Zomi Grammar Essentials¶

Sentence Structure – Opposite of English¶

Zomi follows Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) order – the opposite of English (SVO).

English: Subject → Verb → Object (I love you) Zomi: Subject → Object → Verb (Kei'n nang ka it hi)

Examples¶

Subject        Object        Verb
Zeisu'n        mite          hong it hi
Jesus (subj.)  people        loves
→ "Jesus loves people"

Subject        Object        Verb
Kei'n          computer      ka zang hi
I              computer      use
→ "I use the computer"

The Agentive Marker `'n` / `in`¶

The subject is marked with 'n (or in). This tells you who is doing the action:

Subject	Agentive form	Meaning
`Zeisu`	`Zeisu'n`	Jesus (does)
`Topa`	`Topa'n`	Lord (does)
`Kei`	`Ke'n`	I (do)
`Amah`	`Amah'n`	He/she (does)
`Amaute`	`Amaute'n`	They (do)
`Mite`	`Mite'n`	People (do)

Without 'n, the noun is just the topic or object:

Zeisu mite hong it hi
→ "Jesus loves people" or "As for Jesus, people love him"
  (ambiguous – not clear who is doing the loving)

The Verb Final¶

All sentences end with a verb or hi:

Paai ding hi.     → Will go.
Om ta hi.         → Exists already.
Hoih lua hi.      → Very good.

hi at the end of a sentence is like a period – it closes the statement.

Tense and Aspect¶

Zomi doesn't mark tense on the verb the way English does. Instead, it uses particles:

Particle	Function	Example	Meaning
`ding`	future / intention	`ka paaiding`	I will go
`ta`	perfective / completed	`ka paai ta`	I went (already)
`khin`	perfect / done	`ka paai khin`	I have gone
`lai`	still / continuous	`ka paai lai`	I am still going
`zel`	habitual / always	`ka paai zel`	I always go

They can chain:

ka paai khin ta
I + go + done + already
→ "I have already gone"

Negation¶

To make a sentence negative, use lo or loh:

Positive	Negative
`ka thei hi` (I know)	`ka thei lo hi` (I don't know)
`ka ut hi` (I want)	`ka ut lo hi` (I don't want)
`om hi` (there is)	`om lo hi` (there isn't)

loh is the stronger form (emphatic "not at all"):

Ka thei loh hi. → I do NOT know (at all).

Plural¶

Plural is made with te, which merges to the preceding word:

Singular	Plural
`mi` (person)	`mite` (people)
`gam` (land)	`gamte` (lands)
`inn` (house)	`inn te` → `innte` (houses)
`amah` (he/she)	`amaute` (they)
`ka` (I)	`kote` (we, exclusive)
`nang` (you)	`note` (you all)
`i` (we)	`ite` (we all, inclusive)

teng is a separate word meaning "all of it / picking":

Mi teng → all of the people (not just plural)

Questions¶

To make a question, add hiam at the end:

Na paai ding hi hiam? → Will you go?
Na thei hiam?         → Do you know?

Question words go in the same position as the answer:

Kua'n hong pai hi? → Who came?
  → Zeisu'n hong pai hi. (Jesus came.)

Koiah na pai ding? → Where are you going?
  → Gamah ka pai ding. (I'm going to the country.)

Bang hang hiam? → Why?
  → Ka ut manin. (Because I want to.)

Connective `a`¶

The particle a connects a verb to another verb or to a modifier:

Hong pai a, hong it hi.
→ He came and loves (us).

Hoih a, manpha hi.
→ Good and precious.

This is like putting "and" between two verbs or adjectives.

Possession¶

Possession is shown with ' (apostrophe) or word order:

David'pa     → David's father
David'ta     → David's son
Topa' inn    → the Lord's house
Ama' gam     → his/her country

For natural possession (inherent), no marker is needed:

Topa khut → the Lord's hand (naturally belongs)
Ka luung  → my mind (naturally mine)

Word Order Summary¶

Element	Position	Example
Subject	first	`Zeisu'n`
Time	second	`tuni` (today)
Place	third	`gamah` (to the country)
Object	fourth	`thu` (word/news)
Verb	last	`gen hi` (tells)

Zeisu'n  tuni  gamah  thu  gen hi.
Jesus    today country word tells
→ "Today Jesus tells the news in the country."