Editing Shoshoni language (section)

==Morphology==
Shoshoni is a [[Synthetic language|synthetic]], [[agglutinative]] language, in which words, especially verbs, tend to be complex with several [[morpheme]]s strung together. Shoshoni is a primarily [[suffix]]ing language.

=== Nouns ===

==== Absolutive suffixes ====
Many nouns in Shoshoni have an absolutive suffix (unrelated to the [[absolutive case]]). The absolutive suffix is normally dropped when the noun is the first element in a compound, when the noun is followed by a suffix or postposition, or when the noun is incorporated into a verb. For instance, the independent noun ''sɨhɨpin'' "willow" has the absolutive suffix ''-pin''; the root loses this suffix in the form ''sɨhɨykwi'' "to gather willows". The correlation between any particular noun stem and which of the seven absolutive suffixes it has is irregular and unpredictable. The absolutive suffixes are as follows:<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|16}}

* ''-pin''
* ''-ppɨh''
* ''-ppɨ''
* ''-pittsih, -pittsɨh''
* ''-mpih''
* ''-pai''
* ''-ttsih''

==== Number and case ====
Shoshoni is a [[Nominative–accusative language|nominative-accusative]] language. Shoshoni nouns inflect for three [[Grammatical case|cases]] ([[Subjective case|subjective]], [[Objective case|objective]], and [[possessive]]) and for three [[Grammatical number|numbers]] (singular, dual, and plural).

Number is marked by suffixes on all human nouns and optionally on other animate nouns. The regular suffixes for number are listed in the table below. The Shoshoni singular is unmarked.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|26}}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
! colspan="2" rowspan="2" |
! colspan="3" |Number
|-
! Singular
! Dual
! Plural
|-
! rowspan="3" |Case
! Subjective
| Ø ||-nɨwɨh||-nɨɨn
|-
! Objective
|Ø||-nihi||-nii
|-
! Possessive
| Ø
| -nɨhɨn || -nɨɨn
|}
Case is also marked by suffixes, which vary depending on the noun. Subjective case is unmarked. Many nouns also have a zero objective case marker; other possible objective markers are ''-tta'', ''-a'', and ''-i''. These suffixes correspond with the possessive case markers ''-n'', ''-ttan'' or ''-n'', ''-an'', or ''-n'' (in Western Shoshoni; this last suffix also appears as ''-an'' in Gosiute and is replaced by ''-in'' in Northern Shoshoni). These case markers can be predicted only to a degree based on phonology of the noun stem.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|27}}

==== Derivational morphology ====
Nominal derivational morphology is also often achieved through suffixing. For instance, the instrumental suffix ''-(n)nompɨh'' is used with verb stems to form nouns used for the purpose of the verb: ''katɨnnompɨh'' "chair" is derived from ''katɨ'' "sit"; ''puinompɨh'' "binoculars" is derived from ''pui'' "see".<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|17}} The characterization suffix ''-kantɨn'' be used with a root noun to derive a noun characterized by the root: ''hupiakantɨn'' "singer" is derived from ''hupia'' "song"; ''puhakantɨn'' "shaman" is derived from ''puha'' "power", as one characterized by power.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|18}}

=== Verbs ===

==== Number ====
Shoshoni verbs may mark for number, mainly through [[reduplication]] or [[suppletion]]. The dual is commonly marked through reduplication of the first syllable of the verb stem, so that singular ''kimma'' "come" becomes ''kikimma'' in the dual (and remains ''kima'' in the plural). A suppletive form is often used for the dual or plural forms of the verb; for instance, singular ''yaa'' "carry" becomes ''hima'' in both the dual and plural. Suppletion and reduplication frequently work in tandem to express number: singular ''nukki'' "run" becomes the reduplicated ''nunukki'' in the dual and the suppleted ''nutaa'' in the plural; singular ''yɨtsɨ'' "fly" is reduplicated, suppleted dual ''yoyoti'' and suppleted plural ''yoti''.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|39}}

==== Instrumental prefixes ====
Shoshoni uses prefixes to add a specific instrumental element to a verb. For instance, the instrumental prefix ''to"-'' "with the hand or fist" can be used with the verb ''tsima'' "scrape" to yield ''tottsima'' "wipe," as in ''pɨn puihkatti tottsimma yakaitɨn'' "he wiped at his eyes, crying".<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|48}}

Common instrumental prefixes include:<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|46–7}}

* ''kɨ"-'' "with the teeth or mouth"
* ''ku"-'' "by heat"
* ''ma-'' "with a non-grasping hand"
* ''mu"-'' "with the nose or front of body"
* ''ni"-'' "with the voice"
* ''pi"-'' "with the buttocks or back of body"
* ''sɨ"-'' "by cold"
* ''sun-'' "with the mind"
* ''ta"-'' "with the feet"
* ''ta"-'' "with a hard instrument or rock"
* ''to"- "''with the hand or fist"
* ''tsa"-'' "with a grasping hand"
* ''tsi"-'' "with a sharp point"
* ''tso"-'' "with the head"
* ''wɨ"-'' "with a long instrument or body"; generic instrumental