Language/Maltese/Grammar/Gender-and-Plurals
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Maltese is a Semitic language spoken by the Maltese people, who inhabit the islands of Malta in the central Mediterranean. Maltese has been influenced by many different languages throughout its history, including Arabic, Italian, and English. In this lesson, we will discuss the gender of nouns in Maltese and how to form plurals.
Gender of Nouns[edit | edit source]
In Maltese, all nouns have a gender, which is either masculine or feminine. The gender of a noun is not always predictable, so it's important to learn the gender of each individual noun.
Here are some general rules for determining the gender of nouns in Maltese:
- Most nouns that refer to males or male animals are masculine, e.g. raġel (man), kelb (dog).
- Most nouns that refer to females or female animals are feminine, e.g. mara (woman), qattusa (cat).
- Nouns that end in -a are usually feminine, e.g. sliema (peace), klinika (clinic).
- Nouns that end in -u or a consonant are usually masculine.
However, there are many exceptions to these rules. The only way to determine the gender of a noun is to learn it by heart.
Here are some examples:
| Maltese | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| raġel | ra-jel | man |
| mara | ma-ra | woman |
| kelb | kelb | dog |
| qattusa | qat-tu-sa | cat |
| sliema | sli-e-ma | peace |
| klinika | kli-ni-ka | clinic |
| kitabu | ki-ta-bu | book |
| daru | da-ru | house |
| ħanut | ħa-nut | shop |
| miċrobus | miċ-ro-bus | minibus |
Plurals of Nouns[edit | edit source]
In Maltese, there are several ways to form the plural of a noun. The most common way is to add -i to the end of the noun if it's masculine, or -iet if it's feminine. However, there are many exceptions to this rule, so it's important to learn the plural form of each individual noun.
Here are some examples of plural nouns:
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| raġel (man) | irġiel (men) |
| mara (woman) | nisa (women) |
| kelb (dog) | kliegħ (dogs) |
| qattusa (cat) | qattuż (cats) |
| ktieb (book) | kotba (books) |
| dar (house) | dariet (houses) |
| ktieb (book) | kotba (books) |
| zmien (time) | żminijiet (times) |
As you can see from the examples, the plural form of a noun is not always predictable, so it's important to learn the plural form of each individual noun.
Pronouns[edit | edit source]
Pronouns are words that take the place of a noun in a sentence. There are several types of pronouns in Maltese, including personal pronouns, possessive pronouns, and demonstrative pronouns.
Personal Pronouns[edit | edit source]
Personal pronouns are pronouns that refer to a specific person or thing. In Maltese, there are separate pronouns for each person and gender. Here are the personal pronouns in Maltese:
| English | Maltese (masculine) | Maltese (feminine) |
|---|---|---|
| I | jien | jien |
| You (singular) | int | inti |
| He | hu | hi |
| She | hi | hi |
| It | dan (masc.) / danja (fem.) | dan (masc.) / danja (fem.) |
| We | aħna | aħna |
| You (plural) | intom | intom |
| They (masculine) | huma | huma |
| They (feminine) | hin | hin |
Note that the third person singular pronoun in Maltese can refer to both masculine and feminine nouns. The word dan or danja is used for "it" when referring to a male or female noun, respectively.
Here are some examples of personal pronouns in use:
- Jien nitħobb is-siġra. (I love the tree.)
- Int ser tagħmel xogħol tajjeb. (You will do a good job.)
- Huwa qed iġib id-darba għall-għazla. (He is bringing the ball for the game.)
- Hi tixtieq tkellem miegħi. (She wants to talk with me.)
- Dan jibqa' ferm speċjali għalija. (It remains very special to me.)
- Aħna nitolbu l-ewwel raġel fuq il-Knisja ta' San Ġorġ. (We asked the first man on St. George's Church.)
- Intom xiħed ħa jiġi wkoll? (Are you (plural) taking someone, too?)
- Huma għadhom bil-ħelu ħafna. (They are still very beautiful.)
- Ħin, mhux iben tiegħi, qalb tiegħi, dejjem ser iħobb gonfja nifsiebi. (No matter, not my son, not my heart, I always love inflating my lungs.)
Possessive Pronouns[edit | edit source]
Possessive pronouns are pronouns that show ownership or possession. In Maltese, possessive pronouns agree in gender and number with the noun they refer to. Here are the possessive pronouns in Maltese:
| English | Maltese (masculine) | Maltese (feminine) |
|---|---|---|
| my | tiegħi (masc.) / tiegħija (fem.) | tiegħi (masc.) / tiegħija (fem.) |
| your (singular) | tiegħek (masc.) / tiegħek (fem.) | tiegħek (masc.) / tiegħek (fem.) |
| his | tiegħu (masc.) / tiegħha (fem.) | tiegħu (masc.) / tiegħha (fem.) |
| her | tiegħha | tiegħha |
| its | tiegħu (masc.) / tiegħha (fem.) | tiegħu (masc.) / tiegħha (fem.) |
| our | tagħna | tagħna |
| your (plural) | tagħkom | tagħkom |
| their | tagħhom (masc.) / tagħha (fem.) | tagħhom (masc.) / tagħha (fem.) |
Note that the possessive pronouns in Maltese are formed by adding the possessive particle "tiegħ" to the personal pronouns. For example, "tiegħi" means "my" in Maltese and is formed by adding the possessive particle "tiegħ" to the personal pronoun "jien".
Here are some examples of possessive pronouns in use:
- Din hija id-dar tiegħi. (This is my house.)
- Fittex tiegħek fil-kaxxa ta' it-tieni tolla. (Look for your money in the second drawer.)
- Il-biċċa ta' ġewża li jkolli hija tiegħu. (The piece of peanut that I have is his.)
- L-iskola tagħha ddur ħafna. (Her school is very far.)
- Il-għarbiel irġa' lill-majjal li twieldu u għażilha tiegħu. (The west wind returned the ax that he had lost and chose it.)
- Hawn dejjem ħafna affarijiet tagħna fuq ix-xogħol. (There are always many things of ours on work.)
- Tara kif qegħdin jogħġbu metri ġodda lil tagħkom? (Do you see how they are installing new meters to you?)
- Għamel dan għax kien fis-sider tas-Sajf, sakemm l-lampuki ltaqgħu bil-quccata tagħhom. (He did this because he was in the iron of the Summer, until the lampuki fish meet with their nets.)
Demonstrative Pronouns[edit | edit source]
Demonstrative pronouns are pronouns that point to a specific person or thing. In Maltese, there are four demonstrative pronouns:
| English | Maltese (masculine) | Maltese (feminine) |
|---|---|---|
| this | dan (masc.) / danja (fem.) | dan (masc.) / danja (fem.) |
| that | dik (masc.) / dikja (fem.) | dik (masc.) / dikja (fem.) |
| these | dawn (masc.) / dawnija (fem.) | dawn (masc.) / dawnija (fem.) |
| those | dawk (masc.) / dawkija (fem.) | dawk (masc.) / dawkija (fem.) |
As you can see from the table above, the demonstrative pronouns in Maltese change based on gender, just like in English. The word "dan" is used to refer to a masculine noun, while "danja" is used to refer to a feminine noun. Similarly, "dik" and "dikja" are used to refer to a masculine and feminine noun respectively when talking about something further away, whereas "dawn" and "dawnija" are used for plural nouns.
Here are a few examples of how to use demonstrative pronouns in Maltese:
Dan it-tieġ (this tea) - referring to a cup of tea that is close to the speaker
Danja l-bajda (this egg) - referring to an egg that is close to the speaker and is feminine
Dik iċ-ċikkulata (that chocolate) - referring to a chocolate that is far away from the speaker and is masculine
Dawn is-sigar (these cigarettes) - referring to a pack of cigarettes that is close to the speaker
Other Lessons[edit | edit source]
- Adjectives
- Give your Opinion
- 0 to A1 Course
- Questions
- Definite Articles in Maltese
- Comparatives and Superlatives
- Basic Maltese Phrases
- Plurals
- Past Tense
Sources[edit | edit source]
- Maltese language - Wikipedia
- English Translation of “maltese” | Collins Italian-English Dictionary
- Comprehension, Production and Processing of Maltese Plurals in ...
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