GB041
Suppletion is a process where a lexeme is changed in such a way that the new form does not resemble the previous when it appears in a different position in the paradigm. An example of this is English went and go. In this case, the verb is suppletive for tense. Only so called 'strong suppletion' counts here, 'weak' suppletion is not included.
Only answer 1 if there are more than three examples of strong suppletion. Body parts and kinship terms are a good place to start investigating.
- Code 1 if there are four or more examples of nouns which have a suppletive forms for number.
- If there are 3 or fewer examples, consider whether the author describes these as special exceptions (in which case, code 0) or part of a larger group (in which case, code 1).
- If all examples only feature 'weak suppletion', code 0.
- If there is little description of number marking of nouns in general, code ?.
Ket (ISO 639-3: ket, Glottolog: kett1243)
Georg (2007:100) states that there are suppletive forms for number and gives the following examples. The descriptions states that there are more than these three, but only three are given for illustrative purposes. Ket is coded as 1 for this feature.
| singular | plural | English translation |
|---|---|---|
| ke?d | de?ŋ | 'person/human being' |
| ōks | a?q | 'tree' |
| qo?d | qɨ́neŋ | 'way/road' |
Corbett, Greville G. 2000. Number. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Corbett, Greville G. 2009. Suppletion: Typology, markedness, complexity. In Patrick O. Steinkrüger & Manfred Krifka (eds), On Inflection, 25–40. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Georg, Stefan. 2007. A descriptive grammar of Ket: Part I: Introduction, phonology and morphology. Kent, UK: Global Oriental.
Morphological number marking
- GB039 Is there nonphonological allomorphy of noun number markers?
- GB042 Is there a productive overt morphological singular marker on nouns?
- GB043 Is there a productive morphological dual marker on nouns?
- GB044 Is there a productive morphological plural marker on nouns?
- GB165 Is there a productive morphological trial marker on nouns?
- GB166 Is there a productive morphological paucal marker on nouns?
Phonologically free number marking
- GB316 Is singular number regularly marked in the noun phrase by a phonologically free element?
- GB317 Is dual number regularly marked in the noun phrase by a phonologically free element?
- GB318 Is plural number regularly marked in the noun phrase by a phonologically free element?
- GB319 Is trial number regularly marked in the noun phrase by a phonologically free element?
- GB320 Is paucal number regularly marked in the noun phrase by a phonologically free element?
Number agreement
- GB184 Can an adnominal property word agree with the noun in number?
- GB185 Can an adnominal demonstrative agree with the noun in number?
Hedvig Skirgård