sɛn (How)
How: Sɛn
Sɛn means how. It usually comes at the end: Wo ho te sɛn? (How are you?).
How It Works
Sɛn at the end. Most sɛn questions end with sɛn, in the slot where the answer would go:
- Wo ho te sɛn? How are you? See Wo ho te sɛn?
- Ɛte sɛn? How is it going? Answer: Ɛyɛ (It is fine).
- W'akwamma no kɔɔ sɛn? How did your holiday go?
Names. Twi asks for a name with sɛn: Wo din de sɛn? (What is your name?) or Yɛfrɛ wo sɛn? (What do people call you?). The answers are Me din de Ama and Wɔfrɛ me Ama.
Sɛn first, with na. Like other question words, sɛn can come first if na follows it: Sɛn na yɛka "thank you" wɔ Twi mu? (How do we say thank you in Twi?). The greetings and name questions above keep sɛn at the end.
Amounts. In everyday speech sɛn can also ask about an amount or the time, as in Abɔ sɛn? (What time is it?). The regular word for how much and how many is ahe.
Keep the spelling apart. Three words look alike: sɛn (how), sɛ (like, that, if), as in te sɛ, and sen (than). In texts people often type sen for sɛn, so read by context. See informal spelling.
Examples (5)
- Wo ho te sɛn?
How are you?
Word by Word: Your body is how?
- Ɛte sɛn?
How is it going?
Word by Word: It-is how?
The short, casual greeting.
- Wo din de sɛn?
What is your name?
Word by Word: Your name is-called how?
Twi asks how a name goes, where English asks what.
- W'akwamma no kɔɔ sɛn?
How did your holiday go?
Word by Word: Your-holiday the went how?
Kɔɔ is the past of kɔ with a word after it; w' is wo before a vowel.
- Yɛfrɛ wo sɛn?
What do people call you?
Word by Word: We-call you how?
Another common way to ask a name.
Common Mistakes
Dropping the n of sɛn.
Wo ho te sɛ?Wo ho te sɛn?Te sɛ means be like, so Wo ho te sɛ? is an unfinished your body is like...? The question word is sɛn, with n.
Moving sɛn to the front without na.
Sɛn wo din de?Wo din de sɛn?A question word at the front needs na after it. In set questions like this one, sɛn simply stays at the end.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Sɛn is first met in the everyday greeting.
Related Patterns
- me din deMy Name Is: Me Din De
The answer to Wo din de sɛn?
Level 1 - ahe (How Much)How Much, How Many: Ahe
The regular word for how much and how many.
Level 1 - te sɛ (Like)Like, Resemble: Te Sɛ
Sɛ without n means like; keep it apart from sɛn.
Level 3 - sen (Than)Comparisons with Sen
Sen with e means than, a different word.
Level 2 - Question Word + naQuestion Words with Na
How a fronted sɛn takes na.
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice sɛn (How) in Bubblegum
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