Paradigm Tables
Morphological patterns, declensions, and conjugations for Pirahã
Evidential suffix
| Suffix | |
|---|---|
| Hearsay | -híai |
| Deduction | -síbigá |
| Complete certainty / direct observation (strong) | -há |
| Assumption of direct knowledge | Ø |
| Speaker directly observed the event | -xáagahá |
Demonstratives
| Proximal (this) | Distal (that) | |
|---|---|---|
| Demonstrative pronoun | gáihi | gíisai |
| Demonstrative adjective | gáihi (noun) | gíisai (noun) |
Verbal Template
| Root | Intensive | Causative/inchoative/tense | Negation, mood, evidentiality | Continuative/repetitive | Immediacy/intention | Durative | Desiderative | Causal, evidentiality (again) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Order | [Verb] | -baí / Ø | causative-incompl. -boí, causative-compl. -bogá, inchoative-incompl. -hoí, inchoative-compl. -hoagá, future(here) -áíp, future(elsewhere) -áop, past -áob / Ø | negative/optative -saí (+C1: preventive -háxa, opinion -há, possible Ø); positive/optative -áatí; declarative -á; probabilistic-certain -íhaí; probabilistic-uncertain (begin/execute/complete) -ábagaí / -ábaí / -áá; stative -íxí; interrogative forms -íhiaí, -óxoihiaí, -íhí, -óxoihí / Ø | -xiig (continuative), -ta (repetitive) / Ø | -áhá (immediate), -íí (intentive) / Ø | -áb / Ø | -sog / Ø | causal -taíó, conclusive -síbigá, emphatic/reiterative koí/koí/ísa (+H1: present -íhiaí, past -íxaágá, past-immediate -ágahá) |
Pronouns
| Pronoun | Gloss | |
|---|---|---|
| 1st Person | ti | I / We / Me / Us |
| 2nd Person | gi (or gíxai) | You (singular or plural) |
| 3rd Person | hi | He / She / It / They |