Haitian Creole vocabulary
Haitian Creole is a French-based creole spoken in Haiti, located on the western three-eighths of the island known as Hispaniola. The façon de parler is a result of the gradual change of the French dialect of Franco-European colonists by African and Creole slaves. This change includes the speaking of French vocabulary in an African syntax.
| Standard French | Fongbe | Haitian Creole |
| Ma poule | Koklo che | Poul mwen |
As well as the addition of a pluralization marker like the Fongbe word le.
| Standard French | Fongbe | Haitian Creole |
| Mes bécanes | Keke che le | Bekàn mwen yo |
This practice of using a pluralizing marker can also be found in Jamaican Patois.
The gradual abbreviation of the early French patois also included the shortening of certain French phrases into Tense markers such as:
M'ape manje / M'ap manje - I'm eating. Ape comes from the phrase: être après; the abbreviated form ap is more common.
In addition to the African syntax and the use of tense and pluralizing markers, a practice of West African languages, Haitian Creole also has a considerable amount of lexical Items from many languages, most notably from various West African languages, Old and Norman French, Taino, Spanish and Portuguese amongst others. These entered Creole through interaction between various people who spoke these languages from colonial times to modern time.
Numbers
| # | Haitian Creole |
| 100 | san |
| 1.000 | mil |
| 10.000 | dimil |
| 100.000 | sanmil |
| 1'000.000 | milyon |
| 1.000'000.000 | milya |
| # | nimewo / chif |
| # | Haitian Creole |
| 1st - first | premyè |
| 2nd - second | dezyèm |
| 3rd - third | twazyèm |
| 4th - fourth | katriyèm |
| 5th - fifth | senkyèm |
| # | Haitian Creole |
| 1/2 | demi |
| 1/3 | yon tyè |
| 1/4 | yon ka |
| % | pousan |
: another way of writing it, with a similar or identical pronunciation
Colours
| Haitian Creole | English |
| koulè | Colour |
| jòn | Yellow |
| ble | Blue |
| wouj | Red |
| vèt | Green |
| vyolèt | Purple |
| oranj | Orange |
| blan | White |
| nwa | Black |
| woz / roz | Pink |
| mawon | Brown |
| gri | Grey |
| bèj | Beige |
| turkwaz | Turquoise |
| ble maren | Navy blue |
| mov | Mauve |
| krèm | Cream |
| vèt oliv | Olive |
| wouj grena | Maroon |
: short form
Time and Date
Time and Date
Days of the week
Months of the year
Seasons
Verbs
Adjectives
Opinion and personality
Quantitative
| Haitian Creole | English |
| kantite | quantity |
| anpil / plizyè / pakèt | many, much, a lot of, so, so much |
| kèk | some |
| nenpòt | any |
| okenn | none |
| kelke | a few |
| yon ti kras | a little |
| plen | full |
| vid | empty |
| ase | enough / quite |
| trè | very |
| anyen | nothing |
| jis | fair |
| mwens | less |
| apèn | barely |
| kèk bagay | something |
| twòp | too |
| preskè | almost |
| konsa | so |
| sèlman | only |
| plis ou mwens | more or less |
| ti kras pa ti kras | slowly |
| omwen | at least |
Sport
| Haitian Creole | English |
| espò | sport |
| jwè | player |
| twofe | trophy |
| meday | medal |
| foutbòl | soccer |
| bezbòl | baseball |
| lit | wrestling |
| abit | referee |
| foutbòl ameriken | football |
| volebòl | volleyball |
| tenis | tennis |
| rigbi | rugby |
| boksè | boxing |
| naje | swimming |
| baskètbòl | basketball |
| bilyar | billiards |
| altewofili | weightlifting |
| gòlf | golf |
| krikèt | cricket |
| viktwa | victory |
| defèt | defeat |
| skorbord | marker |
| echèk | chess |
| atlèt | athlete |
| chanpyon | champion |
| chanpyona | championship |
| lig | league |
| ekip | team |
| konpetisyon | tournament |
| prim | prize |
People and family
Family
People
Profession
Feelings
Religion
Country
Country
History
Economy
Security
World
Countries
Continents
Directions
Nature
Nature
Plants
Parts of a plant
Flowers
Trees
Parts of a tree
Weather
Minerals and metals
Animals
Domestic animals
Wild animals
Marine animals
Birds
Insects
Space
State of matter
Foods
Foods of the day
Flavors
Cooking method
Alimentary groups
Cereals
Meats and legumes
Dairy products
Oils and fats
Others
Fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes
Fruits
Nuts
Vegetables
Grains and legumes
Beverages
City and places
City
Places
Transport
School
School
Reading and language
Maths
Geometry
Measures and sizes
Music
Science
House
House
Kitchen
Bathroom
Tools
Rural
Clothing
Body
Body
Hand
Head
Senses of the body
Health
Health
Disease
Others words
Creole words of African origin
- Akasan // From Edo – Akasan // n. corn pudding
- Akra n. a malanga fritter
- Anasi // From Asante – Ananse // n. a spider
- Bòkò // From Fongbe – Bokono // n. a sorcerer
- Chouk // From Fulani – Chuk // v. to pierce, to poke / n. a poke
- Chouc-chouc // From Fulani – Chuk // v. to have sex
- Manbo // From Kikongo – Mambu + Fongbe – Nanbo // n. a Vaudou priestess
- Marasa // From Kikongo – Mabasa // n. twins
- Ouanga/Wanga n. a Vaudou charm or relic
- Oungan // From Fongbe // n. a Vaudou priest
- Ounsi // From Fongbe // n. a Vaudouisant
- Yo // From Fongbe – Ye // pron. They, them, their
- Zonbi //From Kikongo – Nzumbi // n. a ghost, a soulless corpse or living dead
Creole words of Old French origin
- Ap // OFr. Être après // - present tense marker
- Ape // OFr. Être après // - present tense marker
- Gouye // Norman Fr. Griller – to slide, to slip // v. to gyrate, to have sex
- Pral // OFr. Être après aller // adj. To be going to / - future tense marker
- Rele / Yele / Ele // OFr. Héler // v. to call, to yell
- T’ap // OFr. Avoir esté après // - Imperfect tense marker
- Te // OFr. Avoir esté // - Past tense marker
Creole words of Taino origin
- Anakaona // Ana kaona – Gold flower // n. a very beautiful woman
- Anana n. a pineapple
- Ayiti n. Haiti
- Babako // Barbakoa – A Taino roasting process // n. a feast
- Bohio // Bohio – Home, house // n. Haiti
- Kako // Buticaco or Heiticaco // n. a bumpkin, someone from the countryside
- Kalalou n. okra, also a soup that includes okra and crab among other ingredients,known as gumbo in Louisiana
- Kanari n. a clay jug
- Kolibri n. a humming bird
- Koukouy // Kokuyo // n. a firefly
- Kounouk // Konuko // n. a shack
- Lanbi/Lambi n. conch, a conch shell
- Mabi n. a type of drink
- Mabouya // Mabuya – a Ghost, evil spirit // n. a lizard
- Sanba/Sanmba n. a musician or poet
Creole words of English origin
- Bokit // n. bucket
- Kannistè // n. tin can
- Bank // n. bank
Creole words of Portuguese origin
- Ba // Dar – to give // v. to give
- Kachimbo n. a pipe used for smoking tobacco
- Mantèg // Manteiga // n. lard, butter
- Pikini // Pequenino // n. a child
- Tchipe/Tchwipe / Tchupé // Chupar – to suck // v. to suck one’s teeth
Creole words of Spanish origin
- Bosal // Bozal // adj. to be savage
- Sapat // Zapatos or zapatillas // n. slippers
- Tchakleta // Chancleta // n. a certain type of sandal
- Abladò // Hablador // n. a speaker, someone who talks a lot
- Babiadò / Babyadò // Fr. Babiller + Sp. –ador // n. a constant complainer
- Bliyadò // Fr. Blier + Sp. -ador // n. a forgetful person
- Kouchadò // Fr. Coucher + Sp. –ador // n. a sleepyhead, one who sleeps a lot