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Sango language
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== Grammar == Sango is an [[isolating language]] with [[subject–verb–object]] word order, as in English.<ref name="karan12.4">{{Harvcoltxt|Karan|2006|loc=12.4 Sango grammatical structure}}</ref> Noun phrases are of the form determiner-adjective-noun:<ref name="karan12.4" /> {{interlinear|indent=3 |mbênï kêtê môlengê |INDEF small child |"a small child"}} Plurals are marked with the [[proclitic]] ''â-'', which precedes noun phrases:<ref name="karan12.4" /> {{interlinear|indent=3 |â-mbênï kêtê môlengê |PL-INDEF small child |"some small children"}} ''â-'' may be attached to multiple items in the noun phrase by some speakers, but this is less common:<ref name="karan12.4" /> {{interlinear|indent=3 |â-kötä (â)zo |PL-big person |"important people/dignitaries"}} The derivational suffix ''-ngö'' [[nominalize]]s verbs. It also changes all tones in the verb to mid:<ref name="karan12.4" /> {| border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="6" style="border-collapse:collapse" |- | ||''kono''|| to grow, be big || ''kîri'' || to return, repeat |- | ||''könöngö''|| size || ''kïrïngö'' || return |} Genitives are normally formed with the preposition ''tî'' 'of':<ref name="karan12.4" /> {{interlinear|indent=3 |dû tî ngû |hole of water |"water hole, well"}} However, compounding is becoming increasingly common: ''dûngü'' 'well' (note the change in tone).<ref name="karan12.4" /> Such compounds are sometimes written as two separate words.<ref name="karan12.4" /> The verbal prefix ''a-'' is used when the subject is a noun or noun phrase but not when the subject is either a pronoun or implicit (as in imperatives):<ref name="karan12.4" /> {{interlinear|indent=3 |â-môlengê tî lo a-gä |PL-child of 3S {{gcl|SM|subject marker}}-come |"his children came"}} {{interlinear|indent=3 |a-dü lo |{{gcl|SM|subject marker}}-give.birth 3S |"he was born" ({{lit|someone bore him}})}} {{interlinear|indent=3 |löndö mo gä |rise 2S come |"get up and come (here)"}} The prefix is sometimes written as a separate word.<ref name="karan12.4" /> The [[pronoun]]s are ''mbï'' "I", ''mo'' "you (singular)", ''lo'' "he, she, it", ''ë'' "we", ''ï'' "you (plural)", ''âla'' "you (plural)", ''âla'' "they".<ref>[[Wikibooks:Sango/Pronouns]]</ref> Verbs take a prefix ''a-'' if not preceded by a pronoun: ''mo yeke'' "you are" but ''Bêafrîka ayeke'' "Central Africa is". Particularly useful verbs include ''yeke'' "be", ''bara'' "greet" (''bara o'' "hi!"), ''hînga'' "know". Possessives and appositives are formed with the word ''tî'' "of": ''ködörö tî mbï'' "my country", ''yângâ tî sängö'' "Sango language". Another common preposition is ''na'', covering a variety of [[locative]], [[dative]], and [[instrumental case|instrumental]] functions.
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