formed mark the agentive nouns i.e., the doer of the
action. Examples are:
|
|
|
Some nouns are formed by adding {-o} masculine gender suffix to the
verbal roots. For example:
|
|
tÌkk-
|
‘push’
|
tÌkk-o
|
‘push’
|
|
|
|
|
In this language diminutives are formed from non-human nouns as certain
nouns show the contrast of small and big size and young ones. Diminutives
are formed from the nouns by adding the following suffixes:
|
|
{-i} the diminutives derived by this suffix belong exclusively to
feminine gender. And the source nouns to which this suffix is added are
masculine in gender denoting large size, end either in consonant or {-o}
masculine suffix. In the formation of the diminutive noun {-o} is dropped.
|
|
Examples are :
|
|
th m
|
‘big pole’
|
thmmi
|
‘small pole’
|
|
pÌt
|
‘door’
|
pÌti |
‘window, small door’
|
|
ţèr
|
‘heap’(big)
|
ţèri
|
‘heap’(small)
|
|
tak
|
‘the plank of of the
|
taki |
small plank of |
|
door’
|
|
the door |
|
c bb
|
‘a big spear |
cbi
|
‘small spear used
|
|
used for digging
out |
|
for digging out
|
|
the stones’ |
|
the stone’
|
tho o’
|
‘big hammer’ |
thoi |
‘small hammer
|
|
bnno
|
‘broad muddy bnni
path
|
|
‘narrow muddy
|
|
in between in the field’
|
|
path the fields’ |
|
kngo
|
‘comb’(big) |
kngi
|
‘comb’(small)
|
|
kwáo
|
‘axe’(big)
|
kwáci
|
‘axe’(small)
|
|
chIpro
|
‘big apron’
|
chIpri
|
‘small apron’
|
|
aro
|
‘big saw’
|
ari
|
‘small saw’ |
|
|
{-ţi}
added to certain nouns to form the diminutive i.e., the smallness of the
size of the noun with which it occurs and such derived nouns belong to
feminine gender. Examples are :
|
|
snduk
|
‘trunk, box’
|
snduki
|
‘small box’
|
|
 òlk
|
‘drum’
|
ţòlki
‘
|
‘small drum’
|
|
|
{-oţ-}
added to the noun stems which distinguish gender by morphological suffixes
and the derived noun stem has the meaning of young one of the source noun
and the stem thus formed can take gender suffixes. Examples of source
nouns are given in masculine which have corresponding feminine have not
been listed.
|
Examples are :
|
|
bkr.o
|
‘he goat’
|
bkr-oţ-o
|
‘male kid’
|
|
|
bkr-oţ-i
|
‘female kid’
|
|
kcr-o
|
‘he mule’ |
kcr-oţ-o |
‘male young
|
|
|
|
one of the
|
|
|
|
mule’
|
|
|
kcrioţi
|
‘female young
|
|
|
|
one of the
|
|
|
|
mule’
|
|
