nə
What Question Word
nə is the Azerbaijani equivalent of 'what'. It is used to ask about things, concepts, or actions, and follows vowel harmony rules when taking case endings.
How It Works
The word nə is an interrogative pronoun meaning 'what'. Crucially, in Azerbaijani, nə is used for all non-human entities, including animals and plants, while kim (who) is strictly reserved for humans.
It declines like a noun, changing its form based on its role in the sentence:
- Nominative: nə (What) - Used for subjects or indefinite objects. To form the basic 'What is...?' question, it is standard to attach the assertive suffix -dir to make nədir?
- Genitive: nəyin (Of what / What's) - Used to show possession.
- Accusative: nəyi (What) - Used for specific/definite objects.
- Dative: nəyə (To/at what) - Used with verbs like 'looking at' or 'going to'.
- Locative: nədə (In/on what).
- Ablative: nədən (From what / About what). Note: While it can mean 'due to what', niyə is more common for 'why'.
Key Usage Notes:
1. Plurals and Indefinites: You can use the plural suffix -lər to ask about multiple things (nələr). It is also the root for words like nəsə (something) and heç nə (nothing).
2. Correlative Negation: The construction nə ... nə də is used to mean 'neither... nor'. The verb must remain in the affirmative form because the structure itself provides the negation (e.g., Nə çay, nə də qəhvə istəyirəm - I want neither tea nor coffee).
3. Professions: To ask what someone does for a living, use nəçidir? (What [profession] is he/she?).
4. Exclamations: nə can mean 'How' or 'What a...' in exclamatory sentences (e.g., Nə gözəl! - How beautiful!).
5. Buffer Consonant: While the -y- buffer is standard for the Dative case (nəyə), nə is irregular because it also uses -y- for the Genitive (nəyin) and Accusative (nəyi) cases, instead of the expected -n- buffer.
6. Compound Question Words: nə forms the base of many common question words, such as nə qədər (how much/how many), nə vaxt (when), nə üçün (why), and nə cür (what kind/how).
Examples (6)
- Bu nədir?
What is this?
Word by Word: This what-is?
A standard use of 'nə' with the third-person suffix '-dir' to form the basic 'What is...?' question.
- O nədir? - O itdir.
What is that? - It is a dog.
Word by Word: That what-is? - That dog-is.
In Azerbaijani, 'nə' is used for all non-human entities, including animals. You would never use 'kim' (who) for a dog.
- Sən nə oxuyursan?
What are you reading?
Word by Word: You what reading-are?
Here 'nə' acts as an indefinite object. Notice it stays right before the verb.
- Nəyə baxırsan?
What are you looking at?
Word by Word: To-what looking-at-you?
The verb 'baxmaq' (to look) requires the dative case (-a/-ə), so 'nə' becomes 'nəyə'.
- Atan nəçidir?
What is your father's profession?
Word by Word: Father-your what-specialist-is?
Using 'nə' with the suffix '-çi' is the standard way to ask about someone's job.
- Nə gözəl gündür!
What a beautiful day!
Word by Word: What beautiful day-is!
In this context, 'nə' acts as an intensifier for an exclamation.
Common Mistakes
Leaving 'nə' without the dative when 'at what' is meant.
Different MeaningNə baxırsan?Nəyə baxırsan?'Nə baxırsan?' is a good everyday question: 'Why are you staring?' (here 'nə' means 'why'). To ask 'What are you looking at?', use the dative: 'Nəyə baxırsan?'
Choosing 'nə' where 'which one' is meant.
Different MeaningNə kitabı istəyirsən?Hansı kitabı istəyirsən?'Nə kitabı istəyirsən?' is a good sentence: 'What kind of book do you want?' Use 'hansı' to ask which one from a specific group.
How It Connects
Learn This First
To use the question word 'nə' effectively, learners should be familiar with basic demonstratives like 'bu' for identification, the third-person nominal suffix '-dir' for forming complete sentences, and the concept of the nominative case for basic sentence structure.
- buNear Demonstrative
The demonstrative 'bu' is frequently used with 'nə' in basic identification questions like 'Bu nədir?'.
Level 1 - -dır/-dir/-dur/-dür (ismi xəbər)Assertive Third Person Nominal Ending
The assertive nominal ending is commonly attached to 'nə' to form the complete question 'nədir' (what is it).
Level 1 - Unmarked nominative
Understanding that the basic form of a noun (nominative) is used for the subject of the sentence is necessary for using 'nə' as a subject or direct object.
Level 1
Related Patterns
- kimWho Question Word
The counterpart to 'nə', used specifically for people ('who').
Level 1 - hansıWhich Question Word
Used for 'which' when selecting from a specific set, whereas 'nə' is general.
Level 1 - -(y)a/-(y)ə (yönlük hal)Dative Case
The dative case often attaches to 'nə' to form 'nəyə' (to/at what).
Level 2 - -y-Dative Buffer Consonant
Explains why 'nə' uses the '-y-' buffer instead of '-n-' when adding case endings.
Level 2 - nə ... nə dəNeither nor
A similar-looking but different structure meaning 'neither... nor'.
Level 3
Words in This Pattern
Practice nə in Bubblegum
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