landin

Flagged loanword_attested=true; no definition supplied. Duplicate headword of index 317. Word-initial l- (atypical for native Yalanji per Patz §2.3) is consistent with the attested loan status.


landin

Landing (place name: confluence of Thompson Creek and Bloomfield River with a landing ramp)

Already flagged as a loanword (loanword_attested=true); word-initial l- is non-native to Kuku Yalanji per Patz §2.3, consistent with English origin.


landin

the Aboriginal camp at Thompson Creek. (english loan word, from landing)

Definition states English loan from 'landing'; word-initial l- is a loanword tell (Patz §2.3).


luku

Attested in Patz ex.(67a): luku-bulal '(a) pair of trees' (tree + dual/pair), glossed 'A pair of trees is standing there'; not in the source dictionary.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


ma

shows mild surprise, something like English 'oh'

Expresses mild surprise, comparable to English 'oh'.


mabarr

Definition glosses war as Aboriginals fighting with spears.


Mabarrba

Capitalised headword; definition gives a geographic referent (the turn off to Main Camp above the Zig-zag), though the gloss reads 'war spear'.


maja

Definition states English loan from 'master'; voiced stop and j↔s/sh tells (Patz §2.3).


majamal-majamal

Reduplicated idiom for 'bossy'; built on maja 'boss'.


majarr

lazy, no good for hunting or working, used to refer to both dogs and people

Definition notes it applies to both dogs and people.


maji

Definition states English loan; tool for making fire.


makarr

Fish net, an implement for catching fish.


makuku-bawal

change directions so you don't meet someone

Change direction so you don't meet someone; compound with bawal.


makul-makul

tar, or something black as tar or bitumen

Reduplicated; tar or something black as tar/bitumen.


maku-nyajil

Meet, as on the trail; transitive compound on maku 'towards'.


maku-nyajiway

Intransitive counterpart of maku-nyajil; -way intransitivising suffix.


maku-warri

Go to meet someone; compound on maku 'towards'.


maku-wukurril

Follow to meet someone; compound on maku 'towards'.


maku-yungal

Send to meet someone; compound on maku 'towards'.


mala

Glossed 'expert, good at'; functions as a property word.


mala-bayan

'good carpenter'; compound with mala 'expert/good at'.


mala-burri

'good singer'; compound with mala 'expert/good at'.


Malajakuy

the point between Kangkiji and Kaway. Jibul (bat) story is about this cave.

Place name; the point between Kangkiji and Kaway, associated with the Jibul (bat) story about this cave.


mala-kural

'good diver'; compound with mala 'expert/good at'.


mala-kuyu

'good fisherman'; compound with mala 'expert/good at' and kuyu 'fish'.


malal

life force. That which belongs to the body which is burned at a dead person's burning ceremony

Polysemous: 'spider/spider web' and 'life force' (that which belongs to the body and is burned at a dead person's burning ceremony).


mala-lorry

Compound of mala 'good/skilled' + English loan 'lorry' (truck), i.e. a skilled driver.


mala-minya

Compound of mala 'good/skilled' + minya 'meat/game animal', i.e. one good at hunting game.


mala-nganyi

Compound built on mala 'good/skilled at'.


malar dungay

Compound with malar 'creepy feeling' (entry 1660).


malarmalar

Reduplication of malar, denoting a hairy/lumpy surface.


mala-yarraman

Compound of mala 'good/skilled' + yarraman 'horse' (itself a widespread loan into Aboriginal languages), i.e. a skilled rider.


malka-malka

a bad spirit, which goes through walls and comes around when a person has been killed by a dambunji

Reduplicated form; a bad spirit that goes through walls and appears when a person has been killed by a dambunji.


malkarri

Mortuary corroboree performed when someone dies.


mama

Definition states this is an English loan word ('mother').


mamarra

two, joined together but not a pair. This is not used anymore except by old people.

'two, joined together but not a pair'; archaic, used only by old people per the prose.


mamarramaniji

reflexive / general intransitive (§3.8.5.4)


mambarril

report something bad, to tell on, to gossip about

force
give over to
turn over to
report something bad
tell on

Nyulu karrkay mambarrin schoolbu dunganka


manda

if you are a woman, younger brother's children. If you are a man, younger sister's children (relationship term)


mandi-mandi

honeycomb. When your husband or child dies you put this into your hair

Reduplicated form; honeycomb. Prose notes it is put into the hair when a husband or child dies.


mandurr

Bait of any kind, used for fishing/trapping.


mangkurru

kajul kakaji kurunkal marril miyilabu walbu-walbu

Definition states this is an English loan word ('mangrove').


manu

Throat and front of neck. (Type given as adverb but gloss/definition indicate a body-part noun.)


manu

Yundu manu sugar buyim-bunga, lolly kari

Restrictive 'only, just'; functions as a particle despite the noun type label.


manubaja-bungal

Compound of manubaja 'truth' (entry 1692) + -bungal; 'believe'.


manu-burray

Built on manu 'throat/neck'; squeamish/nauseated.


manyarrinyu

Built on manyarr 'wife' (entry 1696); a married couple, husband and wife.


manyi

summit between Bloomfield and Rossville (sea view)

Place-name for the summit between Bloomfield and Rossville, with a sea view.


Manyi

where Main Roads camp was, near the summit of the Bloomfield-Helenvale Road (place name)

Place name: site of the former Main Roads camp near the summit of the Bloomfield-Helenvale Road.


mara-barin

one who takes things and doesn't put them back

Morphologically transparent: mara 'hand' + -barin; describes a habitual taker/borrower.


mara-bawan

to intend to steal something, but someone came so he had to leave it behind and couldn't take it

Compound with mara 'hand'; describes a thwarted attempt at theft.


mara-dajil

Definition states a calque from English 'give a hand'; mara is the native word for 'hand'.


mara-dakal

Definition labels this an idiom ('have a go'), built on mara 'hand'.


mara-duray

clever with the bands, steal something sneak something

thief
clever with the bands
steal something
sleight-of-hand

Compound with mara 'hand'; denotes a thief / sleight-of-hand.


mara-jalajala

Compound of mara 'hand' + reduplicated jalajala; describes clumsiness.


mara-kunbay

Compound with mara 'hand'; means to rest / stop working.


maral

Denotes a young unmarried girl; an age/social category term.


maral-maral

Reduplication of maral 'young girl' giving plural 'young girls'.


mara mulunman

Compound with 'mara' (hand); describes a clenched fist / closed fingers.


mara-muna

Compound with mara 'hand'; denotes a thief.


Marangaku

on Main Camp trail (place name) (story site)

Place name and story site on Main Camp trail.


mararr

cloth. Originally a sail made of plaited palm leaves.

Definition notes it originally meant a sail of plaited palm leaves, semantically extended to 'cloth'.


mara-waban-wabaji

industrious
hardworking
preoccupied
always busy
always working

Compound with mara 'hand' and reduplicative waban-wabaji; describes an industrious person.


mara-warri

Compound with mara 'hand'; intransitive verb 'crawl'.


marbaymba

Place-name for Rattlesnake Point, noted as a story site.


marbaymba

Rattlesnake Point and Fritz Creek (story site)

Rattlesnake Point and Fritz Creek; a story site.


Marbaymba

Rattlesnake point and the ground around there, also the taboo place up Fritz Creek (story site)

Place name (Rattlesnake point / Fritz Creek), noted as a taboo place and story site.


mari

Aboriginal. English loan word (from English outback slang) (In modern terms some people may also know as indiginous or first nations) Also could be spelt murray, murry, murri. (Also relevant to far north Queensland, not just the Bloomfield area)

Definition states it is an English loanword from outback slang (also spelt murray/murry/murri) meaning 'Aboriginal person'.


mari doctor

Compound of mari 'Aboriginal' + English 'doctor'; denotes a traditional/Aboriginal doctor.


mariji-y

To swim; to swim across or through water.

Attested in Patz ex.(268) 'We swam to the island' and ex.(291) 'They swam through the river', where it appears in the past form mariji-ny.

Citation form mariji-y (y-conjugation; -ny is the past suffix). A distinct 'swim' verb beside janji-l 'swim, bathe'.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


marra

zemia tree and the zemia nut which is roasted, ground and leaced to make flour

Polysemous: zemia tree/nut (food source, roasted-ground-leached for flour) and 'wing'.


Marralin

Term for an Islander (Torres Strait Islander).


marra-warri

Built on marra 'wing'; intransitive verb 'to fly'.


marra-warril

to be in a real bad temper, temper tantrum, picking up things and throwing them

to go somewhere (just children, not adults) thoughtlessly, not thinking of the danger

furious
enraged
carefree
heedless wandering
reckless

The man was angry and throwing things around

The kids went down river (when a floor was running)

Polysemous: violent temper tantrum; also heedless/reckless wandering by children.


marrbal

Glossed as 'sour/bitter taste'; despite noun type, denotes a taste property.


marri

Temporal expression 'a long time / prolonged'.


marril

species of mangrove, with apple-like seed only much bigger. The wood is hard and is good for making oars.

Species of mangrove; hardwood used for making oars.


marriman

Intransitive verb 'settled'; -man may reflect an English-derived verbalizer but base meaning is settling/staying.


marri-marri

Reduplicated form meaning 'old people'; age/social category.


marrka

calm sea
salt pan, where salt water has been

Polysemous: calm sea; also a salt pan where salt water has been.


marrkin

Already attested as a loanword (loanword_attested=true); 'gun'.


marrkin-marrkin

Reduplication of marrkin 'gun', used as a nickname for a stockman.


marrku

edible wild cherry which has two or three seeds in each fruit. It grows on lows by the beach and has a shiny leaf. (english - native cherry)

Edible wild/native cherry; the English equivalent 'native cherry' is noted in prose.


maru-maru

Reduplicated adverb meaning 'with nothing / empty'.


marun-marun

Reduplicated form denoting bright red / scarlet.


mawar

the vine of the lawyer cane. Also user to refer to braces.


mawu

a coarse grass used in the making of dilly bags

A coarse grass used in making dilly bags.


mawul

small variety of freshwater eel. Only old people were allowed to eat it.

Small freshwater eel; prose notes only old people were permitted to eat it (food taboo).


mayal

Glossed 'bottle'; a post-contact container item, but no phonological loan tell evident in the form.


mayarriji

sub-species of grey kangaroo, lighter in colour than the "julmbanu"

Sub-species of grey kangaroo, lighter in colour than the 'julmbanu' (per definition).


mayi

generic term for food, whether vegetable or protein

Generic term for food (vegetable or protein), with a narrower sense of vegetable food/fruit, per the definition.


mayngku

Loanword from English 'mango'; English [ai] before a consonant is adapted as /ay/ in Kuku Yalanji.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


midir

knight fish, sometimes known as the port and light fish


mijiji

English loan from 'Missus' (stated in the definition).


mijinan

Place-name for the Wallaby Creek bridge.


Mijinan

where the bridge is over Wallabay Creek (place name)

Place name: where the bridge crosses Wallabay Creek (per definition).


milbanku

pencil cedar. The skin of the seed is edible.

Pencil cedar; the skin of the seed is edible (cultural fact in the definition).


milbar

generic term for shell
nautilus shell
button

Native shell term extended to 'button' (manufactured shell discs); not a phonological loan.


milbayarr

Place-name for a location near China Camp.


Milbayarr

used in mixed company when referring to a man's penis

Woomera (spear-thrower); also used as a euphemism for a man's penis in mixed company, per the definition.


Milbija

along upper reaches of Daintree, between bubu Jiwulkal and Jangkarra

Along the upper reaches of the Daintree, between bubu Jiwulkal and Jangkarra (per definition).


mili

stinging tree
jellyfish (because they also burn)

Stinging tree; extended to 'jellyfish' because they also burn, per the definition.


milka

ear. Many idioms are compounded with "milka" as the base

'Ear'; many idioms are compounded with 'milka' as the base (stated in the definition), seen in the following entries denoting mental/cognitive states.


milka-bakal

Compound of milka 'ear' + bakal; the 'ear' base productively forms mental-state idioms.


milka-binalku

Compound of milka 'ear' + binalku; means 'remember', a cognition idiom on the 'ear' base.


milkabu baykal

Compound on milka 'ear' (locative/ergative milkabu).


milka-bujar

Compound of milka 'ear' + bujar; an emotional-state idiom on the 'ear' base.


milkabu nyajil

Compound on milka 'ear' (milkabu) + nyajil; here 'hear', the literal perceptual sense of the 'ear' base.


milka-burray

The kids are maing too much noise; I'm tired of it

Kaykay-kaykay nurra baka; ngayu milka-burray

Compound of milka 'ear' + burray; emotional-state idiom (tired of noise) on the 'ear' base.


milka-dalkay

The dead person remembered about his wife

Compound of milka 'ear' + dalkay; cognition idiom on the 'ear' base.


milka-dalkay-manil

Yundu nganya milka-dalkay-mana wunkun moneyka

Compound of milka 'ear' + dalkay + causative manil; 'remind' (causative of milka-dalkay 'remember').


milka-daray

The young men sinned and stole food from the shop

Jana warruwarru milka-daran milka-daran mayi ngakinka shopmunmun

The young man and girl did wrong in the bush

Bulu maral and warru milka-daran duduymbu

Compound of milka 'ear' + daray; mental-state idiom (yield to temptation) on the 'ear' base.


milka dudu

Compound of milka 'ear' + dudu; 'deaf', also extended to 'stubborn', per the definition.


milka jalkinba wunay

Phrase on milka 'ear'; can't sleep because of something on the mind (per definition).


milka-janay

Compound of milka 'ear' + janay; 'listen', extended to 'obey', per the definition.


milkaji

Small mullet; homonym of milkaji 'earache' (index 1780).


milka kaka

Compound of milka 'ear' + kaka; 'sore ear'.


milka kari

Compound of milka 'ear' + kari (privative); 'can't hear, deaf'.


milka-manil

Compound of milka 'ear' + manil; emotional-state idiom 'contented'.


milka-marri

Compound of milka 'ear' + marri (comitative); 'contented, peaceful'.


milka-murruji

ashamed of actions, guilty, to avoid someone after stealing from him, or after not keeping a promise, etc.

Compound of milka 'ear' + murruji; emotional-state idiom 'ashamed/guilty' on the 'ear' base.


milka ngabal

Compound of milka 'ear' + ngabal; 'sentence (in court)' and 'remind', per the definition.


milkanga-bungal

Compound on milka 'ear' + bungal; 'remind', also used for 'explain', per the definition.


milkanga-kaday

Compound on milka 'ear' + kaday; 'recall, remember'.


milkanyajiji

disobey, don't list don't do as you're told, do as you want to do

Compound on milka 'ear' + nyaji-; 'disobey / listen to one's own conscience', per the definition.


milka nyajil

Compound of milka 'ear' + nyajil; 'remember'.


milka-wulay

Compound of milka 'ear' + wulay; 'forget', extended to 'forgive', per the definition.


minday

tame, quiet, brace, not afraid of or shy of, confident.

That pig isn't afraid any more, is tame now

Nyulu bikibiki yinyilji karida, mindayda


mingki-janay

squat, crouch. People fighting squat down so you cannot hit them with your spear, or when camping out, crouch down all night because of the rain (can't lie down because it is too wet)

Compound with janay 'stand/be'; 'squat, crouch', with cultural elaboration in the definition (fighting, camping in rain).


mingu

the hook of the woomera that enters the end of the spear

The hook of the woomera that enters the end of the spear (per definition); a spear-thrower component.


mingur

oil nut tree. The fruit is like a small green apple, which when roasted in the fire, turns black. The black is rubbed on the hand and then on the hair to beautify it.

Oil nut tree; roasted fruit yields a black pigment rubbed on the hair as a cosmetic, per the definition prose.


mini

correct, as a correct marriage according to tribal laws

Used of a 'correct' (legitimate) marriage according to tribal law, per the definition.


mini-mini

Reduplicated form of mini 'correct', here with the sense 'beautiful, nice, pretty'.


minjal

Transitive verb glossed 'hoard'; definition specifies keeping/saving food for someone.


minji

splash, that which comes out at an explosion or flames coming out in a big fire

They went real fast, the boat made a big splash (bow wave) (as it goes along fast)

Jana jinbalku dungan, buwunda bana minji-kangan

The fire has a lot of flames shooting up


minjin-damal

Compound verb; the -damal element is a common transitive verbaliser ('make/do').


minya

meat, eggs (protein food)
generic term for animal

Functions as a generic classifier for 'animal/meat' as well as the edible/protein-food sense (meat, eggs).


miral

Two senses: scum on water and whale oil.


mirrba

a wooden instrument to help throw spears more powerfully. This was used as an instrument of defence. After being found guilty, a man used to be given a woomera with which to ward off the spears thrown by a group of men. The aim was not to kill except for a capital offence. also rifle

Spear-thrower (woomera) used defensively to ward off thrown spears in judicial duels; sense extended to 'rifle'.


mirrbangku

pencil cedar. The fruit is the shape of a date and very sweet.

Pencil cedar; fruit described as date-shaped and very sweet.


mirrimbal

the name of a hat made from cockatoo feathers. To make the hat, the feathers of the cockatoo are mixed with bees wax and the hat is used in ceremonies.

Cockatoo crest; also a ceremonial hat of cockatoo feathers set with beeswax, used in ceremonies, per the definition.


mirrku

'Kidney bird', named as the totem of the dabu moiety.


miyil

species of tree, which has poisonous sap used to blind fish. You wrap orange seed in grass to keep the sap from touching your skin and the eyes of people, then smash under water.

Primary sense 'eye'; also names a tree whose poisonous sap is used to stupefy/blind fish, an extension of the 'eye' sense.


miyilabu

species of mangrove. It has a poisonous sap which makes people blind.

Mangrove species with poisonous sap said to cause blindness; built on miyil 'eye'.


miyil-burra

Compound on miyil 'eye' meaning 'blind'.


miyilda kujil

Compound with kujil ('keep, hold, wait for').


miyil-dandi

one who stares, looks hard, concentrates

Compound on miyil 'eye'; describes one who stares or concentrates hard.


miyil-dungay

Compound on miyil 'eye' meaning 'giddy, dizzy'.


miyil-duray

person who pretends he is not observing, but really does

Compound on miyil 'eye'; one who pretends not to observe but really does.


miyil-janay

Compound on miyil 'eye' meaning 'look, watch'.


miyilji bunday

Glossed 'literate'; built on miyil 'eye'.


miyil kari

Phrase on miyil 'eye' meaning 'blind'; kari is a common privative/negative element.


miyil-nandaji

Glossed 'pray', literally 'to close your eyes' per the definition; built on miyil 'eye'.


miyil-wurril

Compound on miyil 'eye' meaning 'crosseye(d)'.


mudaka

Definition explicitly marks this as an English loanword for 'motor car' (already noted in prose).


muduwaju

Also occurs as the temporal form muduwajuny 'at daybreak' (Patz §5.2.2, §5.5.2).

Attested in Patz §3.4 / §6.4 discussion as muduwajuny 'at daybreak' (a time word, alongside wunkuny 'next day') and in Appendix Text 36 lines 24, 33 (muduwaju-ny); not in the source dictionary.

Entered as a temporal noun: the harvested 'become dawn' verb reading is doubtful because u-final intransitive (y-conjugation) verb roots are unattested (Patz §3.8.3.1, Table 3.15).

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


mudu wayjul

Temporal expression for the time just before daylight (pre-dawn).


muja

wound not yet healed
Watermelon Creek (place name)

Primary sense 'unhealed wound'; also a place name (Watermelon Creek) per the definition.


muja-muja

rotten, easily broken, decayed wood or cloth

You should dry out your tent; it might get rotten

Reduplicated form of muja; 'rotten, decayed, easily broken' (of wood or cloth).


mujarr

species of fig tree and its fruit, which is edible, and is like a very small apple - ripe in August to October. It is red when ripe, grows out of the trunk of the tree.

Fig tree species and its edible fruit (red when ripe, August-October), growing from the trunk.


mujarrka

Definition marks this as the yalanji dialect form.


mujarrka

archer fish (yalanji) (nyungkul - dalku)

spotted Jewfish, fresh and saltwater, in King's Plains rivers

Archer fish in Yalanji; the Nyungkul equivalent is given as dalku in the definition prose.


muji

name given to a person who has spear marks on him

Names a person bearing spear-mark scars, per the definition.


mujurr

Witchetty grub found in rotting wood; an edible insect larva.


mukay

relationship term, mother's older sister, father's older brother

mother's older sister
father's older brother


mukirr

mussel. Found in fresh and brackish water. There are many up the Daintree near Bairds, some up Granite Creek. Has to be cleaned from the black stuff that tastes like tobacco. First roast it, then clean the "ear" out, then boil it or else eat it right away without boiling

Freshwater/brackish mussel; definition details cleaning and roasting/boiling preparation.


muku

Primary sense 'back'; also names a small hawk.


muku balmbarriji

Reflexive intransitive on muku 'back'; 'lean oneself back'.


muku-duku

Jalbungku kulngkuldu minya kurranji nukan, nyungu kangkal muku-dukumal

Compound on muku 'back' meaning 'hunchback, bent back'.


mukukanka

species of tree and its edible fruit - becomes ripe in August-September.

Tree species with edible fruit ripening in August-September.


muku-muku

Reduplicated form of muku 'back' meaning 'go backwards'.


mukurr-mukurr

brackish, just when tide comes up into river

Reduplicated form; 'brackish', of water when the tide first enters the river.


mula-mula

red colour (yalanji) (nyungkul - ngala ngala)

Reduplicated form (yalanji dialect); Nyungkul dialect equivalent given in prose as 'ngala ngala'.


mulawajarr

Yalanji dialect form; Nyungkul dialect equivalent given in prose as 'dawar'.


mula wanarri

Intransitive expression on mula 'blood' meaning 'bleeding'.


muliku

Annan River area (between the Annan and the Bloomfield turnoff)


Muliku

the other side of the Annan River bridge toward Cooktown, where the old bridge is underneath, cement on top

Place near the Annan River bridge toward Cooktown, per the prose.


mulkal-mulkal

totem. This word spoken with a rising intonation is an enquiry into a person's secret life.

state of mind to fight for no reason. The father of an unborn child becomes angry at a mate and he will hit the mate at slightest pretense. This is then a sign that his wife is pregnant. Can also be anyone who fights for no reason. This is also a sign someone is pregnant

the spirit being who keeps a snake from biting a pregnant woman

totem
state of mind
spirit being
story
background

They're fighting for no reason. Someone will have a baby.

Bula mulkal-mulkal; somebodyngka baby haveim-bungal

Reduplicated form. Prose notes rising intonation turns it into an enquiry into a person's secret life; also denotes a spirit being protecting a pregnant woman from snakebite and a fighting-without-reason state of mind.


mulkay

fetish
an article with supernatural powers


mulkay-warri

Ngayu jananiin nyajin ngujurinya, ngayu mulkay-warrin


Mulujin

Place along the Daintree River, per the prose.


mulumu

Prose gives a secondary sense: wood used in a sacred corroboree.


mumal

Prose specifies throwing a spear with a woomera (spear-thrower).


mumbal

to insert, to place inside something, as to insert a part in an engine


mumbu

Attested in Patz ex.(169) (§3.6.x causative) as the base of mumbu-bunga-l / mumbu-kanga-l 'make dirty'; not in the source dictionary.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


muna

quiet, brave, not afraid, confident (used to describe someone who asks for things, not being shy)

Two senses in prose: confident/brave/not-shy of a person, and tame of an animal (e.g. a tame pig).


mungari

Prose identifies it as the Kauri pine tree.


mungka-dirka

Compound with 'mungka' (hair); denotes fur.


Mungka-dunja

'Islander'; compound, capitalized as a group designation.


mungka-dunju

Compound with 'mungka' (hair); ethnonym for Torres Strait Islander.


mungka-mungka

Reduplicated form (mungka-mungka); small tree with thorns on branches.


mungka-mungka

Reduplication of 'mungka' (hair) yielding adjective 'hairy'.


mungka-mungka

Reduplicated homonym; prose describes a little thorny tree.


mungkil

They speared lots of different kinds of fish

Bula minya wali-yindu walu-yindu kalkabu mungkin


munja-l

to gather, collect (e.g. nuts, plant food)

Attested in Patz ex.(363) (munja-ji-ny 'were gathered') and discussed §4.x (cf. Hershberger's muja-l); not in the source dictionary.

Verb root takes conjugation suffix -l (Patz §3.8.3).


munju

Yalanji dialect form; Nyungkul dialect equivalent given in prose as 'yiman'.


munju-dandi

Compound on 'munju' (forehead); idiom for 'stubborn'.


munju-jubal

Shpton's Flat area (near the fork of Grasstree Creek)


Munjujubal

ground near fork of Grasstree Creek (Shipton's Flat area) (place name)

Place name: ground near the fork of Grasstree Creek, Shipton's Flat area, per the prose. (Gloss field 'forehead' appears erroneous; prose defines a place.)


munwingkul

Definition identifies a species of dove (ground pigeon).


munyun

Snake scale (anatomical part of a reptile).


mura

species of tree. When this is in bloom it is time for minya jalan.

Prose: its blooming marks the time for minya jalan.


murba

close fitting, tightly built, patched up


murbuy

Red ochre — pigment for painting/adornment.


murma

small paper wasp, yellow in colour with a bad sting. Its nest hangs in trees.


murniji

to turn around, to go around in circles (as when lost)


murrabal

Yalanji dialect form; Nyungkul dialect equivalent given in prose as 'kudi'.


murral

tree kangaroo (yalanji) (nyungkul - jarrabina)

Yalanji dialect form; Nyungkul dialect equivalent given in prose as 'jarrabina'.


murrangkal

fighting spear (shovelhead), made from black palm

Prose: fighting spear (shovelhead) made from black palm.


murrbun

Primary sense scabies (skin condition); prose adds a secondary sense, a species of lizard.


murrka

scar, scab, initiation marks. Not an open wound

Definition extends to initiation marks (scarification), a cultural practice; explicitly distinguished from an open wound.


murrkul

species of tree with edible fruit, two seeds one above the other, round like an apple. Ripe August - October

Tree with edible fruit; prose notes ripe August-October.


murrngal

to break off twigs or small branches to harvest fruit from a tree

Specific action of breaking off twigs/small branches to harvest fruit from a tree.


murru

spoken of animals or plants folding up when interfered with, i.e. sensitive weed

Polysemous: 'round' and also describing animals/plants that fold up when disturbed (e.g. sensitive weed).


murru-kaday

Inchoative intransitive ('become ashamed/shy'); contrasts with causative murru-kaday-manil 'to shame someone' via the -manil suffix.


murru-kaday-manil

Causative formed with the -manil suffix on murru-kaday 'become ashamed'.


muru-bungal

Formed on muru 'together' with the verbaliser -bungal.


muru-muru

Reduplication of muru 'together' yielding 'close together'.


muwul

secretly, quietly
between Tribulation and Bailey's creek

That man is from Mossman, he's living secretly with his relation (so the Manager won't know)

Nyulu bama Mossmanmun, nyulu muwulku bundanday jawunyunji

Definition also records a place sense ('between Tribulation and Bailey's creek').


Muwunbu

the tableland the other side of Rossville (place name)

Place name: the tableland beyond Rossville.


muya

English name unknown; classified as a bird via the translations field.


muyul-muyul

funny, creepy feeling, like you have when something is crawling on you, nervous, a special feeling against.

He's got a block against snakes (doesn't want to touch them, doesn't like them)

Reduplicated form describing a creepy/nervous bodily sensation.


muyu wayjul

singeing the hair of the pig before cooking

Two-word expression: muyu 'pig hair' + wayjul; refers to singeing the pig's hair before cooking.


naka

south and east; south along the coast used in referring to Cairns or Brisbane

Directional term: south and east, south along the coast (used for Cairns/Brisbane).


Naka wawabajaburr wujal-wujaldarr

This is a full example sentence, not a lexical headword. Contains the place name Wujal-Wujal (with suffix -darr) and verbal material (wawu- 'want/desire').


nalmbarriji wunay

Two-word expression; intransitive nalmbarriji (cf. transitive nalmbarril 'lean') plus wunay.


nambarr

stick of flexible bamboo used in nose piercing

Flexible bamboo stick used in nose piercing.


nambil-nambil

Reduplicated form (place name for Jubilee).


Nambil-nambil

Place name (Jubilee); reduplicated form.


nangkibu warri

Two-word expression based on nangki 'wing' plus warri.


narri-l

Attested in Patz ex.(349) (jina narri-ji-ny 'stepped on (my) foot', chance passive); cf. transitive narn-ny in ex.(351). Not in the source dictionary.

Verb root takes conjugation suffix -l (Patz §3.8.3).

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


naybu

Definition explicitly marks this as an English loan word ('knife').


nbuyun-birrku

Contains the numeral root for 'one' (cf. nyubun, 2159) with suffix -birrku.


ngadiku

Appears related to ngadi 'a long time' with temporal suffix.


ngadil

Prose notes the timber is good for making woomeras (spear-throwers).


Ngadi-muril

near Grasstree where footprints are (Ngalba-bulal legend)

Place near Grasstree associated with the Ngalba-bulal legend (footprints).


ngajay

Prose notes this small crayfish species is not eaten.


ngakun

flame tree. The flowering of this tree signals the time when the scrub hen eggs are in season

Polysemous: a yam species and the flame tree, whose flowering signals scrub-hen egg season.


ngala-ngala

Reduplicated form. Yalanji dialect; the nyungkul equivalent is given as mula-mula.


ngalayin

Father-in-law, son-in-law (relationship term)

Reciprocal term covering both father-in-law and son-in-law.


ngalba

a term you can call a person when you can't say that person's name, i.e. if anyone has the same name as a recently dead person; or if someone has the same name as a woman's son-in-law. The taboo names for them become ngalba.

A name-avoidance (taboo) term used in place of the name of someone sharing a name with a recently dead person or with a woman's son-in-law.


ngali

First person dual inclusive pronoun ('we two', including addressee).


ngalin

First person dual exclusive pronoun ('we two', excluding addressee).


ngalkal

outside. Can refer to outside the house, outside the scrub, outside a certain area.

Prose notes it can refer to outside a house, outside the scrub, or outside a defined area.


ngalkarran

species of tree with edible red seed like an apple, ripe in August - October


ngalkunbu

Wayalla Plains (upper end of Plantation Creek)


ngalu-ngalu

refreshed, as after a swim. Can also mean healthy, lively, happy, glad, mentally alert

refreshed
healthy
lively
happy
glad
mentally alert

Reduplicated form; spans physical refreshment after a swim and a healthy/lively/happy/alert state.


ngamba

not seeing or noticing or recognising
absence

not seeing
not noticing
not recognising
absence

Jana nyunguwunbu bayanba walan nyungungunbu ngambanga

Denotes failure to see, notice or recognise, and absence.


ngambuy

to strong a taste, i.e. too sweet
grog, liquor

Polysemous: an excessively strong taste (e.g. too sweet), and grog/liquor.


ngami-ngami-bungal

Causative/verbalised form of ngami-ngami 'separate' with -bungal.


ngamu

Mother, mother's sisters, great grand-daughter (relationship term

Mother
mother's sisters
great grand-daughter
Meg Falls

Kinship sense (mother, mother's sisters, great grand-daughter) is primary; a homophonous place-name sense (below Meg Falls) is also listed.


ngamu-baka

Compound with ngamu 'mother'; pejorative for a sissy / mama's baby.


ngamu-kaja

No definition supplied. First element 'ngamu' is the common Yalanji noun for 'mother/breast', but with no gloss the overall sense cannot be confirmed.


ngamu-kaja

the main part in things that go naturally together, as the rifle and bullets, or the tape player in cassette player and tapes

Compound with ngamu; denotes the main/principal member of a naturally paired set (e.g. rifle to bullets, tape player to tapes).


ngamu-manda

Compound with ngamu 'mother' denoting the mother-and-daughter dyad.


ngana

First person plural inclusive pronoun ('we all', including addressee).


ngandal-barin

nuisance, always telling someone to do something

Compound with ngandal 'mouth'; describes a nuisance who is always telling others what to do.


ngandal milbil

Compound expression with ngandal 'mouth'; to circulate/carry a rumour.


nganday

He's sitting quietly, (doesn't visit anyone or walk around)


nganga

I came for just a little bit, have to get back to cook

Ngayu nganga kadan. Ngayu dungay baja mayika wayjul

Restrictive/limiting adverb ('only, just that').


nganganjirrka

Marrkin wundi, nganganjirrka bikibiki kadanyamunku


ngangkal

Nyulu ngarrbal ngangkal-ngangkal baralka

Glossed 'ignorant of something'; despite the 'transitive-verb' type label the sense is a mental/cognitive state.


ngangkal

Homophonous with index 2001 (ngangkal 'ignorant'); this sense is 'surprised'.


ngangkay

You will soon be surprised when I show you something

Yundu juma ngangkay, ngayu yunundu junjuy milbil


ngangkin

Echidna (monotreme), colloquially 'porcupine' in Australian English.


ngangkurr

bark, as of a dog
sound of a dog barking


ngangkurri-l

Attested in Patz §3.8.2.2(i), paired with the noun ngangkurr 'sound of barking'; not in the source dictionary.

Denominal -ri-y/-l verb; takes conjugation suffix per Patz §3.8.3.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


nganja

Polysemous: 'taste' plus a metaphysical sense 'voice of one's spirit left behind' (echo/legacy/imprint).


nganja-burra

Compound of nganja 'taste' + -burra (cf. burra 'bad/no good'), yielding 'bad taste'.


nganjan

father, father's brother (relationship term)

Classificatory kin term covering both father and father's brother.


nganjan-manda

Dyadic kin term: nganjan 'father' + -manda, denoting the father-and-son pair.


nganjar

The child come to have some icecream (he didn't ask for it, just stayed to see if he would get some)

Nyulu karrkay nganjar kadan ice cream nukanka


nganjar-nganjar

hinting to find out something, not asking straight out

He came to find out where they got the grog from (didn't ask, just hinted to find out)

Nyulu nganjar-nganjar kadan, jana wanjamun kamukamu manin

Reduplication of nganjar 'secret purpose/pretence', meaning 'hinting, not asking straight out'.


nganjay

no good, wilted as nganka nganjay, "wilted flowers"

bad smell. Methylated spirits is sometimes called nganjay

Primary sense 'no good/wilted'; extended to 'bad smell', and methylated spirits is sometimes called nganjay per the definition.


nganjin

1st person plural exclusive personal pronoun ('we, not including you').


nganjirr

grass tree (blackboy). If jarramali (thunderstorm) comes, anyone can burn one of these; ironwood bark (jujabala) wild grape vines (kangka); or grasstree pitch (kanunjul). The smell will make the thunder go away

Grass tree (blackboy). Definition records anti-thunderstorm use: burning grass tree, ironwood bark (jujabala), wild grape vine (kangka) or grass tree pitch (kanunjul) to drive jarramali (thunderstorm) away.


Nganjuninda

area across from Simm's Wharf behind Mangrove Island. (place name)

Place name: area across from Simm's Wharf behind Mangrove Island.


nganka

'flower, blossom'; cf. nganka nganjay 'wilted flowers' cited at index 2014.


nganku

He went too quickly, I didn't finish my letter

Nyulu ngankuku dungan ngayu letter kariku kunbay-manin


nganya

1st person singular accusative pronoun 'me' (direct object of the verb).


nganya-burra

old time Aboriginal trial. The one on trial has spears thrown at him. If he is able to dodge them, he goes free.

Old-time Aboriginal trial: the accused has spears thrown at him and goes free if he can dodge them.


nganya kayi

Exclamatory reaction to being hurt; contains the 1sg accusative pronoun nganya 'me'.


nganyi-burra

Contains -burra (cf. burra 'no good'); glossed 'not good at anything'.


nganyin

Polysemous: 'onion' (definition explicitly marks it as an English loan word) and 'sugar bag' (native wild honey).


nganyi-nganyi

Correction: original `type` value 'policeman' was the word's meaning, not a part of speech; reclassified as noun.


Ngara bali-bali

Place name for the upper Daintree River; first element is ngara 'root' (index 2029).


ngaral

Jana carpenter-carpenterangka bayan ngaral-ngaral

They spread out a blanket for the children to sleep

Jana blanket ngaran kaykay-kaykay wunanka


ngarngkul

Kaykay-kaykay ngarngkuljiku jan jil-janjil


ngarra

Danny went to the store, Carol also went.

Danny storengy dungan, Carol ngarra dungan


ngarran

'fin'; the 'adverb' type label appears erroneous for a body-part noun.


ngarri

Correction: original `type` value 'lower legs' was the word's meaning, not a part of speech; reclassified as noun.


Ngarri-muril

Place name: near Romeo. First element is ngarri 'lower legs' (index 2040).


ngarrku-ngarrku

obliging, easy to get along with because he does what you ask him

That person is easy to get along with in working (If you ask him to do anything, he does it quickly)

Reduplicated form glossed 'obliging, easy to get along with'.


ngarruy

Correction: original `type` value 'shellbait' was the word's meaning, not a part of speech; reclassified as noun.


ngaru

Describes a husky or squeaky voice (quality of vocal sound).


ngawa

Infant/newborn baby — denotes a life stage.


ngawur

'voracious'; definition 'always coming for food'. The 'noun' type may be better read as a descriptive/characterising term.


ngawurr-ngawun

Reduplicated form for the freshwater crocodile.


ngaybirr

name for spouse (used only by old people now)

Definition notes the term for spouse is now used only by old people, indicating archaic/restricted usage.


ngayku

First person singular possessive/dative pronoun ('my', 'for me'), the genitive/dative form corresponding to ngayu 'I'.


ngayu

Correction: definition/translation held the example 'I went to the store'; ngayu is the 1sg pronoun (Patz §3.5).

First person singular nominative pronoun.


ngiki

a cold, or any sickness of the lungs as bronchitis


ngiki-damaji

Compound of ngiki 'cold' (entry 2055) with -damaji.


ngikiji

Derived from ngiki 'cold' (entry 2055) with verbalizing suffix -ji, here 'have a cold'.


ngingkirr

We were going heard a grunt, a pig coming

Headword and gloss are an example sentence (Nganjin dungan, ngingkirr nyajin 'We were going, heard a grunt, a pig coming'); ngingkirr denotes a grunt/grunting sound, cf. ngingkirr badi/wunay 'to grunt' (entries 2060-2061).


ngingkirr badi

Compound of ngingkirr 'grunt' (sound) with the verb badi 'to grunt'.


ngingkirr wunay

Variant of ngingkirr badi (entry 2060), here with wunay; both gloss 'to grunt'.


nginja

That man is always grunting (in his sleep)


nginja-wunay

Compound of nginja 'grunt' (entry 2062) with wunay; means 'roar or growl like a dog'.


Ngiri

Place name; located south of Cape Tribulation per the definition.


ngirran

Definition states it is the beetle fully developed from mujurr (witchetty grub), i.e. the adult life stage.


ngirray-warri-y

to burst into tears (literally 'weeping-run')

Attested in Patz §3.8.5.2 compound table (also listed §3.8.x), glossed 'burst into tears' (weeping(N)-run); not in the source dictionary.

Lexicalised compound of ngirray 'weeping' + warri-y 'run'.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


ngiwa

moray eel. Also used sometimes for sea snake

between kangkiji and Kaway (snake story site)

Moray eel; per the definition sometimes also applied to sea snake. Second definition line names a story-site location between kangkiji and Kaway.


nguba

Epistemic/modal adverb 'maybe, perhaps'.


ngubar-ngubar

Reduplication of ngubar 'the other side' (entry 2069), yielding 'across, over'.


nguijan

Attested in Patz §2.4(i) as a palatalisation example (vowel /a/ palatalised before /j/), glossed 'jealous'; not in the source dictionary.


ngujakura

Aboriginal law, the dreamtime stories anything to do with the dreamtime

Definition glosses it as Aboriginal law and anything to do with the dreamtime.


ngujan

a man or woman who is jealous-suspicious of his/her mate


ngujan-baka

a person who is always jealous, always suspicious of what his/her spouse is up to

Derived from ngujan 'jealous' (entry 2072) with -baka, denoting a habitual characteristic ('one who is always jealous').


nguju-baka

something or someone that is always funny/playful

Derived from nguju 'fun' (entry 2075) with -baka, denoting habitual character ('always funny/playful').


ngujuji

Derived from nguju 'fun' (entry 2075) with -ji.


ngujungu

Derived from nguju 'fun' (entry 2075); means 'for fun, in fun, pretend'.


ngujuri

Definition gives dialect equivalence: yalanji ngujuri vs nyungkul kinkay 'to play'.


ngujurr

a man calls his sister's daughters (ngujurr) (relationship term)

Definition: a man's term for his sister's daughter (niece); a relationship term.


nguju-wuri-y

to fool around, play about, dance in a funny/playful way

Attested in Patz ex.(433): nguju-wuri-y 'funny-dance-IMP' ('Don't play/fool around with the spear...'); not in the source dictionary.

Lexicalised compound nguju 'fun, funny' + wuri-y 'dance' (a y-conjugation intransitive verb per §3.8.3), so cited as nguju-wuri-y.


ngukal-badi

Yundu kari wurrmay-bakamaka, ngukal-badiku

Compound of ngukal 'requesting' (entry 2082) with badi; means 'to beg, ask'.


ngukal-baka

someone who is always asking things, beggar

Derived from ngukal 'requesting' (entry 2082) with -baka, denoting habitual character ('one who is always asking', a beggar).


ngulkurr

Entry is a placeholder: gloss, definition, and translation all repeat the headword with no content. See entry 2086 for the substantive 'good' sense.


ngulkurr

{'english': 'That food is very good', 'translation': 'Yinya mayi ngulkurr bajaku'}

good
well, not sick
good in the moral sense

He doesn't do bad things (but) does good things

Nyulu kari buyun-damal; nyulu ngulkurrku bunday

Definitions cover 'good' (of food), 'well, not sick', and 'good in the moral sense'; example sentences illustrate each.


ngulkurrijin

Related to ngulkurr 'good' (entry 2086); means 'pretty, beautiful'.


ngulumuku

Glossed 'seashell'; classified under shellfish/crustacean fauna.


ngumbal

fully trained boy. In the old time the boys were put through a course of physical training which included marches, hunting, etc. By about the age of 20, they were ngumbal, fully trained and eligible to marry.

Definition describes a fully trained boy of about age 20 who had completed physical training and was eligible to marry; a male age/initiation-grade term.


Ngumbuymbu

Place name; located above the Zigzag on the way to Main Camp per the definition.


ngunay

Gloss is the headword variant 'duna'; definition gives the meaning 'wet'.


ngundu

'this side', contrasting with ngubar 'the other side' (entry 2069).


ngungul-ngungul

dark. It is usually contracted to nguwulnguwul or to ngulngul in fast speech

Reduplicated form meaning 'dark'; definition notes contraction to nguwulnguwul or ngulngul in fast speech.


ngunja-l

to forage; to claim or take over something that is (or is thought to be) discarded or nobody's particular property

Attested in Patz ex.(347), (372), (375); meaning glossed explicitly at §4.x ('claim/obtain something thought to be discarded'). Not in the source dictionary.

Verb root takes conjugation suffix -l (Patz §3.8.3).

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


ngunnga

an open place (yalanji - nyungkul - warrmba)

Definition gives dialect synonyms: yalanji/nyungkul 'ngunnga' vs warrmba (variant form).


ngunnga-bungal

Compound with -bungal (causative/making verbaliser), lit. roughly 'cause to (be) found'.


ngunya-ngunya

imagination, something you can't see but can picture in your mind


ngunyin

the tree bark used to make into strips and weave fishing nets and dilly bags

Polysemous: dilly bag, the bark used to weave nets/bags, spider web, and placenta — all linked by the 'woven/membranous fibre' concept.


ngura

too soon for others who aren't yet ready

You went to soon (they're not ready yet)


ngura-ngura ngal

The carpenters got the house ready to build (leveled the foundations measured to see where the walls wouuld be etc)

Jana carpenter-carpenterangka bayan ngurangurangan

Reduplicated ngura-ngura plus verb ngal.


ngura-nyajil

jealous, envious, because of another's possessions.

I'm jealous of that girl with a new dress

Ngayu yinya ngura-nyajin jalbu kambiji jirakalji

Compound with nyajil 'see/perceive', lit. roughly 'see (covetously)'.


ngurma

shadow, picture, statue, movie, cards, reflection in a mirror or smooth water

reflection shadow picture statue movie cards

Native term semantically extended to post-contact referents (picture, statue, movie, cards) alongside core senses shadow/reflection.


ngurma-mulkaynji

Compound built on ngurma 'shadow/reflection'.


ngurmu

Definition specifies the decorated butt of the woomera (spear-thrower).


ngurrbal

I couldn't see, the heavy fog oblterated (the view)

Ngayu kari nyajin, ngurrbalda yalbaynja kanbin


ngurrku

name of rock near Pearce's place, visible only at low tide (story site)

Polysemous: mopoke/owl (bird); also an edible fig tree; also a named story-site rock near Pearce's place visible only at low tide. Primary sense bird.


ngurrkul

tree and its edible fruit, found only in deep scrub


Ngurru

Place name (Watermelon Creek); capitalised headword.


nguru

a woman's husband's younger brother, a man's wife's younger sister (relationship term)

husband's younger brother
wife's younger sister


nguwimal

Ngayu nyungun nguwimal nyajin, kala-kalbayku


nguwimal kari

Formed with privative/negator kari 'not', lit. 'not visible'.


nguwimalku kunil

to kill as soon as the thing you kill is seen

Compound with nguwimal- (visible, here dative -ku) plus kunil 'kill', lit. 'kill on sight'.


nguwimal milbiji

Compound with nguwimal 'visible' plus inchoative verb milbiji.


nguwul-nguwul

Empty entry: gloss, definitions and translations are null. Reduplicated form.


nguyarr-manil

plan to do, but unable to; to want something but can't get it.

desire
plan to do, but unable to
want something but can't get it

Compound with -manil 'get/take', lit. roughly 'try to get (but cannot)'.


nguymal

thoroughly, truly (doing something completely / making a thorough job of it)

Attested in Patz §3.8.6.1 Manner-particle table and ex.(192) (kuni-ny nguymal 'killed with one shot'); not in the source dictionary.

Adverbial particle; may take manner suffix -ku (nguymal-ku).

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


nikar

species of shallow water oyster found on rock


nili-nili

Reduplicated form (nili-nili), an iconic bird-naming pattern.


nirray-warri

Compound of nyirray 'noise of crying' (2156) with -warri inchoative ('start to').


nubiji

The child went into the scrub and then got lost

Nyulu karrkay madjanga dungan, nubijinkuda

Intransitive/passive counterpart of nubil ('to be looked for / to be lost').


nubil

Transitive 'seek, look for'; cf. intransitive nubiji and causative nubi-manil.


nubi-manil

Causative formed with the -manil suffix on the nubi- root ('to lose').


nurru

ancestral home out west from which the special corroborees have come

Definition associates this ancestral home with the origin of special corroborees.


nyajil

to perceive, to hear, to see. If you need to specify between seeing and hearing, you can say milkabu nyajil (hear), and miyilda nyajil "see"

General perception verb covering see and hear; disambiguated by milkabu nyajil 'hear' and miyilda nyajil 'see' per the definition.


nyaka

Imperative/command form of nyajil 'see/perceive', as stated in the definition.


nyambay

The child didn't go with them, so is sulky now

Nyulu karrkay jananji kari dungan, nyambaymanda


nyamun

rubbish, (but not household rubbish) such as dead leaves or stuff washed up on the beach. Also leaf mould from scrub, good for growing things.

Natural debris (dead leaves, beach wrack, scrub leaf-mould), explicitly distinguished from household rubbish.


nyanangarriji

Intransitive counterpart of transitive nyangarril 'pour/spill'.


nyandil

to stop someone, to prevent, to stop a motor

to stop someone
to prevent
to stop a motor

Native verb extended to post-contact referent 'stop a motor'.


nyanma-l

Attested in Patz ex.(477) (jarba nyanma-l-nyanma-nya 'holding on to the snake'); not in the source dictionary.

Citation form with conjugation suffix -l per Patz §3.8.3 (root nyanma + -l).


nyarray

aged, wrinkled, shrunken. Can refer to people, cloth or food, as an old wrinkled apple.

Applies to people, cloth and food (e.g. an old wrinkled apple).


nyiku-nyiku

Reduplication of nyiku 'now', yielding 'soon'.


nyikurrku

Built on nyiku 'now' (dative/ablative -rrku), 'until now'.


nyinja-kangal

Compound of nyinja 'grunt' (2150) plus verbalizing element -kangal.


nyinki

Definition gives 'corner of the eye'; gloss 'peripheral' refers to peripheral vision.


nyinyi

That is child is crying for nothing, he's a sook


nyirran

the big green ant that is eaten, comes in December - January

Edible big green ant, available December-January per the definition. Type given as 'adverb' appears erroneous for a noun referent.


nyulu

3rd person singular nominative pronoun 'he/she/it'.


nyulurrku

Built on the 3sg pronoun nyulu (2161); means 'by himself, himself' (reflexive/emphatic).


nyulurrku yulmbarriji

Phrase: nyulurrku 'by himself' (2162) plus yulmbarriji; glossed 'boast, skite'.


nyumba-buyun

Compound of nyumba 'saliva' (2165) with buyun 'bad'; idiom glossed 'crave'.


nyumba yilbal

Phrase: nyumba 'saliva' (2165) plus yilbal; means 'to spit'.


nyumbil

Polysemous: 'leech' and also a coolibah/messmate tree per the definition.


nyundan

Glossed 'missed' (as in missing a target).


nyunga

Attested in Patz §3.8.5.2 as the noun base (thought) of the compound nyunga-dama-l 'imagine something'; not in the source dictionary.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


nyunga-dama-l

to imagine something (literally 'thought-spear')

Attested in Patz §3.8.5.2 compound table, glossed 'imagine something' (thought-spear); not in the source dictionary.

Lexicalised compound of nyunga 'thought' + dama-l 'spear'.


nyungu

3rd person singular possessive pronoun 'his/her/its'.


nyungun

direct object him, her, it (Yalanji) (Nyungkul - nyungunyin)

3sg accusative pronoun 'him/her/it' (Yalanji); Nyungkul dialect form is nyungunyin.


nyungun-bungal

to recognize; to see and know someone before he sees and knows you

Compound of accusative pronoun nyungun (2175) plus bungal; 'to recognize'.


nyunil

extinguish, or to put a fire or light out


nyurra

noise, people noise
refers to last stages of labour

'noise, people noise'; also extended to the last stages of labour (transition phase).


nyurra-baka

Compound of nyurra 'noise' (2179) with baka; 'people making too much noise, noisy'.


rrunyuji

Glossed 'doctor-man', i.e. a traditional healer/sorcerer rather than a Western doctor.


ubirri

Mossman (place name in north Queensland)

Attested in Patz ex.(69): ubirri-warra '(Mossman)-inhabitant.ABS' ('The Mossman people went to the Bloomfield people'); not in the source dictionary.

Place name; the inhabitant suffix -warra marks 'people of Mossman'.


wabul

Definition identifies this as the Torres Strait Island pigeon (Torresian imperial pigeon), a bird despite the 'islander' translation tag.


wada

species of tree with edible white seed the size of an apple, ripe. August - October


wadal

Put the clothes on the magical instrument


wadalwadal

A water spirit with a female body and a fishtail, living in a spring in the Thompson Creek valley and associated with one particular Yalanji family clan; it tolerates rightful family members, who may use its spring water believed to have healing powers.

Attested in Patz §1.2.1.8 (grammar.md line 721); not in the source dictionary as this sense.

Lexicalised reduplication; distinct from the homophonous-looking near-headword 'wadal'.


wadi

gesture of affection, to pinch or pat a person's cheek, usually done to a baby

gesture of affection
pinch
pat a person's cheek

Gesture of affection: pinching or patting a person's (usually a baby's) cheek.


wadil

They hung a blanket up because the cold might come in

Jana blanket walngkan-daman buluruku wadinji


wadu

wrong, incorrect
children of an incorrect marriage

'wrong, incorrect'; also applied to children of an incorrect (improper) marriage.


waja

English name given only as a species of crow.


waja

Polysemous: 'big yellow March fly' and also 'crow' per the definition.


waju-l

To cook, burn, or light (a fire); also 'boil'.

Attested in Patz at numerous examples (e.g. ex.(133), ex.(467), Text 51 line 64) and singled out in §3.8 (Table 3.15) as the sole verb root with a final root vowel /u/; not in the source dictionary.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


wakay

wooden sword. The Port Douglas and rain forest people used them

Wooden sword; definition notes Port Douglas and rain forest people used them.


waki

half-caste (darker than barbi half-caste)

Homophonous with waki 'light colour/white' (2198); here glossed 'half-caste', described as darker than barbi half-caste.


wakumba

Refers to the spreading branches/canopy of a tree.


wakuy

Correction: original `type` value 'arm' was the word's meaning, not a part of speech; reclassified as noun.


walarr

type of honey bee, almost like the dabu (other moiety), but bigger and nests in trees

Polysemous: (1) whiskers/beard (body-part); (2) name of one of the tribal moieties; (3) a type of honey bee, paired with 'dabu' of the other moiety.


walarrji

literally "with whiskers". Freshwater catfish are sometimes called this

Definition states it literally means 'with whiskers', derived from 'walarr' (whiskers) plus the comitative/proprietive suffix -ji.


walay

being good at working or getting food, as a good hunter

proficient
skilled
good at working
good at getting food


walay-manil

Causative of 'walal' (to enter); the -manil suffix marks the transitive causative 'cause to enter, put into'.


walba-murru

No definition supplied. First element 'walba' is the common Yalanji noun for 'rock/stone'; the compound most plausibly denotes a rocky landform or place, hence a noun.


Walba-murru

up above mission site, bordering Wujal-wujal  (place name)

Place name: located up above the mission site, bordering Wujal-wujal.


walba-ngarra

Grasstree story site; walba- likely contains walba 'stone/rock'.


Walba-ngarra

near Grasstree where big footprints are (Ngalba-bulal story) (place name)

Place name near Grasstree, associated with the Ngalba-bulal (big footprints) story.


walbul-walbul

small stingaray, spotted. Looks like a butterfly flying through the water

Reduplicated form. Polysemous across butterfly, a spotted stingray, flying fish, and a mangrove species; the unifying image is the butterfly-like motion.


wali-wunay

Contains 'wunay' (to lie/lay down) and 'wali' (downwards).


walkandu

English. This is not used very much anymore

Means the English language; definition notes it is rarely used anymore.


walmbaji

one who interferes to stop a fight. He holds the arms of a relative so he can't fight anymore

A peacemaker/mediator who physically restrains a relative to stop a fight.


walmbi-walmbiji

Reduplicated form derived from 'walmbi' (left), denoting a left-handed person.


walngal

Polysemous transitive verb: 'open', 'wake (someone) up', 'take clothes off'.


walngkan-damal

The woman hung the clothes up on the line

Causative/transitive of 'walngkal' (to hang), with the -damal suffix; 'to hang up'.


walngkurril

Nyungkul dialect form glossed as to beg/ask for something; also 'bark of a dog'.


walu-dalbaji

Compound containing 'walu' (face/forehead/time).


walu-dalbaji

species of bird. Sings out early in the morning, sounds like a saw

near Thompson Creek. Story of that place has the same name (place name)

A bird species that calls early in the morning, sounding like a saw; also a place name near Thompson Creek with an associated story.


walu-dandi

Compound with 'walu' (face); glossed 'stubborn'.


walu-dungay

Compound with 'walu' (face); 'to faint'.


walu-jirrbu-jirrbu

Compound with 'walu' (face); the second element is reduplicated; glossed 'sad'.


walu-kalngar-kalngar

someone who is going around after sex everywhere, can't stay in one place

Compound with 'walu' (face); reduplicated second element; describes someone constantly chasing sex who cannot stay in one place.


walu karimal

Nyiku-nyiku bilngkumu walu karimanijinkuda


walu-murumal

Compound with 'walu' (face); 'to reconcile'.


walu-nukal

Compound with 'walu' (face); 'to annoy'.


walu-walu

Reduplication of 'walu' (face); glossed 'stubborn'.


walu-warri

Compound with 'walu' (face); giddy, dizzy.


walu-wukurril

Compound with 'walu' (face); 'look around'.


walu-yindu

Compound with 'walu' (face) plus 'yindu' (other/another); glossed 'different'.


wambal

{'english': 'I put out the food on the table', 'translation': 'Ngayu mayi wamban tablebu'}

Example sentence given: 'Ngayu mayi wamban tablebu' ('I put out the food on the table'); 'tablebu' shows the English loan 'table' with the locative suffix -bu.


wanakan

species of tree. The fruit is a long sweet seed, ripe in August - October. It is edible if ripe, if unripe it must be roasted first.

Tree species; fruit is a long sweet seed ripe August-October, edible when ripe but must be roasted if unripe.


wandi

Definition specifies red-backed sea eagle (brahminy kite).


wandi

fish hawk, brown hark, red-backed sea eagle. One of the sacred birds.

fish hawk
brown hawk
red-backed sea eagle


wandil

to get up, to move out of the way, to come out


wandu-wurril

Definition notes the referent by an attribute: 'hat turned up', describing the policeman's appearance.


wangay

a fruit bearing vine, found at Main Camp

Definition locates it: a fruit-bearing vine found at Main Camp.


wangkabaja

Attested in Patz §4.1.1(a) (grammar.md line 4001, listed 'Wangkabaja, Bibikarrbi (placenames)'); not in the source dictionary.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


wangkanil

choose; separate out, examine, then choose; count


wangkar-wangkar

Reduplication of wangkar 'up/upriver', yielding the locational sense 'above'.


wangku

Polysemous: glossed as a small tree, also given as 'wood goanna' (fauna-reptile).


wanjakan

species of ti tree, used for bark painting. Bark also used for roof of house

Definition notes cultural uses: bark used for bark painting and for house roofing.


wanjarrinya

Attested in Patz §3.6.1 (grammar.md line 2790) and ex.(583); not in the source dictionary.

Based on the general interrogative root wanja but contains an opaque element -rri(y)- that Patz states cannot be analysed (§2.7, grammar.md line 2739), so treated as a distinct lexeme.


wanja-wanja

Reduplication of wanja 'where', here with temporal interrogative meaning 'when'.


wanji-baka

Definition glosses as 'overactive children'; -baka is a derivational suffix forming habitual/characteristic descriptors (cf. warngku-baka 'habitual sleeper').


wanju

Definition marks this as the Nyungkul dialect form; the Yalanji equivalent is wanya.


wankar

a tree which grows along the water and has red flowers

necklace made from little black and red seeds called kubirr-kubirr and threaded on a string

Polysemous: a waterside tree with red flowers, and a necklace made from kubirr-kubirr seeds threaded on string (artefact/clothing-adornment).


Wankara

Refers to the upper reaches of the Daintree River.


wanya

Definition marks this as the Yalanji dialect form; the Nyungkul equivalent is wanju.


wanyurrimun

why, i.e. as cause of accident or sickness

Definition specifies the sense: 'why' as cause of accident or sickness.


waral-dandi

Compound with waral 'stomach/belly', describing a greedy person.


waralji

Apparently derived from waral 'stomach/belly' with -ji suffix; means 'pregnant'.


wari

sign, call, message which is sent by telepathy

Definition describes a sign/message sent by telepathy.


wari yilbal

to throw a message to another person by telepathy. A coal is taken from the fire and thrown into the dark.

Compound with wari 'sign/message'; definition describes throwing a telepathic message by taking a coal from the fire and casting it into the dark.


warka

species of tree, messmate or stringy bark


warkal

bailer shell used in the old time for a billy

Definition notes traditional use of the bailer shell as a billy (water container) in the old days.


warndi-y

To get up or rise from a sitting or lying position; to stand up.

Attested in Patz (warndiy 'get up from sitting or lying position', grammar.md line 922; §2.2.1 cites it for the rare cluster /rnd/; Text 51 lines 96-97); not in the source dictionary.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


warngku

Polysemous: 'sleep' and, by extension, 'days' (used as a count of nights/days).


warngku-baka

habitual sleeper, one who is always sleeping

Compound with warngku 'sleep' plus -baka habitual suffix: 'one who is always sleeping'.


warngku-kaja wunay

Compound with warngku 'sleep' and wunay 'lie/be'; means 'to sleep heavily'.


warngku wunay

Compound with warngku 'sleep' and wunay 'lie/be'; means 'to sleep'.


warral-warral

Reduplicated form (warral doubled); reduplication noted in entry.


warral-warral

name of mythical tribe of women in Kumarkaji story

upper reaches of the Thompson Creek (place name) (story site)

Reduplicated form; polysemous: a water spirit, the name of a mythical tribe of women in the Kumarkaji story, and a place name (upper reaches of Thompson Creek, a story site).


warra-wayjul

to purify (by smoking) the things of dead people because of spirits

Definition describes ritual purification by smoking the belongings of the dead because of spirits.


warrbi

axe
house made of grass, "beehive house"

Polysemous: primary sense 'axe' (tool); secondary sense 'house made of grass, beehive house' (shelter-dwelling) per definition prose.


warrin

Sister-in-law or brother-in-law (actual) (relationship term)

Affinal kin term covering both sister-in-law and brother-in-law (actual).


warrki

Prohibition arising from a kin relationship ('can't come close because of relationship'), i.e. an avoidance restriction.


warrkin

Watkins (name of an English settler; a place name)

Definition states English loan, from 'Watkins'; place name for Helenvale.


warrmba-bungal

find (yalanji) (nyungkul - ngunnga - bungal)

Nyungkul equivalent given as ngunnga-bungal; -bungal is the transitivising/causative verb element. Yalanji form per prose.


warrngkal

to groan, suffer because of pain and/or sickness


warru

Refers to a young man (life-stage term).


warrur

tree bark which can be used as vine. it was used to make fishnets, which were dragged through the water in the dry season when the water goes down.

Tree bark usable as vine; used to make fishnets dragged through the water in the dry season.


warru-warru

Reduplication of warru 'young man' yielding plural 'young men'.


warurrijiniji

Pacing the floor while thinking things over.


wawu

The spirit/soul of a person; also glossed 'breath'.


wawu

Homophone of wawu 'soul/breath'; here a desiderative meaning wish/want/need/love/like.


wawu-balangaji

Compound on wawu 'breath/soul' meaning 'to have a rest'.


wawuburra

cottontree. Canoes were made out of these and the candlenut tree, bilar. When it blooms (big red flowers) it signals the start of the scrub hen egg season

Cottontree; canoes made from it and from candlenut (bilar); its red blooms signal the start of the scrub-hen egg season.


wawu-buyun

Compound wawu 'soul' + buyun 'bad', i.e. worried/anxious/yearning.


wawu-daki

Glossed alone/unsociable; a wawu- (disposition) compound.


wawu-dandi

wawu- disposition compound meaning courageous.


wawu-daray

Satisfied / feeling good about something; wawu- emotion compound.


wawu-darra

so small that other things/people are being forced/squeezed out

The house is too small for all the people (just can't fit in)

Compound: 'wawu' (breath/spirit) + 'darra' (narrow/too small), expressing the sense of being squeezed/crowded out.


wawu-darra

Short-winded, gasping; wawu 'breath' compound.


wawu-dudaji

anxious, dread, to fear consequences
the beating of one's heart

Anxious/dread; also denotes the beating of one's heart per the prose.


wawu-janbay

spirit left behind in a tree whose voice (nganja) is singing out

Spirit left behind in a tree whose voice (nganja) sings out; wawu 'spirit' compound.


wawu-janka

Describes a quiet person; wawu- disposition compound.


wawu jirray

wawu 'soul' + jirray ('big/much'), i.e. to love/like very much.


wawu-juljal

Nyulu bada wawu-juljalandamunbu wharfmunbu

Euphemism used in place of a dead person's name (death-related name avoidance).


wawu-kari bajaku

wawu 'soul' + kari (negative) + bajaku (intensifier), i.e. hate.


wawumal

To agree; wawu- (mind/will) verb derivation in -mal.


wawu nandaji

To hold one's breath; wawu 'breath' compound.


wawurr-wawurr-bungal

make happy
glad
promise
delight
gladden
commitment
pledge

Reduplicated wawurr + causative -bungal: to make happy/glad; also 'promise'.


wawu-wulay

Thirsty; also exhausted/tired per prose.


wawu yilbal

To breathe heavily / sigh; wawu 'breath' compound.


wawu-yimba-l

To cross-examine someone (literally 'breath-go straight through').

Attested in Patz §3.8.5.2 (grammar.md line 3418, compound-verb table); not in the source dictionary.

Lexicalised compound of wawu 'breath, spirit' + yimba-l 'go straight through'; l-conjugation, transitive.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


wawu yungal

wish, hope, usually without prospects of getting what you wish for

Hank is wishing for a new outboard motor

Hankangka wawu yungal-yungal motorka jirakalka

wawu 'soul' + yungal 'give'; to wish/hope, usually without prospect of fulfilment.


wawy-kujiji

Glossed 'satisfied'; definition prose reads 'to have a rest'.


Wayal-wayal

Reduplicated place name for Wayalla Plains.


waybala

white person (waybul) (nyungkal yalanji)

white fellow / white man (< 'white' + Pidgin 'fellow')

'White person'; loan already attested. Variant waybul noted as Nyungkal Yalanji. From English 'white fella' with Pidgin/English -bala (-fella) ending.


waybul

white person (waybala) (nyungkal yalanji)

'White person'; Nyungkal Yalanji variant of waybala.


wayi-janay

jumping around because he's happy
good dancer


wayjuji

Intransitive/reflexive 'burn oneself'; the -ji suffix is the reflexive marker (cf. transitive wayjul 'cook, burn').


waykal

'Native cat' refers to a quoll (Dasyurus), a native marsupial.


wubaji

to swell up
to rise, as bread dough rising


wubar-wubar

the other side of. Fast speech for ngubar-ngubar.

Definition notes this is fast-speech form of ngubar-ngubar.


wubulamba-l

Attested in Patz §3.8.2 (grammar.md lines 2942, 2982); not in the source dictionary.

Possibly historically wubul 'many' + a verbaliser, but Patz notes the morpheme-boundary cluster /mb/ is unexplainable, so it is treated as an opaque four-syllable l-conjugation transitive root.


wubul yarangkan

strain the heart, as from lifting something heavy

Compound built on wubul 'heart'; literally straining the heart from heavy lifting.


wuburr

site of present mission and up to the waterfall (place name)

Place name: site of the present mission up to the waterfall.


wudu

Adverbial manner particle: (doing something) absorbed in the activity, engrossed.

Attested in Patz §3.8.6.1, manner adverbial-particle table (grammar.md line 3700); not in the source dictionary.


wujal-wujal

Reduplicated form; present-day Wujal Wujal mission site.


wujal-wujal

Reduplicated form (base 'wujal'); no definition supplied. Wujal-Wujal is a community on the Bloomfield River; the form appears as Wujal-wujaldarr and Wujal-wujalmun in example sentences in this batch, supporting a place-name reading (a noun).


wujal-wujal

Reduplicated form (base 'wujal'); duplicate headword of index 322. Wujal-Wujal is a Bloomfield River community; supported by Wujal-wujalmun in example sentences in this batch (a noun).


wujal-wujal

Reduplicated form (base 'wujal'); third occurrence of this headword in the batch (cf. 322, 333). Wujal-Wujal, Bloomfield River community (a noun).


Wujal-wujal

Place name (Wujal Wujal community).
Reduplicated form.


Wujal-wujalmun wangkar Binda-babranga

This is a full example sentence, not a lexical headword. Contains the place names Wujal-Wujal (with -mun) and Binda-babara (locative, spelled Binda-babranga here) plus the verb wangka- 'speak/talk'.


wujirrngal

blame because of your relationship to the guilty one, as if a child steals something, then the owner will blame the mother.

Don't steal - he'll blame me (because you are my child)


wuju

sponge made from grass, used as a sop for eating honey or soup

Grass sponge used as a sop for eating honey or soup.


wukal

He scared me, fooled me (told me there was a snake)


wukaramba-l

Attested in Patz §3.8.2.1 (grammar.md line 2943); not in the source dictionary.

Four-syllable l-conjugation transitive root.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


wukay

must be cooked, ground and leaved before eating


wukuju

freshwater prawn, the big one with long legs


wulbuman

Definition states this is an English loan word ('old woman').


wulburrjuburr

sacred dance of women at which the men sing but do not dance


wuljil

They emptied out (the bee's nest) into the bucket


wulman

old man (english loan word)
an old animal
husband

Glossed 'spear' but definition prose lists 'old man (english loan word)', 'an old animal', 'husband'; loanword already attested (loanword_attested=true).


wulngku badi

Compound: wulngku 'song' + badi; 'to sing'.


wunay

Homophonous with wunay 'lie down/sleep' and 'state of being'; this sense is transitive 'marry'.


wunba

name of the English bee and its honey. Also used for honey bought in store

Definition: name of the English (introduced) bee and its honey; also used for store-bought honey.


wunbu

quiet, lethargic, half asleep, won't do anything, shy, doesn't talk. Opposite of ngalu-ngalu

quiet
lethargic
half asleep
shy
doesn't talk

Definition notes it is the opposite of ngalu-ngalu.


wungar dakal

Compound with wungar 'sun' denoting sunrise.


wungar daray

Compound with wungar 'sun' denoting sunset.


wungar jalamal

Compound with wungar 'sun': the sun coming out from behind cloud.


wungar jarra-jarra

Compound with wungar 'sun' denoting midday; jarra-jarra reduplicated.


wungar wandil-wandil

Compound with wungar 'sun' denoting sunrise; wandil-wandil reduplicated.


wungar wangkar-wangkar

Compound with wungar 'sun' denoting midday; wangkar-wangkar reduplicated.


wungka

She's swearing another woman (because she's wronged)


Wungka-baja

point straight out from Bloomfield River (place name)

Place name: point straight out from Bloomfield River.


wungku

Definition specifies domestic turkey, indicating post-contact application of the term.


wungku

Definition distinguishes domestic turkey from the scrub turkey.


wunjan

no personality, no style, not a pleasure to be with

bland
unremarkable
no personality
no style
not a pleasure to be with


wunkun yindu

Compound with wunkun 'tomorrow': day after tomorrow.


wuri

Glossed as to dance/swing, also extended to gamble.


wurmbu

tip of tail or top of tree, but not point of hill


wurrbu

hornet, bumblebee. Nests in a stump or the ground


wurril

Don't sit on the edge of the boat, sit right

Yundu wurril kari bunday boatbu. Junkayku bunday.


wurri-wurri

Reduplicated form: spotted, striped, speckled.


wurrmay-baka

Derived from wurrmay 'robber/thief': someone who is always stealing.


wuwu-damaji

to go back all the time to the same place, as a good place to fish

To return repeatedly to the same place, e.g. a good fishing spot.


wuyarr

unable to see properly - if too far away, too dark, too small

Nyulu wuyarr nbajaku nyajiji, kala-kalbay bajakunda


wuybu

Definition states this is an English loan word (whip).


wuybubu kulbal

Verb phrase built on wuybu 'whip' (English loan): to whip someone.


wuyngkul

spirit of sick person. Only a few people who know the wuynkul can see and talk to him. if they stare at him he hits them with a stick and the next day they become sick. He has eyes in front and behind him, and can see if bama stare at him. He can appear as a person, as a hairy brute with long teeth and a bad smell, or as a wild pig or snake. When by other persons, he has left the sick person.


wuyngkulji

one who is possessed by the wuyngkul spirit

Derived from wuyngkul: one possessed by the wuyngkul spirit.


wuyumbu

species of fish - Striped toby, also toadfish

Species of fish: striped toby, also toadfish.


ya

exclamation of surprise, attention getter.


yaba

Definition specifies a species of fresh water eel.


yaba

freshwater eel - has a big head and is smaller than dandarribina. It does not have much taste, no fat, people don't eat it unless there's no other meat.

Primary sense 'older brother' (kinship); also names a freshwater eel as a secondary sense.


yabarrka

all the time, regularly, repeatedly, always

all the time
regularly
repeatedly
always


yah

Hey! - an interjection used to attract someone's attention.

Attested in Patz §4.10 (grammar.md line 6296) and Text 51 line 8; not in the source dictionary.

A monosyllabic interjection; per §4.10 such forms may end in a glottal stop/breathy voice, lying outside normal Kuku Yalanji word phonology.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


yajin

full (of food) (nyungkul) (yalanji - yanji)

Nyungkul dialect form; Yalanji equivalent given in prose as 'yanji'.


yalakay

expressing astonishment to another's statement. (nyungkul - yukil)

Nyungkul dialect variant given in prose as 'yukil'.


yalaku

they are like that (this is their custom. That is the way they are.)


yalanguwimburr

Store nandajinjiku, yalanguwimburr dunday


yala-yala

Yala-yalaku jarramali kadan, nyulu ngakijin

Reduplication of 'yala', here conveying simultaneity ('at the same time, when').


yalaymba

at this place (nyungkul) (yalanji - yaluy)

Nyungkul dialect form; Yalanji equivalent given in prose as 'yaluy'.


yalaymbu

He missed the fish. By this time we should have been eating (it)

Byulu minya nyundan. Ngana yalaymbu mukanyakuda


yalibalaku

early morning (english loan word, from early)

Definition states English loan from 'early'; -baku ending and epenthetic vowels adapt the English source (Patz §2.3).


yalkaji

Nyulu yalkan-yalkan-yalkaji, jina bajiji


yalkay-yalkay

Reduplicated form denoting a person with a physical impairment ('cripple').


yalnga

sea turtle, poisonous if sacs aren't removed

Prose notes the sea turtle is poisonous if the sacs are not removed.


yalnganji

Definition marks this as the yalanji dialect form.


yalnganji

Yalanji dialect form; Nyungkul equivalent given in prose as 'yidi'.


yalngkurr

Definition specifies grey sea eagle (white-bellied sea eagle).


yalngkurr

eagle hawk. Totem of all the Kuku-Yalanji people. It represents the country to which they belong

Prose notes the eagle hawk is the totem of all Kuku-Yalanji people, representing the country to which they belong.


yaluy

here, this place (yalanji) (nyungkul - yanyu)

Yalanji dialect form; Nyungkul equivalent given in prose as 'yanyu'.


yamba

Ngayu bikibiki kunin yamba nyulu kari daran


yamba-kari

'None'; compound incorporating the negator kari.


yamba-yamba

household goods, collection of personal things

Reduplicated form denoting a collection of household goods and personal belongings.


yanday

something used before, as scraps, rubbish, leftovers. Things that float up on the beach such as timber, usable things only.

The grass is ready (cut) now, (you) gather (it up)


yanday-bungal

You gut the crass (to get the grass ready), I'll throw it out later

Yundu jikan yanday-bunga ngayu juma yilbal


yangka

green ant. There are used as a medecine for the common cold and other chest complaints. They can be crushed and the odour inhaled to cure headache; or the eggs, larvae, and pupae from the nexts can be mixed with salt water and taken

Prose records medicinal use of green ants: crushed and inhaled for headache or cold, or eggs/larvae/pupae mixed with salt water and taken.


yangkija

Definition states English loan word ('handkerchief').


yanja

rustling noise, as the wind blowing through trees or grass


yanji

replete, full, satisfied after eating (yalanji) (nyungkul - yajin)

Yalanji dialect form; Nyungkul equivalent given in prose as 'yajin'.


yanya

this, these (demonstrative pronoun; Nyungkul absolutive form, referring to animate or inanimate, singular or plural by context)

Attested in Patz §3.7, Table 3.12 / Table 3.13 (absolutive form of the demonstrative pronoun 'this/these'); also Text 51 line 72, exx.(123),(361),(429),(431),(625),(649). Not in the source dictionary.

Nyungkul counterpart of Yalanji yanyu; suppletive inflected bases use yala- (e.g. ERG yalabu, DAT yalayngka).

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


yanyu

this, these (demonstrative pronoun; Yalanji absolutive form, referring to animate or inanimate, singular or plural by context)

Attested in Patz §3.7, Table 3.12 / Table 3.13 (absolutive form of the demonstrative pronoun 'this/these'); also §2.1.2 (initial /y/ examples), §4.1.1(d). Not in the source dictionary.

Yalanji counterpart of Nyungkul yanya; suppletive inflected bases use yalu- (e.g. ERG yalubu, DAT yaluyngku).


yaral

this, here (nyungkul) (yalanji - yuluy, yanya)

Nyungkul dialect form; the Yalanji equivalents are yuluy and yanya per the definition prose.


yaral

fresh water (opposite of kalki)
right, not angry or cheeky
cool, not too hot

You talk in the right way (not cheeky - talk as you should in a court case)

Primary sense 'fresh water', contrasted with kalki (salt water) in the definition prose; further senses 'right/not angry' and 'cool' are extended figurative uses.


yarkin-bunga-l

to kill (literally 'make a corpse'); state-causative compound verb

Attested in Patz §3.8.5.1(i); not in the source dictionary.

Compound of yarkin 'corpse' (in dictionary) + state-causative verbaliser -bunga-l ('make into N'). l-conjugation. Lexicalised idiomatic meaning 'kill'.


yarngkay

secretly; adverbial manner particle describing the manner of an action

Attested in Patz §3.8.6.1 (Manner table of adverbial particles); not in the source dictionary.

Like other adverbial particles it may take manner suffix -ku and reduplicate, but occurs in simple root form and cannot take case inflection.


yarra

that way. This is always accompanied by a gesture.

The definition notes this directional is always accompanied by a pointing gesture.


yarraman

'Horse' is a post-contact introduced animal; yarraman is a widespread Australian Pidgin/Aboriginal English word for horse, though no loan etymology is stated in the prose.


yarrkay-yarrka

Reduplicated form denoting a collective ('group of children'); marked reduplication=true.


yarru

Glossed as the mythological Rainbow Serpent, a Dreaming being rather than a zoological snake.


yarru

rainbow snake (mythical serpent)
deep water hole

Primary sense is the mythical rainbow serpent; secondary sense 'deep water hole' is the associated landscape feature.


yarun

Black wattle (Acacia) with yellow flower.


yawu

stingray. Long ago only old people were allowed to eat it, but now this isn't followed much. Spearing one will bring on thunder and rainstorms.

Stingray; the prose records food taboos (formerly only old people could eat it) and a belief that spearing one brings thunder and rainstorms.


yayin-yayin-bungal

Compound with verbalising element -bungal ('make/cause'); the yayin-yayin base is reduplicated, glossed 'scatter (like seeds)'.


yibuy

loya cane. Also walking stick made from the loya cane. The roots were used to make the walking stick.

Loya cane; the prose notes its roots were used to make walking sticks (an artefact sense is also recorded).


Yibuy-karrbaja

Place name for Snapper Island; the first element matches yibuy 'loya cane'.


Yida

Place name located between Kangkiji and Kaway.


yidi

Definition marks this as the nyungkul dialect form for 'manta ray'.


yidilnyul

spotted manta ray (nyungkul) (yalanji - yalnganji)

Nyungkul dialect form; the Yalanji equivalent is yalnganji per the definition prose.


yijil-yijin

Reduplicated form (marked reduplication=true).


yijirr

Covers both egg shell and fish scales as outer coverings.


yika

little silver of something, as a silver of glass

A little sliver/splinter of something, e.g. a sliver of glass.


yika-damal

Compound based on yika 'sliver'; glossed 'to split (as wood)'.


Yikan-yikan

above the Stoney crossing in the Daintree River (place name)

Place name for a spot above the Stoney crossing in the Daintree River.


yikanyil

to take clothes, shoes off (yalanji only)

'To take clothes/shoes off'; marked as yalanji dialect only in the prose.


yikari

hardened beeswax, hardened with ironwood root juice. The juice is extracted by heating and is used to make spears.

Hardened beeswax (hardened with ironwood root juice, extracted by heating) used to make spears.


yiki-yiki

Didgeridoo; reduplicated form (marked reduplication=true).


yilay-yilay

Reduplicated form (marked reduplication=true); late afternoon, when the sun is in the west.


yilay-yinduku

Compound built on yilay- (cf. yilayku 'yesterday'); glossed 'day before yesterday'.


yiljun

When the grasshopper sings, the wukay (type of yam) are ready


yiman

Nyungkul dialect form; the Yalanji equivalent is munju per the definition prose.


yiman bunjal

Compound with yiman 'forehead'; describes a bald head.


yimarr-yiman

Reduplicated form based on yiman 'forehead'; glossed 'a round face, like an Islander' (marked reduplication=true).


yimbalji

Derived from yimbal 'message' with the comitative/agentive -ji suffix; literally 'with a message', i.e. messenger.


yindili

Defined specifically as 'forest kingfisher'.


yindili

Glossed 'forest kingfisher' (Todiramphus macleayii).


yinil

Definition marks this as the Jalunji dialect form for 'fear'.


yini-yini

I don't want to go through the night; (I'm) frightened

Reduplicated form 'frightened'; likely related to yinil/yinyil 'fear, fright'.


yinja-yinja

Reduplicated noun, an onomatopoeic insect name (cicada).


yinju-kangal

Compound with -kangal verbaliser meaning 'to grunt'.


yinjul

Glossed 'fig parrot' (Cyclopsitta diophthalma).


yinkanda wunay

Phrase 'lying on the side'; wunay is the verb 'to lie/sleep'.


yinkunji

species of fig tree with edible fruit (longest black fruit which becomes rip in the wet)

Species of fig tree with edible fruit ripening in the wet season.


yinyarrin

Those carpenters, they work down (there) now

Yinyarrin carpenter jana bada-badada workmal

Plural demonstrative 'those'; likely yinya- plus a plural/group suffix.


yinyil-kangal

Compound of yinyil 'fright' with -kangal verbaliser, 'to frighten'.


yira

Definition lists two senses: 'tide' and 'fruit juice'.


yiringkurr

You're talking this way and that (can't understand)

Glossed 'everywhere' and figuratively 'to talk this way and that'.


yirmbal

The taboo (thing) grabs you and holds you

Yalanji form 'taboo'; the Nyungkul equivalent is given as jabul.


yirrbaji

Reflexive sense 'to scratch yourself'; -ji is the reflexive suffix, cf. transitive yirrbal.


yirri-damal

Compound of yirri 'running water' with -damal, meaning 'to leak'.


yirrnga

When you have your labour pains, go to the hospital


yudal

Definition 'start something, like a motor'; the motor example reflects post-contact usage.


yukil

Nyungkul form for 'true'; the Yalanji equivalent is given as yalakay.


yukil

Homophonous with yukil 'true' (index 2593) but a distinct transitive verb 'to swear'.


yuku

Bring all the meat home (don't cut it up and leave some)


yukurr

a song sung by old men on behalf of someone whose relative has died in an unknown or far coutnry. The song is to send the dead man's spirit back to the right place

A mortuary song sung by old men to send a dead person's spirit back to its proper country.


yulal

board, plank. Contrast with kimil, "round stick"

'board, plank', explicitly contrasted with kimil 'round stick'.


yulban

any soft covering such as skin or vegetable or fruit peeling


yulmbarriji

Intransitive counterpart of yulmbarril (welcome/praise); the -ji ending marks the intransitive/reflexive form.


yulmbarril

welcome, to sing out to someone to welcome him

The school children come from down south, all the people welcomed them

Jana school children nakamun kadarin, bamangka wubulduku jananin yulmbarrin


yulu

he/she/it (third person singular nominative); a less common free variant of nyulu

Attested in Patz §3.5.1, Table 3.6 (note): used in free variation with nyulu, which is more common. Not in the source dictionary (which has nyulu).

Closed-class personal pronoun; not a derived or inflected form.

Added from the reference grammar (Patz); not present in the original community dictionary.


Yumalba

Place name: a mountain near Mt. Poverty (Yulbulu).


yundu

2nd person singular pronoun 'you' (nominative/subject form).


yunduku baja

Idiom 'it's up to you', built on the 2sg pronoun yundu.


yundurrku

'by yourself', derived from the 2sg pronoun yundu.


yungal

send
allow to go
free from custody
hit (a ball)

The judge freed him (sent him back home)


yunun

2sg object pronoun 'you'; definition specifies the Yalanji dialect form.


yununyin

2sg object pronoun 'you'; definition specifies the Nyungkul dialect form (cf. Yalanji yunun).


yurru-janjil

Compound with yurru- as initial element; 'suck/sink down', as in quicksand or mud.


yurrunji

species of tree, called "dead finish" by whites. It is found only in Kuku-Nyungkul country except for one tree standing all alone at Main camp which is in Kuku-Yalanji country. The story is that he came from Romeo and was in Love with (bujanji) but was rejected and is now standing alone

Species of tree called 'dead finish' by whites; said to grow only in Kuku-Nyungkul country except one tree at Main camp in Kuku-Yalanji country, with an associated story.


yuru-dudal

to join together by means of something else, as nailing, sewing, etc.

The carpenter nailed the board on the house

Carperterangka yulal yurru-dudan bayanba

Compound with yuru- as initial element; to join together by means of something else (nailing, sewing, etc.).


yuwu

Affirmation 'yes/true'; the gloss 'True' and translation reflect an affirmative particle rather than a noun.


yuwulbuwun

Attested in Patz Text 51 line 4 and exx.(637),(651); not in the source dictionary.


yuy

exclamation of surprise and awe, usually prolonged and said in a breathy voice and level intonation


yuyku

a father is called this when he loses a child through death

Bereavement kin term: a father so called when he loses a child through death.


Zigazagmun Main Campmunbu

Capitalised multi-word headword incorporating English 'Main Camp' plus Yalanji locative suffix -munbu, indicating a named place/location.