Ergative

Quick meaning: Ergative is an adjective meaning (grammar) Ellipsis of ergative case (“a grammatical case used to indicate the agent of a transitive verb in ergative-absolutive languages”).

Meaning

(grammar) Ellipsis of ergative case (“a grammatical case used to indicate the agent of a transitive verb in ergative-absolutive languages”).

More Meanings

1. (grammar) An ergative verb or other expression.
2. (grammar) With the subject of a transitive construction having grammatical cases or thematic relations different from those of an intransitive construction.

Example Sentences

The case systems of ergative languages are counter-intuitive to speakers of many Indo-European languages.

Unlike those with subjectivized ergatives, such locative clauses naturally do not allow for imperatives (*Contain the apples).

The ergative case marks the agent of a transitive verb. The ergative suffix is -le/-re/-lle/-ʔille. The form of the ergative suffix is /-le/ for the indefinite and /-ʔille/ for the definite after the consonants /ʔ/, /k/, /t/, /p/, /b/, /ŋ/, /n/ and /m/.

The most common situation is for nouns to inflect according to a nominative-ergative pattern, while pronouns at least superficially follow a nominative-accusative pattern. That is, nouns have a single case (nominative) marking intransitive subject and transitive object functions, and another case (ergative) for transitive subject function.

Word Forms

• ergatives

Synonyms for ergative

Depending on context, synonyms include elliptical.

Antonyms for ergative

Common opposites include unergative.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include absolutive, postposition, ergative-absolutive, invertive, accusative, allative.

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