Editing Muscogee language (section)

==Grammar==
Muscogee verbs are highly [[Synthetic language|synthetic]], with many prefixes, suffixes, and infixes showing the person, number, and location of participants as well as the tense, aspect, and mood of the sentence. Nouns have fewer affixes, but compounding is used extensively.

=== Word order ===
The basic order of elements in a sentence is [[subject–object–verb]].<ref name="Innes" />
{| class="wikitable"
|+Basic order of subject, object, and verb
|Efvt
|pose
|lvstēn
|assēces.
|-
|ifá-t
|pó:si
|lást-i:-n
|á:ssi:c-ís
|-
|dog-<small>SUBJECT</small>
|cat
|black-<small>DURATIVE-NONSUBJECT</small>
|chase.<small>LGR-INDICATIVE</small>
|-
| colspan="4" |The dog is chasing the black cat.
|}
Subjects and objects are commonly omitted when they are clear from context, so that ''Assēces'' is complete as a sentence meaning ’he/she/it is chasing him/her/it’.

The subject and object are noun phrases having words in the following order: (possessor or demonstrative) — noun — (adjective) — (numeral). [[Adverb]]s tend to occur either at the beginning of the sentence (for time adverbs) or immediately before the verb (for manner adverbs). Muscogee uses postpositions instead of prepositions.

=== Case ===
Noun phrases may be marked with [[Clitic|clitics]] indicating the role of noun phrases in a sentence. The basic distinction is between subjects (which may end in '''-t''') and nonsubjects (which may end in '''-n'''). Nonsubjects include direct objects, indirect objects, times, and places. In some situations, case marking is omitted. This is especially true of sentences with only one noun where the role of the noun is obvious from the personal marking on the verb. Case marking is also omitted on fixed phrases that use a noun, e.g. "go ''to town''" or "build ''a fire''".

=== Possession ===
Possession in Muscogee is expressed in two quite different ways, depending on the nature of the relationship.

A body part or family member cannot be named in Muscogee without relating it to a possessor. A set of prefixes is used in this type of relation to show the person and number of the possessor.<ref name=":1" />
{| class="wikitable"
|+Relational possession
|cv-
|'''cv'''puse
|/ca-pósi/
|my grandmother
|-
|ce-
|'''ce'''puse
|/ci-pósi/
|your grandmother
|-
|e-
|'''e'''puse
|/i-pósi/
|his/her grandmother
|-
|pu-
|'''pu'''puse
|/po-pósi/
|our grandmother
|}


Nouns other than body parts and kinship terms are generally possessed with a different set of markers.
{| class="wikitable"
|+Nonrelational possession
|vm
|'''vm''' efv
|/am-ífa/
|my dog
|-
|cem
|'''cem''' efv
|/cim-ífa/
|your dog
|-
|em
|'''em''' efv
|/im-ífa/
|his/her dog
|-
|pum
|'''pum''' efv
|/pom-ífa/
|our dog
|}

=== Person marking ===
Muscogee has three series of person markers on verbs.<ref name=":1">Martin, Jack B., and Margaret McKane Mauldin. 2001. Creek. ''Facts about the World’s Languages: An Encyclopedia of the World’s Major Languages, Past and Present''. Jane Garry and Carl Rubino, eds., 173–176. New York / Dublin: H. W. Wilson.</ref> The agent (type I) person markers generally show the person and number of subjects that perform an action on purpose. Agent person markers are suffixed to the verb root.
{| class="wikitable"
|+Agent person markers
| -i
|Homp'''i'''s.
|/homp-éy-s/
|I am eating.
|-
| -etsk
|Homp'''etsk'''es.
|/homp-íck-is/
|You are eating.
|-
|(no mark)
|Hompes.
|/homp-ís/
|He/she/it is eating..
|-
| -ē
|Homp'''ē'''s.
|/homp-í:-s/
|We are eating.
|-
| -atsk
|Homp'''atsk'''es.
|/homp-á:ck-is/
|You all are eating.
|}
The patient (type II) person markers often indicate the person and number of direct objects.
{| class="wikitable"
|+Patient person markers
| cv-
|'''Cv'''hēces.
|/ca-hî:c-is/
|He/she/it sees me.
|-
| ce-
|'''Ce'''hēces.
|/ci-hî:c-is/
|He/she/it sees you.
|-
|(no mark)
|Hēces.
|/hî:c-is/
|He/she/it sees him/her.
|-
| pu-
|'''Pu'''hēces.
|/po-hî:c-is/
|He/she/it sees us.
|}
A third series of dative (type D) person markers generally shows the person and number of the indirect object.<ref name=":0" />
{| class="wikitable"
|+Dative person markers
| vm
|'''Vm''' opunayes.
|/am-ópona:y-ís/
|He/she is talking to me.
|-
| cem
|'''Cem''' opunayes.
|/cim-ópona:y-ís/
|He/she is talking to you.
|-
|em
|'''Em''' opunayes.
|/im-ópona:y-ís/
|He/she is talking to him/her.
|-
| pum
|'''Pum''' opunayes.
|/pom-ópona:y-ís/
|He/she is talking to us.
|}

===Tenses===
Verbs are listed in dictionaries in forms that end in '''-etv''' /-ita/. A verb like '''nesetv''' /nis-íta/ 'to buy' can appear in five past tense forms depending on how far back an event happened.<ref name=":1" />
{| class="wikitable"
|+Tense forms of ''nesetv'' 'to buy'
!Mvskoke
!
!English
!
|-
|nesetv
|/nis-íta/
|to buy
|'''Infinitive'''
|-
|nēses
|/ni:s-ís/
|he/she is buying it
|'''Present'''
|-
|nehses
|/níhs-is/
|he/she bought it (today)
|'''Past 1'''
|-
|nēsvnks
|/nî:s-ánk-s/
|he/she bought it (recently)
|'''Past 2'''
|-
|nēsemvts
|/nî:s-imát-s
|he/she bought it (about a year ago)
|'''Past 3'''
|-
|nēsvntvs
|/nî:s-anta-s
|he/she bought (long ago)
|'''Past 4'''
|-
|nēsvtēs
|/ni:s-atí:-s
|he/she bought (very long ago)
|'''Past 5'''
|-
|nesvrēs
|/nis-áɬi:-s
|he/she will buy it
|'''Future'''
|}

===Other categories===
Muscogee has suffixes at the ends of sentences indicating the functions of sentences. Statements end in ''-(e)s'', questions seeking a yes or no answer end in -''v'', and singular commands end in -''vs''.
{| class="wikitable"
|+Mood forms of ''nesetv'' 'to buy'
!Mvskoke
!
!English
!
|-
|nēses
|/ni:s-ís/
|he/she is buying it
|statement
|-
|nēsv?
|/ni:s-a/
|is he/she buying it?
|question
|-
|nesvs!
|/nis-ás/
|buy it!
|command
|}
Like other Muskogean languages, Muscogee has a system of ablaut or "grades" that indicate distinctions in [[grammatical aspect]].<ref name="Martin_a" />
{| class="wikitable"
|+Grade forms of ''wvnvyetv'' 'to tie'
!Mvskoke
!
!English
!
|-
|wvnvyetv
|/wanay-itá/
|to tie
|infinitive
|-
|wvnvyvs
|/wanáy-as/
|tie it!
|zero grade
|-
|wvnayes
|/wana:y-ís/
|he/she is tying it
|lengthened grade
|-
|wvnahyes
|/wanáhy-is/
|he/she tied it (today/last night)
|aspirating grade
|-
|wvnayes
|/wanâ:y-is/
|he/she has tied it
|falling tone grade
|-
|wvnąyes
|/wanǎ:ⁿy-is/
|he/she keeps tying it
|nasalizing grade
|}
Verbs in Muscogee sometimes have different forms when their subjects or objects are plural.<ref name=":2" /> Verbs like this generally describe position or motion.
{| class="wikitable"
|+Plural forms of verbs
!singular subject
!dual subject
!triplural subject
!
|-
|vretv
|welvketv
|fulletv
|to go about
|-
|hueretv
|sehoketv
|svpakletv
|to stand
|-
|letketv
|tokorketv
|pefatketv
|to run
|-
|wakketv
|wakhoketv
|lomhetv
|to lie
|}