'long' or 'bilong'?

01

The Rule

• After a noun, use bilong.
• After a verb or an adjective, use long.

So you do not ask "does this mean for?" - you look left and ask what kind of word you are hanging the phrase onto.

02

After a Verb or Adjective

Here the phrase completes the verb or adjective: what you are able to do, what you are waiting for, what you are trying.

• Mi no inap long wet moa.

  I can't wait any longer.

• Mi no inap long draiv.

  I'm not able to drive.

• Em longpela inap long we?

  How tall is she?

This side of the rule has no exceptions: after a verb or an adjective it is always long.

03

After a Noun

Here the phrase says what the noun is for, and that is bilong's territory.

• Mi wanpela meri bilong kuk long restoran.

  I'm a cook in a restaurant.

• Em stua bilong salim su.

  It's a shoe shop.

• Wara bilong dring i mas i stap klin.

  Drinking water must stay clean.

• Haus em i ples bilong slip.

  A house is a place for sleeping.

Each of these names what something permanently is: a cook, a shoe shop, drinking water, a place for sleeping. English usually turns them into compound nouns.

04

Both in One Sentence

Putting the two side by side around the very same verb makes the rule visible at a glance.

• Mi no inap long draiv inap mi kisim laisens bilong draiv pastaim.

  I can't drive until I get a driving licence first.

inap is an adjective, so long draiv. laisens is a noun, so bilong draiv. Same verb, different preposition, and the word to the left is the only thing that changed.

05

When a Noun Takes 'long' After All

There is a real exception on the noun side. A noun takes long when the purpose is a particular occasion rather than the thing's standing function.

• Bos bilong mi givim mipela wan-wan botol wain long dring.

  My boss gave us each a bottle of wine to drink.

• Bai mi givim yu wanpela marasin long helpim hetpen bilong yu.

  I'll give you a medicine to help your headache.

• Mi gat wanpela poro meri long bungim long nait.

  I have a girlfriend to meet at night.

Compare wain long dring with wara bilong dring. The wine is wine that happens to be for drinking on this occasion; drinking water is a kind of water. English marks the same difference - "water to drink" against "drinking water" - so the distinction should feel familiar even though the machinery is different.

06

Words That Are Both Noun and Verb

tok, wok, laik and strong are each both a noun and a verb, so each takes both prepositions. tok long is the verb, "speak about"; tok bilong is the noun, "the words of". laik long is "want to"; laik bilong is "the will of". The preposition is not wavering - it is telling you which of the two words you are looking at.