Sports & Activities

1. Ng ngar er ker a match?

   Ng ngar er ker a match?

   Where can I watch the match?

   Usage

   Used to ask where to watch a sports match

   Grammar Note

   The frame for asking a location is "Ng ngar er ker a X?" (expression ngar ker = "where is it").

2. Ng soak el mo er a tennis / badminton.

   Ng so-ak el mo er a ten-nis / bad-min-ton.

   I'd like to play tennis / badminton.

   Usage

   Used when wanting to play tennis or badminton

   Grammar Note

   A wish is "Ng soak el ..." (soak is the first-person possessive of sau "liking"). "mo er" means "go to", here "go and do ...". ungil means "good", not "want"

3. Ng ngar er ker a gym / sports center el kmeed?

   Ng ngar er ker a gym / sports cen-ter el kmeed?

   Where is the nearest gym / sports center?

   Usage

   Used to find the closest gym or sports facility

   Grammar Note

   The frame for asking a location is "Ng ngar er ker a X?" (expression ngar ker = "where is it"). "Kmeed" is the adjective meaning "near" or "close".

4. Ng ngar er ngii a sports equipment el sebechek el meleng?

   Ng ngar er ngii a sports e-quip-ment el se-be-chek el me-leng?

   Can I rent sports equipment here?

   Usage

   Used to ask about renting sports equipment

   Grammar Note

   "Can I rent ...?" uses the frame "Ng ngar er ngii a ... el sebechek el meleng?". meleng is "borrow; rent; hire". English terms like "sports equipment" are borrowed as they are

5. Ngera a sports el sorir a rechad er tiang?

   Nge-ra a sports el so-rir a re-chad er tiang?

   What sports are popular here?

   Usage

   Used to ask about locally popular sports

   Grammar Note

   "Sorir" is the 3rd-person plural possessive of sau (liking), so its subject has to be a plural human noun (a rechad = the people)

6. Ng soak el mo er a hiking / cycling.

   Ng so-ak el mo er a hi-king / cy-cling.

   I'd like to go hiking / cycling.

   Usage

   Used when wanting to go hiking or cycling

   Grammar Note

   English loanwords "hiking" and "cycling" are used directly in Palauan

7. Ng ngar er ker a ungil el mo er ngii el swim / surf?

   Ng ngar er ker a un-gil el mo er ngii el swim / surf?

   Where can I go swimming / surfing?

   Usage

   Used to find places for swimming or surfing

   Grammar Note

   The frame for asking a location is "Ng ngar er ker a X?" (expression ngar ker = "where is it"). ungil = "good".

8. Ng ngar er ngii a football match er chelechang?

   Ng ngar er ngii a foot-ball match er che-le-chang?

   Is there a football / soccer game today?

   Usage

   Used to check if there's a football match today

   Grammar Note

   "Chelechang" is the Palauan word for "today" (kebesengei means "evening"). The fixed frame for asking whether something exists is "Ng ngar er ngii a ...?"

9. Ng sebechek el mei el olsechall er a game?

   Ng se-be-chek el mei el ol-se-chall er a game?

   Can I join the game?

   Usage

   Used to ask permission to join a game in progress

   Grammar Note

   The fixed frame for asking permission is "Ng sebechek el ...?". kirel means obligation ("must"), not permission

10. Ng ungil ungiil a match!

    Ng un-gil un-giil a match!

    That was an amazing match / game!

    Usage

    Used to express excitement after an amazing match

    Grammar Note

    Palauan uses reduplication (repeating a word) to express emphasis or intensity

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