School & Education

1. Ng ngar er ker a skuul / yunibersiti el kmeed?

   ng ngar er ker a skuul / yu-ni-ber-si-ti el kmeed

   Where is the nearest school / university?

   Usage

   Used to ask for the location of a nearby school or university

   Grammar Note

   The fixed frame for asking where something is: "Ng ngar er ker a ...?". "el kmeed" means "near" and follows the noun, giving "the nearby ..."

2. Ng soak el mengukl er a skuul er a cheldull.

   ng so-ak el men-gukl er a skuul er a chel-dull

   I'd like to enroll in a language course.

   Usage

   Expressing desire to enroll in a language course

   Grammar Note

   "Soak" is the 1st-person singular possessive of sau (liking); as a nominal predicate it takes the subject marker ng, giving "Ng soak el ..." = "I want to ..."

3. Ng sebechek el omes a skuul / kampus?

   ng se-be-chek el o-mes a skuul / kam-pus

   Can I visit the school / campus?

   Usage

   Asking for permission to visit a school or campus

   Grammar Note

   "Ng sebechek el ...?" is the standard frame for asking permission or ability ("May I / can I ...?"). "omes" means "to see", here "to look around"

4. Ng ngera a suobel el mesuub er tiang?

   ng nge-ra a suo-bel el me-suub er ti-ang

   What subjects are taught here?

   Usage

   Asking about the subjects taught at a school

   Grammar Note

   Suobel is "kirel el mesuub" (what is to be studied) = a subject/lesson. "Ng" is the third-person subject marker at the start of the sentence.

5. Ng tela a cheral er a skuul?

   ng te-la a che-ral er a skuul

   How much is the tuition fee?

   Usage

   Asking about the cost of tuition

   Grammar Note

   The fixed frame for asking a price is "Ng tela a cheral?". Quantity and price are asked with tela; ngarang is a variant of "what"

6. Ng soak a omelekoi er a direnges el teacher.

   ng so-ak a o-me-le-koi er a di-ren-ges el tea-cher

   I'm looking for a private tutor.

   Usage

   Saying you are looking for a private tutor

   Grammar Note

   Palauan borrows many English words. "teacher" is used directly as a loanword

7. Ng ngar er ker a library?

   ng ngar er ker a li-bra-ry

   Where is the library?

   Usage

   Asking for the location of the library

   Grammar Note

   "library" is an English loanword used directly in Palauan

8. Ng ngar er ngii a online class er a skuul?

   ng ngar er ngii a on-line class er a skuul

   Do you offer online courses?

   Usage

   Asking whether online courses are available

   Grammar Note

   The fixed frame for asking whether something exists is "Ng ngar er ngii a ...?". "online class" is borrowed directly from English

9. Ak mla ousbech el mo rokui a qualification er ngak.

   ak mla ou-sbech el mo ro-ku-i a qua-li-fi-ca-tion er ngak

   I need to get my qualifications recognized.

   Usage

   Used when seeking official recognition of foreign qualifications

   Grammar Note

   "ousbech" is the Palauan verb meaning "to need". "er ngak" means "my" or "of me"

10. Ng ngar er ngii a student discount?

    ng ngar er ngii a stu-dent dis-count

    Is there a student discount available?

    Usage

    Asking if a student discount is available

    Grammar Note

    "student discount" is used as an English loanphrase. English commercial terms are common in Palauan

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