Goal

Learn how to make your first Mini-ma sentences.

New Grammar

• Use i for actions.
• Use a for identity.
• Use e for qualities.

Core Vocabulary

Mini-ma	English
mi	I, me
tu	you
tu-ale	you all, you plural
si	he, she, it
di	this, these
oda	that, those
man	person
manja	eat, food
vasa	water, wet
bon	good
mini	small
mega	big
kosa	thing

Model Examples

mi i manja
I eat.

tu-ale i manja
You all eat.

tu a man
You are a person.

di kosa e bon
This thing is good.

si e mini
He, she, or it is small.

oda kosa e mega
That thing is big.

mi i toma a vasa
I take water.

Bob i manja
Bob eats.

Bob a manja
Bob is food.

Bob e manja
Bob is edible.

Guided Notes

• Do not drop i, a, or e in this course.
• A word like vasa can mean “water” or “wet” depending on the pattern.
• a does not mean “a” in English. It is a grammar marker.
• di means “this” and oda means “that” in formal Mini-ma.
• Read the marker first. The same word can change its job when the marker changes.

Practice

1. Translate into Mini-ma: “I am a person.”
2. Translate into Mini-ma: “The thing is big.”
3. Translate into English: tu i manja
4. Reorder: bon / si / e

Mini Recap

If you can say mi i manja, mi a man, and mi e bon, you already control the basic sentence system.