Language/Central-khmer/Grammar/Pronouns

Central Khmer Grammar - Pronouns

Hi Central Khmer learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will learn about Central Khmer pronouns, which are words that replace nouns. They help us avoid repetition and make sentences sound more natural. Pronouns are used in daily conversation, writing, and formal speeches. They are essential in any language for fluent communication.

Don't miss the chance to check out these pages as you wrap up this lesson: Describing Actions and States & How to Use Be.

Personal Pronouns

Personal pronouns show who is speaking (first person), who is being spoken to (second person), and who is being spoken about (third person). In Central Khmer, personal pronouns change depending on the gender and the level of formality used. Let's look at some examples:

Central Khmer	Pronunciation	English
ខ្ញុំ (khnhom)	knyom	I/me
អ្នក (anak)	neak	you (singular)
អ្វីដែល (avday)	avdai	he/him, she/her/it
យើង (yerng)	yuong	we/us (including the person addressed)
អ្នកយើង (anak yerng)	neak yuong	you (plural, including the person addressed)
ពុំពេច (pom pheak)	pom peak	they/them (male/mixed gender)
ពុំមានខ្លះ (pom mean klae)	pom men klach	they/them (female)

Dialogue:

• Person 1: ខ្ញុំ ចង់ដឹកនាំអ្នក។ (Knhom jong doch neak.) (I want to guide you.)
• Person 2: អរគុណកូណាមិនឲ្យខ្ញុំបាន។ (Arakun kun mean yu knhom ban.) (Thank you, but I can't let you.)

As you can see, the personal pronoun "អ្នក (neak)" changes depending on the social status and relationship between speaker and listener. You can use it for both singular and plural, instead of "អ្នកសម្រាប់អ្នកយើង (neak somrab kang neak yuong)." This is useful when you're not sure whether to use formal or informal language.

Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns indicate who owns something or has a relationship to something. They are often used to avoid repetition, but also to avoid ambiguity. The most common Central Khmer possessive pronouns are:

Central Khmer	Pronunciation	English
ខ្ញុំ (khnhom)	knyom	my/mine
របស់អ្នក (robos neak)	roba neak	your(s) (singular)
របស់គាត់ (robos kat)	roba kat	his/hers/its
របស់យើង (robos yerng)	roba yuong	our(s)
របស់អ្នកយើង (robos neak yerng)	roba neak yuong	your(s) (plural)
របស់ពុំពេច (robos pom peak)	roba pom peak	their(s) (male/mixed gender)
របស់ពុំមានខ្លះ (robos pom mean klae)	roba pom men klach	their(s) (female)

Dialogue:

• Person 1: ផ្ទះរបស់ខ្ញុំមានប្រអប់ឈ្មោះថ្មី។ (Pthas robos khnhom mean prabab chhom tmey.) (My house has a new room.)
• Person 2: ហេតុនេះរបស់យើងមិនបានមើលទេ។ (Heur ney, robos yuong men ban meul te.) (That's why we haven't seen it.)

Reflexive Pronouns

Reflexive pronouns refer to the subject of a sentence and can be used to show actions that you do to yourself. In Central Khmer, reflexive pronouns use the word "ឯង (eang)" and are added to personal pronouns. Here are some examples:

Central Khmer	Pronunciation	English
ខ្ញុំឯង (khnhom eang)	knyom oong	myself
អ្នកឯង (anak eang)	neak oong	yourself (singular)
គាត់ឯង (kat eang)	kat oong	himself/herself/itself
យើងឯង (yerng eang)	yuong oong	ourselves (including the person addressed)
អ្នកយើងឯង (anak yerng eang)	neak yuong oong	yourselves (plural, including the person addressed)
ពុំពេចឯង (pom pheak eang)	pom peak oong	themselves (male/mixed gender)
ពុំមានខ្លះឯង (pom mean klae eang)	pom men klach oong	themselves (female)

Dialogue:

• Person 1: ខ្ញុំឯងចូលគ្រប់ប្រភេទបាន។ (Knhom oong chol kraporpert ban.) (I can adapt myself to any situation.)
• Person 2: តើអ្នកឯងអត់ធ្វើអំពើទេ? (Tov neak oong at tver ampuh te?) (Haven't you regretted it?)

Demonstrative Pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns are used to point out something or someone. They distinguish between what is near (this/these) and what is far (that/those). In Central Khmer, they use the words "នេះ (neyh)" and "នោះ (noh)" respectively. Here are some examples:

Central Khmer	Pronunciation	English
នេះ (neyh)	ney	this/these
នោះ (noh)	noh	that/those
វាទៅនេះ (vathav neyh)	vathao ney	here
វាទៅនោះ (vathav noh)	vathao noh	there
នេះដល់អ្នកមានខ្លី។ (Neyh dol neak men kley.)	Ney dal neak men klai.	Give this to your sister.
មានអ្វីដែលចង់លើស់នោះមែនទេ? (Men avday jong laos noh meun te?)	Men avdai jong les noh mean te?	Do you want anything on that side?

Indefinite Pronouns

Indefinite pronouns refer to people or things in general, without specifying who or what. They are often used when you don't know or don't need to know the identity of the subject. In Central Khmer, indefinite pronouns use the words "មិនមាន (men mean)" and "មាន (men)" for negative and positive forms respectively. Here are some examples:

Central Khmer	Pronunciation	English
មិនមានអ្វីទេ (men mean avy te)	men mean avey te	Nothing/no one
មានអ្វីគ្រប់គ្នា (men avey krapnae)	men avei krabnae	Anything/everything
មានម្នាស់មិនកូវហើយ (men mnas mean kou hey)	men mnas mean kou hey	Someone/maybe someone

Dialogue:

• Person 1: តើលោកអាចជួយខ្ញុំបានទេ? (Dar lok ach joo-ee knyom baan te?) (Can you help me read this?)
• Person 2: ខ្ញុំមិនអាចជួយលោកនោះបានទេ។ (Knhom men aoch chea lok noh ban te.) (I can't help that person.)

Interrogative Pronouns

Interrogative pronouns start questions and help us get information about people or things we don't know. They are often used to start a conversation or clarify something. In Central Khmer, interrogative pronouns use the word "អ្វី (avy)" for general questions and "តើ (tov)" for yes/no questions. Here are some examples:

Central Khmer	Pronunciation	English
អ្វី (avy)	avey	What?/Which?
នាង (neang)	neng	Who?
តើ...ដែរឬទេ? (tov...daiy koch tey?)	tov...day arng tie?	Is...?

Dialogue:

• Person 1: អ្វីផ្សារមិនលឿនទេ? (Avey psar men l'uen te?) (What market isn't fast?)
• Person 2: សូមជួយខ្ញុំលោកស្រីនាងមានអ្វីបាន? (Somchou aoch knhom lok srey neang men avey baan?) (Can you help me, sir, what does that lady have?)

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

Sources

• Khmer Language
• Cambodian Pronouns
• Possessive Pronoun
• Indefinite Pronouns

Other Lessons

• How to Use Be
• Gender
• Adjectives
• Plurals
• Negation
• How to Use Have
• Questions
• Give your Opinion
• Conditional Mood