We are
continuing with our series on homonyms, or what some people call homophones.
In Chinyanja
(Malawi/Zambia), the verb “Kugona” means “To sleep”, while in Runyankole/Rukiga
(Western Uganda) it refers to “To snore”.
In Swahili, the
verb “Kucheza” is “to play/joke”. In Chichewa, it may also be used to mean
“gossip”.
In Kinyarwanda,
the noun “ubuzima” refers to health. In Runyankole/Rukiga(Western Uganda) a
similar word – “obuzima” actually means honesty.
In
runyoro-rutooro (Western Uganda), the word Ekitabu may mean a bed, while the
same is strictly used to refer to a bed in the rest of the Bantu languages (It
has its origins in Arabic: Kitab for book).
In lusoga,
“ndala/mulala” means one/lone/sole, while it means “another” in Luganda
(central Uganda). For example, the sentence: Yali muntu mulala may mean: He was one person. In Luganda, it may mean:
He was a different person.
Dan A.
