Meitei grammar

file:Semantic reduplication in Classical Meitei language word for "Tiger" - combination of words originated from Ningthouja & Khuman linguistic varieties.jpg|thumb|Semantic reduplication in Classical Meitei language word for "Tiger" - combination of words originated from Ningthouja & Khuman linguistic varieties
Meitei grammar, sometimes also known as Manipuri grammar, is the whole system and structure of Meitei language, consisting of syntax and morphology and also phonology and semantics.
The Meitei language clearly has characteristics of the Tibeto-Burman language group. These features include three types of velar nasal sounds, many words that sound the same, changes in the meaning of verbs, repeating or expanding words, final particles, a focus on aspect instead of tense, no gender marking, a verb-final sentence structure, and a system where verbs are formed by adding many suffixes and fewer prefixes.

Nouns

Case

The declension of nouns is very simple. The terminations are-

Number

The plural in the case of human beings is formed by adding "sing"/"shing" to the word and declining in the same manner as in the singular, as :-

mising, ꯃꯤꯁꯤꯡ - men.
Misinggi, ꯃꯤꯁꯤꯡꯒꯤ - of men, etc.

There is no plural form for animals and other things. "Kheibik" and "pumnamak", all, or "yamna", many, are used to indicate plurality.

Gender

Gender, in the case of animals, is indicated by the addition of "laba" for the masculine and "amom" for the feminine, as :--

Sagol laba, ꯁꯒꫭꯜ ꯂꯥꯕ- a stallion.
Sagol amom, ꯁꯒꫭꯜ ꯑꯃꫭꯝ - a mare.

In the case of human beings, gender is indicated by the addition of "nupa"/"nipa" and "nupi"/"nipi", but only when the same word is used for both male and female, as:-

macha-nupa, ꯃꯆꯥꯅꯨꯄꯥ - a son.
macha-nupi, ꯃꯆꯥꯅꯨꯄꯤ - a daughter.

Pronouns

The personal pronouns are :

"ai"/"ei" or "eihak" - I,
"nang" or "nahak" - thou/you,
"ma" or "mahak" - he/she/it.

The form ending in "hak" is honorific. The plural is formed by adding "khoi" to the singular non-honorific form. Pronouns are declined in the same way, as "mi", a man.

Singular

Case	First person pronouns	Second person pronouns	Third person pronouns
Nominative case	eina	nangna	mâna
Genitive case	eigi	nanggi	magi
Dative case	eingonda	nangonda	mângonda
Accusative case	eibu	nangbu	mâbu.
Ablative case	eigondagi	nangondagi	mangondagi.

Plural

Case	First person pronouns	Second person pronouns	Third person pronouns
Nominative case	eikhoi	nakhoi	mâkhoi.
Genitive case	eikhoigi	nakhoigi	mâkhoigi.

Demonstrative pronouns

The demonstrative pronouns are

asi, or masi - this.
adu, or madu - that.

"Asi" is also used in the same sense as "adu".

Interrogative pronouns

The interrogative pronouns are

kana or kanano - who?
kadai - what?

Relative pronouns

Relative pronouns are not used. A verbal participle with "asi" or "adu" is used in the place of relative pronouns, as:
The man who came yesterday leaves to-day = "ngarang lakpa mi adu ngasi chatkani."

Adjectives

All adjectives end in "ba", and an initial "a" may always be prefixed without altering the meaning, as:-

Good - aphaba, or phaba.
Large - achauba, or chauba.

Adjectives can be declined like verbs, as :-
It was very good "masi yamna phare," where "phaba" has been changed into "phare" to give the word a past meaning. "Ba" is changed into "bi" in the feminine. Adjectives have no plural form.

Verbs

The conjugation of the Meitei verb is very complex. According to Arthur John Primrose, no language has such a variety of tense forms to express present, past, or future action as found in Meitei language. Most of the varieties have distinct meanings of their own. Every verb has also a negative and interrogative form conjugated in all tenses except the interrogative future like the simple verb. The Meitei linguistic system divides the verb into present, past, and future tenses. They also have an imperative tense form under the present tense forms they classify what in English grammar is called the perfect tense. There are no less than eight different present tense forms with corresponding forms for the past and future tenses.
There is no difference in the terminations of a tense, singular or plural, for the first, second, and third persons except in the imperative, which is irregular.
The subjunctive mood is expressed by a participle ending in "labadi" or "rabadi". The "labadi" is used when the verb root ends in a consonant, "rabadi" when the root ends in vowel.
The rule for the interchange of "l" and "r" is also observed in other tenses, "r" is always used after a vowel, "l" after a consonant.

Participles

The present participle ends in "duna" as:-

Touduna - doing.

The past participle ends in "khiduna" or "luduna", as:-

Chatkhiduna - having gone.
Touruduna - having done.

The future participle ends in "laga" or "raga" as "chatlaga," "touraga."
The participle ending in "lingaida" or "ringaida" means at the time of doing a thing, as "when I was going there I saw him" = "aina asida chatlingaida maboo aina uram-mi."
The participle in "kadabagi" or "nanaba" is used to express a purpose, as, "you make preparations to go" = "nang chatna-naba thourang tou."
Participle in "ringaida" or "lingaida" - at the time of doing a thing.

At the time of doing - tou-ringaida
At the time of going - chat-lingaida.

Participle in "gadabagi" or "nanaba" - in order to do a thing.

I am arranging to do it - ei tou-gadabagi thourang touri
I am arranging to go - ei chat-kadabagi thourang touri.

Participle in "rabadi" or "labadi" - if I do a thing.

If you do it - tou-rabadi
I shall go - eina chat-kani
If I go - eina chat-labadi
I will tell him - eina mangonda haigani

Participle in "banina" or "panina" - because.

Because I did it he is pleased - eina toura-banina ma nungaire.
Because I went he was angry - eina chat-panina ma saore.

Participle in "gadaba" - must do a thing.
Verbal noun in "bani" or "pani".

The man who does - tou-bani.
The man who goes - chat-pani.
The man who did - tou-khrabani.
The man who went - chat-kadabani
The man who shall do - tou-gadabani.
The man who shall go - chat-kadabani.

These verbal nouns can be used in the different tense forms, but the three forms given above are in general use, the other forms are rarely used.
In sentences such as the following: "the work which is being done is good," "the work which has been done is good," the passive tense forms are expressed by participle forms preceding the noun to which they are related, as,

the work which is being done is good - "touriba thabak adu fei;"
"the work which has been done is good" - "toukhriba thabak adu fei."

After words like "kari", "karam", and other interrogative adverbs, a form is used ending in "page" or "bage", for example,

"what are you doing?" - "nang kari touriage?"
"How did you go?" - "nang karam chat-lubage?"

Negative and Interrogative forms

Each of the eight forms for the present and past tenses have corresponding negative and interrogative forms. There is only one future negative and interrogative form. It is unnecessary to give all the different negative and interrogative forms for the present and past tenses as only two or three forms are in general use. The conjugation of the verbs "touba" and "chatpa" in their negative and interrogative forms is given below:

Interrogative Conjugation

Present tense	Present tense
Toubra, toura-bra	chatlibra, chat-pra
chatloidra, chat-tabra	Toudabra, toudrabra
Past tense	Past tense
Tourabra, tou-rambra	chatlurabra, chat-lambra.
Tourudabra, touramdra	chatludra, chatlamdra.
Future tense	Future tense
Tougera, Tougadra	chat-kera, chat-kadra