Word order
1.
Following
are the normal word order patterns in Gujarati.
a.
Adjective
+ Noun
Examples:
1.
saro 2okro
‘a good boy.’
2.
sarI 2okrI
‘a good girl.’
3.
saru& 2okru&
‘a good child.’
b.
Possessive
constructions
In possessive constructions, there is a possessor +
possessee word order. Moreover, the possessor takes a genitive case -n\. Examples:
1.
rmano 2okro
‘Rama’s son.’
2.
rmanI 2okrI
‘Rama’s daughter.’
3.
rmanu& 2okru&
‘Rama’s child.’
The
postposition phrases have noun + postposition structure. In many cases, the
nouns take case markers. Examples:
1.
4ebl wpr / 4eblnI wpr
‘On the table.’
2.
za6 nIce / za6nI nIce
‘Under the tree.’
3.
3rnI A&dr
‘In the house.’
A
quick comparison of the structure of Gujarati postposition phrase with the
structure of English preposition phrase will be helpful. Consider the
following:
|
4ebl wpr ‘on the table’ |
a.
Verb
+ auxiliary
Auxiliary verb always follows the main verb.
Examples:
1.
rma W&3e 2e.
‘Rama is sleeping.’
2. lIla kerI kaptI htI.
‘Lila was cutting a mango.’
|
Notice the difference between English and Gujarati: rma W&3e 2e. ‘Rama is sleeping.’ |
b.
Subject + Predicate
Predicate could be a noun or an adjective or an
adjective + noun. Examples:
1.
rme= i=xk 2e.
‘Ramesh is a teacher.’
2.
rma de`av6I 2e.
‘Rama is beautiful.’
3.
rma de`av6I 2okrI 2e.
‘Rama is a beautiful girl.’
c.
Subject + Intransitive verb
1.
nyna hse 2e.
‘Nayna is laughing.’
2.
inleq hSyo.
‘Nilesh laughed.’
3.
kml hsto hto.
‘Kamal was laughing.’
d.
Subject + Transitive verb
Main verb follows the object. Examples:
1.
hu& keXu& `aw& 2u&.
‘I am eating a banana.’
2.
mInaAe keXu& `a0u&.
‘Mina ate a banana.’
3.
mnhr keXu& `ato hto.
‘Manahar was eating a
banana.’
|
Notice the difference between English and Gujarati: mnhr keXu& `ato hto. ‘Manahar was
eating a banana.’ |
e.
Subject + Ditransitive verb
1.
rmaAe kmlne cop6I AapI.
‘Rama gave a book to Kamal.’
2.
mInle nynne m&idr btaVyu&.
‘Minal showed a temple to Nayan.’
3.
ivmle nynne cop6I moklI.
‘Vimal sent a book to Nayan.’
|
Comparison with English sentences: a. rmaAe
kmlne cop6I AapI. ‘Rama gave
a book to Kamal.’ b. rmaAe
kmlne cop6I AapI. ‘Rama gave
Kamal a
book.’ |