glo

Glo (Apparently)

Level 3

After the verb, glo means apparently, so I hear: Hy is glo siek. As a verb it means believe: Ek glo jou.

How It Works

1. Glo for hearsay. Put glo after the conjugated verb to pass on something you heard, read or were told. You do not vouch for it yourself:

  • Hy is glo siek. (He's apparently sick. / They say he's sick.)
  • Dit gaan glo môre reën. (It's supposed to rain tomorrow.)
  • Sy het glo die lotto gewen. (She apparently won the lotto.)

2. Glo as a verb. When glo is the conjugated verb, it means believe. Its past is het ... geglo:

  • Ek glo jou. (I believe you.)
  • Glo jy in spoke? (Do you believe in ghosts?)
  • Niemand het my geglo nie. (Nobody believed me.)

3. My opinion or someone else's? Compare Ek glo hy is siek (I believe he is sick: my own opinion) with Hy is glo siek (He is apparently sick: someone told me). After the verb glo, dat is often left out (see leaving out dat).

4. Where hearsay glo goes. It sits in the middle of the sentence like other particles: after the conjugated verb and short pronouns, and before nie: Hulle kom glo nie vanaand nie. (Apparently they aren't coming tonight.)

5. Similar words. Blykbaar (evidently) points to evidence you can see, and seker (probably) is your own guess (see guessing with sal and moet). In news reports, an unconfirmed claim can also be marked with sou.

Examples (6)

  1. Hy is glo siek.

    He's apparently sick.

    Word by Word: He is apparently sick.

  2. Dit gaan glo môre reën.

    It's supposed to rain tomorrow.

    Word by Word: It goes apparently tomorrow rain.

  3. Sy het glo die lotto gewen.

    She apparently won the lotto.

    Word by Word: She has apparently the lotto won.

  4. Hulle kom glo nie vanaand nie.

    Apparently they aren't coming tonight.

    Word by Word: They come apparently not tonight not.

  5. Ek glo jou.

    I believe you.

    Word by Word: I believe you.

    Here glo is the conjugated verb, so it means believe.

  6. Glo jy in spoke?

    Do you believe in ghosts?

    Word by Word: Believe you in ghosts?

Common Mistakes

  • Starting a statement with glo to mean apparently.

    Glo hy is siek.
    Hy is glo siek.

    At the start of a sentence glo is read as the verb believe. The hearsay glo goes after the conjugated verb.

  • Using hearsay glo for your own opinion (intended meaning: I believe he is right).

    Hy is glo reg.
    Ek glo hy is reg.

    Hy is glo reg means that other people say he is right. To give your own opinion, use glo as the verb: Ek glo hy is reg.

  • Putting geglo before the object in the past.

    Ek het geglo hom nie.
    Ek het hom nie geglo nie.

    In the past the ge- form goes to the end of the clause, followed only by the closing nie.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

gloLevel 3Glo (Apparently)

Learn This First

Glo is a particle placed like mos.

Words in This Pattern

gloglo