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I was rewatching "All Good Things" from ST:TNG. In the scene when the Klingons attack the USS Pasteur, Captain (Beverly) Picard tells Worf to signal their surrender.

Worf replies with

Tos Vah'cha Worf, do'lo jegh!
transcript on Chakoteya.net

Apparently the Klingon translators I found online don't seem to be able to translate this line. Can someone tell me what this means?

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    st-minutiae.com/resources/scripts/277.txt has it as "This is Governor Worf, we surrender!"
    – SQB
    Jan 8, 2019 at 9:15
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    @SQB - And you've not posted that as an answer because.....?
    – Valorum
    Jan 8, 2019 at 10:53
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    @SQB - The script is always the right answer, even if it conflicts with the Klingon language invented by Mark Okrand
    – Valorum
    Jan 8, 2019 at 14:37
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    It wasn't unusual for screenwriters or actors to have "Klingon" in the show that didn't actually make sense, even after Okrand published the "official" dictionary. The Klingon Dictionary itself makes note of this.
    – Dúthomhas
    Jan 8, 2019 at 15:04
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    Not only was it not unusual for the screenwriters to ignore the Klingon language; it was the standard. This is no exception.
    – loghaD
    Jan 8, 2019 at 20:02

2 Answers 2

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The original screenplay identifies it thusly.

[Worf works a console for a moment.]

WORF: (to com) Tos Vah'cha Worf, do'lo jegh!
(This is Governor Worf, we surrender!)

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    For the curious: To say this in tlhIngan Hol, the Klingon language created by Marc Okrand, you might say something like wo'rIv qumwI' jIH! majegh!
    – loghaD
    Jan 8, 2019 at 20:05
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According to a Klingon dictionary the words from your transcript excerpt translate as follows:

  • toS = climb
  • vaH = holster, sheath, knife case
  • cha = torpedoes
  • Worf = Worf
  • Do = velocity, speed
  • lo = ?
  • jegh = surrender, give up

So, yeah. I'm no expert in klingon grammar and it looks a bit like gibberish to me. But maybe someone can figure out the rest from here.

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  • Note that in Standard Klingon (which the quote isn't), vaH'cha and Do'lo would be one word each, not two. The apostrophe is a letter in its own right in Klingon, not punctuation. So the translation into vaH, cha, Do, and lo is inapt either way.
    – Mark Beadles
    Jan 14, 2019 at 18:37

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