Language/Tswana/Vocabulary/Counting-1-10
In this lesson, you will learn how to count from 1 to 10 in Tswana. Counting in Tswana is an important aspect of the language as it forms the basis of numeracy and fluency in communication. Apart from learning how to count, you will also practice your Tswana pronunciation. Let's get started!
Tswana Numbers
Before we dive into counting, let's first take a look at the Tswana numeral system. The Tswana language uses a decimal system, just like many other languages in the world. This means there are 10 basic numbers in the Tswana language. These numbers are:
- zero (0)
- one (1)
- two (2)
- three (3)
- four (4)
- five (5)
- six (6)
- seven (7)
- eight (8)
- nine (9)
- ten (10)
It's important to note that the numbers in Tswana have different prefixes depending on the number being referred to. For example:
- "Pedi" is used for the number one (1).
- "Robedi" is used for the number two (2).
- "Pedi" is also used for the number three (3).
- "Nná" is used for the number four (4).
- "Tlhano" is used for the number five (5).
- "Tlhano ya robêdi" is used for the number six (6).
- "Tlhano ya pedi" is used for the number seven (7).
- "Ntlha ya nná" is used for the number eight (8).
- "Ntlha ya thari" is used for the number nine (9).
- "Lesome" is used for the number ten (10).
Now that you know the Tswana numbers, we can move on to counting from 1 to 10.
Counting 1-10
Numbers are important in any language, and Tswana is no exception. Here are the numbers from 1 to 10 in Tswana, with their pronunciations and English translations listed in a table below:
| Tswana | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Pedi | peh-DEE | one |
| Robedi | roh-peh-DEE | two |
| Pedi | peh-DEE | three |
| Nná | en-en-ah | four |
| Tlhano | tale-HAH-no | five |
| Tlhano ya robêdi | tale-HAH-noh yah roh-beh-DEE | six |
| Tlhano ya pedi | tale-HAH-noh yah peh-DEE | seven |
| Ntlha ya nná | en-tla yah en-en-ah | eight |
| Ntlha ya thari | en-tla yah tha-ree | nine |
| Lesome | leh-SOH-meh | ten |
Let's take a closer look at each number:
- **Pedi (one)**: The Tswana word for one is "pedi". It is pronounced "peh-DEE".
- **Robedi (two)**: The Tswana word for two is "robedi". It is pronounced "roh-peh-DEE".
- **Pedi (three)**: The Tswana word for three is "pedi". It is pronounced "peh-DEE".
- **Nná (four)**: The Tswana word for four is "nná". It is pronounced "en-en-ah".
- **Tlhano (five)**: The Tswana word for five is "tlhano". It is pronounced "tale-HAH-no".
- **Tlhano ya robêdi (six)**: The Tswana word for six is "tlhano ya robêdi". It is pronounced "tale-HAH-noh yah roh-beh-DEE". The prefix "ya" means "of" or "belonging to", so "tlhano ya robêdi" literally means "five 'of' two".
- **Tlhano ya pedi (seven)**: The Tswana word for seven is "tlhano ya pedi". It is pronounced "tale-HAH-noh yah peh-DEE". The prefix "ya" means "of" or "belonging to", so "tlhano ya pedi" literally means "five 'of' one".
- **Ntlha ya nná (eight)**: The Tswana word for eight is "ntlha ya nná". It is pronounced "en-tla yah en-en-ah". The prefix "ya" means "of" or "belonging to", so "ntlha ya nná" literally means "four 'of' four".
- **Ntlha ya thari (nine)**: The Tswana word for nine is "ntlha ya thari". It is pronounced "en-tla yah tha-ree". The prefix "ya" means "of" or "belonging to", so "ntlha ya thari" literally means "four 'of' five".
- **Lesome (ten)**: The Tswana word for ten is "lesome". It is pronounced "leh-SOH-meh".
It's that simple! Now you know how to count from 1 to 10 in Tswana. Let's do some practice exercises.
Practice Exercises
1. How do you say "two" in Tswana?
2. What is the Tswana word for "five"?
3. How do you say "nine" in Tswana?
4. What is the Tswana word for "three"?
5. What is the Tswana word for "one"?
Answers:
1. "Robedi". 2. "Tlhano". 3. "Ntlha ya thari". 4. "Pedi". 5. "Pedi".
Well done! You've completed the counting lesson. In the next lesson, we will cover ordinal numbers in Tswana, such as "first", "second", and "third". Keep practicing your Tswana pronunciation and stay tuned for more lessons.