o   

objects:   ten, in counting certain objects

obstruct, stretch across

odor

offer

offspring child

oil

Mills (1981), citing Benedict (1975:286) as his source, uses this comparison, together with an unrevealed Makassarese form that cannot be located in any published source, in part because no actual form is given, to posit PAn *lawlaw ‘oil’. However, both Formosan forms reflect *NawNaw, which normally yields PMP *n, not *l, and these themselves may be a product of borrowing, since this characterized the relationship of Paiwan and Puyuma for centuries (Blust 1999:47-51). Needless to say, since the resemblance of Fijian lolo to the words from southern Taiwan is both formally flawed and semantically deviant, it is best treated as a product of chance.

older woman:   aunt, older woman

Dempwolff (1938) proposed ‘Uraustronesisch’ *daga ‘to be related’, but Dahl (1976:106-107) has rightly dismissed this comparison as invalid.

on the loose:   free, on the loose

Based on a slightly different version of this comparison Mills (1981) proposed PAn *la(m)baR ‘free; rebellious’. However, almost nothing about this comparison works: the Tagalog word is semantically at odds with the others cited here, Acehnese labaih can only reflect *labas, the Madurese form contains a penultimate vowel that disagrees with the reconstruction, and the other forms are confined to languages in central or southwest Sulawesi, where borrowing cannot safely be ruled out with regard to Buginese or Makassarese influence on Bare'e.

one

It is conceivable that this is one of a set of numerals used for special purposes, as by children in play. However, there is no known support for this hypothesis beyond the present comparison, and until further support is found it seems best to treat the similarity seen here as a product of chance convergence.

onto:   step onto

open

open wide

opening:   door opening

Chance (cp. Kayan ba 'mouth', evidently the primary sense of the term).

opening

Dempwolff (1934-38) reconstructed *wawaq 'opening', but the Javanese form is best attributed to *babaq₂ and the Malagasy form to *babaq₁. The similarity of Tagalog wáwaʔ to Sa'a wawa is best attributed to chance.

orderly rule-governed

Dempwolff (1938) reconstructed ‘Uraustronesisch’ *tataR ‘rule’, adding Fijian i-tata ‘order, command’, a form that I am unable to find in any modern dictionary.

other, to change

Chance. Dempwolff (1934-38) combined these forms with Ngaju Dayak iwa-n 'sister-in-law (woman speaking)'.

owl sp.

owl sp.