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

• lèt CA, NE ( n. ) lét PC
  1. Letter; lettre.
     Si mo te gen en lèt pou lir, fodre mo te kouri mene li kote en nòm blon ki te kone lir. If I had a letter to read I had to take it to a white man who knew how to read. (NE) ♦ Ce ein laite pa Cachambo té hékri pa Lindor. It was a letter that Pa Cachambo had written to Pa Lindor. (T17) See examples
• lèv No sources ( n. ) lalév PC léyv PC lalèv CA, PC
  1. Lip; lèvre.
     Ben lalèv se mèyè paròl, la lalèv. Mo popa te kònen di babin, men li te juch e fe fòn. [lalèv] is a better word for it. My dad used to say [babin], but whenever he said that he was just joking. (PC) ♦ Li liché so la lève. He licked his lips. (T20) See examples
  2. Lower lip; lèvre inférieure. (CA)
• lèz ST ( n. ) nèz CA
  1. Comfort; confort, aise, •a (so) nèz
     adj.phr. (CA; MO 60; ST). Comfortable; à (son) aise, à l’aise. Li mèt li-mèm a so nèz . He got comfortable. (CA); Mo t ape kouche on planche, me mo te pa a mo lèz. I was lying on the floor, but I was not comfortable. (ST) ♦ Car mo té couché sur plancher, où mo té pas bien à mo l'aise. For I was lying on the floor, where I was not very comfortable. (T39) See examples
• lé BT, MO 60, PC ( det. )
  1. [Prénommai]. The; les.
     Enn etalonn, ti peu pa gade tou lez etalon. A stallion, you can’t keep all of your stallions. (BT); Dan le lak. In the lakes. (PC); Tou le chòj. All of the things. (PC); Le (moun) nwa. Black people. (PC); Le Franse. The French. (PC) ♦ Li te ole pase so la kolè on kekenn e le premyen li rankontre te lours e nelefan. He wanted to take his anger out on someone, and the first ones he met were Bear and Elephant. (JR) • le...sa-la pron.dem. (NE; PC); lèzla(-la) (NE). These, those; ces, ces ... là. Tou le paròl-sa-la, se plus franse. All of those words are more French [than Creole]. (PC) See examples
• lé BT, CA ( n. ) dilé CA, NE, PC dule PC dulé CA, PC dilè MO 60
  1. Milk; lait.
     Te gen enn vach pour t trèr pou gen duleu. (We) had a cow to milk to get our milk. (PC); Pou tire le tete a lavach, to just pèze desi e lè-la sòrti. To milk the cow, you only have to press on them [the teats] and the milk comes out. (CA) ♦ M’ole to va chèche pou mwen enn kòp di le chatig. I want you to go get me a cup of wildcat milk. (JR) •dile kaye n.phr. (CA). Clabber, curdled milk; caillé. Mo mèt dile kaye dan mo bren pou fe CREAM CHEESE. I put curdled milk in my cheesecloth to make cream cheese. (CA) •vini o le v.phr. (BT); vini an le (BT). To begin to lactate, begin producing milk; commencer à produire du lait. Si vou ape pa vini on le, abitudman le vye fanm lonton pase di bouyi de chœvrèt pi f e vou bwar lo pou vou vini on le. If you weren’t producing milk, long ago the old women would tell you to boil some dried shrimp and drink the water to start producing milk. (BT) •kafe o le n.phn Café au lait; café au lait. cf. kafe •zèb-a-le n.phr. Milk purslane, spotted spurge, milkweed; petit pourprier. cf. lèrb See examples
• lébay CA, PC ( n. )
  1. Layby, interval between planting time and harvest; période creuse entre l’ensemencement et la récolte.
     Ka ou fini gen tou zafè STRICT, gen tou kicho pròp, to dòn li de kou d chari epi to fou li en kou d SPLITTER dan milye, to bòs MIDDLE-la, THAT'S lebay. When you’ve finished and you have everything right, you go over it twice with the plow and then you take the splitter through to bust the middle, and that’s a layby. (PC) See examples
• lébay CA, PC ( v.tr. )
  1. To lay (a crop) by, to tend a crop for the last time, leaving it to mature without further cultivation; cultiver (le coton, la canne) pour la dernière fois pour ensuite le laisser mûrir tout seul.
     Pou koton se mol, to mol to koton, la ye vyen e chari, ye laboure sa ankò la, se tan pou lebay koton. For cotton they say ‘mold’, you mold your cotton, then they come along with a plow and plow it again, and then it’s time to lay the cotton by. (PC); Ye ape lebay lekonn jodi. They are laying by the sugar cane today. (CA) See examples
• légim No sources ( n. ) ligim CA, NE, PC, CA légum PC
  1. Vegetable; légume.
     Na tou kalite legim kòm le karòt, le chou. There are all kinds of vegetables like carrots and cabbage. (NE) ♦Am en maïs, ain en léguimes tout mois-ci là. There is com, there are vegetables all month. (T27) See examples
• légòn PC ( n. ) légonn CA
  1. Leghorn chicken; leghorn.
     En ti legòn. A little leghorn chicken. (PC); Le ti legonn se bon a manje e sa ponn de fwa par jou. The little leghorn chickens are good to eat and they lay twice a day. (CA) See examples
• léjislatur No sources ( n. )
  1. Legislature; législature.
     ♦ Mo gagnin dan l'idée que trois la yé ensemble l'apé séyé représenté lalégislature. I had in mind that the three of them together were trying to represent the Legislature. (T40) See examples
• léjitim BT, CA ( adj. ) rèjitim PC
  1. Legitimate (of child bom in wedlock); légitime (en parlant d’un enfant né de parents qui sont mariés).
     Nou te èlve lejitim. Le blan-ye te gen en ti milat isi, te gen en ti milat laba. We were raised legitimate. White people had a mulatto child here, and another one over there. (BT); Lanfan te batize desi non a so moman. Li te pa lejitim. The child was baptized by its mother’s name. It wasn’t legitimate. (CA) •marye rèjitim v.phr. (PC); marye rejitim (PC). To get married legitimately (i.e. by a priest); se marier légitimement (avec un prêtre dans une église). Aben mo mo mariye e mo katolik. E mo mariye rèjitim. Ave pret dan legliz. Well, I’m married and I’m Catholic. I got married legitimately, by a priest in a church. (PC) See examples
• léjitimé BT ( v.tr. ) léjitimin CA
  1. To legitimate; légitimer.
     Paski le blan se pa lejitime le nwar. Because white folks didn’t legitimate their black [children]. (BT); Lalwa dòn ye drwa pou lejitimen ye zanfan. The law gives them the right to legitimate their children. (CA) See examples
• léjé BT, CA ( adj. ) léjè PC
  1. Light (in weight); léger.
     Enn betay vivan pli leje k en betay mòr. A living animal is lighter than a dead animal. (BT); Lenj lete se leje e lenj livèr se lour. Summer clothes are light and winter clothes are heavy. (CA) ♦ Mo té couché là en bas Caïman et mo l'oncle, qui, vous connin pas léger. I lay down below Alligator and my uncle, who, you know, are not very light. (T40) See examples
  2. Thin; mince.
     Li lejè, e l pa rive epe. The sugar cane is thin, and it won’t get very thick. (PC); Lasòs li leje. Li pa epe kòm m ole. The sauce is thin. It’s not thick like I like it. (CA) See examples
• lékipaj CA ( n. )
  1. Ship’s crew; équipage.
     Lekipaj te pa pare pou navige. The crew wasn’t ready to sail. (CA) ♦ Li cogné diboi là avé so baguette, et li tourné bato, pli vayan bato ouzote zamé ouâ, avé lékipaze et tou ça ki fo pou navigué. He struck the tree with his wand and it turned into a ship, the nicest ship you ever saw, with a crew and everything one needs to set sail. (T7) See examples
  2. Kettle, caldron; chaudron.
     ♦ Bouki mené di fé en bas so l'équipage etfait bouilli dolo ladans pendant ein haire. Bouki put tire under the kettle and boiled the water for an hour. (FO T8) See examples
• Léklènn PC ( place n. ) Léklèn PC
  1. Lakeland (small town on False River).
     FROM RIVER END uchka laba dan Leklenn-la, ye pèl sa Lil , Chèmen Lil . From River End all the way to Lakeland, they call that the Island, Island Road. (PC) See examples
• léko CA, PC ( n. )
  1. Echo; écho.
     Mo leko, si se ora en kanal mo leko e kouri lwen lwen laba. My echo, if it’s near a canal my echo will go way off in the distance. (PC); No te dan le bwa e no te ape hele e leko t ap retoumen a nouzòt. We were in the woods and we were yelling and the echo was coming back to us. (CA) See examples
• Lékonm PC ( place n. )
  1. Lecombe (small town on False River).
     Ye te yenk pèl nan bout-sa Labati, e dan bout-sa ye te pèl li Lekonm. They just called the name of this end Labatut, and the other end they called Lecombe. (PC) See examples
• lékoutòr No sources ( n. )
  1. Listener; auditeur.
     ♦ Bon lécoutore li mêté so zoreille on la terre et li tandé bon courore apé ronflé louen, louen là-bas. The good listener put his ear to the ground and heard the good runner snoring, off in the distance. (T7) See examples
• lékèl PC ( pron. ) nékél PC nékèyl PC nékèl PC lékéyl ki PC ki nékèl PC kèl CA, NE kèl ki NE ékèl NE ki CA
  1. subj. Which one(s), who; lequel, laquel, lesquel(le)s.
     ♦ Le premyen li rankontre te Lours e Nelefan. En ave lontan li te ole konnen lekel ki te pli fo. The first ones he met were Bear and Elephant. For a long time he had wanted to know which one was stronger. (JR) See examples
  2. obj. Which one(s); lequel, laquelle, lesquel(le)s.
     Kèl don ye t ape garde pou? Which one of them are you looking for? (NE); Ki nekèl t ole ? Which one do you want? (PC); Kèl chèz mo va asit deudan? Which chair am I going to sit on? (CA) See examples
• lékòr CA, PC ( n. ) lékò PC
  1. Steep slope, bank; accore, berge, rive.
     Mo kwa li te deanche so janm anmba lekòr ki kalte monyè. I think he dislocated his leg, down the bank somehow. (PC) ♦ Courant la té si fort qué di bois té toujou apé couri. Li raclé la terre quand li passé au ras lécore. The current was so strong that the piece of wood was still going. It scraped the land as it passed by the bank. (FO T15) See examples
• lékòsh PC ( n. ) lézékòsh PC, ST lékròsh PC dè kòsh PC lékòrsh CA
  1. Bark (of tree, of sugar cane stalk, etc.); écorce (d’un arbre, de la tige de la canne à sucre, etc.).
     Dibwa-sa-a gen en lekòch ki mens. This tree has a thin bark. (PC); T ape pliche lekòrch apre dibwa-la. You’re peeling the bark off the tree. (CA) ♦ Pou lafyèv, pronn de lekòrch lyar e de rasin di bwa mare, e fe en di te avek. For fever, take some ivy bark and some button-bush roots, and make a tea with it. (BI) See examples
  2. Hull; cosse.
     Kokiy-ye, lekòch-ye. To ote sa-la, to vante li. The hulls. You remove them and winnow it. (PC) See examples
  3. Scale (of fish); écaille (d’un poisson).
     Lezekòch de pwason. Fish scales. (PC) See examples
  4. Skin, peel (e.g. of fruit); épluchure, pelure, peau (p.ex. d’un fruit).
     Ka lekròch desi vyen jonn, aben la vou konnen li dou. When the [pear’s] skin turns yellow, then you know it’s sweet. (PC); Mo anlve lekòrch chawi. I took the skin off the raccoon. (CA) See examples
• lélyé CA, PC ( n. )
  1. Outhouse; cabinet extérieur.
     Li tchen so lelye prop. No te pa gen komòd andan lamezon. No lelye te viz-a-vi poulaye. He keeps his outhouse clean. We didn’t have a toilet in the house. Our outhouse was opposite the henhouse. (CA) See examples
• léléfan CA, PC ( n., prop.n. )
  1. Elephant; éléphant.
     Ye gen gro lelefon-ye. There are big elephants. (PC); En lelefan, se en gro betay. Ena dan Lafrik. An elephant is a big animal. There are some in Africa. (CA) ♦ Li qui té pas plus qu’ein souris, li plus qu'ein éléphant. He who was no more them a mouse is now more than the elephant. (T36)Elephant (folktale character); Eléphant (personnage dans les contes). ♦ Le premyen li rankontre te Lours e Nelefan. The first ones he met were Bear and Elephant. (JR) See examples
• lémon PC ( n. ) limon CA, PC
  1. Lemon; citron.
     To konnen ki se sa en lemon? Do you know what a lemon is? (PC) •gato limon n.phr. Lemon cake; gâteau au citron, cf. gato •pye lemon n.phr. (PC). Lemon tree; citronnier. See examples
  2. Lime; citron vert.
     En limon, se pli piti k en sitron e se vèr. A lime is smaller than a lemon and it’s green. (CA) See examples
• lémou CA, PC ( n. ) lémour CA
  1. Lights, lungs (of animal); poumons (d’un animal).
     Lemou, se lemou kochon, men, se kòm sa nouzòt, nou pè le pòmon. The lights of a pig, that’s just like what we have, we call them lungs. (PC) See examples
• léopar No sources ( n. )
  1. Leopard; léopard.
     ♦ Yé t apé joué, dansé, sauté, poussé des cris, quand toutd'aincoup, ma chère, yé oir ain léopard. They were playing, dancing, jumping, shouting, when all at once they saw a leopard. (T25) See examples
• lésh No sources ( n. )
  1. Earthworm; ver de terre, lombric.
     ♦ [Pou] panari, vlope to dwa avek en lech tou le jou, e lese ye kreve desi-la. For whitlow, wrap your finger with an earthworm everyday, and let it die there. (BI) See examples
  2. Leech; sangsue.
• léshap PC ( n. ) lésha PC
  1. Splinter; écharde.
• léshinn CA ( n. )
  1. Back, spine; échine, dos.
     Mo t ape soufèr avèk lechin dan mo do. Mo te gen mal o do. I was suffering with the spine in my back. I had a backache. (CA) ♦ Tit brin desmouche-la piqué li partout; dans so l'échine, dans so miseau et même dans so nez. The little fly stung him everywhere: on his back, on his muzzle and even on his nose. (BD) See examples
• léstanp CA, PC ( n. ) létanp CA
  1. Brand; fer à marquer.
     Ye tanpe gro betay e lestanp. They branded big animals with a brand. (CA) See examples
• lésé CA, NE, ST ( v.aux., v.tr. ) lèsé CA, PC lès CA, PC
  1. To let, allow; laisser.
     To gen pou debouche la boutey diven pou lese li soufle. You have to uncork the bottle of wine to let it breathe. (CA) ♦ Mais laissé mo halé on yé latché, pétette m a sorti yé. But let me pull on their tails, perhaps I can get them off. (T9) •lese kouri v.phr. (CA). To let go, free, set free, release; relâcher, libérer. Ye te gen li fèrmen e la ye te lese li kouri. They kept it locked up and now they set it free. (CA) ♦ Sa blije et Bon Dye. Anon lese li kouri. It must be the Good Lord. Let’s let Him go. (JR) •lès konnen v.phr. (CA; PC). To let know; faire savoir. Mo pa konen si m ap ale demen. M a lès twa konen. I don’t know if I’m going to go tomorrow. I’ll let you know. (CA) •lese tonbe v.phr. (CA); lès tanmbe (PC). To drop, let fall; laisser tomber. Li lese mo po tonbe par-tè e li brize li. He dropped my pitcher on the floor and he broke it. (CA)1. To leave (a place); quitter. ♦ N’a lese isi ansanm demen maten e sila ki rive kote fiy-la premyen va marye avek li. We’ll leave here tomorrow morning, and the one who arrives first lat the girl’s house will marry her. (JR) 2. To leave (s.o., sth.); laisser (qn, qch). Nou gen pour lèse li uchka i rœfrèdi. We have to leave it until it cools off. (PC); Ye koupe dibwa-la e se tou de branchaj ena la, e ye lese ye la. They cut wood there, and that’s all the branches, and they left them there. (CA) Lese mwen trankil. Leave me alone. (ST) ♦ 'laissé moin tranquille ' Leave me alone. (T34) ; 'laissé nous dans noir. ‘ Leave us in the dark. (T40) See examples
• létri BT, CA ( n. )
  1. Dairy; laiterie.
     Mo galope laletri sèz an. I ran the dairy for sixteen years. (BT); Ye te travay andan lekiri pou letri. Ye te tre vach-ye. They used to work in the bam for the dairy. They would milk the cows. (CA) See examples
• létrip CA, PC ( n. ) léz étrip CA latrip ST
  1. Tripe, entrails, intestines; tripes, intestins.
     Kan to tchou en kochon, darjè bout letrip-la se bout sa-a-la to fe en madlenn e sa. When you kill a pig, behind the end of the tripe, it’s that end you make a Madeleine sausage with. (CA); Mo latrip ape bœrgle. My guts are bellowing. (ST) ♦ Ki sa ki òt so letrip pou benyen ? Repons: en payas. What it is that must remove its entrails when about to bathe? Answer: A shuck mattress. [' so létrip ’] (DU) See examples
  2. The insides; parties intérieures.
     ♦ To pronn letrip en jiromon e bouyi sa. You take the insides of a pumpkin and you boil them. [ ‘lestripes ‘] (BI) See examples
• létriyé PC ( n. )
  1. Stirrup; étrier.
     Sa se en letriye, pou monte on lesel. That’s a stirrup, for getting into the saddle. (PC) See examples
• létu* No sources ( n. ) laléti CA, PC laléchu CA
  1. Lettuce; laitue.
     En latet laleti. A head of lettuce. (PC); Pop te ramase fimye dan poulaye pou mèt antèr le pye laleti . Dad would collect manure in the henhouse to put around the lettuce plants. (CA) ♦ CompairLapin dit li mangé jisse carottes et laitues. Brer Rabbit said that he only ate carrots and lettuce. (FO T11) See examples
• lété No sources ( n. ) été MO 60
  1. Summer; été.
     Mo ramase koton tou lete. I pick cotton every summer. (PC) ♦ Pou lafyev to bouyi dibonm don dolo pi pron sa don lete. For fever, boil mint in water and drink that during the summer. (LA) •dan lete adv.phr. (CA; PC); don lete (NE). In the summer; en été. Dan mo-kenn ton, moun-ye te konnen tchwe kochon-ye dan lete. When I was young people would slaughter hogs in the summer. (PC); Mon te gen kat piti e ye tou nèt marye. Me ye vyen pou le fèt e ye vyen dan lete. I had four kids and they are all married. But they come for the holidays and they come in the summer. (CA) See examples
• létòf CA, PC ( n. ) létof BT, CA, PC
  1. Material, fabric; étoffe.
     Ka mo gen en bon letòf pou tou lenj m a achte, mo fe fe. When I have a good fabric I have my clothes made. (PC); M achte en gro roulo letòf pou fe dra e tèt-doriye. I bought a big bolt of material to make sheets and pillowcases. (CA) ♦ Mo besoin zétojfe neuve pou abillé mo piti filles. I need new fabric to dress my granddaughters. (ME) See examples
• lévit CA ( n. )
  1. Frock coat; lévite (longue redingote).
     Li mèt so levit parskè li t ape ale monte so chval. He put on his frock coat because he was going to ride his horse. (CA) ♦Mo ouar li, et pas va croir, que li té gagnin en haut so dos ein belle lévite de drap noir. I saw him, and you won’t believe this, that on his back he had a frock coat made of black material. (T36) See examples
• lévyé CA, PC ( n. ) lèvyé PC
  1. Lever; lévier.
     Li al lè lèvye. He pulls the lever. (PC); Si li lèv levye, so machin va travaye. If he lifts the lever his machine will work. (CA) See examples
• lévé CA, NE, PC, ST ( v.intr. ) lév PC lèvé BT, PC, ST lèv BT, CA
  1. To get up, rise, stand up (from bed, from a chair, etc.); se lever (d’un lit, d’une chaise, etc.).
     Li lev a siz è tou le maten. He gets up at 6:00 every morning. (PC); Moun-ye leve, ye komonse donse. The people got up and started to dance. (NE); Li tou aflije. Li pa kapab sèrvi so lamen. Li pa kapab leve. He is completely paralyzed. He can’t use his hands. He can’t stand up. (CA) ♦ Mais li continuin chanté et tout d'in coup michié Macaque lévé et li commencé dansé. But he continued to sing, and all of a sudden Mr. Monkey stood up and he began to dance. (FO T9) 2. To rise (of dough, of the sun, etc.); se lever (en parlant du soleil, d’une pâte, etc.). Ènè en divon ki e leve, sa afredi tan-l. There’s a wind blowing, that’ll make the weather cool. (PC); Mo pa mèt feu tro ho, parske, to wa, dile sa lèv e se se pèeèt ronvèrse on STOVE. I don’t turn the fire up too high, you see, because the milk rises and might spill out onto the stove. (NE); Pou fe to gato, to mèt to lafarin e tou. Me si to pa mèt is andan li, li p ap ale leve. To make a cake you put in your flour and all. But if you don’t put in baking powder, it won’t rise. (CA) ♦ Napé couri dans clos avant soleil lévé. We are going into the fields before the sun rises. (T27) 3. To rise, take flight (of a bird being hunted); s’envoler, se lever (d’un oiseau qu’on chasse). Pèrdri laba. Tu va ale la l, fout en kou d pye; pèrdir va lève, panmpanm! The partridge is over there. You’ll go over to it and kick it, and it takes flight. You shoot it, bang! bang! (BT) 4. To grow; pousser, croître. To plant to grenn-ye. Kan ye lèv, se fe en flè Li ron e li jón. You plant your seeds. When they grow, it makes a flower. It’s round and yellow. (CA) ♦Sa fe li kanmanse donnen nouzòt lagrenn zariko bouyi pou nou plante, e zariko bouyi-ye se pa leve. So he started giving us boiled bean seeds to plant, but boiled seeds don’t grow. (JR) —v. tr. 1. To raise, lift, lift up; lever, soulever. Li leve gro kayou-la. He lifted the rock. (PC); Li leve sa e tou so lafòrs. He lifted that with all his might. (CA) ♦ Li lévé so la main drète et li voyé on li: Pam! Hé! la main là reste collé! He raised his right hand and struck her; Bam! His hand remained stuck! (T3) •leve lamen v.phr. (CA; PC). To wave; saluer de la main. Li leve so lamen apre mwen. Li monnde mon komon mo son mo-mèm. He waved his hand at me and asked me how I felt. (PC) •leve lamen kote Bondye v.phr. (CA; PC). To swear to God; jurer sur la Bible. M e leve mo lamen kote Bondye. I swear to God. (PC) 2. To rout out (an animal from its den); lever (faire sortir un animal de son gîte). Si to lève en lapen e chyen-la pa la, to di ‘ayaya! Ga la la, ga la la! ‘ If you rout out a rabbit and the dog is not there, you say ‘Ayaya! Look! Look!’ (PC) See examples
• lézap PC ( n. ) lézarp CA, PC
  1. Dirty mouth, filthy language; discours grossier.
     Si Pap tande nou avèk lezarp, li se pini nouzòt. If Dad heard us with a dirty mouth, he would punish us. (CA) See examples
• lézar PC ( n. ) léza CA, PC
  1. Lizard; lézard.
     Mo te trape leza-ye par ye ti lake e mo voye ye deyò. I would catch little lizards by their tail and I threw them outside. (CA) ♦ Tis ein piti ver de terre qui té apé crié et babillé, li apé dit li té si piti... ti zozo, lézard et méme froumi té tracassé li et manzé so piti. It was just a little earthworm who was crying and fussing, he said he was so small... little birds, lizards, and even ants bother him and ate his young. (FO T3) See examples
• lòg No sources ( n. )
  1. Log; bûche.
     ♦ Li te ape ale de lòg, e se konm sa li te fe so lavi. He was hauling logs, and that’s how he made his living. (JR) See examples
• lòkupasyon CA, PC ( n. )
  1. Occupation, work, job; métier, emploi, occupation.
     To min lòkoupasyon? Mo ne isi, e nou fèzè travay ON THE FARM. Do you mean my occupation? I was born here, and we used to work on the farm. (PC) See examples
• lòpiyon No sources ( n. ) lepiyon PC
  1. Opinion; opinion, avis.
     Mo veu di twa mo-tchenn leupiyon . Apre lagèr, ye fe lesklav ave le nwar e le blan. I want to give you my own opinion. After the war they made slaves of both whites and blacks. (PC) See examples
• lòrlòj No sources ( n. )
  1. Clock; horloge.
     ♦ Faut vos lévé bonne her, et pis coûté l'horloge. Sitôt li sonain ting... bardez , zamis, parti. You have to get up early and listen to the clock. As soon as it rings, ting! hurry up, friends, get a move on it. (T26) See examples
• lòrti PC ( n. ) losti CA, PC lostik PC lousti PC
  1. Nettle; ortie. (Urtica spp.).
     Lostik bril to janm, to lamen, tou sa kan to pas ora ye. Nettles sting your legs, your hands, all of that when you pass near them. (PC) See examples
• lòryé PC, ST ( n. ) ti lòryé CA
  1. Laurel, bay; laurier, (e.g.
     Persea palustris ). En ti bwa lorye. Li gen en lo lefey anho la e to pran lefey-ye, to ka bwi lefey-ye e fe dite. A little laurel tree. It has lots of leaves on it and you take the leaves, you can boil the leaves and make tea. (PC) ♦ Li couri pran so zouti et li fé ein gro catin avé boi laurié. He went to get his tools, and he made a big doll with laurel wood. (T2) •fey lorye n.phr. Bay leaf; feuille de laurier, cf . fey See examples
• lœr PC ( det.poss. ) lèr CA, NE lœ PC lor BT
  1. Their; leur.
     Ènave en gro-gro bwa, se plen lonbraj e se la ye pase plus lœr ton. There was an enormous tree, it offered a lot of shade, and that’s where they spent most of their time. (NE); Lœr zonk. Their uncles. (PC); En nedoub se kan ye vyen pa swa lor pti pye ou pa lor pti fès. A breech birth is when they come out either by their feet or by their buttocks. (BT); Man, se lèr gran tant. I am their great aunt. (CA) REM: NE notes that the form lœr is used by acrolectal speakers only (p. 129). The usual form of the 3pl possessive is ye (q.v.). See examples
• lœr-shèn PC ( det.poss. )
  1. Theirs, their own; le leur, la leur, les leurs.Their, their own; leur(s) propre(s).
     Èna plus de pòv kè de rich. E le pòv toujou vote pou lœr-tchèn entere, t wa, kont le rich. There are more poor people than rich people. And the poor always vote for their own interests, you see, against the rich. (PC) See examples