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Tonuao: Difference between revisions
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== Syntax == | == Syntax == | ||
Like Chinese and Vietnamese (and unlike Japanese and Korean), {{PAGENAME}} is SVO, subject-verb-object. The subject of an intransitive verb and the actor of transitive verb come before early in the sentence, and the accusative argument must come after the verb. There are no particles to mark subject or object. {{PAGENAME}} tries to have the verb be second-to-last, comparable but backwards to the Germanic [[w:V2 word order]]. Like most Asian languages, {{PAGENAME}} has several verbs corresponding to European "is": 乃 ''nai'' is 'to be equal', 有 ''yu'' means 'to have', and 在 ''jai'' means 'to exist' or 'to be at'. Only 乃 ''nai'' may be dropped, and it usually is. | Like Chinese and Vietnamese (and unlike Japanese and Korean), {{PAGENAME}} is SVO, subject-verb-object. The subject of an intransitive verb and the actor of transitive verb come before early in the sentence, and the accusative argument must come after the verb. There are no particles to mark subject or object. {{PAGENAME}} tries to have the verb be second-to-last, comparable but backwards to the Germanic [[w:V2 word order|V2 word order]]. Like most Asian languages, {{PAGENAME}} has several verbs corresponding to European "is": 乃 ''nai'' is 'to be equal', 有 ''yu'' means 'to have', and 在 ''jai'' means 'to exist' or 'to be at'. Only 乃 ''nai'' may be dropped, and it usually is. | ||
In the East Asian style, {{PAGENAME}} is very topic-prominent. The topic is marked with the postposition ヘ ''he'', derived from 兮 ''hei''. Typically, if present, it will come first in the sentence. The dative argument may be unmarked, if easily discernible from context, but is more often marked with the postposition ウ ''u'', derived from 于 ''yu''. A genitive relationship is 之 ''ji'' which is not written in katakana most of the time. | In the East Asian style, {{PAGENAME}} is very topic-prominent. The topic is marked with the postposition ヘ ''he'', derived from 兮 ''hei''. Typically, if present, it will come first in the sentence. The dative argument may be unmarked, if easily discernible from context, but is more often marked with the postposition ウ ''u'', derived from 于 ''yu''. A genitive relationship is 之 ''ji'' which is not written in katakana most of the time. | ||