n-

See also: Appendix:Variations of "n"

Languages (33)

Translingual • English

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Abenaki • Ahtna • Albanian • Aromanian • Bemba • Bende • Big Nambas • Chichewa • Classical Nahuatl • Dena'ina • Digo • Dutch • Egyptian • Emilian • French • Kamba • Maltese • Mbukushu • Navajo • Neapolitan • Ojibwe • Old Irish • Sundanese • Swahili • Tooro • Tumbuka • Unami • Wailaki • Yao • Ye'kwana • Zulu

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Page categories

Translingual

Prefix

n-

1. (SI prefix) Abbreviation of English nano-

English

Etymology 1

Abbreviation of number. Borrowed from German n-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛn-/, /ˌɛn-/

Prefix

n-

1. (mathematics, sciences, logic) Indicating an arbitrary number of elements.

Usage notes

• Italicised in formal use.
• May be used in place of a numeral (e.g. n-simplex, from 5-simplex, 6-simplex etc.) or a Greco-Latin prefix (e.g. n-hedron, from tetrahedron, octahedron etc.).

Derived terms

English terms prefixed with n- (number)

n-dimensional

n-omino

Etymology 2

Abbreviation of normal.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌɛn-/

Prefix

n-

1. (organic chemistry) The normal-form of a functional group (or molecule), being the long-chain form (the unbranched chain).

   Coordinate terms: (secondary form) s-, (tertiary form) t-

Usage notes

• Italicised in formal use.

Derived terms

English terms prefixed with n- (normal)

n-butane

n-decane

n-heptane

n-hexane

n-nonane

n-octane

n-pentane

n-propanol

• n-butyl-

Translations

normal-form of a functional group (or molecule), being the long-chain form (unbranched chain)

• French: n- (fr)

See also

• N-
• iso- (isomeric form)
• cyclo- (cyclic form)

Abenaki

Alternative forms

• n'

Etymology

Related to nia (“I, me”).

Prefix

n-

1. (prefixed to nouns, used before consonants) my
2. (prefixed to verbs, used before consonants) I
3. (prefixed to verbs, used before consonants) I (exclusive we)

Coordinate terms

• nd- (used before vowels)

Ahtna

Etymology 1

Compare nen (“you”), from *ŋʸən

Prefix

n-

1. marks a second person singular possessor; you

   ‎n- + ‎-taʼ (“father”) → ‎ntaʼ (“your father”)

2. marks a second person singular object of a postposition

   ‎n- + ‎-kʼe (“on”) → ‎nkʼe (“on you”)

See also

Ahtna possessive/prepositional object prefixes

	singular	plural
1st person	s-	ne-
2nd person	ne-	nhw-
3rd person	b-, y-	ku-, hw-
Reflexive	de-	hde-
Indefinite	cʼe-
Areal (postpositional only)	ko-
Reciprocal	nił-

References

• Kari, James (1990), Ahtna Athabaskan Dictionary, Fairbanks, Alaska: Alaska Native Language Center, →ISBN, page 35

Etymology 2

Compare Navajo ni- (round object).

Prefix

n-

1. A qualifier suffix with a number of meanings:
   2. Marks the n-gender containing roundish or rope-like objects and liquids
   3. Appears in compound nouns that are rounded or rope-like
   4. assume a position
   5. flying
   6. following
   7. Appears in many verbs with no clear function

Usage notes

• When used as a gender prefix, appears on verbs to mark agreement with n-gender nouns.
• Appears as ne- before a consonant

Derived terms

Ahtna terms prefixed with n- (gender)

nezʼaan

See also

• d-

References

• Kari, James (1990), Ahtna Athabaskan Dictionary, Fairbanks, Alaska: Alaska Native Language Center, →ISBN, pages 285-86

Albanian

Alternative forms

• ën- — Buzuku
• m- — before labials

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *h₁én (“in”).

Prefix

n-

1. intensive prefix. on, to, at

Derived terms

Albanian terms prefixed with n-

ndaj

ndal

ndalje

mbratë

ngordh

mbjell

mbloj

mpreh

mbres

Aromanian

Prefix

n-

1. alternative form of ãn-

Bemba

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *ǹ- (“Class 9 & 10 noun prefix”).

Prefix

n-

1. Class 9 noun prefix.
2. Class 10 noun prefix.

References

• Reverend E. Hoch (1998), Bemba - English/English - Bemba‎^[2], Hippocrene Books, pages 212-213

Bende

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *ǹ-

Prefix

n-

1. Class 9 noun prefix.
2. Class 10 noun prefix.

References

• Yuko Abe (2006), A Bende Vocabulary‎^[3], Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa, page v

Big Nambas

Alternative forms

• na-

Etymology

From Proto-Oceanic *na.

Article

n-

1. The noun article. Added to nouns and verb stems to affirm nominal use. Has an element of definiteness. Also used in derivation.

Usage notes

This form used before vowels. Before consonants, the form na- is used.

References

• Big Nambas Grammar Pacific Linguistics - G.J. Fox

Chichewa

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *ǹ-

Prefix

n-

1. Class 9 noun prefix.
2. Class 10 noun prefix.

Classical Nahuatl

Variant of ni- before vowels

Dena'ina

Alternative forms

• i-

Etymology

Compare Ahtna ne-, Navajo ni-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /n/

Prefix

n-

1. Marks a second person singular verbal subject; you

   ‎n- + ‎chegh (“to cry”) → ‎nchegh (“you are crying”)

Usage notes

• Used word-initially or immediately after a disjunct prefix with the shape CV. i- is used otherwise.

See also

Dena'ina verbal subject prefixes

	singular	plural
1st person	esh-	chʼe-
2nd person	n-, i-	eh-
3rd person	∅-	qe-
Non-human	ye-
Indefinite human	qe-
Indefinite non-human	kʼe-
Unknown	chʼe-
Areal/temporal/abstract	qe-

References

• Tenenbaum, Joan Marsha (1978), Morphology and Semantics of the Tanaina Verb, Columbia University, page 60

Digo

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *ǹ- (“Class 9 & 10 noun prefix”).

Prefix

n-

1. Class 9 noun prefix.
2. Class 10 noun prefix.

References

• Joseph Mwalonya, Alison Nicolle, Steve Nicolle, Juma Zimbu, Mgombato. Digo-English-Swahili Dictionary (2005), page 208

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch ne, en, from Old Dutch ne, from Proto-Germanic *ne.

Prefix

n-

1. Used to negate the pronoun or adverb which follows it, yielding the same part of speech

Derived terms

Dutch terms prefixed with n-

nergens

nie

niemand

niets

niewers

nimmer

nooit

Egyptian

Prefix

1. forms intransitive or reflexive verbs from existing verbs

Derived terms

Egyptian terms prefixed with n-

nḥḏt

nẖnm

nqdd

nkt

nḏdnḏd

nḏdḏd

Prefix

1. alternative form of m- (noun-forming prefix) before labial consonants

References

• Satzinger, Helmut (2017) “A Lexicon of Egyptian Lexical Roots (Project)” in Quaderni di Vicino Oriente, volume 12, pages 213–223

Emilian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /n/

Pronoun

n- (adverbial)

1. (before a vowel) alternative form of in

   A-g n-ò dimándi. ― I have a lot (of them).

French

Etymology

Abbreviation of normale.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɛn/

Prefix

n-

1. (organic chemistry) n-; (normal-form)

Derived terms

French terms prefixed with n-

n-butane

Kamba

Alternative forms

• ni-

Prefix

n-

1. I (used for conjugating verbs to the subjective or nominative case of the personal pronoun)

Maltese

Etymology 1

From Arabic نَ (na, first-person plural imperfect prefix). The use also for the first-person singular is found in Maghrebi Arabic dialects.

Alternative forms

• na-, ne-, ni-, no- (depending on syllable structure)

Prefix

n-

1. First-person prefix in the imperfect conjugation

   ‎n- + ‎kiteb (“he wrote”) → ‎nikteb (“I write”)

Etymology 2

Article

n-

1. alternative form of il-

Usage notes

• Used after a vowel and before the letter n. For details on usage, see the main lemma.

Mbukushu

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *ǹ- (“Class 9 & 10 noun prefix”).

Prefix

n-

1. Class 9 noun prefix
2. Class 10 noun prefix

References

• R.C.Wynne (1980), English-Mbukushu Dictionary‎^[4], Avebury Publishing Company Limited, page xviii

Navajo

Prefix

n-

1. marks a second person singular direct object.

See also

• ni- (second person singular subject)

Neapolitan

Alternative forms

• m-, l- (from assimilation to following consonants)

Etymology

Inherited from Latin in-.

Prefix

n-

1. in

Derived terms

Neapolitan terms prefixed with n-

nchiudere

nfocare

nzerrare

Ojibwe

Prefix

n-

1. alternative form of ni-

Usage notes

n- appears before stems that begin with the vowels oo and ii.

See also

Ojibwe personal prefixes

		stem begins with...	1st person	2nd person	3rd person
consonants		p t k h ch m n s sh w y	ni-	gi-	o-
		d g ' j z zh	nin-
		b	nim-
vowels		o	nindo-	gido-	odo-
		a aa e i	nind-	gid-	od-
		oo	n-	g-
		ii			w-

Old Irish

Prefix

n- (class A infixed pronoun)

1. us

Derived terms

Old Irish terms prefixed with n-

cininfil

immuncúalammar

nímunaccammar

nínfortéit

níntá

nonsamlafammar

toncomrit

See also

Old Irish affixed pronouns

See Appendix:Old Irish affixed pronouns for details on how these forms are used. Note that the so-called “infixed” pronouns are technically prefixes, but they are never the first prefix in a verbal complex.
person	infixed			suffixed
	class A	class B	class C
1 sg	m-L	dom-L, dam-L		-um
2 sg	t-L	dot-L, dat-L, dut-L, dit-L		-ut
3 sg m	a-N, e-N	d-N	id-N, did-N, d-N	-i, -it
3 sg f	s-(N)	da-		-us
3 sg n	a-L, e-L	d-L	id-L, did-L, d-L	-i, -it
1 pl	n-	don-, dun-, dan-		-unn
2 pl	b-	dob-, dub-, dab-		-uib
3 pl	s-(N)	da-		-us

^L means this form triggers lenition.
^N means this form triggers nasalization (eclipsis)
^(N) means this form triggers nasalization in some texts but not in others.

Prefix

n- (class B & C infixed pronoun)

1. alternative form of d-

Sundanese

Etymology

Ultimately from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *maN-. Compare Javanese nge-.

Prefix

n-

1. active verb-forming prefix

   ‎n- + ‎aji (“scripture”) → ‎ngaji (“to read the Quran”)

   ‎n- + ‎bor (“drill”) → ‎ngebor (“to drill”)

   ‎n- + ‎carita (“story”) → ‎nyarita (“to tell a story”)

   ‎n- + ‎dangu (“to hear”) → ‎ngadangu (“to hear”)

   ‎n- + ‎galeuh (“liver; heart; to buy”) → ‎ngagaleuh (“to buy”)

   ‎n- + ‎haleuang (“melody”) → ‎ngahaleuang (“to sing in a loud manner”)

   ‎n- + ‎inum (“to drink”) → ‎nginum (“to drink”)

   ‎n- + ‎jungjung (“to carry on the head”) → ‎ngajungjung (“to carry on the head; to hold high regards”)

   ‎n- + ‎kidul (“south”) → ‎ngidul (“to go southward”)

   ‎n- + ‎layung (“afterglow”) → ‎ngalayung (“to go out/do activities in the afternoon”)

   ‎n- + ‎mumulé (“to nurse; take care”) → ‎ngamumulé (“to nurse; to take care”)

   ‎n- + ‎nuhun (“thanks”) → ‎nganuhunkeun (“to give thanks”)

   ‎n- + ‎peunteun (“grade, mark”) → ‎meunteun (“to grade”)

   ‎n- + ‎sangu (“rice”) → ‎nyangu (“to cook rice”)

   ‎n- + ‎ubar (“medicine”) → ‎ngubaran (“to cure”)

2. adjective-forming prefix

   ‎n- + ‎kedul (“lazy”) → ‎ngedul (“lazy”)

   ‎n- + ‎perenah (“related; place”) → ‎merenah (“appropriate”)

Usage notes

N- behaves differently depending upon the initial phoneme of the root it is applied to.

• initial consonants p (in some cases b) turns it into m-
• initial consonants t turns it into n-
• initial consonants k, w, and vowel-initial roots turns it into ng-
• initial consonants b, d, g, h, j, l, m, n, w, y turns it into nga-
• initial consonants c, s turns it into ny-
• one syllable word turns it into nge-

References

• "n-" in Maman Sumantri; Atjep Djamaludin; Achmad Patoni; R.H. Moch. Koerdie; M.O. Koesman; Epa Sjafei Adisastra. (1985), Kamus Sunda-Indonesia [Sundanese-Indonesian Dictionary] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Department of Education and Culture of the Republic of Indonesia

Swahili

Etymology 1

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *ǹ-.

Alternative forms

• (before a vowel) ny-
• (before labial consonants) m-

Prefix

n- (plural n-)

1. n class_(IX/X) noun prefix and adjective agreement prefix, denoting animals and miscellaneous nouns as well as their plurals, and plurals of some u class_(XI) nouns

   nguo nzuri ― a nice piece of cloth/nice clothes

   ‎ulimi (“tongue”) → ‎ndimi (“tongues”)

Usage notes

Foreign borrowings that cannot fit other classes morphologically usually behave as n class_(IX), but do not take this prefix.

Except for nouns where the stem is of one syllable, n can only be followed by g, d, j, y, and z in Swahili. As a result of this, when the stem starts with a vowel, n- changes to ny-, when it starts with a b or v it changes to m-, and *nw-, *nl-, and *nr- becomes mb-, nd-, and nd- respectively. In front of any stems where these rules cannot be applied, it disappears.

See also

• Appendix:Swahili noun classes

Etymology 2

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *ǹ-.

Alternative forms

• n'-

Prefix

n-

1. (Kimvita, colloquial) alternative form of ni-
   • 1973, Mohammed S. Abdulla, Duniani kuna watu, page 5:

     "Na kwa nini n'sirejee," aliuliza mzee.

     "And why wouldn't I go back [to it]?" the old man asked.

   • 2022, Timothy Theodosy Chelula, Instagram‎^[5]:

     Kuna siku nlikua na drive huu wimbo ukaenda hewani nkajikuta natokwa machozi 🥲na nsijue wanachoimba .

     One day I was driving, this song went on air, and I found myself in tears 🥲 and I didn't know what they were singing.

See also

Swahili personal pronouns (m-wa class_(I/II))

	person	independent	subject concord		object concord	combined forms			possessive
			affirmative	negative		na	ndi-	si-
singular	first	mimi	ni-	si-	-ni-	nami, na mimi	ndimi, ndiye	simi, siye	-angu
	second	wewe	u-	hu-	-ku-	nawe, na wewe	ndiwe, ndiye	siwe, siye	-ako
	third	yeye	a-, yu-	ha-, hayu-	-m-, -mw-, -mu-	naye, na yeye	ndiye	siye	-ake
plural	first	sisi	tu-	hatu-	-tu-	nasi, na sisi	ndisi, ndio	sio	-etu
	second	ninyi	m-, mw-, mu-	ham-, hamw-, hamu-	-wa-	nanyi, na ninyi	ndinyi, ndio	sinyi, sio	-enu
	third	wao	wa-	hawa-	-wa-	nao	ndio	sio	-ao
reflexive		—	—		-ji-	—			—

For a full table including other classes, see Appendix:Swahili personal pronouns.

Tooro

Alternative forms

• (before /β/, /m/, /h/ or /p/) m-
• (before a vowel) ny-

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *ǹ-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /n̩-/, (after /ɡ/ or /k/) [ŋ̩-], (after a vowel) /n-/

Prefix

n-

1. I, 1st person singular subject concord

   ‎n- + ‎-kora (“to do”) → ‎nkora (“I do”)

2. positive imperative form of -n- (“me; 1st person singular object concord”)

   ‎n- + ‎-ha (“to give”) → ‎mpa (“give me”)

See also

Tooro personal pronouns

class	person	independent	possessive	subject concord	object concord	combined forms
						na	ni
class 1	first	nyowe, nye	-ange	n-	-n-	nanyowe, nanye	ninyowe, ninye
	second	iwe	-awe	o-	-ku-	naiwe	niiwe
	third	uwe	-e	a-	-mu-	nawe	nuwe
class 2	first	itwe	-aitu	tu-	-tu-	naitwe	niitwe
	second	inywe	-anyu	mu-	-ba-	nainywe	niinywe
	third	bo	-abo	ba-	-ba-	nabo	nubo
class 3		gwo	-agwo	gu-	-gu-	nagwo	nugwo
class 4		yo	-ayo	e-	-gi-	nayo	niyo
class 5		lyo	-alyo	li-	-li-	nalyo	niryo
class 6		go	-ago	ga-	-ga-	nago	nugo
class 7		kyo	-akyo	ki-	-ki-	nakyo	nikyo
class 8		byo	-abyo	bi-	-bi-	nabyo	nibyo
class 9		yo	-ayo	e-	-gi-	nayo	niyo
class 10		zo	-azo	zi-	-zi-	nazo	nizo
class 11		rwo	-arwo	ru-	-ru-	narwo	nurwo
class 12		ko	-ako	ka-	-ka-	nako	nuko
class 13		two	-atwo	tu-	-tu-	natwo	nutwo
class 14		bwo	-abwo	bu-	-bu-	nabwo	nubwo
class 15		kwo	-akwo	ku-	-ku-	nakwo	nukwo
class 16		ho	-aho	ha-	-ha-	naho	nuho
class 17		(kwo)	N/A	ha- (...-yo)	-ha-	N/A	nukwo
class 18		(mwo)	-amwo	ha- (...-mu)	-ha-	N/A	numwo
reflexive		-enyini, -onyini	—		-e-	—

References

• Kaji, Shigeki (2007), A Rutooro Vocabulary‎^[6], Tokyo: Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA), →ISBN, page 413

Tumbuka

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *ǹ-

Prefix

n-

1. Class 9 noun prefix.
2. Class 10 noun prefix.

Unami

Prefix

n-

1. I, me, my. (Forms the first person.)

   ‎n- (“I”) + ‎-t- (masculine personal) + ‎-àpi (“be here”) → ‎ntàpi (“I am here”)

Wailaki

Etymology

From Proto-Athabaskan. Cognate with Navajo ni-, Ahtna ne-.

Prefix

n-

1. Marks a second person singular verbal subject.

   kʼenłit (kʼe-n-łit)

   you burn it

Related terms

Subject prefixes

	singular	plural
1st person	sh-, i-	di-
2nd person	n-	oh-
3rd person	∅-
3rd person obviate	yi-
Indefinite	chʼi-, ʼ-
Areal	ki-

References

• Begay, Kayla Rae (2017), Wailaki Grammar, University of California, Berkeley, page 166

Yao

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *ǹ- (“1st person subject concord”).

Prefix

n-

1. Class 1 subject concord, especially before consonants.

References

• Rev. Alexander Hetherwick, M.A., F.R.G.S. (1902), A Handbook of the Yao Language‎^[7], Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, page 32
• Meredith Sanderson, M.R.C.S., F.R.G.S., F.R.A.I. (1922), A Yao Grammar‎^[8], Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, page 36

Ye'kwana

Etymology 1

Cognate to prefixes analyzed as object nominalizers, switching nominalized forms from nouns of action to nouns referring to the patient argument. The Caura River form has a rather different scope of use.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ŋ-]

Prefix

n-

1. Marks that (person markers on) a derivation from a transitive verb refer to the agent argument of the verb rather than the patient argument; used with verbs adverbialized with -e or nominalized with -dü or -'jüdü.

Usage notes

This prefix comes between the person marker and the verb stem.

Etymology 2

Alternative forms

• ni- (allomorph before a consonant)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ŋ-]

Prefix

n-

1. Marks a nonderived transitive verb as having a third-person agent/subject and patient/object.
2. Marks a nonderived intransitive verb with agent-like or patient-like argument as having a third-person argument/subject.

Usage notes

The form n- is used with stems that start with a vowel; ni- is used with those that start with a consonant, in which case the initial consonant is also palatalized.

This person marker is used with all types of verbs when marked with originally nonderived tense/aspect/mood markers, excepting only the admonitive -'no and prohibitive -i negative command suffixes and the uncertain future marker -tai, which require the transcategorical third person marker y-, and the distant past markers, which require the distance-specific person morpheme kün-.

Though in all other circumstances Ye'kwana third-person prefixes also cover the first person dual exclusive, this prefix is not used when the patient of a transitive verb is first-person-dual-exclusive.

Inflection

Ye'kwana personal markers

	pronoun	noun possessor/ series II verb argument		postposition object		series I verb argument
						transitive patient	intransitive patient-like		intransitive agent-like	transitive agent
first person	ewü	y-, ∅-, ü-, u-1						w-, wi-
first person dual inclusive	küwü	k-, kü-, ku-, ki-								k-, kii-, ki-1
second person	amödö	ö-, öy-/ödh-, o-, oy-/odh-, a-, ay-/adh-							m-, mi-
first person dual exclusive	nña	y-/dh-, ch-, ∅-, i-1			chö-	∅-	n-, ni-
third person	tüwü					n-, ni-
distant past third person		—				kün-, kun-, kin-, ken-, küm-, kum-, kim-, kini-
coreferential/reflexive	—	t-, tü-, tu-, ti-, te-				—
reciprocal	—	—	öö-
With following vowel lengthened if in an unreduced open syllable.

	series I verb argument: transitive agent and transitive patient
first person > second person	mön-, man-, mon-, möm-, möni-
first person dual exclusive > second person
second person > first person	k-, kü-, ku-, ki-
second person > first person dual exclusive
third person > any person X …or… any person X > third person	see person X in the chart above

References

• Cáceres, Natalia (2011), “n-”, in Grammaire Fonctionnelle-Typologique du Ye’kwana‎^[9], Lyon, pages 152, 182–184, 190–191, 200, 202–203

Zulu

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *n-.

Prefix

n-

1. Class 9 simple noun prefix.

Usage notes

The variant form m- is used before stems beginning with a labial consonant (b, f, m, p, v).