A basic Patois sentence follows the same order as English: subject, then verb, then object. Mi love yuh is "I love you", and Yuh love mi is "You love me". The differences are elsewhere. "Is" splits into three. "There is" becomes it have. Verbs chain together without "and". And to emphasize something, you move it to the front of the sentence. This guide covers each of these, with examples from the Patois Pal Build a Sentence lessons.
Subject, verb, object
Patois pronouns don't change form (see pronouns), so word order alone shows who does what to whom:
Dem si wi a church.
They saw us at church.
Wi si dem a church.
We saw them at church.
Tense and negation markers go between the subject and the verb, in that order: subject, then negator or tense marker, then verb, then object.
Shi a wash di clothes dem.
She's washing the clothes.
Im neva pay mi.
He didn't pay me.
The three ways to say "is"
This is the most useful structure rule to learn, and the one learners get wrong most often.
1. a: linking two nouns
Use a when you're saying what someone or something is:
Shi a nurse.
She is a nurse.
Mi faada a fisherman.
My father is a fisherman.
A mi dat.
That's me.
2. deh: saying where
Use deh for location. A can't do this job.
Im deh a shop.
He's at the shop.
Di key dem deh pon di table.
The keys are on the table.
Im deh yah.
He's here.
Deh also means "there", so one sentence can use it twice: Di bus stop deh ova deh so ("The bus stop is over there"). The first deh is the verb and the second is part of "over there". The everyday reply mi deh yah literally means "I'm here", and in practice means "I'm doing OK".
3. Nothing: describing
Adjectives work like verbs in Patois, so no linking word is needed:
Di soup hot.
The soup is hot.
Di pickney likkle.
The child is small.
Because adjectives behave like verbs, they take tense markers too. Did puts a description in the past: Di mango dem did ripe ("The mangoes were ripe").
"There is": it have
For "there is" or "there are", Patois uses it have:
It have one mango tree inna di yard.
There's a mango tree in the yard.
It did have one big storm las night.
There was a big storm last night.
You'll also hear dem have in the same sense, with no actual "they" involved: Dem have nuff fish a di market ("There's plenty of fish at the market"). To ask whether something exists nearby, use deh bout: Any short cut deh bout? ("Is there a shortcut around here?").
Possession: just put the owner first
There's no apostrophe-s. The owner goes straight before the thing owned:
Mi madda a call yuh.
My mother is calling you.
This works with names and titles too, as in the app story title Sunday Dinna a Aunty Yard ("Sunday dinner at Aunty's house"). For standalone "mine/yours", use fi: Da book deh a fi mi ("That book is mine").
Joining clauses: seh, fi and haffi
seh = "that"
After verbs of saying, hearing, thinking and feeling, seh introduces what's said or thought:
Mi hear seh shi a come.
I heard that she's coming.
Dem tell mi seh di party cancel.
They told me the party was cancelled.
Mi sure seh dem gaan.
I'm sure they left.
English often drops "that". Patois usually keeps seh.
fi = "to", "in order to", "should"
Fi before a verb marks purpose or obligation:
Mi come fi help yuh.
I came to help you.
Mi want someting fi eat.
I want something to eat.
Di pickney dem fi deh a bed.
The children should be in bed.
Haffi ("have to", from have fi) is the stronger "must": Mi haffi work tomorrow.
Serial verbs: chaining actions without "and"
English joins actions with "and" or "to": "go and get", "take it to granny". Patois often just lines the verbs up in the order things happen:
Run go fetch di ball.
Run and fetch the ball.
Tek di money go buy bread.
Take the money and go buy bread.
Carry dis letta go gi granny.
Take this letter to granny.
Sen di bwoy go call di docta.
Send the boy to call the doctor.
Serial verbs are a widely noted shared feature of Atlantic creoles and many West African languages. A fixed example you'll hear constantly is Come wi guh, or Mek wi go ("Let's go").
Emphasis: moving things to the front
Topic first, comment after
Name what you're talking about, pause, then say something about it:
Money, mi nuh have none.
As for money, I don't have any.
Da gyal deh, shi can sing!
That girl, she can sing!
Focus with a: "It's X who…"
Put a plus the thing you're stressing at the front, then say the rest:
A mi do it.
It's me who did it.
A di dog nyam di food.
It's the dog that ate the food.
A Kingston shi born.
It's in Kingston she was born.
Watch the position of a. A im bruk di cup ("It was him who broke the cup") is not the same as Im a bruk di cup ("He's breaking the cup"). To deny it, put nuh after the a: A nuh mi do it! ("It wasn't me!").
Predicate doubling: "really, truly"
To intensify an adjective or verb, put a copy of it at the front after a:
A tired mi tired!
I'm really tired!
A fraid im fraid!
He's really scared!
Other everyday intensifiers
- bad after an adjective or verb means "very" or "a lot", not "badly": Mi tired bad ("I'm very tired"), Yuh can dance bad ("You dance really well").
- Repeating a word intensifies it: Mi did busy busy ("I was really busy"). Some words only exist doubled, like chaka-chaka (messy).
- Tags at the end add feeling: Mi serious enuh ("I'm serious, you know"), Di sun hot today eeh!
Questions keep statement order
Patois questions don't swap the subject and verb or add "do". Say the statement with a rising tone, or put a question word at the front:
Yuh alright?
Are you okay?
Weh yuh put mi shoes dem?
Where did you put my shoes?
More in negation and questions.
Common learner mistakes
- Di food a nice → Di food nice. No a before an adjective.
- Im a di shop → Im deh a di shop. Location needs deh.
- Wi did bought → Wi did buy. The verb stays bare.
- Di pickneys → Di pickney dem. Plural uses dem, not -s.
- Is it yuh a come? → Yuh a come? No inversion in questions.
Questions people ask
Is Patois word order the same as English?
The core order is the same: subject, verb, object. Mi love yuh means 'I love you', and swapping the pronouns swaps who loves whom. The differences come in how Patois says 'is', how it asks questions without changing word order, and how it fronts words for emphasis.
How do you say 'there is' in Patois?
Use 'it have' (or 'dem have'): It have one mango tree inna di yard means 'There's a mango tree in the yard'. For the past, add did: It did have one big storm las night.
Why do Jamaicans say 'a tired mi tired'?
It's predicate doubling, a way of intensifying. You put a copy of the adjective or verb at the front after 'a', then say the full sentence. A tired mi tired means 'I'm really tired'.