Grammar of babā the sentences
This is a description of the grammar within babā.
Word Order Uses verb-subject-object (VSO) word order by default.
Subject-Verb Agreement No subject-verb agreement or gender.
Noun Cases In the order in which they are affixed to the root word.
| Case | Affix | Latinization | IPA | Example | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Possession | Any | Suffix | (any pronoun) | (any pronoun) | babāvababā + -va | |
| Multiplicative | Plural | Prefix | (first syllable of root word) | (first syllable of root word) | bababāba- + babā | reduplication |
| Vocative | Prefix | hwa- | /ʀ̥a/ | hwababāhwa- + babā | ||
| Locative | Prefix | ēsu- | /'ɛsu/ | ēsubabāēsu- + babā | is not used for ēsu (there) and āto (here), as those are technically "states" | |
| Instrumental | Prefix | tāto- | /'tato/ | tātobabātāto- + babā | ||
There is theoretically no limit to the amount of affixes that can be added.
e.g. tātobababāsādr = their songs (instrumental case)
Verb Cases In the order in which they are affixed to the root word.
| Case | Affix | Latinization | IPA | Example | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aspect | ContinuousProgressive | Suffix | -ran | /ɻan/ | arana + -ran | |||
| Mood | Interrogative | Prefix | pо̄- | /'po/ | ||||
| Mood | Interrogative | Prefix | pо̄d- | /'pod/ | pо̄dapо̄d- + a | if verb begins with vowel | ||
| Tense | Future | Suffix | -lun | /lun/ | aluna + -lun | |||
| Tense | Past | Suffix | -mo | /mo/ | amoa + -mo | |||
| Tense | Future Perfect | Suffix | -fer | /feɹ/ | afera + -fer | |||
| Tense | Past Perfect | Suffix | -ka | /ka/ | akaa + -ka | |||
| Mood | Indicative | default mood | ||||||
| Mood | Optative | Suffix | -ŕei | /reɪ/ | aŕeia + -ŕei | |||
| Mood | Optative | Suffix | -raŕei | /ɻareɪ/ | if verb already ends in -ŕei, remove the original -ŕei and suffix -raŕei | |||
| Mood | Imperative | Suffix | -di | /di/ | adia + -di | |||
| Mood | Imperative | Suffix | -dedi | /dedi/ | if verb already ends in -di, remove the original -di and suffix -dedi | |||
| Polarity | Negation | Suffix | -mis | /mis/ | amisa + -mis | |||
Adjectives Doesn't have adjectives as a separate word class. Adjectives are usually expressed with the word "to be" and a noun.
a va ido = lonely me
Can also suffix nouns acting as adjectives to the ends of other nouns, indicating that the root noun takes the quality of the suffixed nouns.
latunido = empty place
If the noun ends in a vowel and the adjective starts with a vowel, -r /ɻ/ is suffixed first, then the adjective is suffixed. If the noun ends in a consonant and the adjective starts with a vowel, -a /a/ is suffixed first, then the adjective is suffixed.
Adjective suffixes take place before any case suffixes.