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Ngezhey Syntax

Contents

  1. Contents
  2. Typology
  3. Word Order
  4. Negation
  5. Nominalization

Typology

Word order is SVO. Ngezhey is consistently right-branching. Ngezhey is analytic, with compounding being the only way for words to be formed from multiple morphemes. The alignment of Ngezhey is nominative accusative, although this alignment is only shown through word order. In Ngezhey, there are only declarative sentences.

Word Order

Ngezhey is a head initial language, which means that adjectives and adverbs come after the words they describe, and there are prepositions. Particles such as the negator and nominalizer also follow the words that they modify.

Independet clauses consist of a subject (noun) followed optionally by some descriptors. Relative clauses are formed by putting a descriptor immediately after the noun it describes. The noun in one clause can only function as the subject of another clause.

Negation

In Ngezhey, statements are negated using the particle "xo". This particle, when following a descriptor, changes the meaning of that descriptor to its negation. For example "[adjective] xo" means "not [adjective]". It can also succeed a noun alone, in which case, it negates the existance of the noun. In other words, "[noun] xo" means "the [noun] that does not exist". This is a less common use.

Nominalization

In Ngezhey, more intricate sentences can be formed by acting on a clause as if it were a noun. This is accomplished by following the descriptor with the particle "3o3". Anything else that tries to describe the descriptor's noun instead describes the clause itself. This is accomplished by following the descriptor with the particle "3o3". For example, "[food] [new] [good]" ("Some food is new and good.") becomes "[food] [new] 3o3 [good]" ("The fact that some food is new is good."). Note that descriptors that come before the nominalizer are not effected. For example, "[food] [healthy] [new] 3o3 [good]" is "The fact that some food is healthy and new is good.",