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====Case==== | ====Case==== | ||
Nominals - including nouns, pronouns, and adjectives - in Saxuma take one of five cases. For nouns and adjectives, only the construct case requires any declension — all others use the base form along with a preposition or particle. Pronouns, however, have irregular declensions for all five cases. | |||
* The '''direct''' case is the plain form of a nominal. It is used by default in any context where another marking is not required. | |||
* The '''absolutive''' case marks the sole argument of intransitive verbs, and the patient of transitive verbs (see [[Saxuma#Syntax|Syntax]]). It is marked in non-pronouns by placing the particle ''ka'' after the noun phrase. | |||
* The '''genitive''' and '''construct''' cases are closely related. The genitive marks the possessor in a genitive phrase, and the construct the possessed. For the most part, the genitive is only used by pronouns, in which instances the possessed noun simply uses the direct form. | |||
:: "biga ome" | |||
:: foot I.{{sc|gen}} | |||
:: ''my foot'' | |||
: In most other situations, the construct case is used exclusively. | |||
:: "bigaw huk" | |||
:: foot.{{sc|cons}} chicken | |||
:: ''the chicken's foot'' | |||
: Any adjectives modifying a construct noun also take the construct case. | |||
:: "bigaw savu huk" | |||
:: foot.{{sc|cons}} left.{{sc|cons}} chicken | |||
:: ''the chicken's left foot'' | |||
: However, the construct case may be omitted and the preposition ''u'' ("of") may be used instead in cases where it would aid in clarity, particularly when there is nested possession. | |||
:: "huko vivyu injeni" → "huk u vivyu injeni" | |||
:: chicken.{{sc|cons}} child.{{sc|cons}} farmer → chicken of child.{{sc|cons}} farmer | |||
:: ''the farmer's child's chicken'' → ''the chicken of the farmer's child'' | |||
* The '''dative-superessive''' case is used both to mark the oblique argument of verbs, as well as to convey the motion of coming upon or landing on the motion's target, but not other forms of motion (which usually use the preposition ''eke'' ("towards"). Outside of pronouns, this is marked with the preposition ''ba'' ("upon"). | |||
====Gender morphology==== | ====Gender morphology==== | ||