Language/Lingala/Vocabulary/Family

Lingala Vocabulary - Family

In today's lesson, we will learn some Lingala words related to family.

Main Terms

Below is a table with some Lingala words related to family and their English translation.

Word in Lingala	Pronunciation	Translation in English
mokili	mɔkili	family
mobali	mɔbali	father
mama	mama	mother
mwana	mwana	child
ndaku	ndaku	brother
ndenge	ndɛŋgɛ	sister
mwasi	mwasi	wife
mwana mwasi	mwana mwasi	daughter
mwana mobali	mwana mɔbali	son
mokolo	mɔkɔlɔ	grandfather
mokolo mwasi	mɔkɔlɔ mwasi	grandmother
mokolo mobali	mɔkɔlɔ mɔbali	grandfather
mokolo mama	mɔkɔlɔ mama	grandmother
mokolo mwana	mɔkɔlɔ mwana	grandchild

Dialogue

Let's practice the words above in a dialogue.

• Person 1: Mobali oyo na mama na mwana? (mɔbali ɔjɔ na mama na mwana?) – Who is your father, mother and child?
• Person 2: Mobali oyo azali mokoli na mama oyo azali mokoli mwasi na mwana oyo azali mokoli mwana. (mɔbali ɔjɔ azali mɔkɔli na mama ɔjɔ azali mɔkɔli mwasi na mwana ɔjɔ azali mɔkɔli mwana.) – My father is my grandfather, my mother is my grandmother and my child is my grandchild.
• Person 1: Ndaku na ndenge oyo? (ndaku na ndɛŋgɛ ɔjɔ?) – And your brother and sister?
• Person 2: Ndaku na ndenge azali mokoli mobali na mokoli mama. (ndaku na ndɛŋgɛ azali mɔkɔli mɔbali na mɔkɔli mama.) – My brother and sister are my grandfather's and grandmother's children.

Related Lessons

• Street life
• Feelings and Emotions
• Colors
• English Lingala verbs
• Daily routines
• Sky
• Sickness and Health
• Around the house
• Using ‘moko’ and ‘liboso’
• Comprehension