Language/Tigrinya/Grammar/Negation

Tigrinya Grammar - Negation

Hi Tigrinya learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will learn about negation in Tigrinya. Negation is an important part of any language, and it is essential to understand how to use it correctly in order to communicate effectively.

Negation is the process of making a statement or phrase negative. In Tigrinya, there are two main ways to make a statement negative: by using the negative particle ma or by using the negative verb mä. Let's take a look at each of these in more detail.

Negative Particle ma

The negative particle ma is used to make a statement negative. It is placed before the verb in a sentence. For example:

Tigrinya	Pronunciation	English Translation
ኣይተሓረም	ayteharem	He doesn't go
ኣይተሓረም ኣብዚ	ayteharem abz	He doesn't go here
ኣይተሓረም ኣብዚ ንኽእል	ayteharem abz nk'el	He doesn't go here today

It is important to note that the negative particle ma cannot be used with the verb to be. To make a statement negative when using the verb to be, you must use the negative verb mä.

Negative Verb mä

The negative verb mä is used to make a statement negative when using the verb to be. It is placed before the verb in a sentence. For example:

Tigrinya	Pronunciation	English Translation
ኣይነበሩ	ayneberew	He is not here
ኣይነበሩ ኣብዚ	ayneberew abz	He is not here now
ኣይነበሩ ኣብዚ ንኽእል	ayneberew abz nk'el	He is not here today

It is important to note that the negative verb mä cannot be used with other verbs. To make a statement negative when using other verbs, you must use the negative particle ma.

Practice

To improve your Tigrinya Grammar, you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

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Related Lessons

• Plurals
• Conditional Mood
• Adjectives
• Future Tense
• Questions
• Pronouns