bwe

See also: bwè and bwě

Translingual

Symbol

bwe

(international standards) ISO 639-3 language code for Bwe Karen.

Bongili

Etymology

Cognate with Mbati ɓòlò (“honey”).

Noun

bwe

honey

Marshallese

Etymology 1

From Proto-Micronesian *pʷa, *pʷe (Central Micronesian).

Alternative forms

(because): eb, -ōb

Pronunciation

(phonetics) IPA^(key): [pˠɛ]
(phonemic) IPA^(key): /pˠɛj/
Bender phonemes: {bey}

Conjunction

bwe

that (complementiser that connects a noun clause)
Synonym: ke

Ij ļōmņak bwe bao eo ekar kōm̧m̧an būn̄būn̄ eo.
At first, I thought that it was the bird making that noise.
so that, in order that, in order for, in order to
Kwomaron̄ ke letok teen̄ki ņe am̧ bwe in ja romromļo̧k kake?
Can you give me your flashlight so that I can light my way with it?
because, since, as
Ikōņaan idaak wūno bwe emtak bōra.
I want some medicine because I have a headache.

Usage notes

As a complementiser, bwe sets up a noun clause, which is a phrase that has a subject and verb and comes after a verb, usually of saying, thinking or believing. Just as in English, the complementiser is optional and may be omitted:

Ear ba bwe raar wiin.
He said that they won. [with complementiser]
Ear ba raar wiin.
He said they won. [without complementiser]

Interjection

bwe

(interrogative) so what?, what is your point?

Derived terms

bwe bōta (“assuming that”)
bwe ta? (“why?, for what reason?”)

Etymology 2

From Proto-Micronesian *pʷee (“knot divination”, Western Micronesian).

Alternative forms

bo

Pronunciation

(phonetics) IPA^(key): [pˠe]
(phonemic) IPA^(key): /pˠej/
Bender phonemes: {bȩy}

Noun

bwe (alienable)

knot in divination
Ejejjet bwe eo.
That's the true knot in divination [the correct symbol].

Related terms

bubu (“divination knots used in pandanus leaf”)

Etymology 3

From Etymology 2, but distinguished by a semantic shift from “divination” → “result from a divination” → “result in general”, as well as a more open vowel pronunciation [ɛ] instead of [e].

Pronunciation

(phonetics) IPA^(key): [pˠɛ]
(phonemic) IPA^(key): /pˠɛj/
Bender phonemes: {bey}

Noun

bwe (construct bwein or bōkan) (alienable)

result of divination, forecast
Āinwōt kom̧ pojak bajjek, em̧m̧an bween ke?
It looks like you are getting ready; is the forecast good?
leftover, remainder, balance, excess
Lutōkļo̧k bwe ņe. Eļap bwe in m̧ōn̄ā rainin.
Pour off the excess. There's lots of food left over today.
(money) change (small denominations of money given in exchange for a larger denomination)
Synonym: jānij

Elōn̄ ke bwe?
Is there any change?
(economics, accounting) profit (total income or cash flow minus expenditures)

Adjective

bwe (stative)

enough, sufficient, adequate
— Ebwe ke juon taļa n̄an am̧ m̧ōn̄ein raelep?
— Ebwe ņe.
— Is one dollar enough for your lunch?
— That'll do.
decent, fair, acceptable (in quality or condition)
— Ej et am̧ mour?
— Jej, ej bwe wōt.
— How are you?
— Oh, so-so.

Verb

bwe (inalienable bweō, causative stative intransitive kabbwebwe, causative transitive kabwe, construct bwein) (intransitive)

to be enough, to suffice
Kwōn bōk ruo pāāk em kabbwebwe n̄an jilu allōn̄.
Take three sacks to make sure you've got enough for three months.

Derived terms

bwe in bubu (“results of a divination”)
bwe n̄an (“enough for”)
bweo (“pile of coconut husks near husking stick”)
bweo̧ (“coconut husk, coconut fibre”)
jabwe (“to not be enough”)
jabwe n̄an (“not enough for”)

References

Abo, Takaji; Bender Byron W.; Capelle, Alfred; DeBrum, Tony (2009–), “bwe”, in Marshallese–English Online Dictionary‎^[1]
Nik Willson (2014), Naan‎^[2], Majuro, Marshall Islands, pages 974–5

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From bre.

Interjection

bwe (no known Cyrillic variant)

(Serbia, Internet slang, informal, intensifier) used to express passion about a topic.

Related terms

bre

Shona

Noun

bwe class 5 (plural mabwe class 6)

Karanga form of ibwe