Language/Twi/Grammar/Adjectives

Twi Grammar - Adjectives

Hi Twi learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will be learning about adjectives in Twi. Adjectives are words that describe or modify nouns or pronouns. They tell us more about the characteristics or qualities of the noun. For instance, in the sentence "The beautiful flower is in the garden", "beautiful" is an adjective because it describes the flower.

Introduction to Adjectives

In Twi, adjectives usually come before the noun that they are describing. They can also come after the verb "to be". There are various types of adjectives in Twi. Some of them are formed by adding an affix to a noun, while the others are stand-alone words.

Some examples of stand-alone adjectives in Twi are:

Twi	Pronunciation	English
bɔne	bɔ̃ne	Good
kakra	kakrã	Small
hyira	hyirã	Beautiful

• Person 1: Ɛyɛ bɔne. (It is good.)
• Person 2: Wo ho yɛ bɔne! (You are good!)

• Person 1: Ɛyɛ kakra nnipa. (We are small people.)
• Person 2: Mepɛ sɛ mabɛ kakra. (I want to be small.)

• Person 1: Wo nan ahyira paaa! (Your dress is very beautiful!)
• Person 2: Medeɛkyerɛ wo. (Thank you.)

In the examples above, the adjectives are used to describe characteristics such as a good person, small people, and a beautiful dress.

Forming Adjectives from Nouns

In Twi, some adjectives are formed by adding an affix to a noun. The affixes that are commonly used in Twi are "n", "fo", "mu", "man", "ma", "ba", "da", and "kɔ".

Here are some examples:

Twi	Pronunciation	English
aban	abãn	New
amoafowaa	amoafowãã	Generous
aduɔnem	aduɔnem	Intelligent

• Person 1: Wɔfa akoa wɔ aban asafoɔ. (Uncle Akoa is in the new group.)
• Person 2: Wɔn ho yɛ amoafowaa. (They are generous.)

• Person 1: M'adamfoɔ nso aduɔnem bɛma me. (My friends are also intelligent.)
• Person 2: Ɛyɛ dɛn? (Who are they?)

In the examples above, the adjectives "aban" and "amoafowaa" are formed by adding "n" and "fo" respectively to the nouns "aba" and "amoafowaa".

Comparison of Adjectives

Adjectives in Twi can also be compared. There are three degrees of comparison: positive, comparative, and superlative.

Here are some examples:

Twi	Pronunciation	English
bɛn	bɛ̃n	Good
bra	bra	Better
brɔfoɔ	brɔ̃foɔ	Best
kakra	kakrã	Small
kakraa	kakrãã	Smaller
kakraatɔ	kakrããtɔ	Smallest

• Person 1: Wo ho yɛ bɛn. (You are good.)
• Person 2: Medeɛbo wo. (Thank you.)

• Person 1: M'ani bɛ kakraa na wo. (My eyes are smaller than yours.)
• Person 2: Ɛbɛdi wo kraa. (It depends on your perspective.)

In the examples above, the adjective "bɛn" is changed to "bra" and "brɔfoɔ" to indicate a comparison of goodness. The adjective "kakra" is changed to "kakraa" and "kakraatɔ" to indicate a comparison of smallness.

Practice Exercises

Now that we have learned about adjectives in Twi, let's practice by using them in context:

1. Translate the following sentences to Twi:

• The tall girl is running.
• The lemon is sour.
• The red car is fast.

2. Use the adjectives "awɔ" (big), "ano" (sweet), and "kyem" (good) to form their respective comparatives and superlatives.

3. Translate the following dialogue to Twi:

• Person 1: That shirt is beautiful. (W'apɛ sika ho yɛ ɔdɔɔfoɔ.)
• Person 2: I know, I bought it from the market. (Menim.)

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