Malagasy: Sample Gapped Text

Gapped Text

1. Miasa ___ amin’ny Bread Mafan ___ Antananarivo aho.
2. Nisotro la biera ____ _______ bara tany Mahamsina i John omaly.
3. Nihinana ny sakafo matsiroko ____ amin’ny trano aho Androany.

To check the complete text, see an English translation, and see an explanation, select (click and drag) between the START and STOP headings below:

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Complete text: Miasa eto amin’ny Bread Mafan eto Antananarivo aho. Nisotro la biera tany amin’ny bara tany Mahamsina i John omaly. Nihinana ny sakafo matsiroko teto amin’ny trano aho Androany.

Translation: 

1. I am working here at Bread Mafan in Antananarivo.
2. John drank beer in a bar in Mahamasina yesterday.
3. I ate my delicious food here at home today.

Explanation: 

1. “Eto” is used because before “amin’ny” and “Antananarivo” because you are referring to a place that you are currently in. It has to be “eto” because the “Miasa” indicates that this is in present tense. However, if you weren’t in that place right now, you could use “any” instead.
2. “tany amin’ny” is used because the “Nisotro” indicates that this statement is in past tense. There is also the “tany Mahamasina” to show that this is in the past; if it was present, it would be “any” or “eto”. If it was “teto Mahamasina”, it would both indicate that this was past tense and that you were in Mahamasina at the time that you were making the statement.
3. As in the previous example, the verb is the clue: “Nihinana” indicates that this is in past tense, so “teto amin’ny” is used instead of “eto amin’ny” (which would be used for present tense).

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