Cognates
There are several cognates, true and false, between English and Toki Pona words.
nimi pu[edit | edit source]
| toki pona | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| a | ah | Onomatopoeic |
| ale / ali | all | Through Dutch alle |
| en | and | In standard use, en only joins multiple subjects. Other uses of "and" are achieved by repeating the respective particle, such as li or e. |
| insa | inside | |
| jaki | yucky | |
| jelo | yellow | |
| kama | come (up) | Possibly through Tok Pisin kamap |
| ken | can | Possibly through Tok Pisin ken |
| ko | goo | Actually from Cantonese 膏 gou1 |
| kule | colo(u)r | Through Acadian French couleur |
| kulupu | group | Through Tongan kulupu |
| lili | little | Actually from Tok Pisin liklik |
| linja | line, linear | Through Finnish linja |
| lipu | library, leaf | Actually from Finnish lippu |
| lon | along, on | Through Tok Pisin long |
| lukin | look(ing) | Through Tok Pisin lukim |
| lupa | loop[a] | Through Lojban clupa
|
| mama | mama | Actually from Georgian მამა mama |
| mani | money | Possibly through Tok Pisin mani |
| meli | Mary | Through Tok Pisin meri |
| mi | me | Also through Esperanto mi |
| moli | mort | Through Acadian French mourir |
| mu | mew, moo | Onomatopoeic |
| mute | much, multi(ple) | Through Esperanto multe |
| nanpa | number | Through Tok Pisin namba |
| nimi | name | From Finnish nimi, which may be related |
| o | O[a] | Also from Georgian -ო -o
|
| open | open | Possibly also through Dutch open |
| pakala | bugger up | Through Tok Pisin bagarap |
| pan | panini, pantry[a][b] | Through Romance words inherited from Latin pānis |
| pi | belong | Through Tok Pisin bilong. Misleading, as pi does not mark possession. |
| pilin | feel(ing) | Through Tok Pisin pilim |
| pini | finish | Through Acadian French fini |
| poki | box | Through Tok Pisin bokis |
| pona | boon, bonus | Through Esperanto bona |
| pu | book | |
| sama | same | Through Esperanto and Finnish sama |
| selo | shell | Through Esperanto ŝelo |
| sike | circle | |
| suno | sun | Through Esperanto suno |
| suwi | sweet | Through Tok Pisin swit |
| taso | that's all | Through Tok Pisin tasol |
| tawa | towards | |
| tenpo | tempo(ral), tense | Through Esperanto tempo |
| toki | talk | Through Tok Pisin tok |
| tomo | dom(icil)e, dorm(itory) | Through Esperanto domo |
| tu | duo, two | Possibly also through Esperanto du |
| wan | one | |
| wile | will[a] | Through Dutch willen
|
nimi ku suli[edit | edit source]
| toki pona | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| epiku | epic | Through French épique |
| kin | (a)kin | From Finnish -kin |
| kokosila | crocodile | Through Esperanto krokodili. Possibly misleading, as krokodili means "to speak a language besides Esperanto among Esperantists", which kokosila transplants onto Toki Pona. |
| leko | Lego | Possibly from Finnish lohko |
| meso | meso- | Through Greek μέσος mésos |
| monsuta | monster | Through Japanese モンスター monsutā |
| n | hmm, um | Onomatopoeic |
| oko | ocular | Through Serbo-Croatian ȍko |
Phrases[edit | edit source]
pan ko is at least half-cognate with English "panko", breadcrumbs, from Japanese パン粉 panko.