How to Say “I Can Stay” in Chamorro – Expressing Ability With Intransitive Verbs

On By Schyuler LujanIn Chamorro Lessons: Beginner

This lesson is part of the Beginner Chamorro learning path.

In this lesson, you’ll learn how to say what someone can or can’t do in Chamorro — for example, “I can stay,” “you can go to the store,” and “I cannot rest.” You’ll practice using the word siña with everyday action words, and you’ll also learn how to turn these ideas into questions like “Can I stay?” so you can talk about ability and possibility in real conversations. Happy studying!

Contents

  1. Introduction to “Can” With Intransitive Verbs
  2. How to Say “I can stay”
  3. How to Say “I can stay in Agat”
  4. How to Say “I cannot stay”
  5. How to Say “Can you stay?
  6. ➡️ Keep Learning! Continue to the Next Lesson
  7. Documentation & Further Study
    1. References
    2. Further Reading

Introduction to “Can” With Intransitive Verbs

When we express our ability to do things, like “I can stay” or “She can rest”, we want to use the word siña, which means “can, able”.

In this lesson, we’ll practice patterns for making “can” statements with action words that don’t need objects (intransitive verbs). Specifically, we’ll practice the following patterns:

  • Saying “I can” statements: “I can stay”
  • Expanding our statements with locations: “I can stay in Agat”
  • Saying “I can’t” statements: “I can’t stay”
  • Asking questions: “Can you stay?”

How to Say “I can stay”

When we want to express what we can do, we want to start our sentences with siña and a Yu’ type pronoun. So we’ll begin with phrases like siña yu’ (“I can”), siña hit (“we can”), siña hao (“you can”), etc.

After our basic “can” phrase, we’ll follow it with an intransitive verb in its past tense form.

Here’s the full pattern we’ll practice:

[Siña + Yu’ Type Pronoun] + Past Tense Intransitive Verb
ChamorroEnglish
Siña yu’ humånao.I can go.
Siña hao dumeskånsa.You can rest.
Siña gue sumåga.She can stay.
Siña hamyu matå’chong.You (2) can sit.
Siña siha mamokkat.They (2) can walk.
Siña hit macho’cho’.We (2) can work.
Siña hao maigo’ñaihon.You can nap.
Siña ham malågu.We (2) can run.
Siña yu’ makmåta.I can wake up.
Siña hamyu bumaila.You (2) can dance.

How to Say “I can stay in Agat”

What if we want to expand our “can” statements and specify the when or where? We can just add gi + location or giya + location to the end of our sentences. If you want a full review of how to add locations to sentences, see my lesson on How to Add Locations in Chamorro.

Here’s the full pattern we’ll practice:

[Siña + Yu’ Type Pronoun] + Past Tense Intransitive Verb + [gi / giya + location]

March 2026 Note: Audio is forthcoming! Sorry for the confusion!

ChamorroEnglish
Siña hao dumeskånsa gi gima’.You can rest at the house.
Siña gue sumåga giya Hågat.She can stay in Agat.
Siña hamyo matå’chong gi fi’on-hu.You (2) can sit next to me.
Siña hit macho’cho’ gi egga’an.We (2) can work in the morning.
Siña hao maigo’ñaihon gi batkon aire.You can nap on the plane.
Siña yu’ makmåta gi oran alas siette.I can wake up at 7 o’clock.
Siña hamyo bumaila gi gipot.You (2) can dance at the party.

What if we want to talk about movement to a place, such as “I can go to the store” or “They can walk to the beach”? We can add guatu gi + location to the end of the sentence, which indicates going over to somewhere.

Here’s the basic structure we can use:

[Siña + Yu’ Type Pronoun] + Past Tense Intransitive Verb + [guatu gi + location]

March 2026 Note: Audio is forthcoming! Sorry for the confusion!

ChamorroEnglish
Siña yu’ humånao guatu gi sagan mamåhån.I can go over to the store.
Siña siha mamokkat guatu gi kanton tåsi.They (2) can walk over to the beach.
Siña ham malågu guatu gi gima’ Yu’us.We (2) can run over to the church.

For a full lesson on how to use guatu in sentences, see my lesson, A Guide to Using Guatu.

How to Say “I cannot stay”

If we want to express that we cannot do something, just put the Negative Marker “Ti” in front of our sentences. In other words, begin the sentence with Ti Siña (“cannot”).

Here’s the basic structure:

[Ti Siña + Yu’ Type Pronoun] + Past Tense Intransitive Verb
ChamorroEnglish
Ti siña yu’ humånao guatu gi sagan mamåhån.I cannnot go to the store.
Ti siña hao dumeskånsa gi gima’.You cannot rest at the house.
Ti siña gue sumåga giya Hågat.She cannot stay in Agat.
Ti siña hamyu matå’chong gi fi’on-hu.You (2) cannot sit next to me.
Ti siña siha mamokkat guatu gi kanton tåsi.They (2) cannot walk to the beach.
Ti siña hit macho’cho’ gi egga’an.We (2) cannot work in the morning.
Ti siña hao maigo’ñaihon gi batkon aire.You cannot nap on the plane.
Ti siña ham malågu guatu gi gima’ Yu’us.We (2) cannot run to the church.
Ti siña yu’ makmåta gi oran alas siette.I cannot wake up at 7 o’clock.
Ti siña hamyu bumaila gi gipot.You (2) cannot dance at the party.

How to Say “Can you stay?

When you want to ask something if they are able to do something, add the Question Marker “Kao” to the front of the sentence. In other words, you can begin your question with Kao Siña (“Can?”).

Here’s the full pattern we’ll practice:

[Kao Siña + Yu’ Type Pronoun] + Past Tense Intransitive Verb
ChamorroEnglish
Kao siña yu’ humånao guatu gi sagan mamåhån?Can I go to the store?
Kao siña hao dumeskånsa gi gima’?Can you rest at the house?
Kao siña gue sumåga giya Hågat?Can she stay in Agat?
Kao siña hamyo matå’chong gi fi’on-hu?Can you (2) sit next to me?
Kao siña siha mamokkat guatu gi kanton tåsi?Can they (2) walk to the beach?
Kao siña hit macho’cho’ gi egga’an?Can we (2) work in the morning?
Kao siña hao maigo’ñaihon gi batkon aire?Can you nap on the plane?
Kao siña ham malågu guatu gi gima’ Yu’us?Can we (2) run to the church?
Kao siña yu’ makmåta gi oran alas siette?Can I wake up at 7 o’clock?
Kao siña hamyo bumaila gi gipot?Can you (2) dance at the party?

➡️ Keep Learning! Continue to the Next Lesson

How to Say “This” and “That” in Chamorro
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Documentation & Further Study

References

Topping, D. M., & Dungca, B. C. Chamorro Reference Grammar (PALI Language Texts―Micronesia). University of Hawaii Press, 1973.

Topping, Donald M. Spoken Chamorro: With Grammatical Notes and Glossary (Second Edition). University of Hawaii Press, 1980.

Further Reading

Topping, D. M., & Dungca, B. C. “Siña.” In Chamorro Reference Grammar, 91. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1973.

Topping, D.M. “GRAMMAR NOTES 1.” In Spoken Chamorro: With Grammatical Notes and Glossary (Second Edition), 146-147. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1980.

Topping, D.M. “10.2 REPETITION DRILL. Siña plus verbal constructions.” In Spoken Chamorro: With Grammatical Notes and Glossary (Second Edition), 148-149. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1980.

Topping, D.M. “10.4 VARIABLE SUBSTITION DRILL. Siña with intransitive verbs.” In Spoken Chamorro: With Grammatical Notes and Glossary (Second Edition), 149-150. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1980.