This lesson is a work in progress!
Table of Contents
nimi ku suli
Some of these words were given in lessons, and others were not. I’ve sorted them by adoption, and provide them due to the importance and influence of Toki Pona Dictionary.
Widespread
Everything here is important to know! The three bold words were not in the lessons.
| Word | Definition | Note |
|---|---|---|
| pu pu | to interact with Toki Pona: The Language of Good | |
| ku ku | to interact with Toki Pona Dictionary | |
| kijetesantakalu kijetesantakalu | raccoon, procyonid, musteloid, skrunkly mammal | joke word, but beloved |
| kin kin | (indicate something is additional, extra) | in pu, former synonym of a |
| kipisi kipisi | split, cut, divide | similar to tu: split, divide |
| leko leko | square, cube | my personal favorite nimi ku suli |
| monsuta monsuta | fear, scary | see monsutatesu |
| namako namako | spicy, extra, ornamental | in pu, former synonym of sin |
| soko soko | mushroom, fungus | similar to kasi: fungus, kili: mushroom |
| tonsi tonsi | transexual, non-binary |
Common
These words are around, but less important to know. They are either falling out of use or poorly adopted. They were not in any lesson.
| Word | Definition | Note |
|---|---|---|
| lanpan lanpan | take, steal | similar to jo: have, take |
| meso meso | average, central, ordinary | |
| misikeke misikeke | medicine, medicinal | |
| n n | umm, hmm, uh | arguably not a word due phonetics |
| oko oko | eye, to look | in pu, former synonym of lukin |
Uncommon
It is not necessary to know these words. They were not in any lesson.
| Word | Definition | Note |
|---|---|---|
| jasima jasima | reflect, mirror, opposite | contentious for inconsistent use |
| epiku epiku | “pona mute a!” | joke word |
| kokosila kokosila | to speak a different language in a Toki Pona only environment | joke word |
Differences
Toki Pona is a living language, and has changed over time. To better reflect Toki Pona’s use in the community, a few of the definitions and uses I’ve given are not the same as in Toki Pona: The Language of Good, and are not what other lessons from before and after the book do either.
I do not recommend using these definitions in practice, but I’ve listed them here because they do still exist and you may encounter them. These definitions are in addition to those I’ve taught.
The previous use gives only the definition which is no longer used.
| Word | Previous Use |
|---|---|
| jo jo | “have” in any sense in English; having good times |
| pali pali | “do” in any sense in English; “sina pali e seme” meant “what are you doing?” |
| akesi akesi | non-cute animal |
| kepeken kepeken | could be a verb with “kepeken e” and mean the same |
| namako namako | synonym of sin |
| kin kin | synonym of a |