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Kikóngo Grammar Reference

    Pronouns

  Personal pronouns

  [th]Short form[/th][th]Long form[/th][th]English[/th][th]I[/th][th]you[/th][th]he, she[/th][th]we[/th][th]you[/th][th]they[/th][th]it, they[/th]

mú	móno, múnu¹
	ngé
yá	yándi
	béto
	béno
bá	báu, bó²
	yáu, yó²

Notes:
(1) Móno is used in Congo-Kinshasa, múnu is used in Congo-Brazzaville.
(2) Bó and yó are used in the Kwango-Kwilu region.
(3) Yáu is used in singular and plural.
  Possessive pronouns

  [th]Kikóngo[/th][th]English[/th][th]my[/th][th]your[/th][th]his, her[/th][th]our[/th][th]your[/th][th]their[/th][th]its, their[/th]

na móno/múnu

na ngé

na yándi

na béto

na béno

na báu

na yáu

Note: It's also possile to say: ya múnu = mine, ya ngé = yours, etc.
  Noun class prefixes

  [th]Singular[/th][th]Plural[/th][th]Example[/th]

-	ba-
mu-	ba-	muntu = a human being, bantu = human beings
mu-	mi-
di-	ma-	dibóko = a hand, mabóko = hands
ki-	bi-	kíma = a thing, bíma = things
ka-	tu-	kakíma = a trifle, tubíma = trifles

Verb conjugation

    Regular verbs

  Regular verbs are conjugated with the help of particles that are placed before the verbs. The progressive or habitual tenses are formed with the help of the suffix -ak-.
  [th]Tense[/th][th]Form[/th][th]Particle[/th][th]Examples[/th][th]Translation[/th][th]Present[/th]   [th]long[/th]   [th]short[/th]   [th]Present progressive[/th]   [th]long[/th]   [th]short[/th]   [th]Perfect[/th]   [th]long[/th]   [th]short[/th]   [th]Perfect progressive[/th]   [th]long[/th]   [th]short[/th]   [th]Future[/th]   [th]long[/th]   [th]short[/th]   [th]Future progressive[/th]   [th]long[/th]   [th]short[/th]   [th]Past[/th]   [th]long[/th]   [th]short[/th]   [th]
[/th]   [th]long[/th]   [th]short[/th]  

kéle	Móno kéle kusála.	I work.
ké	Mú ké sála.
kéle -ak-	Móno kéle kunited snakesláka.	I am working.
ké -ak-	Mú ké saláka.
méne	Móno méne kusála.	I have worked.
mé	Mú mé sála.
méne -ak-	Móno méne kunited snakesláka.	I have been working.
mé	Mú mé saláka.
ata	Móno ata kusála.	I will work.
ta	Mú ta sála.
ata -ak-	Móno ata kunited snakesláka.	I will be working.
ta -ak-	Mú ta saláka.
-ak-	Móno saláka.	I worked.
-ak-	Mú saláka.
	=

Note: The tenses are derived from Kikongo verbs kukála (to be) → ké(le), kumána (to finish) → mé(ne) and kuvánda (to sit) → vánda.
  Adjectives

  Most adjectives consist of particle ya and a noun. E.g. mayélé = intelligence, ya mayélé = intelligent. Even  
  In some cases particle ya can be left out after verbs:
muána ya mayélé. = an intelligent child
Muána ké ya mayélé. = Child is intelligent.
muána ya mbóte. = a good child.
Muána ké (ya) mbóte. = Child is good.
  Adverbs

  A number of adverbs consist of na and a noun. E.g. na ngólo = with force, forcefully.
  Relative clause

  Relative clause can be formed with particle ya:
Kíma, ya móno ké zoláka míngi na Kóngo, kéle ntángu.
The thing, that I like most in Congo, is the weather.
  Another way is to use yína:
Yándi, yína kuizáka, kéle kuáku.
He, who came, is here.
  Expression the one who is formed with muntu:
Yándi mósi muntu ké zába vé.
He himself is the one who doesn't know.
  Word order

  Noun, quantity, adjective bána     tátu  ya mayéle children three smart three smart children  Subject, verb, adverb(s), object Yándi ke tánga bilúmbu yónso mikánda. S/he  reads    day     every books. S/he reads books every day.  Word derivation

  Changing word class

  In Kikóngo class prefixes mark in effect also word classes. In addition particles ya and na mark systematically adjectives and adverbs.
  Verbs always begin with ku- and end with -a in their base form, e.g. kusála = to work. Actor nouns always begin with mu- or reduced nasal and end with -i, e.g. musádi or nsádi = worker. Words starting with ki-, di- or lu- and ending with -u often denote some kind of (result of) action, e.g. kisálu = (a piece of) work.
     Suffixes

  The examples are derived from kukába = to divide
  [th]Suffix[/th][th]Meaning[/th][th]Example[/th]

-ak-	Habitual or repetitive	kukabáka = to deal
-akan-	Ability	kukabakána = to be divisible
-am-	Passive	kukabáma = to become divided
-an-	Reciprocal	kukabána = to divide each other
-il-	Applicative	kukabíla = to divide for, to share with
-is-	Caunited snakestive	kukabísa = to force to divide
-uk-	Stative	kukabúka = to be (in) divided (state)
-ul-	Inverse	kukabúla* = to divide

(*) irregular
  Conjunctions

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• ná = and
• ye = and
• mpé / pé = also, and
• tí = that
• nde = that
• kánsi = but
• go = or
• tó = or
• kána = if
• kána...kána = either...or
• atá = though, although
• sámu (na) = because (of)

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