55 Nominalizing Prefixes
Models
| 1) | ĆȺ SEN. | ‘I work.’ | NE SĆȺ | ‘my job’ |
| 2) | HELI SEN. | ‘I am alive.’ | NE SHELI | ‘my life’ |
| 3) | ĆÁ¸I¸ SEN. | ‘I am working.’ | NE QEȽĆÁ¸I¸ | ‘my co-worker’ |
| 4) | TSOS SEN. | ‘I am poor.’ | NE QEȽTSOS | ‘my fellow poor people’ |
| 5) | ĆÁ¸I¸ SEN. | ‘I am working.’ | NE ŚW̱ĆÁ¸I¸ | ‘my employee’ |
| 6) | O¸MET SEN. | ‘I am sitting.’ | NE ŚW̱¸O¸MET | ‘my bed’ |
| 7) | ĆȺ SEN. | ‘I work.’ | NEW̱SĆȺ | ‘worker’ |
| 8) | DILEM SEN. | ‘I sing.’ | NEW̱SDILEM | ‘singer’ |
‣ 1 Models 1 and 2 show the S‑ nominalizer. This is the most common and useful prefix in the SENĆOŦEN. It forms an important part of many constructions. §12.2, §12.5, §12.6, §14.1, §16.1, §21.1, §25.1, §29.1, §38.2, §46, §49, §51.2 have all made crucial reference to this S‑ nominalizer.
‣ 2 In SENĆOŦEN, it is ungrammatical to add a possessive prefix or suffix directly to a verb. For example, model 1 without the S‑, *NE ĆȺ, is completely wrong. To talk about someone’s work, you must add the S‑ prefix to get SĆȺ to make it a noun, then add the possessive prefix or suffix.
‣ 3 The S‑ prefix can be added to any verb, even a verb in the actual aspect (§42). ĆȺ is ‘work’ and the ‘actual aspect’ form is ĆÁ¸I ‘working.’ To refer to what I am working on, I can use NE SĆÁ¸I, which can be translated ‘my job,’ ‘my work,’ or ‘what I’m working on.’
‣ 4 The S‑ prefix has no meaning in itself. It just has the grammatical function of turning a verb or adjective into a noun so that a possessive prefix or suffix can be attached.
‣ 5 Not all nouns have the S‑ prefix, and not all words with it are built on verbs or adjectives. For example, SW͸ḴE¸ and SȽÁNI¸ ‘man’ and ‘woman’ have the prefix, but they are not built on verbs. W͸ḴE¸, without the S‑ is ‘baby boy’ and ȽÁNI¸ is ‘baby girl.’
‣ 6 There are many words with the S‑ noun prefix. Look at the SENĆOŦEN dictionary and you can see how common this prefix is. The ‘S’ section is the largest in the dictionary. Most, but not all, of those words have the S- prefix.
‣ 7 Models 3 and 4 show the QEȽ‑ prefix. This prefix turns a verb or adjective into a noun, but unlike the S‑ prefix, this one adds meaning. Add QEȽ‑ to a verb to get a noun referring to a group with shared interests.
‣ 8 The QEȽ‑ prefix is similar in meaning to the English ‘co-’ prefix, as model 3 shows. It is also translated as ‘fellow’ as in model 4. A third way it can be translated is with ‘‑kind’ as in QEȽSȽÁNI¸ ‘womankind’ or QEȽ¸EȽTÁLṈEW̱ ‘humankind.’ And a fourth way it can be translated is ‘with.’ Model 3, for example, could be translated ‘the one I’m working with.’
‣ 9 The ŚW̱- prefix, illustrated models 5 and 6, is also commonly pronounced Ś-, without the W̱. This prefix is a crucial part of several SENĆOŦEN constructions: §26.3, §38.1, §39.1, and §39.2. It would be a good idea to go to those sections now and review how the ŚW̱- prefix is used there.
‣ 10 The ŚW̱- prefix added to a verb or adjective creates a noun and can be translated ‘reason for,’ ‘thing for,’ or ‘person for.’ Although it is important in several grammatical constructions listed in point 9, it is also important in deriving new nouns. For example, the word CUC ‘cook’ is borrowed from English. Add the ŚW̱- prefix to get ŚW̱CUC ‘stove’—a ‘thing for cooking.’
‣ 11 Models 7 and 8 show the NEW̱S- prefix. This prefix added to a verb or adjective creates a noun referring to a person whose occupation or typical behavior is expressed in the verb.
 | EWENE NE QELĆȺ. | ‘I have nobody to work with.’ |
 | EWENE NE SĆȺ. | ‘I don’t have a job.’ |
| EN¸ SṮI¸ E Ȼ NE ŚW̱ĆÁ¸I¸? | ‘Do you want to be my employee?’ |
| QEȽĆȺ SEN SE¸. | ‘I will be your co-worker.’ |
| 55A. Use the SENĆOŦEN dictionary to find four words with the S- nominalizer, and use each in a sentence. 55B. Use the SENĆOŦEN dictionary to find four words with the QEȽ- nominalizer, and use each in a sentence. 55C. Use the SENĆOŦEN dictionary to find four words with the ŚW̱- nominalizer, and use each in a sentence. 55D. Use the SENĆOŦEN dictionary to find four words with the NEW̱S- nominalizer, and use each in a sentence. |