mbaʼerã / mbaʼére
Why
Mbaʼerã and mbaʼére ask why.
How It Works
Both words are built from mbaʼe “what”.
| Word | Built from | Asks about |
|---|---|---|
| mbaʼerã | mbaʼe + -rã “for” | purpose: what for |
| mbaʼére | mbaʼe + -re | reason: why |
| mbaʼégui | mbaʼe + -gui “from” | reason: why |
Put the question word first, then the rest of the sentence: Mbaʼérepa nerasẽ? “Why are you crying?”
In mbaʼére the stress stays on the e of mbaʼe, and -re adds an unstressed syllable after it, so the accent marks the stressed vowel: mbaʼére, mbaʼérepa. Mbaʼerã carries the tilde, which shows the stress, so it needs no accent.
In Mbaʼérepa nerasẽ?, the marker ne- is the nasal shape of nde-, because rasẽ “cry” is a nasal word.
Examples (4)
- Mbaʼerã jayʼu terere ñande Paraguaigua?
Why do we Paraguayans drink terere?
Mbaʼerã asks the reason or purpose.
- Mbaʼérepa nerasẽ?
Why are you crying?
Mbaʼére plus -pa asks why; ne- is the nasal form of nde-.
- Mbaʼérepa Marta hasẽ?
Why is Marta crying?
The question word comes first, then the person.
- Mbaʼérepa reju?
Why are you coming?
Mbaʼérepa asks for the reason behind an action.
Common Mistakes
Using nde- before the nasal verb rasẽ.
Mbaʼérepa nderasẽ?Mbaʼérepa nerasẽ?Rasẽ is a nasal word, so nde- becomes ne-.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Mbaʼerã and mbaʼére are built from mbaʼe, so mbaʼe comes first.
Related Patterns
Words in This Pattern
Practice mbaʼerã / mbaʼére in Bubblegum
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