Idioms

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idioms.

Idioms are very rare in Toki Pona due to the focus on clear speech.

One early idiom is jo e luka mute (literally "to have many arms"), meaning "to be complicated". At the time of this idiom's coinage, luka was the highest-value number word, so big numbers would have many repetitions of luka.^[1]^[2]

Another idiom is o moku e kala pona (omekapo for short; literally "eat a good fish") which is used as a farewell.^[3] It is taken from a message that jan Sonja signed in jan Maliku's copy of pu.

References

↑ jan Sonja (21 May 2002). "Compounds". Toki Pona Forums. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
↑ jan Sonja [@sonjalang]. (16 November 2022). [Message posted in the #sona-musi channel in the ma pona pi toki pona Discord server]. Discord. Retrieved 12 October 2023. "luka was the highest number at the time, so big numbers were like luka luka luka luka luka luka luka wan[.] hence the idiom, ona li jo e luka mute, it is complicated".
↑ kala pona Tonyu. (23 January 2021). "omekapo". lipu kule. Retrieved 20 October 2023.

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[1] Sonja (21 May 2002). "Compounds". Toki Pona Forums. Retrieved 12 October 2023.

[2] Sonja [@sonjalang]. (16 November 2022). [Message posted in the #sona-musi channel in the ma pona pi toki pona Discord server]. Discord. Retrieved 12 October 2023. "luka was the highest number at the time, so big numbers were like luka luka luka luka luka luka luka wan[.] hence the idiom, ona li jo e luka mute, it is complicated".

[3] Tonyu. (23 January 2021). "omekapo". lipu kule. Retrieved 20 October 2023.

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