Qino: Difference between revisions

| <big><big>(ـهْ)</big></big> || <big><big>(ـهْ)</big></big> || -V́ (or -Vh, -VV) || (ህ) || ˈ-V || Used for an accented word-final short vowel. In verbs, often indicated with a final ''-h''. In nouns, may be written as a long vowel or with a following glottal stop.

By default, primary accent falls on the last "long" syllable (i.e. syllable that is closed and/or contains a long vowel). If there are no long syllables, the initial syllable is accented. Words that do not conform to this rule are indicated in this article with an acute accent. Some exceptions are nouns that end in a consonant in the absolutive and words nominalized with ''-n/m'', which behave as if they ended in a vowel (e.g. ''Maxammad'' is pronounced ''Maxámmad'', not ''Maxammád''). A word may contain multiple accented syllables, in which case primary accent falls on the final accented syllable.

In verbs, accent is fully determined by morphology. Nouns may have distinctive accent. A final accented vowel can be pronounced aspirated in verbs (where it may be written with a final ''-h'') and glottalized in nouns (which may be indicated with an apostrophe).

When used in a sentence, some words that normally have accent may be unaccented (especially if unfocused), etc. In a noun phrase, words after the first accented word have their accent weakened or dropped entirely (unless focused). Words such as genitives, adjectives, verbs, and proximal/distal articles are accented.

**'''Absolutive''': Citation form, used for the direct object of a verb, the object of adpositions, and predicative nouns. Personal pronouns have a distinct accusative form that is used for direct objects. Absolutives ending in a single consonant followed by a short, unaccented vowel (especially ''-a'' or ''-i'') often drop their final vowel, especially when closely linked to the following word.

**'''Predicative''': Used for predicative nouns. This is not a true case but rather the absolutive fused to the copula. This fusing is optional, and in the present indicative the copula is usually dropped entirely (except for emphasis).

*The clitic accusatives (either long or short) can be used with nouns as a genitive.

*The reflexive, reciprocal, and imperonal object pronouns can be used as postpositional objects.

Demonstratives are used to specify something. They can occur as an article before a noun or can be used independently. There are three demonstratives: the definite, proximate, and distal demonstratives. The definite article is unaccented, while the others are accented if they occur at the beginning of a noun phrase.

When used as an article, they directly precede the noun being modified. An exception is with numerals: the article precedes the numeral and agrees with it in gender - e.g. ''ta afar nama'' "the four people" (not *''afar ka nama''). Articles only decline in primary cases; other cases use the absolutive forms. When used as pronouns, demonstratives occur at the end of the noun phrase and can take secondary case endings.

The definite article always comes at the beginning of a noun phrase and has two forms: short and long. The short forms are used when the article directly preceding the noun being modified. If there is separation, the long forms can be used, especially if the short forms may cause confusion.

The indefinite pronoun declines only when it occurs at the end of the noun phrase. When used before a noun, the attributive form is used. The attributive form is accented.

Attributives (also called definitives) modify a nominal and occur at the beginning of the nominal phrase. Some agree with the nominal in gender/number, but most are invariable. Strictly speaking, words that can occur independently (such as articles) or that are declined forms of nouns/verbs are not attributives, but they are included here for convenience.

Quantifiers are accented and occur at the beginning of the noun phrase. Some are listed below.

<small>²</small> For forms ending in a short accented vowel, the final accented vowel may be aspirated and can be written with a final ''-h'' instead of an acute accent. They lose their accent when unfocused or used descriptively before nouns, and they lengthen in questions.

*''-ne'': and - used to join clauses; occurs after first noun phrase (or after verb if there is no noun phrase) in clauses subsequent to the first

*''-se'': but - occurs after initial noun phrase

**Can occur before unfocused nouns, roughly meaning "which" - e.g. ''ma shara tarkee?'' "which dog did you see?"

**Can occur after nouns to place emphasis on them - e.g. ''shárame tarke?'' "was it ''a dog'' that you saw?"

===Noun phrase===

*Case endings and postpositions come at the end of a noun phrase. If it does not end in a noun, an ''-n'' is added before case endings or non-clitic forms are used.