Grammar

Color as a Grammatical Marker

In most languages, color is purely descriptive, but in some systems, it plays a grammatical role. This post explores how…

8 hours ago

The Fourth Person: Obviation Explained

Ever get confused when a sentence has too many "he"s or "they"s? Some languages have a brilliant built-in solution for…

7 days ago

The Wolof Pronoun System

In many languages, pronouns are simple stand-ins like 'I' or 'they'. But in Wolof, a major language of West Africa,…

7 days ago

Finland’s “Possessive Suffixes”

In English, we say 'my house', but Finnish takes a more intimate approach. Instead of a separate word for 'my',…

7 days ago

The ‘We’ of Two vs. The ‘We’ of All

Most languages count one and many, but what about a number for precisely two? Discover the "grammatical dual", a lost…

7 days ago

The Grammar of Evidentials in Quechua

In Quechua, it’s grammatically impossible to state a fact without also specifying how you know it. This fascinating system of…

7 days ago

Why Korean and Japanese Share Grammar

Are Korean and Japanese related languages? While they feel incredibly similar to learners, the answer from linguists is "no." This…

7 days ago

The Grammar of Reality: Realis vs. Irrealis Moods

Every time we speak, we make a choice about how we relate to reality. This fundamental distinction is captured in…

1 week ago

The Un-Passive Voice: The Antipassive Construction

You know the passive voice, but have you ever heard of its bizarre mirror image? The antipassive construction, found in…

1 week ago

The Reduplication Spectrum: From ‘Bye-Bye’ to ‘Chit-Chat’

Reduplication isn't just baby talk like 'bye-bye' or 'choo-choo'. This surprisingly common linguistic tool is used across the world's languages…

1 week ago

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