Serer lexicon

Nouns

Gloss	Singular	Plural	Sem. Dom.	Alt. Trans.	Session	Singular Tokens	Plural Tokens	notes
dog	ʔoɓˈoχ	ɦaʔˈɓoχ			OAD_001	Dog_02.wav, Dogs_01.wav	Dog_03.wav, Dogs_03.wav
cat	mu:s	mu:s(k'ɛ)			OAD_001	Cat_01.wav, Cats_01.wav	Cat_02.wav, Cats_03.wav
bird	ⁿdi:t̚	ti:t'			OAD_001	Bird_03.wav, Birds_02.wav	Bird_04.wav, Birds_03.wav
pig	ru:l	ʔaˈtu:l			OAD_001	Pig_02.wav, Pigs_01.wav	Pig_03.wav, Media:Pigs_02.wav
insect	ˈjejɛt	ˈjejɛt			OAD_001	Media:Insect_01.wav	Media:Insect_02.wav
spider	ˈapɔˈhɔlæʧ	ˈapɔˈhɔlaʧ			OAD_001	Media:Spider_03.wav	Media:Spider_04.wav
ant	ɲɪ:ɲaχ	ɲɪ:ɲaχ			OAD_001	Ant_03.wav	Ant_04.wav
butterfly	oˈfɪd	ˈχapid		oˈfɪɗ	OAD_001	Butterfly_01.wav	Butterfly_02.wav
fruit	oˈɓi:	χaˈɓi:			OAD_001
person	ʔɔˈkiːn	βiːn, ɥiːn			MF_002	Person_03.wav	People_01.wav, People_05.wav
man	ɔˈkʷɔːɾ, ɔˈkʷɔːr	goːɾ			MF_002, ED_033	Man_01.wav	Men_02.wav
fire	'fidɛl				JM_004
tree	'ndaχar	'taχar			JM_004
town, village	'saatɛ	'satɪkɛ, 'ʧ’atɪkɛ			JM_004, VW_038			ɪ~ɛ~e, ˈsaatɛ
city	'saatɛ fa'ma:k	'saatɛ 'ma:kɛ			JM_004, VW_038
light	lɛ:r				JM_004
fence	a'ɗiŋk	a'ɗiŋk			JM_004			presence/voicing of final stop?
name	gon	a'kʊn			JM_004, VW_038			ʊ~o,
sap	go:n				JM_004, VW_038
drum	famb	a'pamb			JM_004, VW_038			a~ʌ
song	a'kim	a'kim			JM_004, VW_038
salt	o'ɟɛm	ha'cɛm			JM_004, VW_038			voicing of palatal stop in pl? ɪ~ɛ
rumor	ˈonan	ˈxanan			JH_005			lit. 'instance of hearing'
dance	ˈoᵐbɛtʃ	ˈhaƥɛtʃ			JH_005
gift	tʃʰɪtʰ	tʃʰɪtʰ			JH_005
fish	lɪƥ	ˈlɪƥkɛ			JH_005			No regular plural
scale	aˈʋas	haˈbas			JH_005
tail	las, ʔaˈlas	ˈχalas			JH_005, MF_013
fin, spine	aˈƈor				JH_005, MF_022			Did not elicit plural
boat	sukʰ				JH_005			Did not elicit plural
feather	aˈnaf	aˈnaf			JH_005, MF_013
year	oˈhi:d	χaˈki:d			VW_006
husband	oˈkor				VW_006
baobab tree	ƥa̰:k				JH_012			No plural elicited
baobab fruit	ɓa:k				JH_012			No plural elicited
shell, rind	ˈɔχɔƥ	ˈhaqoƥ			JH_012			Also (tree) bark
forest	aˈqoƥ				JH_012			No plural elicited; see also TextGrid 013
branch	aˈnaaq				JH_012, VW_038	Media:038branch_01.wav		No plural elicited
root	aˈƥaƈ				JH_012			No plural elicited
yam	haƥ				JH_012			No plural elicited
moss	ˈna:ʋos				JH_012			No plural
wind	aˈƥaɪ				ED_017
milk	ˈʔɔsis	ˈχasis			MF_013	Media:013_milk_01.wav	Media:013_milks_03.wav
tear	ʔoˈɡoːniːtʰ	ˈhakoːniːtʰ			MF_013	Media:013_tear_03.wav	Media:013_tears_02.wav	as in crying
phlegm, mucus	ˈχaːqɔχ				MF_013	Media:013_phlegm_02.wav
urine	ˈʔasaiːd̥ʰ				MF_013	Media:013_urine_01.wav		derived from "urinate", did not elicit PL
feces	ɗuŋk				MF_013	Media:013_feces_01.wav		did not check for plural
feces (pol.)	ˈɲaʄlɔχ				MF_013	Media:013_feces_polite_03.wav		may be more than one word
manure (1)	ˈnɛːfaɾɛʔ				MF_013	Media:013_manure_02.wav
manure (2)	ʔaˈtʌs				MF_013	Media:013_manure_2_02.wav		may be derived from some verb [tʌs]
mouse	ƈɔːχ	ƈɔːχ (maju)			MF_013	Media:013-mouse_02.wav		initial C contrast with "perceive from far off"
meat	ˈndawaɭ	ˈtawaɭ			MF_013	Media:013_meat_02.wav	Media:013_meats_01.wav
fat (as on meat)	ɡɾɛːs, ɡɹɛːs				MF_013	Media:013_fat_01.wav	Media:013_fat_02.wav	Fr. "graisse"
horn	ʔoˈʤæn	ˈχaʧæn			MF_013	Media:013_horn_02.wav	Media:013_horns_01.wav
hoof	ʔoˈfɔχɔs	ˈχapɔχɔs			MF_013	Media:013_hoof_01.wav	Media:013_hooves_01.wav
wing	ʔaˈkant	ʔaˈkant			MF_013, ED_033	Media:013_wing_01.wav		see "shoulder"
bracelet	nˈɟara				VW_011
woman	ɔˈtɛw	rɛw			KC_003	woman_01
water	ˈfɔ:fiʔ				KC_003	water_01		also the fluid in a blister
river	ˈoma:g	ˈχama:g			KC_003	river_01	rivers_01
ocean	oˈmaag-oˌmaak				KC_003, VW_038	ocean_01
lake	ˈʔambɛ:l				KC_003	lake_01
cream, oil	ˈʔɔnɛw				KC_003	oil_cream_01
dirt, sand	laŋg				KC_003	dirtsand_01
mud	ˈlo:fin				KC_003	mud_01
clay	ɗʊk'				KC_003	clay_01
domesticated animals		mũːˈmin			KN_015			"general" term for livestock/domesticated animals of any type; singular not elicited.
pets		ˈcɛgɛl			KN_015			"personal" term for livestock/domesticated animals; singular not elicited.
lion	ˈɲɟogoj	ˈcogoj			KN_015			masc. and fem. forms formed with words for "man" and "woman"
sheep	mbaːl	paːl			KN_015			irregular masc. form; fem. formed with word for "woman"; homophonous with 'fishing net'
ram	suk mbaːl	suk' paːl			KN_015
ewe	ˈmbaːlndɛw				KN_015
fishing net	mbaːl	paːl			KN_015			homophonous with word for 'sheep'
vomit	ˈʔatɛkʰ				MF_022	Media:022-vomit_01.wav
blister	jaːf	ˈʔajaːf			MF_022	Media:022-blister_02.wav	Media:022-blisters_02.wav
thing used to swim	bɛˈʄir				MF_022	Media:022-thing_for_swimming_01.wav		see "to swim"; pl. not elicited
bruise, tender spot	ˈdiɾig̊ʰ	ˈʔatiɾig̊ʰ			MF_022	Media:022-bruise_02.wav	Media:022-bruises_01.wav
(big) swelling	ʔuːtʰ	ˈʔaʔuːtʰ			MF_022	Media:022-swelling_01.wav	Media:022-swellings_01.wav
wound	ɗʌj	ʔaʔɗ̥ʌj, ʔaƭʌj			MF_022	Media:022-wound_02.wav	Media:022-wounds_03.wav	E.g. knife wound. Stress varies between initial and final.
break, crack	ʔɔˈɡɛf	ʔaˈkɛf			MF_022	Media:022-crack_01.wav	Media:022-cracks_03.wav	as in a plate or a piece of wood
cough	ʔɔˈqɔtɔːχ				MF_022	Media:022-to_cough_a_cough_01.wav		same as the verb stem, pl. not elicited
snake	ˈfaŋgoːɫ	ˈpaŋgoːɫ			KN_020
rabbit	ndoːɭ	toːɭ			KN_020
worm	aˈloːtʰitʰ	aˈloːtʰitʰ			KN_020
bee	ˈŋguːran	ˈkuːran			KN_020, ED_033
duck	aˈkanaːɾaʔ				KN_020			no distinct plural form; from Fr. **canard**
elephant	ˈfaɲiːkʰ	ˈpaɲiːkʰ			KN_020
mosquito	ƥoːk	ƥoːk			KN_020
frog	faːɓ	ˈhapaːɓ			KN_020
sun	ɲɟɛc'				NB_009
moon/month	oŋgɔl	xaqɔl			NB_009
day	ɲa:l				NB_009
week	ɲa:l/kɔm ndako:hi:du	ɲa:l/kɔm tako:hi:du			NB_009
rain	ˈatɛɓ̥				NB_009
lightning (bolt)	ˈoxi:ɲ	xaki:ɲ			NB_009			singular refers to a single bolt of lightning, plural several
house	mbɪnd	pɪnd			NB_009
window	oˡfalantɛ:r	xaˡpalantɛ:r			NB_009			Fr. loan word, **fênetre**
door	ˡɔdɔn oma:x	ˡxaton oma:x			NB_009			lit. 'mouth of the yard'
room	andɔk	tɔk			NB_018
kitchen	ambaw	paw			NB_018
hair	ʋil	aˈʋil		ɥil	ED_010	hair_01
chest	ŋgaŋg				ED_010, ED_033
blood	fɔˈʔɔj				ED_010
spit	ˈdɔχɔ:ɲ				ED_010
belly	ɔˈfʊd				ED_010
side, rib(s)	ɔˈsa:χ				ED_010
bellybutton	daɓ	at'aɓ			ED_010
leg, foot	ɔˈɟaf	aˈc'af			ED_010
hip	aˈƥɛk	aˈƥɛk			ED_010
head	χoχ	aˈqoχ			VW_006, ED_017			q ~ k, o~ɔ - VW
nose	oˈɲis	ˈχaɲis			ED_017
beard	o'ratam	'χata,tam			JM_004
tongue, language	'ɗelem	a'ɗelem			JM_004			implosive? 'dɛlɛm?
bone	ˈohi:ƈ	ˈaki:ƈ		(pl) ˈhaki:ƈ	JH_005
mouth, beak	ˈodon, oˈdon	ˈχatɵn, χaʔˈton		(sg) ˈodɵn	JH_005, MF_013, ED_017, VW_006
shoulder	aˈkaⁿd				JH_005			Did not elicit plural; may be same word as "wing"
hand, arm	oˈɓaɪ, oˈɓay	χaʔˈɓaɪ, χaʔˈɓay			ED_017, VW_006
elbow	ˈnonoŋɡ	χaˈnonoŋɡ			VW_006
eye	ˈakid, aˈkid	ˈakid, aˈkid			VW_006, ED_017
nose	oˈɲis	ˈχaɲis			VW_006
lip	nˈɟapʼko	ˈtʃapʼkoʔ			VW_006, ED_017
ear	nɔf	ˈnɔf, ˈnɔfkɛ, nɔf ˈmayu			VW_006, ED_017
eyelid, eyelash	ˈɲo:ror				VW_006, ED_017
eyebrow	oˈɗi:ɗi:k	haʔˈɗi:kɗi:k			VW_006, ED_017
forehead	aˈtaɡɪd	ˈakɔχ			VW_006
finger	ŋgol	ƙol			JH_012, VW_038
finger, toe	ˈnɡol	ko̰l			VW_006, ED_017, ED_033
butt	fuƭ	ˈapuƭ			JH_012			Also (tree) trunk
skin, hide	ɗo:l				JH_012			No plural
breast	ƭɛːn	ƭɛːn			MF_013	Media:013_breast_07.wav	Media:013_breast_08.wav
muscle	ˈɗɔːlɛʔ	ˈɗɔːlɛʔ			MF_013	Media:013_muscle_01.wav	Media:013_muscle_04.wav
biceps	ʔʌˈʄɔːχ	χaˈʔʄɔːχ			MF_013	Media:013_biceps_01.wav	Media:013_biceps_pl_01.wav
nail, claw	ˈmbambaɲ(c)	ˈpambaɲ			MF_013, ED_017	Media:013_nail_01.wav	Media:013_nails_03.wav	"nail" meaning fingernail/toenail
kneecap	ˈroʔoi	ˈhatoʔoi			VW_011
knee	ngubai				VW_011			no good recording
ankle	ngubaiˈɟara				VW_011			lit: "knee bracelet"
stomach, intestine	la:u				VW_011
throat(s)	aˈpɛ̰ɛ̰pʰ	---			VW_011
neck	oˈtʃokʰ	ˈχatʃok			VW_011
heart(s), lung(s)	χɛɛɲ	---			VW_011
heel	oˈfaaɗ	ˈχaƥaaɗ			ED_017
love	bugʰ				OAD_008	Media:Love_01.wav	Media:Love_02.wav	note the final stop in "urine"/"urinate" as well
happiness	ɗai				OAD_008	Media:Happiness_01.wav	Media:Happiness_03.wav
sadness	judnɔχ				OAD_008	Media:Sadness_01.wav	Media:Sadness_02.wav, Media:Sadness_03.wav
swim (n)	ʔaˈbɛʄ				MF_022	Media:022-swim_03.wav		"an instance of swimming"
young lady	oˈtoog				JH_023			Age 15-22
old person	oˈnogoj				JH_023
seedling	ˈcimb				VW_038
child	onˈdɛɓ, onˌdɛɓanˈdoŋɡ				VW_038			no difference found yet
field	oˈqol				VW_038	Media:038field1_01.wav, Media:038field1_02.wav
glue	ˈkol				VW_038			Fr. loan
food	o’ɲoow	ha’ɲoow			JM_014
food	‘ɲamel	‘ɲamel			JM_014
game	‘faŋas	‘faŋas			JM_014
bath	ɓɔ’gɔχ	ɓɔ’gɔχ			JM_014
bed	nɟɔŋg	coŋg			JM_014
road	aƭat				JM_014, VW_038	Media:038road_01.wav, Media:038road_02.wav
chair/bench	dumbul	atumbul			JM_014
something to sit on	omoofan				JM_014
wing	anaf	anaf			JM_014
Sereer person	oseereer	seereer			JM_014
Wolof person	oʔolof	olof			JM_014
Fula person	opulaane	fulaane			JM_014
Jola person	oƈoola	ƈoola			JM_014
Sose person	osoose	soose			JM_014
place	ombiɲ				JM_021
wall	myyr	myyr			JM_021
wall	tabah				JM_021
wall	mah				JM_021
yard	maah				JM_021
termite	mah				JM_021
tomb	‘amboj	poj			JM_021
stove/cooking place	ndeen	teen			JM_021
table	ataabul				JM_021
book	ateere	ateere			JM_021
religious book	akaamir				JM_021
shore, beach	tefes	tefes			JM_021
line	apiis	apiis			JM_021
(chess) piece	apis				JM_021
dead person	okon	hon			MF_29, JM_030
corpse	odal	hatal			JM_030
corpse	ondal	handal			JM_030
witch/sorcerer	onaq				JM_030
cow	naak	naak			JM_030			k or q?
time	ɉaf	acaf			JM_030			“Time” as in 1 time, 2 times, etc. (Sp. vez)
dry season	ƈiid	ƈiid			JM_030
rainy season	ndiig	tiig			JM_030
pot	ˌakaˈlɛɛra				VW_038
wall	taˈbaχ				VW_038			no known diff from maχ
wall	ˈmaχ				VW_038			no known diff from taˈbaχ
beach	ˈtɛfɛs				VW_038
blanket	ᵐbaiɟ				VW_024
turtle	χɔmb	ʔaˈqɔmb			KN_031
bat	aˈɗɛɓ	aˈɗɛɓ			KN_031
paper	kaˈitʰ				OAD_026
bottle	omo:n				OAD_026
rope	oˈƥakʰ				OAD_026
clothes	ˈniraχ		clothing		KC_025	Clothes_01
sarong	paj	'haʔɓaj	clothing		KC_025	Sarong_01, Sarong_02	Sarongs_01	tense p in singular may be ɓ̥
shirt	'ndookiʔ	'tookiʔ	clothing		KC_007	Shirt_01	Shirts_01	plural of shirt may be synonymous with clothes ?
shoes	'(o)ɲafaʄ̥	'haɲafaʄ̥	clothing		KC_007	Shoe_01, Shoe_02		? last voiceless consonant
pants	ˈoombaɓ̥	paɓ̥	clothing		KC_007	PantsSG_01, PantsSG_02	PantsPL_01
hat	'oomaˌhandaʔ	ˈhamaˌhandaʔ, ˈχamaˌhandaʔ	clothing		KC_007	Hat_01, Hat_02	Hats_01
sock	ˈ(o)kaʋas	ˈhakaʋas	clothing		KC_007	sock_01, sock_02	socks_01	possible loanword from Wolof or other language
earring	ˈ(o)lɔɔŋlɔɔŋ	ˈhalɔɔŋlɔɔŋ	clothing		KC_007	earring_01, earring_02	earrings_01
necklace	t͡ʃɛk	t͡ʃɛk	clothing		KC_007	necklace_01		homophonous with chicken, though chicken requires "an article, a-"
chicken	ˈat͡ʃɛk		animals		KC_007	chicken_01		homophonous with necklace, though chicken requires "an article, a-"
tomorrow	ˈofɛt				KC_025	Tomorrow_01

Numerals

Gloss	form	Alt. Trans.	Sem. Dom	Session	Sound1	Sound 2	notes
one	lɛŋk, lɛŋx			MF_002	Media:One_01.wav	Media:One_02.wav
two	ƭikʰ, ɗikʰ			MF_002	Media:Two_02.wav	Media:Two_03.wav	ƭikʰ is counting form; initial voices when quant. certain N
three	ˈtadikʰ			MF_002	Media:Three_07.wav
four	ˈnaɦikʰ, ˈnaɦeɪkʰ			MF_002	Media:Four_01.wav	Media:Four_04.wav	2nd vowel changes, see session 006
five	ˈƥɛtʰikʰ, ˈɓɛtʰikʰ			MF_002	Media:Five_02.wav	Media:Five_05.wav
six	ɓɛˈtʰu ˈfɔ lɛŋ			MF_002	Media:Six_03.wav
seven	ɓɛˈtʰu ˈʔɗikʰ			MF_002	Media:Seven_01.wav
eight	ɓɛˈtʰu ˈtadikʰ			MF_002	Media:Eight_03.wav
nine	ɓɛˈtʰu ˈnaɦekʰ			MF_002	Media:Nine_02.wav
ten	ˈhaɾˈɓɐɦaj, ˈhaɾɓɦaj			MF_002	Media:Ten_02.wav	Media:Ten_07.wav

Adjectives and Adverbs

Gloss	form	Alt. Trans.	Sem. Dom.	Session	Sound1	Sound 2	notes
invincible	χɔχ			VW_006
a lot	ˈmayu			VW_006	ALot_01
spoiled (food)	aˈfɔt			JH_012
dank	aˈho:ɲa			JH_012
strong, tough	ˈsaʔɗkuʔ			MF_013	tough_01, tough_04		mod. of "meat," means "sinew" or "gristle"; derived from related V
small	nɛʋ			KC_003	small_01
big	ˈmagin			KC_003
big	ˈmaak			KC_003
black	ɓa̰ːl			KN_015
dead	ʔɔˈhɔnuʔ			MF_022			as modifies "person"
old	'nogoju			JH_023
pretty	'mosu			JH_037			"the pretty butterfly" ofiiɗ omosu le
ugly	'parɟu			JH_037			"the ugly insect" jeejet parɟu kɛ
red	'jaχgu			JH_037
white	'ran			JH_037
senile	a'naaχaha			VW_038
cold (to touch)	aɓuuɓa			VW_038	Media:038cold(totouch)_01.wav			not clear on diff from aɓuta
cold (feeling)	ɟoɡon			VW_038
cold (to touch)	aˈɓuta			VW_038				not clear on diff from aɓuuɓa
delicious	felu			OAD_028
very, a lot	aɓaχ			OAD_026
bitter	χaɗ			OAD_028
delicious	fɛlu			OAD_028

Verbs

Gloss	form	OAD	KC	MF	Session	Sound1	Sound 2	notes
to dance	fɛtʃ				JH_005
to give	tʃʰɪʔ				JH_005
to measure	li:ƥ				JH_005
to hit	naf				JH_005, ED_033
to cultivate	χɔɔχ				VW_006, ED_017
to urinate	said̥ʰ				MF_013
to go	tɛtʰ				MF_013			in euph. "go to the woods," see 013 TextGrid / in 037 isolation form is ɾɛtʰ
to perceive from far off	ʄɔːkʰ				MF_013	Media:013_to_perceive_03.wav		any sensory input seems to work
to be strong, tough	saʔɗikʰ				MF_013	Media:013_be_strong_01.wav		see derived ADJ
to blow (wind)	ɓaɪ				ED_017
to see	gaʔ				OAD_008	Media:to_see_01.wav
to drink	jɛr				OAD_008	Media:to_drink_01.wav
to eat	ɲa:m				OAD_008	Media:to_eat_01.wav
to sit	mo:f				OAD_008, JM_014	Media:to_sit_01.wav
to look	ɗɛ:t				OAD_008	Media:to_look_01.wav
to swim	β̞ɛʄ				MF_022	Media:022-to_swim_03.wav		often with excrescent final vowel
to cough	ʔɔˈqɔtɔːχ				MF_022	cough_01
to vomit	ˈdɛkɔχ				MF_022	Media:022-to_vomit_01.wav
to cut	dɛɡ̊ʰ				MF_022	Media:022-to_cut_01.wav		final is likely /g/
to crack, break, explode (intr)	ɡɛf				MF_022	crack_explode_01
to chop (wood)	ɡod̥ʰ				MF_022	Media:022-to_chop_01.wav		final is likely /d/
to sleep	ˈɗaːn				KN_015, MF_029
to transplant a seedling	ˈɟimb				VW_038
pick (a fruit)	ɗat				JM_014
be correct/right	ƭat				JM_014
play	ŋas				JM_014
have	ɉeg				JM_014
draw a line	piis				JM_021
pick up	naq				JM_030				q or k? (I think q)
fence (in)	ɗing				JM_030
rain	deɓ				JM_030
deshell	hobid				JM_030				e.g., of a nut
strip away bark	hoƥit				JM_030
take a big bite	haƥit				JM_030
chew	ʄah				JM_030
come	gar				JM_014
get water from well	ʄew				JM_030
go toward	ɟof				VW_038
be crooked	aˈkam				ED_033
cry	lɔɔl				ED_033
defecate	χɔɔm				KN_031
run	ɲːʄuf				KN_031
to draw water from a well	ɲʄɛw				KN_031
to wash (laundry)	ɗap				KC_025	ToWashLaundry_01
to wash	ˈlahaad				KC_025	ToWash_01		washing other things than body, but including hands
to wash (body)	ɓog				KC_025	ToWashBody_01	ToWashBody_02	clip 2 features aspiration on g

Pronouns

Gloss	form	Alt. Trans.	Sem. Dom.	Session	Sound1	Sound 2
I	miʔ			OAD_008	Media:I_01.wav
you.sg	woʔ			OAD_008	Media:you_sg_01.wav, Media:you_sg_02.wav
he, she, it	tɛn	tɛnt (?)		OAD_008	Media:she_he_01.wav
we	inoʔ			OAD_008	Media:we_01.wav, Media:we_03.wav
you.pl	nu:n			OAD_008	Media:you_pl_01.wav, Media:you_pl_02.wav
they	den, denɔʔ			OAD_008	Media:they_01.wav, Media:they_02.wav

Miscellany

Gloss	form	Alt. Trans.	Sem. Dom.	Session	Sound1	Sound 2
greeting	ˈnam ˈfiɔʔ			MF_002	Media:Hello_02.wav
greeting (contracted)	ˈnamɔʔ			MF_002	Media:Hello_short_03.wav
thank you	ˈʤoː kɐˈɲɟɐl, -ɺə			MF_002	Media:Thankyou_03.wav	Media:Thankyou_04.wav
response to thanks	ʔɪˈnʌ ˈmbogʷʊn, -ɣʷ-			MF_002	Media:Youre_welcome_05.wav	Media:Youre_welcome_04.wav
response to greeting	mɛˈɦɛ ˈmɛn			MF_002	Media:Response_to_hello_04.wav
yes	i: , i:jo			OAD_008
no	haʔa			OAD_008