chanson tout moun conain...tout moun qui vié. ‘The thunders rumbles, the rain falls, the toads cry out,’ that’s an old song that all old folks know. (T27) See examples
  2. To growl (of animal, stomach, etc.); grogner.
     To vant jich ap grongnen. Petèt to fen. Your stomach is growling. Maybe you’re hungry. (CA) ♦ Fé oua dé chien qui tapé grongnin nez a nez . They saw two dogs who were growling nose to nose. (FO T15) See examples
  3. To grumble, grouse, complain; grogner, se plaindre.
     Li lèm gronye tou-l-ton kon mo bezenn li pou fe kètchòz pou mò . He likes to grumble all the time when I need him to do something for me. (BT) See examples
  4. To moan; gémir.
     Mo ti bebe ap grongnen. Mo pa konen si li gen kolik. My little baby is moaning. I don’t know if he’s got colic. (CA) See examples
• gros BT, NE ( adj. ) gros CA gro NE
  1. Pregnant; enceinte.
     Esta gros. Estelle is pregnant. (BT); L ap ale gen ti bebe. Li gros. She’s going to have a baby. She’s pregnant. (CA) See examples
• grosi CA, PC, ST ( v.intr., v.tr. )
  1. To grow up (of people); grandir.
     Mo mari, so-tchenn popa pale meriken avek li kon li l te vini òp, kon li li te e grosi . My husband, his own father spoke English to him when he was growing up. (PC) See examples
  2. To grow; grandir, pousser.
     Mo kafe diven cheri. Se en ti kichò li nwa li grosi an en dibwa. I can make cherry wine; that is a little black berry that grows on trees. (PC); To plante to patat me ye pa ap grosi. You planted your potatoes but they’re not growing. (CA) ♦ Des figues apé vini et ti zoranges aussi, raisins apé grimpé, grénades apé grossi. Figs are coming out and little oranges also, grapes are climbing, pomegranates are growing. (T27) •grosi vayan v.phr. (CA). To thrive, grow well; se plaire (en parlant des plantes), profiter, venir bien. Flèr-la ape grosi vayan. The flower is thriving. (CA) See examples
  3. To get fat; grossir.
     T ap grosi. T ap vini tro gro. You’re getting fat. You’re getting too fat. (CA)To grow, raise; élever. Se di pou grosi ye isit astè. Pa ka grosi depech, ye vyen pa gro. It’s hard to grow them here now. You can’t grow peaches, they don’t get very big. (PC) See examples
• grosri BT, CA, NE, PC ( n. ) lagrosri CA, ST
  1. Groceries; provisions, épicerie.
     Mèt tou ye grosri onho la pi vini o Pon Bro pi delivre sa. They would put all their groceries on it and come to Breaux Bridge to deliver them. (BT) •fe grosri v.phr. (PC); fe (no) grosri, fe de grosri (PC). To do the grocery shopping, shop for groceries; acheter les provisions, faire des courses. Li pran tro bokou d tan ka li va fe grosri. She takes too much time when she goes shopping. (PC) See examples
  2. Grocery store; épicerie, supermarché.
     M ap ale o grosri. Mo gen pou achte kafe, disik e lavyann . I'm going to go to the store to do grocery shopping. I’ve got to buy coffee, sugar and meat. (CA); Anon ale lagrosri. Let’s go to the grocery store. (ST); De grosri o Pon Bro-la, kan ye te fe enn òrd, ptèt prann ye deu mwò. The grocery stores in Breaux Bridge, whenever they would fill an order it would take them perhaps two months. (BT) ♦ Li mené moué dan ein la grosri hé là li fé moué boa sa Méritchiens yé pélé kottel. He took me into a grocery store and he had me drink what Americans call a cocktail. (T12) See examples
• grosèr CA ( n. ) grosè CA, PC
  1. Size; grosseur, taille, grandeur.
     Chwini, vou ouv li konm vou le, lajè. Laès, se en sèl grosè. On a small harrow you can adjust the width as you like. On a harrow, there’s only one size. (PC); Ki grosèr t ole? Koman gro t ole sa? What size do you want? How big do you want this? (CA) ♦ Torti kouri chèche so frè ki te menm grosè avek li. Turtle went to get his brother who was the same size as he was. (JR) See examples
• grouyé gen ( v.intr., v.tr. )
  1. To move, move around; se déplacer.
     T ape grouye en peu dousman. Kofè to pa grouye plu vit ke sa? You’re moving somewhat slowly. Why don’t you move faster than that? (CA) ♦Li tan en lachenn grouye on so grenyen. He heard a chain rattling in his attic. (JR) •grouye (li-) menm v.phr. (CA). To get moving, get busy; se dépêcher. Grouye twa-mèm pli vit ke sa. Depèche. Move yourself faster than that. Hurry. (CA) ♦ So lestama konmons e gronye... Safe li te gen pou grouye li-menm e chèche kichòz pou li monje. His stomach started growling, so he had to get busy and find something to eat. (DU) 2. To rock, sway, shake; bouger, remuer. ♦ En vilen loragan tonbe on ye. Navir-la grouye plen, men li tchobo en bon bout tan. A nasty storm came upon them. The ship rocked about, but it held on for a good while. (JR)1. To shake; secouer. Lontan pase ye te fe matla evèk lapay. Ye gen p pran en baton tou le maten e soukouye li byen. Otreuman se vini tou dyur si to se pa grouye li avèk baton-la. A long time ago they made mattresses out of straw. They had to take a stick every morning and shake it well. Otherwise it would get hard if you didn’t shake it with the stick. (CA) •grouye ye latet v.phr. (CA). To shake one’s head; hocher, secouer la tête. To jich ap grouye to latèt. Sa ena e twa? To pa dakòr? You’re just shaking your head. What’s the matter with you? You don’t agree? (CA) ♦ Li mande lòt nèg-ye ou li te kouri konm sa, men ye grouye ye latet e reponn ye te pa konnen. He asked the other black men where he was going like that, but they shook their heads and said they didn’t know. (JR) •grouye so dèryè v.phr. (PC). To shake, move (one’s behind); bouger ses fesses. To gen grouye to dèryè. You have to move your behind (while dancing). (PC) 2. To move; bouger. Ye ka grouye baryè plu fasil avek sa. They can move the fence more easily with that (i.e. when it’s made of iron instead of pickets). (PC) 3. To make noise; faire du bruit. Pantir-la ape grouye . Li bezonn mèt lwil la-desi. The hinge is making noise. He needs to put oil on it. (CA) See examples
• gru No sources ( n. )
  1. Crane (bird); grue (oiseau).
     ♦ Ain lou té accroché ain dézo dan so gosié. Li promette ain gru récompenser li, si li té oulé fourrer so latête laddan é oter dézo-là. A wolf got a bone caught in his throat. He promised a crane he would make it up to him if he would stick his head in and remove the bone. (ME 90) See examples
• grènaj No sources ( n. ) grènnaj PC [in sense 2:] grènnwa CA
  1. Seed; graine.
     En grènaj se kichò te e plante, se plante lagrèn koton o lagrenn mayi, se en grennaj to pel sa. Tou kichò gen en grenaj. Lagrenn koton, lagrenn mayi, lagren defèv plat, lagrenn gòmbo. A seed is something you’re planting, if you’re planting cotton seed or corn seed you call it a seed. Everything has a seed. Cotton seed, corn seed, butter bean seed, okra seed. (PC) See examples
  2. Machine for shelling com; égreneuse. (PC)
• grènn BT, CA, MO 60 ( n. ) lagrènn PC grèn NE
  1. Seed; graine.
     Kan to plant koton to plann lagrenn-ye tou dilon. When you’re planting cotton you plant the seeds all along. (PC); To plant to grenn-ye. Kan ye lèv safe en flè. Li ron e li jón e li gen grenn andan-la. Ye manj grenn flè solèy. You plant your seeds. When they grow it makes a flower. It’s round and yellow. People eat sunflower seeds. (CA) •lagrenn koton n.phr. (PC). Cotton seed; graine de coton. Lagrenn koton. Lagrenn-la dan blan-la. The cotton seed. The seed is in the white part. (PC) •grenn moutard n.phr. (CA). Mustard seed; graine de moutarde. Pou trape fifole, ye te gen en tami e ye te mèt grenn moutard anba-la. To catch a will-o-the-wisp, they would get a sieve and they would put mustard seeds on the bottom of it. (CA) ♦ Fe bouyi de grenn moutard e donn a bwar jiska la po vini mwèt. Boil some mustard seeds and give that to the sick person to drink until the skin becomes moist. (BI) See examples
  2. Seed, pit, stone (of fruit); noyau, pépin, graine.
     En soko, li gen en ti lagrenn, li gen en lekòch on la. A muscadine grape, it has a seed inside and a shell outside. (PC) See examples
  3. Grain, kernel (of com, rice, sugar); grain (de maïs, riz, sucre).
     En grenn mayi. A kernel of com. (CA); Li koup lagrenn-lan plu fen. He grinds the grains of sugar up finer. (PC) ♦ Li leve tou dousman e ranpli so pòch-ye avek de grenn mai fwa-sa-la. Li semen lagrenn mai-la tou di lon la rout. He got up slowly and filled his pockets with grains of corn this time. He sowed the grains of corn all along the road. (JR) See examples
  4. Sprinkle, light rain; bruine, crachin, brume.
     Lagrenn e tonmbe. A light rain is falling. (PC) See examples
  5. Testicles; testicules.
     Enn etalonn ti peu pa gade tou lez etalon. Ti wa se grenn ? En nonm vyen la-leu, i koup avèk en kouto, e pi ote se grenn. A stallion, you can’t keep every stallion. You see his testicles? A man comes along with a knife and cuts them off and removes his testicles. (BT) See examples
• grènn-a-volé CA ( n. ) grènn-a-vwalé CA
  1. American lotus, water chinquapin, duck acorn; volée, espèce de nénuphar blanc. (Nelumbo lutea Pers.).
     Chevrey lenm grenn-a-vwale. Ye manj sa. Deer like water chinquapin. They eat that. (CA) See examples
• grènni PC ( n. ) grèni PC
  1. Midwife; sage-femme.
     Se ye ki te mennen piti-ye, se grèni ki mennen tou mo senk fiy-ye, e mo de garson. They’re the ones who delivered the kids, it’s the midwives who delivered my five daughters, and my two sons. (PC) •grèni-trape-ti-bebe n.phr. (PC). Midwife; sage-femme. See examples
• grènnin CA ( v.tr. ) glènnin CA
  1. To crystallize (of sugar); se cristalliser (en parlant du sucre).
• grènnyolé PC ( v. ) grènnilé CA
  1. To granulate; granuler.
     M ap ale grennile mo disik pou fe mo gato. I’m going to granulate sugar to make my cake. (CA) See examples
• grès NE ( n. ) lagrés PC lagrès CA, MO 60, NE, PC
  1. Fat, grease, lard, shortening; graisse, matière grasse.
     Kataplanm se kan to gen en bobo, to me sa an en lenj, nenpòt ki lagres. A poultice is when you have a wound, you put any kind of grease on a piece of cloth. (PC); To koup to fevi. To mèt sa dan chodyèr e de lagrès. You cut up okra. You put it in a pot with grease. (CA) ♦ Safe Bouki roule don en kenn lagrès pou li te kapo flote. So Bouki rolled in a can of grease so that he would be able to float. (LA) •lagrès kanfre n.phr. (CA). Camphorated oil; huile camphrée. Ye te sèrvi lagrès kanfre pou kolik pou frote ti bebe an so ti vant. They used to use camphorated oil for colic to rub babies on their little stomachs. (CA) See examples
• grèsé CA ( v.tr. ) grèsè PC grésé CA, PC
  1. To grease; graisser.
     Ka grèsè l ave en peu lagres oben en peu dubè foure li dan stov. You can grease it up with a little grease or a little butter and put it in the stove. (PC) ♦ Ça, cé lagresse zozo paradis; couri gressé vou lahace avé li et di vou famme coupé vou cou; ça pa pé fé vou mal. That is the fat from the bird of paradise; go grease your axe with that and tell your wife to cut off your head; it will not harm you. (T8) See examples
• grèñin MO 60 ( n. ) griñin PC griyin PC grinñin CA grinyin CA grinyé NE
  1. Barn, granary; grange, grenier.
     Pa Tòm tè galòpe nèt an grègnen. Pa Tom ran straight into the bam. (MO 60) See examples
  2. Attic; grenier.
     Ye gen en gro djòg. Tan ste vye mezon an laplanch laj-ye, te kou va kachye l an grignen o anmba lèskalye. They had a big jug. In the days that houses had those big wide boards, they would hide it in the attic or under the stairs. (PC); Mo t ap grenpe an grengnen. Mo tonbe anba lechèl-la. I was climbing up into the attic. I fell off the ladder. (CA) ♦ Li tan en lachenn grouye on so grenyen. He heard a chain rattling in his attic. (JR) See examples
• gréf PC ( n. )
  1. Office of the clerk of the court; greffe.
     Se pare konm si t ole kouri dòn kekenn kekkichò to gen met li dan gref pa dan gref dan ASSESSOR'S OFFICE pou di to dòn li kekkichò. It’s like if you want to give someone something you have to go declare it in the clerk of the court, not the clerk, the assessor’s office. (PC) See examples
• grég PC ( n. ) lagrèg CA, NE grèg NE
  1. Drip coffee pot; cafetière à filtre.
     Mo lagrèg kafe te sal e mo lave li pou fe kafe bon maten. My coffee pot was dirty and I washed it so I could make coffee this morning. (CA) •greg kafe n.phr. (PC). Coffee pot; cafetière. See examples
• grék PC ( n. )
  1. Spike on the fins of a catfish; pointe piquante sur les nageoires du poisson-chat.
     Lagrek-la, wi. Men li granfignen. Sa granfignen twa. The spikes, yes. But they will scratch you. (PC) See examples
• grémité CA ( v.intr. )
  1. To crumble; s’émietter.
     Mo pa konen ou sa ye lapyèr-la astèr-la me eusot di ke sete kase si par ti morso. Sa gremite. I don’t know where the stone is now, but they say it broke into so many tiny pieces. It crumbled. (CA) See examples
• grœnasé CA ( v.intr. ) grènnasé grinasé CA, ST, CA grènasé PC
  1. To drizzle, rain in a fine mist; bruiner, crachiner.
     Le e grènase pou fe lapli. Le e tonbe enn de grenn ichka lapli a vini en gro lapli. A few drops are falling to make rain. A few drops are falling until the rain gets heavy. (PC); Li ape grennase. It’s drizzling. (ST) See examples
• grœnouy CA, PC ( n. ) gœrnouy PC grinoui CA gournoui CA
  1. Frog; grenouille.
     Ti gournoui ye konen sote lwen dan dolo, an latèr. Little frogs know how to jump far in the water, on land. (CA) ♦ Ye rive kote en ti bayou-la ou enn ave plen de grounouy ki t ape chante. They arrived at a little bayou with a lot of frogs singing. (JR) See examples
• gwalon PC ( n. ) gwalan CA, PC
  1. Sea gull; goéland, mouette.
     Kan kou-d-tan ap vini, gwalan-ye ap votije tou partou, kan tan ap boulvèrse. When the weather is about to change, the sea gulls fly around everywhere, when the weather is changing suddenly. (CA) See examples
• gwat CA ( n. ) lagwat PC
  1. Goiter; goitre.
     Kon se gonfle, to wa sa gonfle, ye pèl sa lagwat, s enn maladi. When (the throat) is swollen they call that goiter, it’s a sickness. (PC); Fonm blan te gen gro lagwat anba so kou. Sete vilen. The white woman had a big goiter on her neck. It was ugly. (CA) See examples
  2. Throat; gorge. (PC)
• gèr No sources ( n. ) lagèr CA, NE, PC, CA, NE, PC gè PC lagè PC
  1. War; guerre.
     Le vyeu lida, sa toujou kontraye pou lagèr. Ka-mèm inave lagèr, la pe te signen, me sa toujou kontraye. The old leaders continued on with the war. Even when peace had been signed, they kept the war going. (PC); Mo te gen en garson ki te ale dan lagèr. Li te tchwe dan lagèr. I had a son who went to war. He was killed in the war. (CA) ♦ Favè ye te pa bon avon lagè. The Favets were no good before the war. (DU) •’fait la guerre’ v.phr. To make war, fight a war; faire la guerre. ♦ Li oua yé té apé préparé pou fait la guerre. He saw that they were preparing to make war. (FO T15) •kou lagè v.phr. (PC); ale lagèr (CA). To go to war; aller à la guerre. Nonm-l e kouri lagè. The men are going to war. (PC) ♦ Si nou kouri dan ladjaire Meskick. If we go to war in Mexico. (T17) •gèr sivil n.phr. (PC). The Civil War; la Guerre de Sécession. Dan vyeu tan, nave dez esklav, e ye fe èn gèr sivil', e leu monn bat, to kòmpran? In the old days there were slaves, and they had a Civil War, and people fought, you understand? (PC) See examples
• gèté BT, CA, PC ( v.tr. ) gété CA, NE, PC gét PC gèt NE
  1. To watch, look at; regarder.
     Mo lenm gète tèlèvizyon. Mo lenm gète me zanfon jwe laplòt. I like to watch TV. I like to watch my children play baseball. (BT); Gète! Look! (PC) ♦ Zans boutik yé apé guété en ho ca com chuite guété souri. The people in the store were watching us like a cat watches a mouse. (T17) See examples
  2. To watch, keep an eye on; surveiller, regarder.
     Se ize pou fe mè to gen gete li peche li brile do. (A roux) is easy to make, but you have to watch it to keep it from burning, though. (PC); To gen piti an le galdri. Mo gen pou gète li pa pou li tonbe. You’ve got a child on the porch. I’ve got to watch him so he don’t fall. (CA) ♦ Compair Torti, tan pri, vini guété Compair Lapin ki volé tou to dézef. Brer Tortoise, please corne and keep an eye on Brer Rabbit who stole all of your eggs. (T4) See examples
  3. To spy on; surveiller, regarder furtivement.
     Nouzòt te e gete ye dan krak. We would watch them through a crack. (PC) See examples
  4. To watch out, be careful; faire attention.
     Gete. Ena keken dèryèr to do e li ap ale fou twa. Be careful. There’s someone behind your back and he’s going to hit you. (CA) See examples
• gé CA ( adj. )
  1. Happy; gai, heureux, content.
     Kan keken dòn twa kekchoj, to ge. When someone gives you something, you’re happy. (CA) ♦ Li tro joli! s'écria Mamrie; ga comme li gai, comme lapé ri. ‘He is too cute!’ cried Mamrie. ‘Look at how happy he is, and how he is laughing.’ (ME) See examples