Editing Ho-Chunk language (section)

== Syntax ==

=== Basic word order ===
Like other Siouan languages, Ho-Chunk's basic word order is [[Subject-Object-Verb|Subject–Object–Verb]] (SOV).An example of a typical sentence is {{lang|win|Hinųkra wažątirehižą ruwį}} 'The woman bought a car.'  In a sentence with two [[Object (grammar)|objects]], such as {{lang|win|Hinųkiža hocįcįhižą wiiwagaxhižą hok'ų}} 'A girl gave a boy a pencil', the canonical word order is Subject-Indirect Object-Direct Object-Verb.  Word order is relatively free in Ho-Chunk; however, while a word order such as {{lang|win|Wažątirehižą, hinųkra ruwį}} 'The woman bought a car' is permissible, the change from the basic neutral word order of SOV requires a prosodic pause indicated by a comma.<ref name=":2">Johnson, Meredith; Thompson Lockwood, Hunter; Rosen, Bryan; and Schuck, Mateja. 2012. ''A Preliminary Sketch of Hocąk Syntax''. Siouan and Caddoan Languages Conference, Lawrence, Kansas.</ref>  Without this pause, an interpretation 'A car bought the woman' is possible, though highly unlikely.

=== Negation ===
Negative phrases are expressed with a particle, such as ''hąąke'' 'not' or ''hąkaga'' 'never' paired with the suffix/[[enclitic]] -''nį'' 'not'.  Both elements are required in such phrases: the particle precedes the verb phrase, while -''nį'' is suffixed to the verb.  The following examples demonstrate this construction:<ref name=":2" />

{{interlinear|number=ex:
|top= Wąąkra hąke heepšįnį <!-- Wąąkra heepšįnį  -->
|wąąk-ra heepšį-nį
|man-the sneeze-NEG
|'The man did not sneeze.'}}

{{interlinear|number=ex:
|top= Hąkaga waką t'eehaanį wa'ųaje <!-- Hąkaga waką t'eehaanį wa'ųąje.-->
|hąkaga waką t'ee-haa-nį wa'ų-ha-jee
|never snake die-1.cause-NEG aux-1SG-POS.VERB
|'I never kill snakes.'}}