A Grammar of Tu

Introduction

Scope and Purpose

This grammar provides a systematic description of the Tu language (the 2007th one produced by the Language Creator), outlining its sound system, word formation and syntactic structure, with the aim of presenting a coherent account of the language as an integrated whole. Attention has been paid to both regular patterns and minor irregularities, as these together define the internal balance of the language.

The grammar is accompanied by a bilingual dictionary and a collection of illustrative texts, offering material for further study and comparison. The examples have been selected to demonstrate typical constructions and to give a sense of the language in extended use. The description is intended as a reference work for linguists and language enthusiasts alike, and as a foundation for any future research, teaching or creative adaptation of Tu.

Typological Profile

Phonology

Phoneme Inventory

Consonants

Tu has an astonishing 377 consonant phonemes, exceeding any consonant system known to the author. The inventory is remarkably extensive.

The table below presents the full inventory of consonant phonemes in Tu. The chart lists all places and manners of articulation attested in the language.

Vowels

Tu has more than 14 vowel qualities. This constitutes an exceptionally rich vowel inventory, with numerous distinct categories represented in the chart.

The table below presents the full inventory of vowel phonemes in Tu. The system comprises the distinct vowel qualities listed in the chart.

Stress and Tones

Tu has phonemic stress and 6 lexical tones. Each lexical item carries a tonal specification associated with the first vowel of the root, which determines the overall tonal contour of the word.

Phonological Processes

Vowel Harmony

The language employs vowel harmony. To be specific, the following vowels change to match the first vowel of the root: /u/ becomes /y/, /o/ becomes /ø/, /ɔ/ becomes /œ/, /ɑ/ becomes /ɶ/.

Writing System

Introduction

Tu is an unwritten language. For that reason, all examples in this grammar are given exclusively in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), which offers a precise and widely recognised means of recording its sounds.

Orthography

Tuis an unwritten language, so it does not make any sense to discuss its orthography.

Word Classes and Morphology

Number and Gender

Number

Tu distinguishes singular, dual and plural.

Gender

Tu has the following noun classes:

Class cl.1 – for instance: hpˤo꜖ɡˤ ‘back’, htʲœ꜖ɣʲ ‘sound’, joː꜖ʐʲ ‘bird’, lʲaː꜒꜖lʲ ‘west’, pʰˤɵ#ː꜒kʼˠ ‘surface’, pʲʉ꜖꜒ʐˠ ‘cat’, sˠhkˤo꜒꜖n̪ˤ ‘south’, sˤqʼˤʉβˤu#ː̰꜒qʼˠ ‘farmer’, zʲhʈˠaʃˠqʼʷɛ꜖꜒l̪ˤ ‘wild boar’, ɡʷɶː꜖ʐʲ ‘people’, ɢʲuzʷkʼʷyː꜒sˤ ‘plain’, ɹʷe#ːsʷpʰˠœ꜖꜒ɥʲ ‘tiger’, ʂʲqˠimˠe#꜖꜒zˠ ‘mammal’, ʃˠhkʲɵ̰꜖wʲ ‘friend’, ʃˠqʼˤɛ#ːsˤtʼʷɔ#ː꜖꜒vʲ ‘lion’, ʐʲd̪ˠɞ꜒χʲ ‘sea’, ʐʲɡˠɵ꜒꜖sˤ ‘fish’, ʐʲʉ#ːʛˤyː꜒ʈʼʲ ‘neighbour’, ʒˠɖˠɔzˠbˠa#̰꜖βˤ ‘anus’, ᵑǁʱʲʉ꜒꜖kˠ ‘animal’.

Class cl.2 – for instance: bʱˤɔːlˠaːʔ ‘school’, kʷɵ꜖꜒kʼʲ ‘heart’, lʲa꜖꜒dˠ ‘earth’, lˠiːd̪ʷɛːrˠ ‘book’, nʷe#zʲpʼˠy꜒j ‘belly’, pʲo#sʲpʰˠɶ̰꜒ʁˤ ‘smoke’, sˤqˤesˠʈˠœ#̰꜒ʒʲ ‘ash’, vʲɛ#꜒꜖ʒˠ ‘human being’, wʲʉ̰꜒qʼˠ ‘moon’, zˠɡʱʷʉ#ʒʲkʰʷɔ#ː꜖꜒mʲ ‘dialect’, ɠʲa꜒꜖t͡sʲ ‘stone’, ʁʲɞ̰꜖ɸˠ ‘fire’, ʂʲpˠuːzʲd̪ʷy#ː̰꜒rʲ ‘liver’, ʂʲt̪ʲe#꜖ʈʼʲ ‘sky’, ʃʲqˠeː꜒d͡ʐˠ ‘man’, ʃˠpʼʲœ#ː̰꜖fˤ ‘language’, ʐˠbʲo#꜒꜖kʼˤ ‘woman’, ʒˠhkʷᵊtʼʲɔḭ꜖ɬˠ ‘hunter’, ʛˤa̰꜖vˤ ‘land’, βʲɵ#ːʐʲdˤø#꜒꜖ɴˠ ‘guts’.

Class cl.3 – for instance: kˠaːtˠuːsˠ ‘market’, sʲkʰˤy꜖꜒d͡ʒ ‘hair’, sʷkʰˤiːʛʷœ#꜖n̪ˤ ‘breast’, tʼˠi꜒꜖dˠ ‘meat’, t͡sˤɔːʒˠkʰˠɔ#꜖zˠ ‘horn’, wʲᵊʃʲtʼʷø#ː꜖p͡fˠ ‘wheat’, xʲo#ː꜒꜖ʃʲ ‘idea’, ŋ̥ˤuːʒʲqʼʲɵ꜖mˤ ‘jaguar’, ɖʲɛʂˠqʼʲɔ̰꜒qˤ ‘cheese’, ɠʲᵊn̪ʲo̰꜖χʲ ‘feather’, ɻʲeːhtʷi꜖꜒ɹˠ ‘tail’, ʂˠtʰʷau꜒꜖ɥˠ ‘tooth’, ʃʲkʰˤʉ̰꜒ʁʲ ‘rain’, ʃʲkˤᵊʐʲdʱˠœ꜖꜒kʼˤ ‘wing’, ʄˠɶ̰꜖ʃˠ ‘knife’, ʋʲen̪ˠyː꜖꜒xʲ ‘vagina’, ʒʲtʰˤɶː꜖n̪ʲ ‘manner’, ʒˠhpˠœ#꜒꜖qʼʲ ‘sun’, ʡˠisʷɵ#ː꜒꜖ɢʲ ‘cloud’, ᵏǀʼˤekʷy꜒꜖lʲ ‘fog’.

Class cl.4 – for instance: ju#sˤqʰˠḭ꜒ʋˠ ‘tower’, kʰʷa#ː꜖βʲ ‘blood’, kʼˤar̥ʲo꜒꜖fˤ ‘net’, kˠɛ̰꜒ɽˠ ‘house’, l̪ˠɵːɮˠʉ꜖p͡fˠ ‘box’, sʷiːm̥ˤa#꜒꜖lʲ ‘machine’, tʰʲʉ꜒꜖ɹˠ ‘Tu’, tʰˠɛːzˤqʰˠɛː̰꜖t̪ˤ ‘library’, zʲt̪ˠɔ#sˤhtʷø#̰꜒ʁʲ ‘embrace’, zˠdʷɔzˤdˠy#ː꜒mˤ ‘bottle’, ħˠɵʒˠbʲᵊ̰꜒t͡ʃʼˠ ‘worm’, ɖʱˠɵːʛˠʉ#ː̰꜒vˤ ‘umbrella’, ɸʲʉ꜖꜒n̪ˠ ‘road’, ʂˠhtʲaːʄˠe꜖kˤ ‘student’, ʃˠhkˤoːɾʲɞ꜒ʔ ‘mouse’, ʃˠpʼʲiːɡˤu#ː̰꜒lˠ ‘brick’, ʒˠdʱˤiːd̪ˠaḭ꜒ʋˠ ‘louse’, ᵏǃʼʷœ#ː꜖ɬˠ ‘water’, ᵑǃʼʷɵr̥ʲu#꜖kʼʲ ‘binoculars’, ᵑǃˠatˠɔ꜒꜖t͡ʃ ‘mortar’.

Class cl.5 – for instance: m̥ʲovʲɶ#ː꜒ħˠ ‘rope’, nʲaɡʲu꜖꜒ɥˤ ‘salt’, sˠhpˤiʃʲpʼˠɞ#ː̰꜒t͡ʃ ‘bosom’, sˠqʷḭ꜒ʡˠ ‘head’, tʰˠᵊt̪ʷɔḭ꜖n̪ˠ ‘God’, xʷy꜒rʲ ‘speech’, zʲdʱʲuɢʷy#ː꜖ɣˤ ‘ice’, zˠɡʱʲœː꜒ɾˠ ‘foot’, ɢˤɛdˠi#꜒꜖ʐˠ ‘court’, ɬˠɛʐˠɡʱʷy̰꜖kʼˠ ‘river’, ɽʱˠi꜖꜒qʲ ‘top’, ʂˠkˠᵊʛʷʉ꜒n̪ʲ ‘faeces’, ʃʲhkʷɛ#n̥ʲɛ꜖ɹʲ ‘stick’, ʃʲqʼˠiɖʱʲi꜒꜖l̪ʲ ‘fat’, ʃˠhtʲakʼˤœ̰꜖t͡sˠ ‘slime’, ʐˠkʼʲɔːʋʲʉ꜖dˤ ‘sand’, ʐˠʈʲizˤɢʲɔi꜖kˤ ‘bank’, ʒʲdʱʷœ#꜖꜒rˠ ‘fight’, ᵏǁʼˠaːɬʲai꜖꜒ɬʲ ‘knee’, ᵏǁʼˠisˠkˤʉ̰꜖χˤ ‘snake’.

Class cl.6 – for instance: dʱˠid͡zˠɔ#꜒꜖dʲ ‘grass’, d̪ˠœ#ː꜖ɣʲ ‘nose’, kʼˤɛ#ːxʷaː꜒꜖pʲ ‘root’, pʼˠɞ#ðʷø#̰꜒ʒʲ ‘forest’, qʰʲa#꜖꜒t͡ʃʼˠ ‘colour’, sˤqʲɵ#ːbʱʲu#̰꜒ʜʲ ‘flower’, sˤɛɖˠɔ꜒n̪ʲ ‘medicine’, tʼˤɶ꜖꜒zʲ ‘ear’, t̪ʷisʷhtˠe#ː̰꜖ʔ ‘religion’, zʲtʼʷɵ꜒꜖mˠ ‘fruit’, zʷe꜒꜖tɬˠ ‘leaf’, zˠqˤau꜒꜖lˠ ‘skin’, ɠˠiːtˠɛːrˠ ‘teacher’, ɴˤe꜒t̪ʲ ‘face’, ɺˠe꜒꜖ɭˠ ‘eye’, ʐˠkʼʲaʒʲpʼˠø#꜒kʲ ‘bark’, ʒʲdʷi#꜒꜖sʲ ‘tree’, ᵑǀʼʷaḭ꜖ɺˠ ‘tongue’.

Class cl.7 – for instance: dʱˤᵊ꜒꜖pˠ ‘inside’, hkʲa̰꜒ʜˠ ‘chair’, n̥ʲḭ꜖ɳˠ ‘year’, qʰʲɛ꜒nˤ ‘bone’, qʰˤœ#̰꜖ɡʲ ‘night’, sˠtʼʲu#꜖꜒n̪ˠ ‘bed’, sˤhpˤot͡ʃʰˠɶ꜖d̪ˤ ‘breath’, tʰʷɞ꜖bʱˠ ‘mouth’, wˠe#ː꜖ʈʲ ‘girl’, zʷɡʱˤøː̰꜖zˠ ‘mother’, ɡʷɵ#ː꜒ʂʲ ‘boy’, ɥʲᵊ̰꜖ʜˠ ‘time’, ɰʲɛ#ːmˤʉ꜖pˠ ‘fingernail’, ɰˤaṵ꜒d͡ʒʱʲ ‘table’, ɳ̥ˠœ̰꜖ɭʲ ‘wife’, ʋˠy̰꜒lʲ ‘father’, ʐˠqʷɞ#꜒n̪ˠ ‘daughter’, ʒʲɖʱʲaː̰꜖ɸˤ ‘day’, ʒʲɢʲa#ːsˠqʼʲu꜖t͡sʼˠ ‘penis’, ᵑǀʼˠɵ꜒꜖mʲ ‘son’.

The Nominal Phrase

Nominal phrases in Tu can be exemplified by the following example:

In the following, we shall look at the various components in more details.

All nominal phrase clitics in Tu are proclitics (placed initially, and there are two types: a clitic expressing case.possessor, comprising ɗˠusˠ ‘NOM.1incl.sing’, hʈʲe#ːd̪ˠ ‘NOM.1excl.sing’, ᵑǀʼʲiːd͡zˤ ‘NOM.2.sing’, t͡sˠɵ#pʼʲ ‘NOM.3.sing.cl.1’, ʐˠkʼʷᵊnˠ ‘NOM.3.sing.cl.2’, ɢˤe#ʋʲ ‘NOM.3.sing.cl.3’, qʷɞ#ːnˠ ‘NOM.3.sing.cl.4’, n̪ʷɛɴʲ ‘NOM.3.sing.cl.5’, zˠd̪ʲaɳʲ ‘NOM.3.sing.cl.6’, zˠkʷɔʔ ‘NOM.3.sing.cl.7’, t͡sʰʷe#kʼˤ ‘NOM.1incl.dual’, ʂˠhkʷɞχˠ ‘NOM.1excl.dual’, zʲdʲaʈˠ ‘NOM.2.dual’, qʰʷɔ#ɥʲ ‘NOM.3.dual.cl.1’, wˠo#ːɸʲ ‘NOM.3.dual.cl.2’, ʄʲut͡sʲ ‘NOM.3.dual.cl.3’, ʐˠɡʱʲɔʜʲ ‘NOM.3.dual.cl.4’, ᵑǀʷʉ#ːxˠ ‘NOM.3.dual.cl.5’, sˠhtˤiːzˤ ‘NOM.3.dual.cl.6’, ᵑǀˠɛ#χˤ ‘NOM.3.dual.cl.7’, ᵏǀʰˠɵ#ːɡʲ ‘NOM.1incl.plur’, qʰʷɞlˠ ‘NOM.1excl.plur’, ɰˠo#ɡˤ ‘NOM.2.plur’, ᵏǁʰˠɵ#ɳˠ ‘NOM.3.plur.cl.1’, sˤhʈˠaðʲ ‘NOM.3.plur.cl.2’, ʂʲpʼˠɔːwˤ ‘NOM.3.plur.cl.3’, ᵏǀʰˠɛːt͡ʃʼˠ ‘NOM.3.plur.cl.4’, ɡˠɞt͡ʃʼʲ ‘NOM.3.plur.cl.5’, zˤt̪ˤɵʁʲ ‘NOM.3.plur.cl.6’, ʃʲpˠɞːɰʲ ‘NOM.3.plur.cl.7’, zʲɡʱˤarˠ ‘NOM.no.owner’, zˤpʼʲiʈˠ ‘ERG.1incl.sing’, ɾʲᵊɸʲ ‘ERG.1excl.sing’, ᵑǁʱʲʉmˤ ‘ERG.2.sing’, ʃʲpʰˤʉʜˠ ‘ERG.3.sing.cl.1’, ʃʲqˠuːt͡ʃʼʲ ‘ERG.3.sing.cl.2’, ɖʲoːpʼʲ ‘ERG.3.sing.cl.3’, hkʲʉmʲ ‘ERG.3.sing.cl.4’, zʷpˠuːd͡zˤ ‘ERG.3.sing.cl.5’, ᵑǁʼˠo#sˠ ‘ERG.3.sing.cl.6’, p͡fˠiɢˤ ‘ERG.3.sing.cl.7’, ɖˠonˠ ‘ERG.1incl.dual’, sʲʉŋʲ ‘ERG.1excl.dual’, zˤbʱˤa#p͡fʲ ‘ERG.2.dual’, p͡fʲʉkˤ ‘ERG.3.dual.cl.1’, ʒˠkʰˤʉ#r̥ˠ ‘ERG.3.dual.cl.2’, χˠiːsˤ ‘ERG.3.dual.cl.3’, ʂʲqʼˠaʋˠ ‘ERG.3.dual.cl.4’, ᵏǁʼʲɛɡʲ ‘ERG.3.dual.cl.5’, χˤaːd͡zˠ ‘ERG.3.dual.cl.6’, n̥ˤopʼʲ ‘ERG.3.dual.cl.7’, zˠɢˠonˤ ‘ERG.1incl.plur’, sʷpʲɵβˤ ‘ERG.1excl.plur’, ᵑǀʱˤaʋˤ ‘ERG.2.plur’, ᶢǀˠɔ ‘ERG.3.plur.cl.1’, ɻʲa#ːsˤ ‘ERG.3.plur.cl.2’, ʂʲtʰˤɛt͡sʼˤ ‘ERG.3.plur.cl.3’, sˤpʲa#ːrˠ ‘ERG.3.plur.cl.4’, ʒˠʈʼʲaɡʲ ‘ERG.3.plur.cl.5’, sʲhʈʲeːʋʲ ‘ERG.3.plur.cl.6’, ʂʲt̪ʲat̪ˤ ‘ERG.3.plur.cl.7’, ʒˠqˠɛ#ːqˠ ‘ERG.no.owner’, d͡ʐˠɞzʲ ‘ACC.1incl.sing’, ʐˠʈʼʲɔ#ʕˠ ‘ACC.1excl.sing’, ʁˤiːpʲ ‘ACC.2.sing’, ʒˠɖʱʲiʐˠ ‘ACC.3.sing.cl.1’, kʰˤɛ#qʼˤ ‘ACC.3.sing.cl.2’, ŋ̥ʷɞ#d͡zʲ ‘ACC.3.sing.cl.3’, ᶢǁˠɔːxˠ ‘ACC.3.sing.cl.4’, ɸˠud̪ˤ ‘ACC.3.sing.cl.5’, ʋʲe#qʼʲ ‘ACC.3.sing.cl.6’, htʲɞ#ːɣˤ ‘ACC.3.sing.cl.7’, htʲɵt͡sʲ ‘ACC.1incl.dual’, ɡʱʷɛɡʲ ‘ACC.1excl.dual’, nʷenˤ ‘ACC.2.dual’, ɺˠe#ːθˠ ‘ACC.3.dual.cl.1’, zˠkʷɛːðʲ ‘ACC.3.dual.cl.2’, ʈʰʲɞːt͡ʂˠ ‘ACC.3.dual.cl.3’, t̪ʲiːʐʲ ‘ACC.3.dual.cl.4’, sˠpʰˠi#ːʈˠ ‘ACC.3.dual.cl.5’, ʂʲqʰˠeːʐˠ ‘ACC.3.dual.cl.6’, qʷe#ːpˠ ‘ACC.3.dual.cl.7’, χˤa#qʲ ‘ACC.1incl.plur’, pʼˤuːt͡sʲ ‘ACC.1excl.plur’, ɬʲɔ#mʲ ‘ACC.2.plur’, ɾʲʉ#ːd͡zˠ ‘ACC.3.plur.cl.1’, kʼˠɔʈʼʲ ‘ACC.3.plur.cl.2’, ɹˠɵɰʲ ‘ACC.3.plur.cl.3’, ʕˠiːβˤ ‘ACC.3.plur.cl.4’, ðʷaːɥʲ ‘ACC.3.plur.cl.5’, dʱʲɔːŋˠ ‘ACC.3.plur.cl.6’, t͡sʼʷidʲ ‘ACC.3.plur.cl.7’, bʱˠɛqˠ ‘ACC.no.owner’, ɹʲɔ#ːdˤ ‘GEN.1incl.sing’, βʲaħˠ ‘GEN.1excl.sing’, ʐˠhpˠotˤ ‘GEN.2.sing’, ᵑǀˠanʲ ‘GEN.3.sing.cl.1’, ʃʲqʼʲo#mˠ ‘GEN.3.sing.cl.2’, ɓˤaʈʼˠ ‘GEN.3.sing.cl.3’, ɬʲɛ#ːŋˠ ‘GEN.3.sing.cl.4’, ʐˠdˠʉːʔ ‘GEN.3.sing.cl.5’, ᵑǀʲo#ɡˠ ‘GEN.3.sing.cl.6’, ᵏǃʰʲɵpˤ ‘GEN.3.sing.cl.7’, zʲbʲɵtʼˠ ‘GEN.1incl.dual’, ʈˠɞ#qˤ ‘GEN.1excl.dual’, ʂʲhʈˠɛ#ːl̪ʲ ‘GEN.2.dual’, ʒˠbʱˤɛt͡ʂˠ ‘GEN.3.dual.cl.1’, r̥ʲiːʃʲ ‘GEN.3.dual.cl.2’, ʛˠiɭˠ ‘GEN.3.dual.cl.3’, zʲbʲɵ#nʲ ‘GEN.3.dual.cl.4’, ʂʲtˠɔ#l̪ʲ ‘GEN.3.dual.cl.5’, ᵑǁʼʲeːvˤ ‘GEN.3.dual.cl.6’, ᵏǁʲaŋˠ ‘GEN.3.dual.cl.7’, sˤkʼʷʉɴˠ ‘GEN.1incl.plur’, ʂˠʈʼʲʉʐʲ ‘GEN.1excl.plur’, ɡʲaβˤ ‘GEN.2.plur’, ŋ̥ˠɛʃʲ ‘GEN.3.plur.cl.1’, sˠqʷɛj ‘GEN.3.plur.cl.2’, ʒˠtʼʲo# ‘GEN.3.plur.cl.3’, ᵑǀʼʷiːrˠ ‘GEN.3.plur.cl.4’, sˠqˤʉβˤ ‘GEN.3.plur.cl.5’, ʐˠʈʲɞ#ːʁʲ ‘GEN.3.plur.cl.6’, ʒʲhʈˠɞ#dʲ ‘GEN.3.plur.cl.7’, kʼʷɵːpʼˠ ‘GEN.no.owner’, ʂˠqʲibˠ ‘DAT.1incl.sing’, ʂʲhtˠusˠ ‘DAT.1excl.sing’, t͡ʃʰʲo#ːʕˠ ‘DAT.2.sing’, tʰˤɞːkʼˠ ‘DAT.3.sing.cl.1’, ʃʲhtʲʉːkʼˤ ‘DAT.3.sing.cl.2’, t͡sʷɔ#tʲ ‘DAT.3.sing.cl.3’, ɗˠi#ɡʲ ‘DAT.3.sing.cl.4’, t͡sʰʲi#ːt͡sˤ ‘DAT.3.sing.cl.5’, sʲpʲᵊfˤ ‘DAT.3.sing.cl.6’, sˠtʰʲɵ#ːd̪ˠ ‘DAT.3.sing.cl.7’, ᵑǀʼˤɛ#ʡˠ ‘DAT.1incl.dual’, ʐˠɡʲitˠ ‘DAT.1excl.dual’, ᵏǃˤᵊθʲ ‘DAT.2.dual’, ᵑǁʲʉt͡sʼʲ ‘DAT.3.dual.cl.1’, ŋ̥ʷad͡ʐˠ ‘DAT.3.dual.cl.2’, ʐʲtʼʲʉ#ːɽʲ ‘DAT.3.dual.cl.3’, sˠpʰˤɞ#ːʒʲ ‘DAT.3.dual.cl.4’, dʱˤɞɣˤ ‘DAT.3.dual.cl.5’, dʱʲɔrʲ ‘DAT.3.dual.cl.6’, tʰˤiʈʲ ‘DAT.3.dual.cl.7’, q͡χˤi#ːʃʲ ‘DAT.1incl.plur’, ʒʲʈˠɞmˠ ‘DAT.1excl.plur’, ᵑǃʼˠʉɭʲ ‘DAT.2.plur’, ᵏǀʲiːʐʲ ‘DAT.3.plur.cl.1’, d͡zˠitˠ ‘DAT.3.plur.cl.2’, sˠtʷᵊʃʲ ‘DAT.3.plur.cl.3’, sʷpʼˠaʒˠ ‘DAT.3.plur.cl.4’, ʐˠpʼˤiħˠ ‘DAT.3.plur.cl.5’, ᵏǀˠoʕʲ ‘DAT.3.plur.cl.6’, sʲtʲʉ#ːt͡ʂʲ ‘DAT.3.plur.cl.7’, sʷkʲoːrʲ ‘DAT.no.owner’, sˠʈʰˠɛqˠ ‘INS.1incl.sing’, sʷt̪ˤɔ#t͡ʃʼˠ ‘INS.1excl.sing’, ɡˠɵβʲ ‘INS.2.sing’, ɽʱˠᵊdˠ ‘INS.3.sing.cl.1’, ʂˠtˠaʐʲ ‘INS.3.sing.cl.2’, ᵑǀʼˠuŋʲ ‘INS.3.sing.cl.3’, ʐʲhʈˠu#ːɹˤ ‘INS.3.sing.cl.4’, ᵑǃʷɞsʲ ‘INS.3.sing.cl.5’, ɹʲisʲ ‘INS.3.sing.cl.6’, sˤhkˠiɴʲ ‘INS.3.sing.cl.7’, ᵏǃʰʷi#nˤ ‘INS.1incl.dual’, q͡χˤiðʲ ‘INS.1excl.dual’, vʲʉːɸˤ ‘INS.2.dual’, χʷɛkʼˤ ‘INS.3.dual.cl.1’, ᵏǀʲʉtˠ ‘INS.3.dual.cl.2’, ʐʲɖˠo#ːn̪ʲ ‘INS.3.dual.cl.3’, χʷɛ#ːɬˠ ‘INS.3.dual.cl.4’, kˤɔ#ːwˠ ‘INS.3.dual.cl.5’, ɢˤa#qʼˤ ‘INS.3.dual.cl.6’, ʃʲhtˠe#vʲ ‘INS.3.dual.cl.7’, k͡xʲʉɭˠ ‘INS.1incl.plur’, k͡xˤaːɺʲ ‘INS.1excl.plur’, ʒʲkʰʷozˠ ‘INS.2.plur’, ʛˠɔ#pˤ ‘INS.3.plur.cl.1’, ɺˠoðˠ ‘INS.3.plur.cl.2’, vˠo#ːqʲ ‘INS.3.plur.cl.3’, ʐˠtʰʲɔzˤ ‘INS.3.plur.cl.4’, ɠˠɛðˤ ‘INS.3.plur.cl.5’, ᵏǃʰʷᵊʜʲ ‘INS.3.plur.cl.6’, hed͡ʒ ‘INS.3.plur.cl.7’, zˠpʼˠu#ːpˠ ‘INS.no.owner’, ᵑǃʱˠɵfʲ ‘VOC.1incl.sing’, zˠpʼʲeːʈʼˠ ‘VOC.1excl.sing’, ʐˠɵ#ːbˤ ‘VOC.2.sing’, ɭʲat̪ˠ ‘VOC.3.sing.cl.1’, ʛˤɵ#ːvˠ ‘VOC.3.sing.cl.2’, ʂʲʈˠᵊɢˠ ‘VOC.3.sing.cl.3’, bʱʲuːt͡ʃʼʲ ‘VOC.3.sing.cl.4’, sʲʈʰˠɵːɰʲ ‘VOC.3.sing.cl.5’, ʒʲɖʱʲaʁˠ ‘VOC.3.sing.cl.6’, sʲhʈˠɵ#ːxˤ ‘VOC.3.sing.cl.7’, tʲu#ɾˠ ‘VOC.1incl.dual’, sʲtʰʷa#ʒʲ ‘VOC.1excl.dual’, ʃˠtˠusˠ ‘VOC.2.dual’, ʒʲd̪ˠɵ#ːʔ ‘VOC.3.dual.cl.1’, pʼˤuŋˠ ‘VOC.3.dual.cl.2’, zˠqˤɛ#qʲ ‘VOC.3.dual.cl.3’, zʲhkʷɛd͡ʐʲ ‘VOC.3.dual.cl.4’, zʷhpʲuːʈˠ ‘VOC.3.dual.cl.5’, ɣˤaːqʲ ‘VOC.3.dual.cl.6’, n̥ˠah ‘VOC.3.dual.cl.7’, ɠʲɞ#ːlˠ ‘VOC.1incl.plur’, sʷtʰˤurʲ ‘VOC.1excl.plur’, tʲaːŋʲ ‘VOC.2.plur’, sˠpʰˤɵ#ːqʼˠ ‘VOC.3.plur.cl.1’, ʂʲqʷaːqʼˠ ‘VOC.3.plur.cl.2’, ʐʲqʰʲaːn̪ʲ ‘VOC.3.plur.cl.3’, q͡χˠinʲ ‘VOC.3.plur.cl.4’, t͡ʃɞ#ːʕˠ ‘VOC.3.plur.cl.5’, kˠapʼˤ ‘VOC.3.plur.cl.6’, ɓˤaːmˤ ‘VOC.3.plur.cl.7’, ᵏǀʰˤᵊrˠ ‘VOC.no.owner’, ʃʲhtʲuɻʲ ‘ALL.1incl.sing’, ŋ̥ˠɞɳʲ ‘ALL.1excl.sing’, ʐʲkʼʲet̪ˠ ‘ALL.2.sing’, tʼʷɛ#mˤ ‘ALL.3.sing.cl.1’, ᵑǁʱˠɔt͡sˠ ‘ALL.3.sing.cl.2’, ᵏǀʰʲiːbˠ ‘ALL.3.sing.cl.3’, qʰʲɵmʲ ‘ALL.3.sing.cl.4’, ʃʲqʼˠɞːd͡ʒʱˠ ‘ALL.3.sing.cl.5’, ɰʷamˤ ‘ALL.3.sing.cl.6’, zʷtʰʷɵtʲ ‘ALL.3.sing.cl.7’, ɰˠɞrˤ ‘ALL.1incl.dual’, zˠkˠɛːzˤ ‘ALL.1excl.dual’, ᵑǀˤiʈˠ ‘ALL.2.dual’, dʱʷa#ɴˤ ‘ALL.3.dual.cl.1’, ʃʲpʼˤɔ#wʲ ‘ALL.3.dual.cl.2’, ħʲa#rʲ ‘ALL.3.dual.cl.3’, ʂˠʈʲɔːkʲ ‘ALL.3.dual.cl.4’, ʐˠɖˠɔːðˠ ‘ALL.3.dual.cl.5’, ɢʷaːkʼʲ ‘ALL.3.dual.cl.6’, ɡˤᵊd͡ʐʲ ‘ALL.3.dual.cl.7’, ᵏǁʰˠiħˠ ‘ALL.1incl.plur’, θˤe#ːd͡ʒ ‘ALL.1excl.plur’, ᵑǃˤʉ#ːʋˤ ‘ALL.2.plur’, ʃˠtʲiɳʲ ‘ALL.3.plur.cl.1’, ɴʷaŋʲ ‘ALL.3.plur.cl.2’, ᵏǀʼˤeɣˤ ‘ALL.3.plur.cl.3’, dˤʉːqʲ ‘ALL.3.plur.cl.4’, ðʲɵɹˠ ‘ALL.3.plur.cl.5’, ŋʷiwˤ ‘ALL.3.plur.cl.6’, ʐʲt̪ˤopʲ ‘ALL.3.plur.cl.7’, ʐˠɵ#ːɹˠ ‘ALL.no.owner’, sˤqˠʉfˤ ‘LOC.1incl.sing’, zˠhtʷʉ#pˠ ‘LOC.1excl.sing’, sˤkʼʷɛt͡sʼˤ ‘LOC.2.sing’, zʲɞ#ɹˠ ‘LOC.3.sing.cl.1’, sˠt̪ˤat͡sˤ ‘LOC.3.sing.cl.2’, ᵑǃʷɛʁʲ ‘LOC.3.sing.cl.3’, tˤiːnˤ ‘LOC.3.sing.cl.4’, ʔirˠ ‘LOC.3.sing.cl.5’, ʂʲʈʰˠɔd̪ˠ ‘LOC.3.sing.cl.6’, ᵑǀʱʲɵsˤ ‘LOC.3.sing.cl.7’, zˤhtˠɞn̪ʲ ‘LOC.1incl.dual’, qʲɞ#ːɡˤ ‘LOC.1excl.dual’, d͡ʐˠuwˠ ‘LOC.2.dual’, ʒʲtˤɔl̪ˠ ‘LOC.3.dual.cl.1’, ʒˠɡʱʷʉtʼˤ ‘LOC.3.dual.cl.2’, pʼˠɵtˤ ‘LOC.3.dual.cl.3’, sˠqˠuʋˤ ‘LOC.3.dual.cl.4’, ᵏǃʲa#mˤ ‘LOC.3.dual.cl.5’, qʼˤɞt͡sˤ ‘LOC.3.dual.cl.6’, ʒʲtˤɞːd̪ˠ ‘LOC.3.dual.cl.7’, d̪ˤiʈˠ ‘LOC.1incl.plur’, t͡sʷiːpʼˤ ‘LOC.1excl.plur’, ɢʷa#ːʜʲ ‘LOC.2.plur’, ʒʲdʲɵrˠ ‘LOC.3.plur.cl.1’, ʃʲʈʲaɰʲ ‘LOC.3.plur.cl.2’, dʱʲi#θˤ ‘LOC.3.plur.cl.3’, ʛˠɛwˠ ‘LOC.3.plur.cl.4’, t͡sʰˤeːqˠ ‘LOC.3.plur.cl.5’, ᵑǀʲʉ#ːq͡χˤ ‘LOC.3.plur.cl.6’, ʂʲtʼʷɔbˠ ‘LOC.3.plur.cl.7’, kʷɵ#θʲ ‘LOC.no.owner’, zʷpʼˤe#ːʁˤ ‘ABL.1incl.sing’, t̪ʲarˠ ‘ABL.1excl.sing’, ʃʲkʼˠaːtˠ ‘ABL.2.sing’, ɗʲi#ːɺʲ ‘ABL.3.sing.cl.1’, pʲipʲ ‘ABL.3.sing.cl.2’, zˤbʱʲʉ#ːɭˠ ‘ABL.3.sing.cl.3’, ʈʲᵊtʼˤ ‘ABL.3.sing.cl.4’, kʰʷɵɢˠ ‘ABL.3.sing.cl.5’, ɓˤɵt͡ʃʼˠ ‘ABL.3.sing.cl.6’, ʃˠkʼʷibˤ ‘ABL.3.sing.cl.7’, ɹˠal̪ʲ ‘ABL.1incl.dual’, χˤᵊʋˤ ‘ABL.1excl.dual’, ɸʲubˠ ‘ABL.2.dual’, ʒʲt̪ˤʉːdˤ ‘ABL.3.dual.cl.1’, ʂˠpˠuʁˠ ‘ABL.3.dual.cl.2’, zʷtʼˤo#ːɭʲ ‘ABL.3.dual.cl.3’, ᵏǀʼʷa#ːbʲ ‘ABL.3.dual.cl.4’, ʒˠɢˤimˠ ‘ABL.3.dual.cl.5’, ʃˠtˠor̥ʲ ‘ABL.3.dual.cl.6’, zˤd̪ʲɛ#ɽʱʲ ‘ABL.3.dual.cl.7’, θʷaj ‘ABL.1incl.plur’, zˤʈʼˠiɽʲ ‘ABL.1excl.plur’, ᵏǀʰˠilʲ ‘ABL.2.plur’, ʃˠqˤɔ#ɰˤ ‘ABL.3.plur.cl.1’, ŋ̥ʷᵊɾˠ ‘ABL.3.plur.cl.2’, sˠpʼˤᵊt̪ʲ ‘ABL.3.plur.cl.3’, pʼˤirˤ ‘ABL.3.plur.cl.4’, zˤɡʱʲoːt͡sʲ ‘ABL.3.plur.cl.5’, sˠɞ#ːkʼʲ ‘ABL.3.plur.cl.6’, ʃʲpʼˠʉmˤ ‘ABL.3.plur.cl.7’, ʈʰˠᵊsʲ ‘ABL.no.owner’, pʼˠeːɢˤ ‘PART.1incl.sing’, sˠqʲik͡xˠ ‘PART.1excl.sing’, ɡʱʷomʲ ‘PART.2.sing’, ʃʲhkʷoːmˤ ‘PART.3.sing.cl.1’, pʰʲᵊdˤ ‘PART.3.sing.cl.2’, ɢʷoɹˤ ‘PART.3.sing.cl.3’, ʁˤar̥ˠ ‘PART.3.sing.cl.4’, ᵑǀˠaŋˤ ‘PART.3.sing.cl.5’, d͡ʐʲɔʂʲ ‘PART.3.sing.cl.6’, ʒʲkʰˠʉ#d͡ʐˠ ‘PART.3.sing.cl.7’, ʜʲuːɡʱˠ ‘PART.1incl.dual’, n̪ˤɵɳˠ ‘PART.1excl.dual’, ɥʲɔ#p͡fˤ ‘PART.2.dual’, ɰʷet͡ʃʼʲ ‘PART.3.dual.cl.1’, ᵑǃˠᵊʁˠ ‘PART.3.dual.cl.2’, ʐˠɡʱʲuʒˠ ‘PART.3.dual.cl.3’, ɖʲeʕˠ ‘PART.3.dual.cl.4’, zˠdʲɵːɴʲ ‘PART.3.dual.cl.5’, ʒʲʈˠerˠ ‘PART.3.dual.cl.6’, ᶢǀʲetʼʲ ‘PART.3.dual.cl.7’, zˠqʰˠi#ːnˤ ‘PART.1incl.plur’, zˠhtʲaʕʲ ‘PART.1excl.plur’, zˤbʲᵊqʼˤ ‘PART.2.plur’, tʰˤit͡sˤ ‘PART.3.plur.cl.1’, ʐʲʈʰʲʉ#kʼˤ ‘PART.3.plur.cl.2’, ɽʱˠʉːkʼˤ ‘PART.3.plur.cl.3’, hpˠɔxˠ ‘PART.3.plur.cl.4’, sʷpʰʲʉːħʲ ‘PART.3.plur.cl.5’, ɢʲo#xˠ ‘PART.3.plur.cl.6’, qˠɛ#d͡zʲ ‘PART.3.plur.cl.7’ and ʂˠpˠaɡʱˤ ‘PART.no.owner’ followed by a clitic expressing number, comprising ʐʲdʷi#ːrˤ ‘dual’ and ʒʲt̪ˤu#ːlˠ ‘plur’.

The morphology of the elements of the nominal phrase, i.e., nouns, adjectives, numerals and pronouns, is described below, as is the way that possession is expressed in Tu.

The Noun

The noun in Tu stands alone without any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

The noun displays the following derivational morphology: 39 prefixes, namely sˤkʲɛːmˤ- ‘little’, k͡xˠɵ#ːʡʲ- ‘big’, hpˠiʃʲtʰʷ- ‘old’, ʐˠhkˤɔpʲ- ‘new’, sˠʈʲur̥ʲ- ‘good’, sʲiᵏǁʰˠ- ‘bad’, hkˤʉɠʷ- ‘make’, sʲqʲihkʷ- ‘help’, sʷʈˠu#ᵑǃʼʲ- ‘have’, ʃʲpˠa#ːʒʲbʲ- ‘use’, ʋˤʉ#tʰʲ- ‘see’, ɴʲuŋʲ- ‘break’, zʲtʰʷu#sʲhtʷ- ‘eat’, ᵑǀʼˠɛħʲ- ‘drink’, zˠhpʲiᵑǃʷ- ‘wear’, zʷqʷʉn̥ˤ- ‘own’, ħˠᵊʈʼʲ- ‘contain’, l̪ˠʉm̥ʲ- ‘hold’, sʷhkˤɔʐˠɡʱˤ- ‘lack’, ᵏǀʼˠu#ːɡˠ- ‘touch’, ʃʲʈʰʲu#ːʒˠɡʷ- ‘carry’, pʰʲɵːʂʲqʷ- ‘find’, zˠqʷu#ːʄˠ- ‘hunt’, ʂʲpʰˤeʂʲ- ‘guard’, ᵏǃʲᵊdʱˠ- ‘search’, nˠɵ#ᵏǁˠ- ‘learn’, dʷaɸʲ- ‘teach’, ʂˠt̪ʲᵊd̪ʲ- ‘follow’, ɹʷɵvˤ- ‘chase’, sʲt̪ʲaᵏǀʰˤ- ‘build’, ɽʱʲifˠ- ‘burn’, zʲo#ʂˠtʰˠ- ‘hit’, zˤpʰˠɔ#ːkʰˤ- ‘take’, l̪ʲɞkʰʷ- ‘cut’, pʰˠɔ#ʄˠ- ‘hear’, zˠtʰʲɛɴʷ- ‘know’, d̪ʷɔzʷɡʲ- ‘love’, ʐˠdʱʷɔɾʷ- ‘protect’ and ɰʲeᵑǃˠ- ‘possess’

The Adjective

In Tu, the adjective has the following structure: an optional prefix expressing gender, comprising ʂʲkˤɵːɰʷ- ‘cl.1’, ɮʲɛkʰˠ- ‘cl.2’, t͡sʷaːhtʲ- ‘cl.3’, ʂˠkʲɞ#zʲpˤ- ‘cl.4’, ʃˠhpʲʉːʂʲkʰˤ- ‘cl.5’, n̥ˤᵊʒˠd̪ʷ- ‘cl.6’ and ᵑǃʼˤuʄʲ- ‘cl.7’ followed by the root.

Numerals

The numeral in Tu stands alone without any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

Determiners

The determiner in Tu stands alone without any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

Pronouns

The pronoun in Tu stands alone without any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

In Tu, both subject and object pronouns are dropped unless they are stressed. Here is an example where neither of the pronouns are stressed:

But here, the word corresponding to he is stressed:

And here, it is the one translated as her that is stressed:

Proper Nouns

Possession

Derivation

Compounding

Verbs

Inflectional Categories

All verbal phrase clitics in Tu are proclitics (placed initially, and there are five types: first, a clitic expressing indobj, comprising ʐˠqˤiχʲ ‘1incl.sing’, ɾˤɛːlˠ ‘1excl.sing’, ʃʲʈʲɵɴˠ ‘2.sing’, dˠɵħˠ ‘3.sing.cl.1’, ɸˤe#ːʔ ‘3.sing.cl.2’, ʂˠhpˠɞ#ːvˤ ‘3.sing.cl.3’, ʈˠʉ#lʲ ‘3.sing.cl.4’, ɡˤɞqʼˠ ‘3.sing.cl.5’, pʼˤa#ʒˠ ‘3.sing.cl.6’, ʂˠʈʲanʲ ‘3.sing.cl.7’, ʐʲt̪ˤaʁˠ ‘1incl.dual’, zˠbʱˠo#ːɢʲ ‘1excl.dual’, ʐʲtʰˠaxˠ ‘2.dual’, hpˠo#ːʕˠ ‘3.dual.cl.1’, ʐˠt̪ˤʉt͡sʼˤ ‘3.dual.cl.2’, ʐʲd̪ʲɛ#ʋˤ ‘3.dual.cl.3’, ʃˠkʷo#ːʕˠ ‘3.dual.cl.4’, ᵑǀʱˠaxˠ ‘3.dual.cl.5’, ʐˠɞʋˤ ‘3.dual.cl.6’, t͡ʃʼˠoːnˤ ‘3.dual.cl.7’, hkˠɛqʼˠ ‘1incl.plur’, θˤɵtɬʲ ‘1excl.plur’, ɖʱˠɔɴʲ ‘2.plur’, ɽˠo#ːɢˤ ‘3.plur.cl.1’, d̪ʷi#ːðʲ ‘3.plur.cl.2’, ɹʲip͡fˠ ‘3.plur.cl.3’, nˤeβˤ ‘3.plur.cl.4’, ɠˤɵ#ːʕʲ ‘3.plur.cl.5’, tʰʷat̪ˠ ‘3.plur.cl.6’ and ᶢǃˠin̪ʲ ‘3.plur.cl.7’; second, a clitic expressing obj, comprising sˤpʼˤᵊkʼˤ ‘1incl.sing’, ᵏǃʼʷa#ːrˠ ‘1excl.sing’, zˤpʰʲabʲ ‘2.sing’, sʷkʲuːwˤ ‘3.sing.cl.1’, kʰˤɞd̪ˠ ‘3.sing.cl.2’, sʷʈʼˠᵊkʼʲ ‘3.sing.cl.3’, vˤɔːɹʲ ‘3.sing.cl.4’, ɻˠɞn̪ˤ ‘3.sing.cl.5’, sˤʈʰʲʉ#ːðˠ ‘3.sing.cl.6’, ʒˠɡʱʷakʼˠ ‘3.sing.cl.7’, kʰʷᵊj ‘1incl.dual’, ɢˠakʼˠ ‘1excl.dual’, t͡sˤuqʼˠ ‘2.dual’, dʲaqʼʲ ‘3.dual.cl.1’, pʰˠaːr̥ʲ ‘3.dual.cl.2’, d͡ʐˠɵ#ːqʼʲ ‘3.dual.cl.3’, ᵑǃʷʉt͡sʼˠ ‘3.dual.cl.4’, ʂʲʈʼˠɔvʲ ‘3.dual.cl.5’, ɣˤɔːθˤ ‘3.dual.cl.6’, ʃʲhʈˠipˠ ‘3.dual.cl.7’, ɠˠɞr̥ˠ ‘1incl.plur’, ʜˠud͡zˠ ‘1excl.plur’, ᵏǃʰʲʉ#ːp͡fˠ ‘2.plur’, ᵏǀʲat͡ʃ ‘3.plur.cl.1’, pˠenˠ ‘3.plur.cl.2’, ŋ̥ʷʉːɹˠ ‘3.plur.cl.3’, ʕˠɔɽʱˠ ‘3.plur.cl.4’, ʄˠɵ#ʜʲ ‘3.plur.cl.5’, kʰˤukˠ ‘3.plur.cl.6’ and ɡʱʲeʋˤ ‘3.plur.cl.7’; third, a clitic expressing subj, comprising ᵑǀˠʉwʲ ‘1incl.sing’, mʲiɢˠ ‘1excl.sing’, fˤu#ːfˠ ‘2.sing’, t͡sʷʉħˠ ‘3.sing.cl.2’, ʒʲkʰʲᵊθʲ ‘3.sing.cl.3’, xˠoɬˠ ‘3.sing.cl.4’, pʰˤoːt͡sʼʲ ‘3.sing.cl.5’, ʂˠkʰʷiːl̪ʲ ‘3.sing.cl.6’, ʜˠɛːθʲ ‘3.sing.cl.7’, ʐˠdˠᵊsʲ ‘1incl.dual’, t͡ʃʰʲʉɣˤ ‘1excl.dual’, ʛˠeːt͡ʃ ‘2.dual’, sˠhpʲɔːɸˠ ‘3.dual.cl.1’, sˠpʰˠʉ#ːt͡sˤ ‘3.dual.cl.2’, ɽˠʉd͡zˠ ‘3.dual.cl.3’, mʲaːfʲ ‘3.dual.cl.4’, ɸʲa#ħʲ ‘3.dual.cl.5’, ʈʰʲiɣˠ ‘3.dual.cl.6’, ʃˠt̪ˠɔmʲ ‘3.dual.cl.7’, sʷpʰˤiʕʲ ‘1incl.plur’, ɹˤiːnˤ ‘1excl.plur’, ʒʲɢˤɛ#ːp͡fˤ ‘2.plur’, ʂʲpˤu#ːðˠ ‘3.plur.cl.1’, t͡ʃʼˠʉɥʲ ‘3.plur.cl.2’, sʲtʰʷᵊɻʲ ‘3.plur.cl.3’, bʱˤɛt͡sʲ ‘3.plur.cl.4’, sʲʈˠɵd̪ˤ ‘3.plur.cl.5’, ɣˤɵħʲ ‘3.plur.cl.6’ and zʷtʷɔ#ʐʲ ‘3.plur.cl.7’; fourth, a clitic expressing negation.voice, comprising n̥ˤe#ːnˤ ‘NEG.active’, ʃˠtʼʲɞ#ːħˠ ‘NEG.passive’, ʃˠpʰˤʉp͡fˤ ‘POS.active’ and ɣʷaːbˠ ‘POS.passive’; and finally, fifth, a clitic expressing mode.ta, comprising ʐˠt̪ʷikʼˠ ‘indicative.PRES’, ʃʲkʼˠɛɺʲ ‘indicative.PAST’, bˠu#ɣʲ ‘imperative.PRES’, dʲɞɢˠ ‘imperative.PAST’, xˠɞ#d͡zˠ ‘conditional.PRES’, sˠpˠʉkʲ ‘conditional.PAST’, sʲhtˠaːχˠ ‘optative.PRES’ and ʃˠt̪ʲeːθʲ ‘optative.PAST’.

The verb itself does not have any prefixes or suffixes attached to it.

The verb displays the following derivational morphology: 19 prefixes, namely ʃʲkʰʲalʲ- ‘begin’, qʷohkˠ- ‘stop’, n̥ʲa#ᵏǃʼˠ- ‘continue’, ʂʲtʰʲɞ#ːj- ‘try’, ɣˤɵsʲkʷ- ‘start’, bʱˤiʛˤ- ‘want’, sʲpˠɞ#sˤqʼʷ- ‘can’, ᵑǁʱˠo#ːt͡sʰʲ- ‘finish’, ʜʲɵ#ʛˤ- ‘need’, sʷkʰʲɵːʃʲpʼˠ- ‘decide’, ᶢǀˠiᵑǁʱʲ- ‘fail’, ʒˠd̪ʷuːʒʲkʼˠ- ‘hope’, zʲkˤiʒʲɖˠ- ‘must’, ɽʱʲapʰˠ- ‘pretend’, sʲhʈʲaːkʼʷ- ‘let’, sˤkˠoᵏǀˠ- ‘force’, ʐʲhkʲi#ɾˠ- ‘keep’, tʰʲoʐˠd̪ʷ- ‘cause’ and dʱʲᵊkʰˤ- ‘allow’

Adverbs Minor Classes

Adpositions

There is one type of clitic in the adpositional phrase, namely an enclitic (placed finally), expressing root.

Syntax

Basic Clause Structure

Constituent Order

Constituent order describes the typical arrangement of the subject (S), verb (V) and object (O) in simple declarative clauses. It is a fundamental parameter in grammatical description and forms one of the clearest ways of characterising the overall structure of a language’s clause system.

Tu has basic Subject–Object–Verb (SOV) word order. The subject precedes the object, and the verb appears at the end of the clause. This is one of the most frequent patterns cross-linguistically.

The following examples illustrate the basic, unmarked, constituent order in Tu.

The language has a fixed constituent order, and major phrases normally appear in a predictable position in the clause. Movement for discourse reasons is highly restricted: topics and foci are expressed not by rearranging elements, but through dedicated constructions such as clefts, focus clauses or topic–comment frames. Constituents remain continuous, and both the relative order of phrases and the internal structure of each phrase are stable. As a result, significant deviations from the basic word order are ungrammatical, and discourse structure is managed through these specialised constructions rather than through word-order variation.

Noun Phrases

Structure and Order

The internal structure of noun phrases in Tu reveals typologically significant preferences in the ordering of nominal constituents. This includes the position of adjectives, numerals, and possessors relative to the noun, each of which can offer clues to the overall headedness of the language.

Possessive constructions are head-final: the possessor precedes the possessed noun. For example, Tu expresses “the child’s toy” with the equivalent of “child toy”. This ordering is found in many SOV and postpositional languages and aligns with a broader tendency towards modifier-first structures.

Case Marking

Tu uses split case marking. In the present tense, the grammar follows a nominative–accusative pattern, where intransitive and transitive subjects are treated alike and objects are marked with the accusative. In the past tense, however, it follows an ergative–absolutive pattern, here called ergative–nominative, where intransitive subjects and transitive objects are treated alike and transitive subjects are marked with the ergative. This makes sense because present-tense clauses often describe events as ongoing, habitual or controlled by an active participant, so the grammar treats the subject as the central argument. Past-tense clauses, by contrast, often present an event as completed, making the affected participant especially salient. The ergative marking then singles out the transitive agent as the additional participant responsible for bringing about that result.

Conjunctions

Here is an example of a conjunction.

Modifiers and Determiners

The ordering of demonstratives, articles (if present), and other modifiers in Tu provides further insight into the structure of the noun phrase. These elements frequently exhibit fixed positions and may reveal whether the language favours head-initial or head-final patterns.

Complex Sentences

Relative Clauses

Tu forms relative clauses by placing the relative clause after the noun it modifies. The clause follows the internal word order of ordinary finite clauses. A dedicated relativising marker introduces the clause and identifies the relationship between the head noun and its role inside the relative clause.

To illustrate how relative clauses work, let us begin with a simple sentence:

We can now add a relative clause modifying the noun:

Relative clauses may themselves contain other relative clauses:

Finally, here is an example containing several layers of embedding:

Complementation Strategies

Tu introduces complement clauses with a dedicated complementiser, similar to English that. The complementiser appears at the beginning of the embedded clause and signals that the clause functions as a syntactic argument. The embedded clause is fully finite and displays the same tense, aspect and agreement patterns as independent clauses.

The following example illustrate how complement clauses function:

Quotes

Tu employs a quotative particle to mark direct and indirect speech. The quotative follows the reported phrase and identifies the preceding expression as quoted or reported. The same construction is also used to express reported thoughts.

Here is an example of how quotations are expressed:

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