Language/Sango/Grammar/Plurals

Sango Grammar - Plurals

Hi Sango learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will learn about plurals in Sango. Plurals refer to more than one person, animal, thing, or concept. Let's begin!

Take some time to dive into these other pages after completing this lesson: Pronouns, How to Use Be & Adjectives.

Introduction

In Sango, plurals can be formed in different ways. The most common way is by adding the suffix -ti to the singular form of a noun. However, there are some irregular plural forms that do not follow this rule. We will learn them later in this lesson.

Let's see some examples:

Sango	Pronunciation	English
moto	/mɔtɔ/	car
mototi	/mɔtɔti/	cars
sama	/sama/	fish
samati	/samati/	fishes

Notice how adding the suffix -ti to the singular form of the noun forms the plural form in Sango.

Regular Plurals

In Sango, the regular plural form of a noun is formed by adding the suffix -ti to the singular form of the noun. Most countable nouns follow this rule. Here are some examples:

Sango	Pronunciation	English
molia	/mɔlia/	bird
molititi	/mɔlititi/	birds
nana	/nana/	child
nanati	/nanati/	children
tondi	/tɔndi/	book
tonditi	/tɔnditi/	books

Notice how the singular form of the nouns ends in a vowel, and the final vowel is replaced by -ti to form the plural form. If the singular form of the noun ends in a consonant, the suffix -ti is added directly. For example:

Sango	Pronunciation	English
balɛ	/balɛ/	house
balɛti	/balɛti/	houses

Similarly, if the noun ends in -a, the final -a is replaced by -ati. For instance:

Sango	Pronunciation	English
baka	/baka/	goat
bakati	/bakati/	goats

You can form the plural form of collective nouns by adding the suffix -to. For example:

Sango	Pronunciation	English
mbola	/mbɔla/	group
mbolato	/mbɔlato/	groups

Irregular Plurals

There are some irregular plural forms that do not follow the rule of adding the suffix -ti. Here are some examples:

Sango	Pronunciation	English
zani	/zani/	tooth
mazani	/mazani/	teeth
ndjapa	/ndʒapa/	table
ndjapala	/ndʒapala/	tables
ndjama	/ndʒama/	chicken
ndjama nana	/ndʒama nana/	chickens (informal)
ndjama no	/ndʒama no/	chickens (formal)

Notice how the plural form of tooth (zani) is not formed by adding the suffix -ti to the singular form (zani). Instead, the singular form (zani) becomes plural (mazani) by changing the initial consonant to -m-.

Similarly, the plural form of table (ndjapa) is not formed by adding the suffix -ti to the singular form (ndjapa). Instead, the singular form (ndjapa) becomes plural (ndjapala) by adding an -l- in between.

Finally, there are some nouns that have different plural forms depending on the formality of the situation. For example, the plural form of chicken can be ndjama nana or ndjama no. Ndjama nana is the informal plural form, while ndjama no is the formal plural form.

Practice

Let's practice making plurals in Sango! Take the following singular nouns and make them plural.

• mila (cow)

• mama (mother)

• konda (house)

• moda (shirt)

• tomnyaka (shoe)

Once you have finished, find native speakers on Polyglot Club and ask them any questions you have. 💬

Dialogue

Here's a dialogue between two friends:

• Person 1: Ngayï e bandro! (Look at those monkeys!)

• Person 2: Ayï, bayïti bo mabandroti. (Yes, they are many monkeys.)

• Person 1: Mi na ndja kota? (Where do you live?)

• Person 2: Mi na ndja mejikoro. Nga koya? (I live in Mejikoro. And you?)

• Person 1: Mi na ndja Bengi. (I live in Bengi.)

Sources

• Sango Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
• Sango language - Wikipedia

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Other Lessons

• Negation
• How to Use Be
• Adjectives
• Questions
• How to Use Have
• Conditional Mood
• Give your Opinion
• Pronouns
• Future Tense