"chaq DIHotbe'nIS."

Translation: Perhaps we must not touch them.

[NightKitten]

Would "maybe we don't need to touch them" also be an option?

[mizinamo]

No -- "don't need to" would be -nISbe' while this one has -be'nIS "need to not... = must not".

Or to put it differently; it's not that you -nISbe' "don't need" to Hot "touch" them; it's that you -nIS "need" to Hotbe' "not touch" them.

The suffix -be' belongs to the class of rovers, because it can occur at various positions in the string of suffixes -- and it negates whatever is before it. So positioning -be' differently will usually give different meanings.

[NightKitten]

Thank you :)

[BobVesterm]

I just don't hear the "n" in "nIS" here. Is it supposed to be silent here? If so, how do you tell when it is or is not supposed to be silent?

I'm not sure if it's just this question or other questions too, but I've definitely noticed this a bunch of times.

[jdmcowan]

https://d1vq87e9lcf771.cloudfront.net/tlh_v2/3cb6dcf9f67534c1ac11e96386f2cf57

I admit the n is not real strong, but I can definitely hear it. I even had my son (who does not speak Klingon and could not see the spelling) repeat the audio and he included an n. I think if the n were said any more clearly, it would sound unnaturally emphasized. How would you spell what you do hear?

[BobVesterm]

The same as the correct answer, but without the n: chaq DIHotbe'IS.

[jdmcowan]

I think this is a very common way to say the n after a glottal stop, so you will want to practice hearing it. However, since this sentence is still before the second checkpoint, I'll ask the person to re-record it a little slower and more emphasized.

[Qov-jIH-je]

Done. It will take some days for the audio to be replaced.

[Tortitudette]

For what it's worth I think it's very easy to hear now (though I don't know if I ever heard the old version), and doesn't sound overly emphasized.