Ladino/Grammar
Contents
Parts of Speech
Nouns
- kolor<n><f><sg> ↔ kolor (color)
- tokea<n><m><sg> ↔ tokea (blower of the ram's horn)
- kavané<n><f><sg> ↔ kavané (coffeehouse)
Adjectives
- manko<adj> ↔ manko (less)
- ralo<adj> ↔ ralo (rare)
- dolentío<adj> ↔ dolentío (sickly)
- doliente<adj><m> ↔ doliente (infirm)
- dolienta<adj><f> ↔ dolienta (infirm)
Pronouns
Subject pronouns:
- yo<prn><sg> ↔ yo (I)
- tu<prn><sg> ↔ tu (you)
- el<prn><sg><m> ↔ el (he)
- eya<prn><sg><f> ↔ eya (she)
- nozotros<prn><pl><m> ↔ nozotros (we (masc))
- nozotras<prn><pl><f> ↔ nozotras (we (fem))
or
- mozotros<prn><pl><m> ↔ mozotros (we (masc))
- mozotras<prn><pl><f> ↔ mozotras (we (fem))
or
- mozós<prn><pl><m> ↔ mozós (we (masc))
- mozás<prn><pl><f> ↔ mozás (we (fem))
- vozotros<prn><pl><m> ↔ vozotros (you pl(masc))
- vozotras<prn><pl><f> ↔ vozotras (you pl(fem))
or
- vozós<prn><pl><m> ↔ vozós (you pl(masc))
- vozás<prn><pl><f> ↔ vozás (you pl(fem))
- eyos<prn><pl><m> ↔ eyos (they (masc))
- eyas<prn><pl><f> ↔ eyas (they (fem))
There are also object pronouns, reflexive pronouns, possessive pronouns, and others.
Grammar Points
Gender of Articles for Nouns
All Ladino nouns and adjectives have gender - however, their gender may differ based on origin. Words of Hispanic origin tend to have the same -o as the primary masculine marker and -a as the primary feminine marker [1]:
- ermano<n><m><sg> ↔ ermano (brother)
- kaza<n><f><sg> ↔ kaza (house)
Nouns ending in the suffix -or tend to be feminine as well:
- kolor<n><f><sg> ↔ kolor (color)
- dolor<n><f><sg> ↔ dolor (pain)
- kalor<n><f><sg> ↔ kalor (heat)
Words from different languages have different rules, though. Usually, if the noun refers to a male or female, the noun will possess that gender as well:
- tokea<n><m><sg> ↔ tokea (blower of the ram's horn)
- hasakí<n><f><sg> ↔ hasakí (the sultan's favorite woman)
Inanimate object nouns are usually masculine unless they end in -á/-a, -al, or -é:
- kavané<n><f><sg> ↔ kavané (coffeehouse)
- morá<n><f><sg> ↔ morá (fear)
- yaká <n><f><sg> ↔ yaká (collar)
Indicative Verb Regular Conjugation
Ladino verbs are fusional, with the endings changing based on tense, person, number, and mood, and the stems staying mostly unchanged. There are three categories of verb endings: -ar, -er, and -ir. For Ladino verbs that end in -ar, the ending are the singular first person -o, the singular second person -as, the singular second person -a, the plural first person -amos, the plural second person -ásh, and the plural third person -an[1]. An example is the verb kantar:
«kantar» (sing) is an «a»-vowel verb, with the stem «kant»-:
- kantar<v><tv><pres><p1><sg> ↔ kanto
- kantar<v><tv><pres><p2><sg> ↔ kantas
- kantar<v><tv><pres><p3><sg> ↔ kanta
- kantar<v><tv><pres><p1><pl> ↔ kantamos
- kantar<v><tv><pres><p2><pl> ↔ kantásh
- kantar<v><tv><pres><p3><pl> ↔ kantan
An example for -er endings, komer:
«komer» (eat) is an «e»-vowel verb, with the stem «kom»-:
- komer<v><tv><pres><p1><sg> ↔ komo
- komer<v><tv><pres><p2><sg> ↔ komes
- komer<v><tv><pres><p3><sg> ↔ kome
- komer<v><tv><pres><p1><pl> ↔ komemos
- komer<v><tv><pres><p2><pl> ↔ komésh
- komer<v><tv><pres><p3><pl> ↔ komen
An example for -ir endings, bivir:
«bivir» (live) is an «i»-vowel verb, with the stem «biv»-:
- bivir<v><tv><pres><p1><sg> ↔ bivo
- bivir<v><tv><pres><p2><sg> ↔ bives
- bivir<v><tv><pres><p3><sg> ↔ bive
- bivir<v><tv><pres><p1><pl> ↔ bivimos
- bivir<v><tv><pres><p2><pl> ↔ bivish
- bivir<v><tv><pres><p3><pl> ↔ biven
All of these are in the indicative[2].
Subjunctive Verb Regular Conjugation
Using the same examples as above, but for the subjective:
An example for -ar endings, kantar:
«kantar» (sing) is an «a»-vowel verb, with the stem «kant»-:
- kantar<v><tv><prs><p1><sg> ↔ kanto
- kantar<v><tv><prs><p2><sg> ↔ kantes
- kantar<v><tv><prs><p3><sg> ↔ kante
- kantar<v><tv><prs><p1><pl> ↔ kantemos
- kantar<v><tv><prs><p2><pl> ↔ kantésh
- kantar<v><tv><prs><p3><pl> ↔ kanten
An example for -er endings, komer:
«komer» (eat) is an «e»-vowel verb, with the stem «kom»-:
- komer<v><tv><prs><p1><sg> ↔ koma
- komer<v><tv><prs><p2><sg> ↔ komas
- komer<v><tv><prs><p3><sg> ↔ koma
- komer<v><tv><prs><p1><pl> ↔ komamos
- komer<v><tv><prs><p2><pl> ↔ komash
- komer<v><tv><prs><p3><pl> ↔ koman
An example for -ir endings, bivir:
«bivir» (live) is an «i»-vowel verb, with the stem «biv»-:
- bivir<v><tv><prs><p1><sg> ↔ biva
- bivir<v><tv><prs><p2><sg> ↔ bivas
- bivir<v><tv><prs><p3><sg> ↔ biva
- bivir<v><tv><prs><p1><pl> ↔ bivamos
- bivir<v><tv><prs><p2><pl> ↔ bivash
- bivir<v><tv><prs><p3><pl> ↔ bivan
All of these are in the present subjunctive[2].
Preterite Past Verb Regular Conjugation
Using the same examples as above, but for the preterite:
An example for -ar endings, kantar:
«kantar» (sing) is an «a»-vowel verb, with the stem «kant»-:
- kantar<v><tv><pret><p1><sg> ↔ kantí
- kantar<v><tv><pret><p2><sg> ↔ kantates
- kantar<v><tv><pret><p3><sg> ↔ kantó
- kantar<v><tv><pret><p1><pl> ↔ kantimos
- kantar<v><tv><pret><p2><pl> ↔ kantatesh
- kantar<v><tv><pret><p3><pl> ↔ kantaron
An example for -er endings, komer:
«komer» (eat) is an «e»-vowel verb, with the stem «kom»-:
- komer<v><tv><pret><p1><sg> ↔ komi
- komer<v><tv><pret><p2><sg> ↔ komites
- komer<v><tv><pret><p3><sg> ↔ komio
- komer<v><tv><pret><p1><pl> ↔ komimos
- komer<v><tv><pret><p2><pl> ↔ komitesh
- komer<v><tv><pret><p3><pl> ↔ komieron
An example for -ir endings, bivir:
«bivir» (live) is an «i»-vowel verb, with the stem «biv»-:
- bivir<v><tv><pret><p1><sg> ↔ bivi
- bivir<v><tv><pret><p2><sg> ↔ bivites
- bivir<v><tv><pret><p3><sg> ↔ bivio
- bivir<v><tv><pret><p1><pl> ↔ bivimos
- bivir<v><tv><pret><p2><pl> ↔ bivitesh
- bivir<v><tv><pret><p3><pl> ↔ bivieron
All of these are in the past preterite[2].
Imperfect Past Verb Regular Conjugation
Using the same examples as above, but for the imperfect:
An example for -ar endings, kantar:
«kantar» (sing) is an «a»-vowel verb, with the stem «kant»-:
- kantar<v><tv><pii><p1><sg> ↔ kantava
- kantar<v><tv><pii><p2><sg> ↔ kantavas
- kantar<v><tv><pii><p3><sg> ↔ kantava
- kantar<v><tv><pii><p1><pl> ↔ kantávamos
- kantar<v><tv><pii><p2><pl> ↔ kantávash
- kantar<v><tv><pii><p3><pl> ↔ kantavan
An example for -er endings, komer:
«komer» (eat) is an «e»-vowel verb, with the stem «kom»-:
- komer<v><tv><pii><p1><sg> ↔ komia
- komer<v><tv><pii><p2><sg> ↔ komias
- komer<v><tv><pii><p3><sg> ↔ komia
- komer<v><tv><pii><p1><pl> ↔ komiamos
- komer<v><tv><pii><p2><pl> ↔ komiash
- komer<v><tv><pii><p3><pl> ↔ komian
An example for -ir endings, bivir:
«bivir» (live) is an «i»-vowel verb, with the stem «biv»-:
- bivir<v><tv><pii><p1><sg> ↔ bivia
- bivir<v><tv><pii><p2><sg> ↔ bivias
- bivir<v><tv><pii><p3><sg> ↔ bivia
- bivir<v><tv><pii><p1><pl> ↔ biviamos
- bivir<v><tv><pii><p2><pl> ↔ biviash
- bivir<v><tv><pii><p3><pl> ↔ bivian
All of these are in the past imperfect[2].
Future Verb Regular Conjugation
Using the same examples as above, but for the future:
An example for -ar endings, kantar:
«kantar» (sing) is an «a»-vowel verb, with the stem «kant»-:
- kantar<v><tv><fut><p1><sg> ↔ kantaré
- kantar<v><tv><fut><p2><sg> ↔ kantarás
- kantar<v><tv><fut><p3><sg> ↔ kantará
- kantar<v><tv><fut><p1><pl> ↔ kantaremos
- kantar<v><tv><fut><p2><pl> ↔ kantarésh/kantarásh
- kantar<v><tv><fut><p3><pl> ↔ kantarán
An example for -er endings, komer:
«komer» (eat) is an «e»-vowel verb, with the stem «kom»-:
- komer<v><tv><fut><p1><sg> ↔ komere
- komer<v><tv><fut><p2><sg> ↔ komeras
- komer<v><tv><fut><p3><sg> ↔ komera
- komer<v><tv><fut><p1><pl> ↔ komeremos
- komer<v><tv><fut><p2><pl> ↔ komeresh/komerash
- komer<v><tv><fut><p3><pl> ↔ komeran
An example for -ir endings, bivir:
«bivir» (live) is an «i»-vowel verb, with the stem «biv»-:
- bivir<v><tv><fut><p1><sg> ↔ bivire
- bivir<v><tv><fut><p2><sg> ↔ biviras
- bivir<v><tv><fut><p3><sg> ↔ bivira
- bivir<v><tv><fut><p1><pl> ↔ biviremos
- bivir<v><tv><fut><p2><pl> ↔ biviresh/bivirash
- bivir<v><tv><fut><p3><pl> ↔ biviran
All of these are in the future[2].
