nde- ... -va

Very: Nde- ... -va

Level 5

nde- and -va around a describing word say “very”.

How It Works

This ending is a circumfix, which means that one piece goes before the word and one goes after it. Neither piece takes the stress.

WordWrappedMeaning
kakuaa “grow” (used like a describing word)ndekakuaávavery big
porã “beautiful, good”neporãvavery beautiful

The front piece follows nasal harmony. Porã is a nasal word, so it takes ne-, and an oral word like kakuaa takes nde-. Some writers keep nde- even on a nasal word (ndeporãva), but the book lists ne- as the nasal form.

The wrapped word works like any describing word and comes after its noun: peteĩ topadoraʼi neporãva “a very good little bulldozer”.

It is one of several ways to say “very”, and -ite and -iterei do the same job. Do not mix it up with words that only look alike. In nderecháva “the one who sees you”, nde- means “you” and -va means “the one who”.

Examples (3)

  1. Ombosakoʼi movilización ndekakuaáva.

    They are preparing a very big demonstration.

    Nde- and -va wrap kakuaa “grow” and make it “very big”. The accent marks the stress on the last a of kakuaa.

  2. Oguereko voi peteĩ topadoraʼi neporãva.

    He certainly had a very good little bulldozer.

    Porã is a nasal word, so the front piece is ne-.

  3. Tomasa oipota ojuhu peteĩ iñirũrã neporãva.

    Tomasa wants him to find a very beautiful partner.

    Iñirũrã is “his future friend”, and neporãva says that this friend is very beautiful.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving off the accent on the middle word.

    Ombosakoʼi movilización ndekakuaava.
    Ombosakoʼi movilización ndekakuaáva.

    -va is unstressed, so the accent marks the stress on the last vowel of kakuaa.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

nde- ... -vaLevel 5Very: Nde- ... -va

Learn This First

This pattern is one more way to say very, and nde- becomes ne- on a nasal word.

Words in This Pattern

nde-va