Nasal Forms of Endings
-pe becomes -me, -peve becomes -meve, -pa becomes -mba, -pota becomes -mbota and -kue becomes -ngue.
How It Works
Nasal sounds spread to the ending that comes after a word. Each ending has an oral form and a nasal form.
| Oral | Nasal | Meaning or example |
|---|---|---|
| -pe | -me | tetãme “in the country” |
| -peve | -meve | “until” |
| -pa | -mba | ohopa and osẽmba “they all went” and “they all went out” |
| -pota | -mbota | jahapota and omanombota “we are about to go” and “he or she is about to die” |
| -kue | -ngue | iñakãngue “his or her former head” |
| -kuéra | -nguéra | karaikuéra and mitãnguéra “gentlemen” and “children” |
| gotyo | ngotyo | ñemby ngotyo “towards the south”, though plain gotyo is common too |
Prefixes work the other way round. They look at the root they join, not at the word before it: on a nasal root, ja- becomes ña-, nde- becomes ne-, and mbo- becomes mo-.
Some speakers do not use the nasal ending every time, so you will also hear mitakuéra. A word whose only nasal sound is mb, nd or ng, such as memby, takes the plain ending: imembykuéra. Writers who follow the Academy use the nasal forms that its grammar lists. For gotyo, the Academy grammar lists only the plain form.
Examples (4)
- Che aiko ko tetãme.
I live in this country.
Tetã has a nasal vowel, so -pe becomes -me.
- Che aiko Paraguáipe.
I live in Paraguay.
Paraguái is an oral word, so the ending stays -pe.
- Osẽmba hikuái.
They all went out.
Sẽ is nasal, so -pa becomes -mba (compare ohopa hikuái, with an oral verb).
- Che asẽmbota.
I am about to go out.
Sẽ is nasal, so -pota becomes -mbota, and the root loses its accent because the ending takes the stress.
How It Connects
Learn This First
This row lists the nasal changes that learners meet one by one in -pa, -pota and peve.
- All: -pa / -mbaAll: -pa
Know -pa “all”, because it becomes -mba after a nasal word, which is one of the five changes listed here: Ohopa hikuái “They all went”.
Level 2 - About To: -pota / -mbotaAbout to: -pota
Know -pota, since it turns into -mbota after a nasal word: Jahapota “We are about to go”.
Level 2 - guive / peveSince and Until: Guive and Peve
Know guive and peve, because peve becomes -meve after a nasal word: 15 ary guive 40 peve “from 15 to 40 years of age”.
Level 2
Related Patterns
- Nasal Harmony
Nasal harmony is the sound rule behind every pair in the table.
Foundations - Nasal Forms of Person Markers
Prefixes have nasal forms too, and the root they join decides which one.
Level 1 - In, On, At and To: -pe / -meIn, On, At and to: -pe
The ending -pe or -me names the place where something is.
Level 1
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice Nasal Forms of Endings in Bubblegum
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