Noun Gender
Masculine nouns select the k-family; feminine nouns select the t-family. Sound changes can hide the original consonant.
How It Works
Singular nouns ending in e tend to be masculine; those ending in o, a or ad tend to be feminine. Many spellings reveal no gender. Tone often provides a pronunciation clue, but ordinary spelling omits tone and the patterns have exceptions. Complete pairs such as guri/guriga and mindi/mindida provide practical evidence.
For animals, grammatical gender normally governs agreement even when it differs from sex: sac “cow” is masculine. With human referents showing a mismatch, agreement generally follows biological sex. Plurals can change gender; collective nouns permit number variation; some nouns have regional gender alternatives.
The examples contrast masculine yahay and feminine tahay. The cow takes wuu despite its sex. Store gender with attested forms rather than deriving every determiner or agreement choice from meaning or the final letter.
Examples (4)
- Gurigu waa weyn yahay.
The house is big.
Masculine guri.
- Mindidu waa yar tahay.
The knife is small.
Feminine mindi.
- Sacu wuu cunayaa.
The cow is eating.
Masculine grammatical agreement.
- Magaaladu waa weyn tahay.
The city is big.
Feminine magaalo with stem change.
How It Connects
Related Patterns
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Practice Noun Gender in Bubblegum
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