Lojban Through Dialogues
Lesson 5. Juice or Water?
Now the conversation gets into daily preferences. You'll encounter lo (some / an instance of) vs le (the specific…), and lo'e which refers to a type in general — like "juices in general," not a specific glass.
Three articles already? le, lo, lo'e…
Just note the pattern for now: le = the one(s) I have in mind; lo = some; lo'e = the typical kind. You'll get it from context.
| Lojban | English |
|---|---|
| .ai mi zukte lo ka tavla da vau le nu mi se bangu la .lojban. | I plan to talk to someone so that I can speak Lojban. |
| .ai mi pinxe lo jisra | I'm going to drink some juice. |
| .ai mi pinxe lo djacu | I'm going to drink some water. |
| je'e do | Got it. / Roger that. |
| xu do nelci lo'e jisra | Do you like juices (in general)? |
| mi ji'a nelci lo'e jisra | I like juices too. |
| ui | Yay! |
| mi gleki le nu ge do gi mi nelci lo'e jisra | I'm glad that both you and I like juices. |
| mi gleki le nu ge do gi mi se bangu la .lojban. | I'm glad that both you and I speak Lojban. |
| .au mi ba za tavla do | I want to talk to you later. |
| .au mi cliva | I want to leave. |
| do ba klama le panka ca ma | When will you go to the park? |
| ca le vanci | In the evening. |
New words
| Lojban | Meaning |
|---|---|
| zukte | to act / do (intentionally) |
| lo ka | property of / in order to |
| da | something / someone (existential) |
| jisra | juice |
| djacu | water |
| je'e | understood / roger |
| lo'e | the typical / generic kind |
| ui | yay! (attitudinal: happiness) |
| vanci | evening |
| ca ma | when? |
| za | after a medium time |
ge … gi … — "both … and …"! That's a neat coordinating construction.
And ui on its own is a complete sentence. Lojban attitudinals can stand alone as emotional punctuation.
Written prompts
Say in Lojban: I'm going to drink some water. (.ai mi pinxe lo djacu)
Say in Lojban: I like juices too. (mi ji'a nelci lo'e jisra)
Say in Lojban: When will you go to the park? (do ba klama le panka ca ma)
Recycle — Lessons 2–4
| Lojban | English |
|---|---|
| mi mutce nelci le nu mi pinxe lo jisra | I really like drinking juice. |
| .au mi ba za klama le panka | I want to go to the park later. |
| xu do ba zi citka le stasu | Will you eat the soup soon? |
Say in Lojban: I don't know if she likes juices. (mi na djuno .i xu le prenu cu nelci lo'e jisra)