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

• volè CA ( n., adj. )
  1. Thief; voleur.
     Li en volè. Li vole tou mo larjan. He’s a thief. He stole all my money. (CA) ♦ Li esplike li ke li te en volè, men enn ki te fran... He explained that he was a thief, but an honest one. (JR)Thieving; voleur. ♦ Moune la yé té gagnin ein pie voleuse. Those people had a thieving magpie. (FO T25) See examples
• volé PC ( n. )
  1. Heist, theft; vol.
     Ye jis ole fe en gro vole. They just wanted to pull a big heist. (PC) See examples
• volé BT, CA ( n. )
  1. Beating, whipping, spanking; rincée, rossée, correction, fessée.
     Paski mo rèste tro lonton avèk Mari, kan mo rive lamezon ye donn mwa enn vole. Because I stayed too long with Mary, when I got home they gave me a spanking. (BT) ♦ Compair Bouki resté sél avé Tig ki donnin li ein bon volé. Compair Bouqui remained alone with Tiger, who gave him a good beating. (FO 1887) See examples
• volé PC ( v.intr. )
  1. To fly; voler.
     L en vole. It is flying. (PC) ♦ Michié Moquère parti volé avec so fame . Mr. Mockingbird flew off with his wife. (T 14) See examples
• volé CA, MO 60, NE, PC, ST ( v.tr. )
  1. To steal; voler.
     Nou te kònen vole wiski nou popa. We used to steal our father’s whiskey. (PC); To gen p chofe fèr-la pou marke to lavach pou mete to non anlèr lavach. Kòm sa to pa kònen vole li. You’ve got to heat the iron to brand your cow, to put your name on the cow. Like that, you can’t steal it. (CA) ♦ Compair Torti, tan pri, vini guété Compair Lapin ki volé tou to dézef. Brer Tortoise, please, come and watch Brer Rabbit who stole all your eggs. (T4) See examples
  2. To kidnap, abduct; kidnapper.
     ♦ Géant-la volé yé papa passequé li té ein bon coupè desconnes. The giant kidnapped their father because he was a good cane cutter. (BD) See examples
• vomi CA ( v.intr. ) vanmi PC
  1. To vomit, throw up; vomir.
     Leu medikòman fe li vomi. This medicine causes vomiting. (PC); Li te malad tou la nwit. Li t ape vomi. He was sick all night. He was vomiting. (CA) See examples
• vomisman CA ( n. )
  1. Vomiting, spitting up; vomissement.
     Bebe-la te gen move vomisman. Li t ape pèrse so dan. The baby had a lot of spitting up. He was cutting teeth. (CA) ♦ Pou vomisman fe en latizonn avek jironnyonm a laroz e bwa sa. For vomiting, make an herbal tea with geraniums in flower and drink that. (LA) See examples
• vonnwi No sources ( v.intr. )
  1. To pass out, faint; s’évanouir.
     ♦ Kon li wa sa ki te don sak la, li monke vonnwi, li te si pè. When he saw what was in the sack, he almost fainted, he was so afraid. (DU) See examples
• vot PC ( n. ) lavòt CA
  1. Vote; vote.
     Lavòt deu pòpulèr. The popular vote; la vote populaire. (PC); Se leleksyon. Li kont no lavòt. It’s the election. He’s counting our votes. (CA) ♦ Grant té toujours de nous coté tant qué li té bésoin nous votes. Grant was always on our side as long as he needed our votes. (T38) See examples
• voté CA, PC ( v.intr. )
  1. To vote; voter.
     Mo di, si t ole vote, vote pou HUEY LONG . I said, if you want to vote, vote for Huey Long. (PC); M ap ale vote pou CLINTON. I’m going to vote for Clinton. (CA) ♦ Cé ein kandida ki fé primié ouski; tou moune voté pou li. He’s the candidate who first made whiskey; everyone voted for him. (T 13) See examples
• vou CA, NE, PC ( pron. ) ou PC
  1. subj. You; vous.
     La vou va don Chnal. You’ll be entering Chenal. (PC); Bonjou Misye, koman sa va? Vou san vou-mèm byen? Hello sir! How are you? Do you feel well? (CA) REM: Polite singular used to address very elderly people; formerly also used by blacks addressing whites. ♦ »Nénaine, dit-elle, vou pa tendé comme ain piti capé babiller?» ‘Godmother,’ she said, ‘you don’t hear something like the sound of a baby babbling?’ (ME) See examples
  2. obj. You; vous.
     Si mo vini la a pran vou pou kou kèk plas... If I come to get you to go somewhere... (PC) ♦ Onkò Misye Jij mo mann vou si lagrenn zariko bouyi kapab leve. Again I ask you, Mister Judge, if the bean seed that was boiled is able to grow. (JR) See examples
• vou NE, PC, ST ( det.poss. ) vo NE, PC vot NE
  1. Your; votre, vos.
     Vou senti tro gro pou vo kilot. Mo kilot tro piti pou mo senti. Your waist is too big for your pants. My pants are too small for my waist. (PC); Mo lenmen vou cheuveu pengnen kòm sa. I like your hair combed like that. (ST) ♦ Mo mandé li d 'ein voix poli, «Comment s'porte vote Excellence ? « I asked him in a polite voice, ‘How is Your Excellency?’ (T38) See examples
• vou-mèm CA, PC ( pron.refl. ) zòt-mèm NE ou-mèm PC
  1. Yourself, yourselves; vous-même(s).
     Zòt-mèm, zòt bèt. You all are stupid. (NE); Kofè m ole forse ou-mèm kouri? Enan plas aou kou la ye kwi. Kouri la! Why would I want to force you to go? There are other places where they cook food, go to those places! (PC); Bonjou Misye, koman sa va? Vou san vou-mèm byen? Hello sir! How are you? Do you feel well? (CA) REM: This is polite when its referent is singular, neutral when it is plural. See examples
• voudou PC ( n. ) houdou CA, PC, ST oudou PC
  1. Voodoo; vaudou.
     Li te pa gen aryen pou fe avèk houdou. He didn’t have anything to do with voodoo. (PC) ♦ Mais mo per li, m alé mo pas l'ainmain n’homme fou; M alé dans mo cabane...mo pas dans compte voudou. I’m afraid of him, I don’t like a crazy man. I go back into my house, I do not mess with voodoo. (T27) See examples
  2. Practitioner of voodoo; pratiquant du vaudou.
     To tande pale pou houdou? Aben se sa to pel moun de latet, se en moun ki fe houdou , li a dòn twa kechò pou met on kekenn pou genye larjan pou fe larjan ave ye. You’ve heard of voodoo? Well, that’s what you call a [moun de latet]. It’s a person who does voodoo. He’ll give you something to put on someone to get money from them. (PC) ♦ Mais yé, c’est Méricains, yé tous c’est des voudous. But they are Americans, they are all practioners of voodoo. (T27) See examples
  3. Magic spell; sortilège.
     Li mèt en houdou an twa. Sa s fe to gen traka. He put a spell on you. So, you’ve got problems. (CA) See examples
  4. Two-headed person; personne à deux têtes.
     Li sipoze èt en houdou. Li gen de latèt. He’s supposed to be a hoodoo. He’s got two heads. (CA) See examples
• voudou CA ( v.tr. )
  1. To cast a spell on; jeter un sort sur.
     Li gen traka. Kelken te houdou li. He’s got problems. Someone put a spell on him. (CA) See examples
• vouzòt CA, NE, PC, ST ( pron. ) izo PC z [+vowel] PC zan PC zo NE, PC ouzòt CA, NE zòt NE, PC
  1. pl.subj. You, you all; vous.
     Vouzòt travay ansanm? Do you work together? (PC); Twa epi PEEWEE, zòt parl pa en ta kreol don lamezon. You and Peewee don’t speak Creole much at home. (NE); Ouzot ap fe de makakriòch. Arèt sa. You’re making monkeyshine. Stop that. (CA) ♦Zo kapab tire en lakous. You all can have a race. (JR) See examples
  2. pl.obj. You, you all; vous.
     Lèse mon konte vouzòt kek-choj. Let me tell you something. (BT); M a van ouzot li pou bonmarche. I will sell him to you cheap. (CA) REM: According to NE, the form vouzòt is rare; Creole speakers consider this a Cajun form (p. 169) ♦ Mais i faut mo dit vouzotes qué michié la c’était ein taureau qui té connin tourné n’homme dans jou. But I must tell you that the man was a bull who could change into a man by day. (FO T2) See examples
• vouzòt No sources ( det.poss. ) zòt NE zo NE vo NE
  1. Your; votre, vos.
     La metrès-la di a le piti: «Zòt momon va ramase ouzòt byen vit!'' The teacher told the children, ‘Your mother will come and get you soon!’ (NE) ♦ Met ouzòt an ling e enn apre lòt kale zo nen dan labou-la. Get in a line and one after the other, bury your nose in the mud. (JR) See examples
• voué CA ( v.refl. )
  1. To take a vow, take one’s vows; prononcer ses voeux.
     Li voue li-mèm. Li mèt so vwal pou èt en sèr. She took her vows. She took the veil to become a nun. (CA) See examples
• voyaj CA ( n. ) vòyaj BT vwayaj CA
  1. Trip; voyage.
     L ap ale antèr voyaj lòt bòr lamèr. Mo swat li fe en bon voyaj. He’s going on a trip across the sea. I wish him a good trip. (CA) ♦ Piti-ye te kontan pou fe voyaj-sa-la. The children were happy to take that trip. (JR) •Bon vwayaj. exp. (CA). Bon voyage! Bon voyage! Bon vwayaj. Sannale. Have a good trip. Go. (CA) ♦ Bon voyage, mo camarade! Goodbye, comrade. (FO 1887) See examples
  2. Vehicle; véhicule.
     Ti chmen d kampangn, te me pa de simon an ba. Tou bonnmon ye me BLACKTOP. Na pa de gro vòyaj ke pas disu pou kase. Little country roads, they don’t put cement down on those. They just put blacktop down. There are no big vehicles that go by on them to break them. (BT) See examples
• voyé CA, MO 60, PC, ST ( v.tr. ) voyé CA, PC, NE vwòy CA, PC vway CA, PC voy NE, PC
  1. To send; envoyer.
     Y a voye li kote moulen-la. Then they send it to the mill. (PC); Kan ye voye twa dan penitansyè se pou en gro krim. When they send you to federal prison, it’s for a major crime. (CA); Mo gen pou vlope en pake pou voye pou mo sèr dan Tèksas. I’ve got to wrap a package to send to my sister in Texas. (ST) ♦ Mais nous pas jamin oua commissionaire nous té voyé coté vous. We never saw the messenger that we sent to you. (FO T15) •vwa bèk v.phr. (PC). To send back; renvoyer. Li vwa li bèk. He sends him back. (PC) •voye chèche v.phr ; voye charche (MO 60); voye dèryè (JR). To send for; faire venir. Man voye cherche de ou trwa pòm dechou kote mo vwazin. I sent for two or three heads of cabbage from my neighbor. (CA) ♦ Li mannde ye pou lese li voye chèche so vye neg e li se fe sa li se di. Li parle jiska ye voye dèryè vye neg-la. He asked them to let him send for his old black man and they would do whatever he said. He spoke until they sent for the old black man. (JR) See examples
  2. To throw, toss; jeter, lancer.
     Trècha. Machin e galope, le e trèch, le e voyè diri, le e tonmbe la. A thrasher. The machine is running and thrashing and throwing the rice which falls there. (PC); Li t ap voye so lasen dan dolo pou trape pwason. L ape sèmen. He was throwing his net into the water to catch fish. He was fishing with a net. (CA) ♦ Lœ rwa balanse li de ou trwa fwa e voye li osi lwon dan flev konm li te pe. The king swung him two or three times and threw him as far out into the river as he could. (JR) •vòye deyòr v.phr. (CA). To throw out; jeter à la poubelle. Mo voye sa deyòr. Mo t ole pi sa. I threw that out. I didn’t want it anymore. (CA) See examples
  3. To deliver, deal (a blow, a kick, etc.), strike; donner (un coup de pied, de poing, etc.)
     ♦ To konné voyé cou tête com to popa? Li lévé so lamain dréte et li voyé on li: -Pam! Do you know how to strike with your head like your father did? He raised his right hand and struck him, Pow! (T2) •voye kou pye v.phr. (CA; PC). To kick; donner des coups de pieds. ♦ Li danse, li sote, li voye kou pye, men li te pe pa fe pousyè sorti la. He danced, he jumped, he kicked, but he could not get the dust to come out. (JR) •voy lamen v.phr. (PC). To wave; saluer de la main. Mo voy lamen a kèkèn. I wave at someone. (PC) See examples
• vré CA, NE, PC ( adj. ) vrè MO 60
  1. True; vrai.
     M p ole leve la vivan s se pa vre. I don’t want to get up from here alive if it’s not true. (PC); M ape rakonte en listwar. Se en listwar vre. I'm telling a story. It’s a true story. (CA) ♦ Li vié, c’est vrai, mais li fou bin so l’âge. He’s old, it’s true, but he doesn’t care about his age. (T27) See examples
  2. Real; véritable.
     Mo pa konè si mo gen mwa en zarb ki vre. I don’t know whether I'll get myself a real tree. (NE) ♦ Mais, milates! - ce pas plus ein la race que milet cé ein vrai la race. But mulattoes are no more of a race than mules are a real race. (T36) See examples
• vréman PC ( adv. )
  1. Really; vraiment.
     Sa se vreman vreman kouiyon, en ? Sa se bet bet net. That is really stupid, isn’t it? That is totally dumb. (PC) vroup onom. Whoosh! Vrouf! ♦ Divan vini soufflé vroup! et paillé tou boucanne là. The wind blew, whoosh! and scattered all the smoke. (T7) See examples
• vu PC ( n. ) lavi CA
  1. View, vision; vue.
     Vo vi. Your vision. (PC); Mo lavi fèb. Mo wa pa byen. My sight is weak. I don’t see well. (CA) See examples
• vwa CA, NE, PC ( n. ) lavwa CA, NE, PC
  1. Voice; voix.
     To va chonje to lavwa. Your voice will change. (NE); T ape hele tro fòr. Bèse to lavwa. You’re yelling too loud. Lower your voice. (CA) ♦ Mo mandé li d’ein voix poli, «Comment s’porte vote Excellence?» I asked him in a polite voice, ‘How is Your Excellency?’ (T38) •a òd-vwa adj. (BT). High (of volume), loud; fort (en parlant du son). Sa k ap jwe lamisik a òd-vwa? Who’s playing that music so loudly? (BT) See examples
• vwal CA, PC, ST ( n. )
  1. Veil; voile.
     GHOST se en moun ki te ne ave en vwal. A ghost is a person who was bom with a veil. (PC); Vyeu sœr sèrvi toujour vwal e gran rob nwar ou brun. The old sisters always used a veil and a big black or brown dress. (ST) •mèt so vwal v.phr. (CA). To take the veil; prendre la voile. Li voue li-mem. Li mèt so vwal pou èt en sèr. She took her vows. She took the veil to become a nun. (CA) See examples
• vwala CA, MO 60 ( prep. )
  1. There is/are; voila.
     Mo di ye: vwala, mo pa konen. I tell them: That’s it. I don’t know. (CA) ♦ Ala ein bougue grand zoreille, c’est ein milet, anon prend li. There’s a fellow with big ears, he’s a mule, let’s take him. (FO T15) See examples
• vwatur BT, CA ( n. ) vwatir CA, MO 60, PC
  1. Buggy, carriage, vehicle; boghei, voiture (tiré par des chevaux), véhicule.
     Nou te pa gen cha, nou te gen en vwati, nou kou la mes. We didn't have a car, we had a carriage (that we used to) go to mass. (BT) En vwatir se en boge doub. To kapab mèt plis moun andan. A carriage is a double buggy. You can put more people in it. (CA) ♦ Li descende so la voitire, et yé pas oua li pendant ein piti moment. He got down from his carriage and they didn’t see him for a brief moment. (FO T19) See examples
• vwayajé MO 60 ( v.intr. )
  1. To travel; voyager.
     ♦ Trouve en gro kalbas, fe en trou don li. To va met mwen don li, e nou va kou vwayaje e nou va fe moun krwa to gen en kalbas ki ka chonte. Find a big basket, and make a hole in it. You will put me in it, and we will travel and make people think that you have a basket that can sing. (DU) See examples
• vwazin CA, MO 60, NE, PC ( n. )
  1. Neighbor; voisin.
     Tou mo vwazen-ye, tou partou, plas-sa-la ena tou plas annatour-la, se de blan. All of my neighbors everywhere, here and all around, are white folks. (PC); Mo vini rèste isi e mo gen de bon vwazen. I came to live here and I have good neighbors. (CA) ♦ Compair Bouki couri dîné cîté so ouasin Compair Lapin. Brer Bouki went to have dinner with his neighbor Brer Rabbit. (T2) •fe vwazen v.phr. (PC). To share meat with neighbors after a hog butchering; partager la viande entre ses voisins après avoir tué un cochon. Ye se tchwe kochon, e ye se voye moun-ye tou en bout lavyòn. Ka sa-la tchouwe, li voye kote lòt-la, ka lòt-la tchouwe-nou te pel sa vwazen. Fe vwazen. They would kill a pig and send everyone a piece of the meat. When another one killed [a pig] he would send it to the others, and so on. We called that [fe vwazen]. (PC) See examples
• vwazinaj CA, PC ( n. )
  1. Neighborhood, region; voisinage, région.
     To wa, si to rès den en vwazinaj se lantan, to fe de paròl. You see, if you live long enough in a particular region, you create words. (PC); Li t'apé vendre tout le voisinage maïs. He was selling corn to the whole neighborhood. (AN T103); Moun isi li ònèt. Se en bon vwazinaj. The people here are very honest. It’s a good neighborhood. (CA) ♦ Cété Michié Rénard, ki té manzé tou poule ké yé navé dan so voisinage. It was Mr. Fox, who ate all the chickens there were in the neighborhood. (FO 1887) See examples
• vwazinn CA, ST ( n. )
  1. Female neighbor; voisine.
     Man voye cherche de ou trwa pòm dechou kote mo vwazin. I sent for two or three heads of cabbage from my neighbor. (CA); Mo vwazin toujour gen en ta traka avèk so garson. My neighbor always has a lot of trouble with her son. (ST) ♦ Li couri crié lafamine coté fourmi, femm ‘ là, voisine. He went to cry famine at the neighbor lady’s, the ant. (T1) See examples
• vyann No sources ( n. ) lavyann CA, PC, ST lavyan CA vyonn BT lavyonn BT vyòn MO 60, NE
  1. Meat; viande.
     La sèl vyonn mon koup se sa nou sèrv dan lèstoron. The only meat that I cut is what we use in the restaurant. (BT); Mo koup mo lavyann fen pou kwi li. I cut my meat thin to cook it. (CA); Ye gen en lagrosri ki vann lavyann kabri e mo hai lavyann kabri. There is a grocery store that sells goat meat and I hate goat meat. (ST) ♦ Blanche mené dézo dans chaudière, tiens, dans eune piti moment, chaudière té plein bon la vianne. Blanche put the bones in the kettle, and in a moment the kettle was full of good meat. (T30) •lavyann hache n.phr. (CA); lavyann ache (CA). Ground beef; viande hachée. To fe en pate avèk lavyann hache. You make pâté with ground beef. (CA) •lavyann bef n.phr. (PC); lavyonn bef (PC). Beef; boeuf. Ye parle, ye kwi en pe lavyann bef poul . They talked, they cooked up a little beef, and chicken. (PC) ♦ Ki lavyann frech mapé santi la ? ‘ djab mannde a so fanm. 'Se lavyann bef to mennen yè la.’ ‘What fresh meat am I smelling?’ the demon asked his wife. ‘It’s the beef you brought yesterday.’ (JR) •lavyòn gra n.phr. (PC); lavyann gra (CA). Fatty meat; viande grasse. Kèkè ti bout lavyòn gra. You take several pieces of fatty meat. (PC) •lavyòn kochon n.phr. (NE); lavyan kochon (PC). Pork; porc. Komon to fe de graton ? Se lavyòn kochon. How do you make cracklins? It is pork. (NE) ♦Mo connin yé na biscuit en bas tamis la, laviande cochon dans garde manger et ein nomme en bas litte. I know there are biscuits under the strainer, pork in the pantry and a man under the bed. (FO T27) •lavyòn mache n.phr. (PC). Ground meat; viande hachée. Se kòm sa to gen lavyòn mache, to moul li. That’s how you get ground beef, you grind it up. (PC) •lavyonn moudi n.phr. (BT); lavyonn moule (BT). Ground beef; viande hachée. Sa se leu moulen. Se sa nou mou lavyonn pour fe lavyonn moudi. That is the grinder, that’s what we use to make ground beef. (BT) •lavyan sale n.phr. (PC); lavyòn sale (NE; PC); lavyonn sale (PC); lavyann sale (CA). Salt meat; viande salée. Ye te kònè monje plen lavyan sale. They used to eat a lot of salt meat. (PC); Li vo-myeu lavyann kochon sale ke janbon. He prefers salt pork to ham. (CA) •lavyann chevrey n.phr. (CA; PC). Venison; venaison, •lavyann chval n.phr. (CA; PC). Horse meat; viande de cheval. See examples
• vye gen ( adj. ) vyé CA, NE, PC, ST vyè MO 60, PC vyœ NE, PC vyèy (f.) CA, NE, LA, NE vyéy (f.) CA, NE, LA, NE vyœy (f.) NE
  1. Old; vieux, vieille.
     Mo popa, te en vyœ moun, e mo momon ste è vyœ, marye vyœ. My dad was an old man, and my mother was old, they married old. (NE); Vyey chwèt-la gen en veri desi so ne. The old witch has a wart on her nose. (CA); Li te si maskarade li te sonble en vye dyablès. She was so disguised she looked like an old devil woman. (CA); Lontan pase, vye dam te fe kamizòl avèk mòlton. Long ago, old ladies made slips with flannel. (ST); Mo plu vye frè mouri, e mo gen en frè an vil, epi en lot ki rès isi. My oldest brother is dead, and I have a brother who lives in New Orleans, and another who lives here. (PC) ♦ Dan tan cilà, navé ein vié, vié cocodri ki té gagné plice pacé cinkant di zan. In those days there was an old, old alligator who was more than sixty years old. (T5) •plu vye n.phr. (CA; PC). Eldest; aîné, plus âgé. Ye pa gen traka e plu vye-la, ye pa gen traka e de-sa-ye. They have no problems with the oldest one, and they have no problems with those two. (PC) •vini vyeu v.phr. (CA; PC). To age, get old; vieillir. Le e vini vyeu. He’s getting old. (PC) See examples
• vye CA, ST ( n. ) vyé CA, NE
  1. Husband; mari.
     Mo vye. My husband, my old man. (NE); Pèl pa mon to vye, mo mo pa vye. Don’t call me your old man, I’m not old. (CA) 2. Pal, buddy; (mon) vieux, copain, pote. Se koulè, mon vyeu. Those are colored folks, old pal. (PC) See examples
• vye NE ( n. ) lavyéy PC
  1. Wife; femme, épouse.
     Sila ki lòt bor-la se popa mo vyeu, a mo fom. The one on the other side is my wife’s father. (NE) ♦ Yé gombo vert, mo vieil; cé jordi vandrédi, no va fé mègue. Make a vegetarian gumbo, my wife; today is Friday, we will not eat meat. (T6) See examples
  2. Old woman; vieille femme.
     Ye di ‘Pel lavyey. ‘ They say, ‘Call the old woman.’ (PC) See examples
• vyolèt CA ( n. )
  1. Violet (flower); violette.
     Vyolèt maron se en flè ble. Wild violets are blue flowers. (CA) ♦ Tan yé fini manzé, vié nomme sorti ein caçambo dan so posse, comancé fimé et fé ein gran laboucanne ki té santi larose, zasmin avé violette. When they finished eating, the old man took a pipe out of his pocket, began to smoke and he made a big cloud of smoke that smelled of roses, jasmine and violets. (T7) See examples
• vyolé CA ( adj. ) viyolé PC vyolèt ST
  1. Violet, lavender, purple; violet, pourpre.
     En rob viyole. A purple dress. (PC); Mo te gen en rob jòn e mo tenn li vyole. I had a yellow dress and I dyed it purple. (CA) See examples
• vyèrj CA ( n. ) vèrjé ST viyèrj ST
  1. The Virgin Mary; la Sainte Vierge.
     Vèrje Mari. The Virgin Mary. (ST) ♦ Bon Djié Seigné, laViége Malie! Good Lord and the Virgin Mary ! (T3) •Sent Vyèrj proper n. (CA); Sennt Viyèrj (ST). The Holy Virgin, the Virgin Mary; la Sainte Vierge. La Sent Vyèrj se lamèr no Sengnèr Jezu Kri. The Holy Virgin is the mother of our Savior Jesus Christ. (CA) ♦ Mo monn a Lasent Vyèrj de ote doulèr-la. I asked the Holy Virgin to take away the pain. (BI) See examples
• vyèyès No sources ( n. ) lavyéyés PC lavyèyès PC lavyéyès CA, ST
  1. Old age; vieillesse.
     Mo ja vini dan POINT ichka, mo pale ye tou le de mal. Lavyeyès! Lavyey es. I’ ve gotten to the point where I speak both of them badly. That’s old age. (PC); Lavyeyès apre prann mon. Mo komanse bliye. Old age is setting in on me. I’ve begun to forget. (CA) See examples
  2. Old people; les vieux, vieilles gens.
     Tou lavyeyès te la. All the old folks were there. (ST) See examples
• vèksasyon No sources ( n. )
  1. Vexation; vexation.
     ♦ Mo revé qu'ein révolution té bouleversé la Louisiane, qué blancs, las dé yé vexation, té fait négue travail dans canne. I dreamt that a revolution rocked Louisiana, and that the whites, tired of their vexation, made blacks work in the cane fields. (T37) See examples
• vèlé CA ( v.intr. )
  1. To calve; vêler.
• vènn-sin-sou No sources ( n. )
  1. Quarter (of a dollar), twenty-five cents; pièce de vingt-cinq sous, quatrième partie d’un dollar.
     ♦ Pron en di sou ou en venn sen sou. Take a dime or a quarter. (BI) See examples
• vènnan PC ( n. ) vlinm CA lavlin CA vlin CA, PC
  1. Venom; venin.
     Si sèrpan-la mòrd twa la la, tou lavlen-la va ale partou dan to san e va drèt lakote ton kèr. If the snake bites you there, all of the venom will go throughout your blood and it will go right to your heart. (CA) ♦ Nou te pile delay et vlope li apre mordir-la. Apre sa nou te tire en vach pou donn pèrsonn-la en vèr di le cho. Sa sa onpech vlen-la monte. We ground up some garlic bulbs and wrapped them against the snakebite. After that we would milk a cow to give the person a glass of hot milk to drink. That would keep the venom from rising. (BI) See examples
• vèr BT, CA, NE, PC ( adj. ) vè PC
  1. Green; vert.
     Narb-la ki li te sa rèste vèr tou livèr. The tree which did that for him stayed green all winter long. (CA) ♦ L ' ote coté la rivière la té ein joli place, nabes yé té vert et chargé tout sortes fruits. On the other side of the river there was a pretty place, the trees were all green and loaded with every kind of fruit. (FO T15) •gonbo vèr n.phr. Vegetarian gumbo; gombo aux légumes, gombo vert. cf. gonbo See examples
  2. Green, unripe; vert.
     Vou kònen ki se sa en defig? Aben si li lamotche vè, aben la li pa bon monje vou èspere ska li vini janni. Do you know what a fig is? Well, if it is half green then it’s not good to eat, you wait until it gets ripe. (PC); Mo ale magazen achte banann. A fòrs ye te vèr, mo jamen achte di tou. I went to the store to buy bananas. Because they were green, I never bought any at all. (CA) See examples
  3. Fresh; frais.
     Mo mè mo le zwit, mo mè mo le chevrèt, zon-de-fwa mo mè chevrèt vèr e chevrèt sèk. I put in my oysters, I put in my shrimp, sometimes I use fresh shrimp and dried shrimp. (NE) See examples
  4. Inexperienced, naïve; naïf.
     Li vèr min ke li konpron pa byen. To say that he is green means that he doesn’t understand very well. (BT) See examples
• vèr CA, PC ( n. ) vé PC
  1. Drinking glass; verre.
     Mo koup mo sitran an deu e mo près li dan en vèr avèk dolo e en ti peu disik osi. I cut my lemon in two and I squeeze it into a glass with water and a little bit of sugar too. (CA) ♦ [Pou] monje si le stoma, met en ti kirelye la YEAST don en demi vèr dolo e brase li. La, bwa sa. For indigestion, put a spoonful of yeast in half a glass of water and stir. Then drink that. (BI) See examples
  2. Glass; verre, cf. zèr-boutéy
• vèr MO 60 ( n. ) dévèr CA, ST lé vèr CA dévè CA, PC
  1. Worm; ver.
     Ka mo sòrti dan dezè, mo kouri mo fouye devè, trape ti chevrèt. When I left the field I went to dig up worms and to catch little shrimp. (PC); To lav larb-amè byen e to bouy sa dan dule. To pran sa kan en nanfan gen devèr. You wash bitterweed well and you boil it in milk. You use that when a child has worms. (CA); Ye gen en devèr dan mo jarden. There is a worm in my garden. (ST) ♦ Pendant ein mois ver la tchombo li bien et resté croché dans so cou anvant li tomber. For a whole month the worm held on tight and remained caught in his throat before he fell. (FO T3) •vèr solitèr n. tapeworm; ver solitaire. ♦ Madame Kircsleger li sisit parterre, li fé oun dé ver, oun dé ver solitaire. Mrs. Kircsleger she sat on the floor, she passed a taenia, a solitary taenia. (TN) •vè a tèr n.phr. devèr deu tèr (ST). Earthworm; ver de terre. ♦ Pou panari, pron de gro vè a tèr rouj e pi mare ye otor ple la, ye sise tou pwazon on ple la. For whitlow, take some big red earthworms and tie them around the wound, they will suck all of the poison out of the wound. (LA) See examples
  2. Maggot; asticot, ver. (PC)
• vèrbèr No sources ( n. )
  1. Street light, street lamp; réverbère.
     ♦ Yé poignin li, et com forçat yé pende li sur ein verb ère. They seized him, and like a criminal they hanged him from a street lamp. (T37) See examples
• vèrdir CA ( n. )
  1. Vegetable; légume.
     Mo te fe lasoup avèk tou kalite vèrdir: karòt, tomat... I made soup with all kinds of vegetables: carrots, tomatoes... (CA) See examples
• vèrjé CA, PC ( n. )
  1. Orchard; verger.
     Va andan vèrje -la e menen man depwa. Go into the orchard and bring me some pears. (CA) •Onvon Konpe Lonp en te ka fini di li pou véje la, Konpè Ratbwa pron galope pou vèje-la, e on kèn ton li te grenpe don en nab plakmin ape ronpli so vont. Before Brer Rabbit was able to finish telling him about the orchard, Brer Wood Rat ran off to that orchard, in no time he had climbed up a persimmon tree and was filling his belly. (DU) See examples
• vèrtifish CA ( n. )
  1. Yellow-green liquid used against worms; vermifuge.
     Sete en likid jón. Vèrtifich twe le vèr. It was a yellow liquid. It killed worms. (CA) See examples