Malagasy

Malagasy: When the Power Goes Out 2

Tsy azo antoka ny herinaratra eto Madagasikara. The electricity in Madagascar is not reliable. azo antoka – reliable
Tokony hanana jiro misy bateria foana ianao amin’ny alina.

Tokony hanana jiro misy pila foana ianao amin’ny alina.

You should always have a flashlight or a headlamp at night. tokony – should

bateria – battery

pila – battery

Manoro hevitra aho ny hanana pila ho an’ny findainao. I recommend having an extra battery for your cell phone. manoro – to make a recommendation / point out

findahy – cell phone

findainao – your cell phone

Tokony hanana pila ho an’ny findainao. You should have a battery for your cell phone.
Ao an-tranoko dia tsy mandeha ny lakolosy rehefa tapaka ny jiro. At my house, the doorbell doesn’t work when the power is out. [Lit: There at my house…] an-tranoko = abbreviation for amin’ny

lakolosy – bell

rehefa – when (conj.)

tapaka – broken / cut

Raha manana fuses elektrika ny tranonao, dia tokony hividy boaty misy fuses hafa ianao. If your house has electrical fuses, you should get a box of spare fuses. [Lit: If your house has electrical fuses, you should buy a box of spare fuses.] raha – if

fuses elektrika – electrical fuses

mividy – to buy

hafa – extra / spare

Ny fihinanana sakafo hariva amin’ny labozia dia romantika. Eating dinner by candlelight is romantic. [Lit: Eating dinner with candles is romantic.] sakafo hariva – dinner
Na izany aza, ny fanaovana devoara amin’ny labozia dia tsy tena romantika. However, doing homework by candlelight is not very romantic. na izany aza – however

fanaovana – doing

devoara – homework

Ka raha manana jiron’ny masoandro ianao dia afaka manao tsara koka ny asanao.

Noho izany raha manana jiron’ny masoandro ianao dia afaka manao asanao tsara kokoa.

So if you have a solar-powered flashlight, you can do your work better. ka – so

raha – if

noho izany raha – so if

masoandro – sun

asa – job

kokoa – [a special word used after adjectives to make comparative adjectives]

tsara kokoa – better

Tokony handoa ny faktiora herinaratra koa ianao.

Tokony handoa ny faktiora herinaratra ianao ankoatra.

You should also pay your electrical bill. koa – also

ankoatra – besides / in addition to / also

 

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Resources for Self-Instructional Learners of Less Commonly Taught Languages Copyright © by University of Wisconsin-Madison Students in African 671 is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.