Yes
In Toki Pona, there is no single word for "yes" as in English. This is similar to many natural languages, such as Chinese, Irish, Latin, Thai, and Welsh.[1]
Answering questions[edit | edit source]
For answering yes–no questions, the respondent repeats the word in question, the word surrounding ala. Alternatively, one can form a full sentence as a response:
te akesi li suwi ala suwi to te suwi to"akesi li suwi ala suwi?" — "suwi."
"Are frogs cute?" — "Cute."
te akesi li suwi ala suwi to te akesi li suwi to"akesi li suwi ala suwi?" — "akesi li suwi."
"Are frogs cute?" — "Frogs are cute."
General affirmation[edit | edit source]
Outside of answering yes–no questions, there are different possibilities to express general affirmation or agreement.
"akesi li suwi"
— lon! / ni li lon.
— ni a!
— suwi a!
— mi pilin sama.
— [...]
Other interjections might also work as "yes" or "yeah", as in to express a positive emotion. For example, when scoring a goal at sport, one may say pona!, wawa a!, or simply, a!
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Holmberg, Anders (2016). The syntax of yes and no. Oxford University Press. pp. 64–72. ISBN 9780198701859.