Language/Kazakh/Grammar/Pronouns

Kazakh Grammar - Pronouns

Hi Kazakh learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will learn about pronouns in Kazakh grammar. Pronouns are important parts of speech that replace nouns to make sentences concise and more interesting. By the end of this lesson, you will be familiar with the different types of pronouns in Kazakh grammar and how to use them in sentences. So, let's get started!

Don't hesitate to look into these other pages after completing this lesson: Nouns, Consonants, How to Use Have & Modal Adverbs.

Introduction to Pronouns

Before we dive deeper into Kazakh pronouns, let's have a quick introduction to what pronouns are. In simple terms, pronouns are words that replace nouns. They can refer to people, animals, objects, and even concepts.

For instance, instead of saying "Mukhtar went to the store. Mukhtar bought a bike. Mukhtar rode the bike home", we can replace the noun "Mukhtar" with the pronoun "he". This makes the sentence more concise and less repetitive. Therefore, pronouns are essential for effective communication in any language.

In Kazakh, pronouns are classified into personal, possessive, demonstrative, indefinite, reflexive, interrogative, and relative pronouns.

Personal Pronouns

Personal pronouns are used to replace a noun that refers to a person or group of people. They are often the subject or object of a sentence, just like in English.

The following table shows the personal pronouns in Kazakh, with their pronunciation and English translation:

Kazakh	Pronunciation	English
мен / менің	men / meniń	I / my (when used as an adjective)
сен / сіз / сенің / сіздің	sen / siz / seniń / sizdiń	you / your (singular or plural, formal or informal)
ол / оның	ol / onyń	he / she / it / his / her / its
біз / біздің	biz / bizdiń	we / our (when used as an adjective)
сендер / сіздер / сендердің / сіздердің	sender / sizder / senderdiń / sizderdiń	you all / your all (formal or plural)
олар / олардың	olar / olardyń	they / their

Here's an example dialogue using personal pronouns:

• Person 1: Мен Бекіту гөренімді көрдім. (I saw Bekit)
• Person 2: Сен ұнда не істеуді ұмыттың? (Did you forget to do something then?)
• Person 1: Менің қарым-қатынас құрметіме тиісті болмады. (My relationship with them was not respectful enough.)
• Person 2: Сіздер ұнда не істеуді ұмыттыңыздар? (Did you all forget to do something then?)

As you can see from the dialogue, personal pronouns are used to replace the name of the characters in the conversation to make the sentences shorter and more natural.

Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns are used to show ownership or belonging. They are often used with nouns in Kazakh, like in the sentence "Оның қаламы" (His pen). The word "Оның" is a possessive pronoun that means "his".

Here's a table showing the possessive pronouns in Kazakh, with their pronunciation and English translation:

Kazakh	Pronunciation	English
менің	meniń	my
сенің / сіздің	seniń / sizdiń	your (singular or plural)
оның	onyń	his / her / its
біздің	bizdiń	our
сендердің / сіздердің	senderdiń / sizderdiń	your all (formal or plural)
олардың	olardyń	their

Example dialogue:

• Person 1: Біздің кітаптарымыз өріс аралығында. (Our books are between the beds)
• Person 2: Сіздердің кемістеріңіз қандай? (What are your all's hobbies?)
• Person 1: Менің қарызымыңызға төлем жасамалы беруге болады ма? (Can I make a payment to pay off my debt to you?)
• Person 2: Сенің кез келген туралы өзің шығара аласың ба? (Can you introduce yourself?)

In each sentence, the possessive pronouns are used to show who owns what objects or qualities.

Demonstrative Pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns are used to point to specific people, objects, or concepts. They are often used to distinguish between two or more similar objects, like in the sentence "Осы кітап бар ал тағы бір кітап бар" (There is this book but there is one more book). The words "Осы" and "тағы бір" are demonstrative pronouns that mean "this" and "one more".

Here's a table showing the demonstrative pronouns in Kazakh, with their pronunciation and English translation:

Kazakh	Pronunciation	English
бұл	bul	this
осы	osy	this
шығын	shyғyn	that
осылай	osylay	that way
алайда	alayda	that way
артық	artyқ	that much
осындай	osynday	like this
шығындай	shyғynday	like that
кешкі	keshki	former
келесі	kelesi	latter

Example dialogue:

• Person 1: Бұл қандай түрде істейді? (What kind of work is this?)
• Person 2: Өнімді осындай жасайды. (I do it like this)
• Person 1: Алайда жоғарысқа көтеруге болады ма? (Can it be elevated that way?)
• Person 2: Лауазым менің кешкі қызымдық есімім болатын...Үшінші жасымда мектепке тіркелдім. (My middle name is Keshki, which means the former. I enrolled in school at age 3.)

The demonstrative pronouns are used to identify and distinguish between different objects or actions.

Indefinite Pronouns

Indefinite pronouns are used to refer to a non-specific person or object. They are often used to talk about concepts, like in the sentence "Әрқашан еңгізілген мәні" (The value that is entered every time). The word "әрқашан" is an indefinite pronoun that means "every time".

Here's a table showing the indefinite pronouns in Kazakh, with their pronunciation and English translation:

Kazakh	Pronunciation	English
әрбір	erbir	every
бәрі	beri	every
кейінгі	keyіngі	next
басқа	basqa	other
бірнеше	birneshe	some
бірнешеі	birneshei	several
ешқашан	eshqaşan	never
басқалары	basqalary	somebody / anyone / other people
біреуі	bireyi	someone / anybody
бірнешеінің	birnesheiniñ	someone's / anybody's / some people's

Example dialogue:

• Person 1: Демалыс кезінде бірнеше киім сатып алу керек. (You have to buy some clothes for the holiday)
• Person 2: Бәрінің өзінше болуы мүмкін бола алады ма? (Can everybody be who they are?)
• Person 1: Кейінгі кезеңнен кейін пікірталасу керек. (We have to discuss after the next phase)
• Person 2: Ешқашан ɛстірілмеген ұсталдық. (Unrealized ambition)

As you can see from the dialogue, indefinite pronouns are used to refer to non-specific people or things that cannot be named.

Reflexive Pronouns

Reflexive pronouns are used to refer to the subject of the sentence, like in the sentence "Әгер сен жон көтерген болсаң соған бағытталасқанды?" (If you are in love, would you be obsessed with him?) The word "соған" is a reflexive pronoun that means "himself".

Here's a table showing the reflexive pronouns in Kazakh, with their pronunciation and English translation:

Kazakh	Pronunciation	English
жақсынан білген	jaqsynan bіlgen	self-educated / self-taught
төменгіде істейтін	tömengide isteytin	ordinary / common
саймандай	saymanday	like crazy / in a frenzy
өзі	ozi	himself / herself / itself / themselves

Example dialogue:

• Person 1: Сіз әлдеқайда көрегіңізді шетелқалақтарыма арналған жақсылық-өзіндік етіп қабылдайсыз ба? (Do you accept your altruism and selflessness among my wanderlusts?)
• Person 2: Немесе маған саймандай мешқ жасауда қызығыма салынған да сақталды. (Or it contained the anger that was preserved while doing self-exercise.)

In the dialogue, reflexive pronouns are used to reflect back to the subject of the conversation or the sentence.

Interrogative Pronouns

Interrogative pronouns are used to ask questions. They are often used to seek more information about a particular person, object, or concept, like in the sentence "Кім?" (Who?). The word "Кім" is an interrogative pronoun that means "Who".

Here's a table showing the interrogative pronouns in Kazakh, with their pronunciation and English translation:

Kazakh	Pronunciation	English
не	ne	what
кім	kim	who
қандай	qanday	how
қайда	qayda	where
неге	nege	why
қанша	qansha	how much / how many
қалай	qalay	how

Example dialogue:

• Person 1: Неге топ арқасында белдік? (Why are we stuck in the crowd?)
• Person 2: Осы топке қауіпті екеуінен бірі қосылды. (One of the couples was added to this crowd.)
• Person 1: Қайда болған өте бастапқы планға орын айырмаласақ? (Where should we

Other Lessons

• Plurals
• Consonants
• Past Tense (ӨТКЕН ШАҚ)
• Negation
• Questions
• How to Use Be
• Adjectives
• Nouns
• Conditional Mood
• How to Use Have

Sources

• Kazakh language - Wikipedia
• Learn Kazakh here | Dimash Kudaibergen Wiki | Fandom
• A Grammar of Kazakh Zura Dotton, Ph.D John Doyle Wagner