DLAB Noun and Adjective Agreement 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In invented language Frentic, nouns are masculine (M) or feminine (F). Adjectives add '-im' for M and '-af' for F. 'Brak' (M, stone) + 'vel' (big). What is 'big stone'?
- Brak velim (Correct answer)
- Brak velaf
- Velim brak
- Brak vel
Correct answer: Brak velim
Masculine noun 'brak' requires '-im' on adjective: 'vel' → 'velim'. Adjective follows noun.
Frentic adjective agreement: adjective follows noun and takes a gender suffix matching the noun. 'Brak' is masculine → adjective 'vel' takes '-im' → 'velim'. Full phrase: 'Brak velim' (big stone). Using '-af' would signal a feminine noun. Placing the adjective before the noun reverses the stated rule.
Question 2: In Zorathi, adjectives agree with nouns in class: Class A nouns get adjective suffix '-on', Class B get '-en', Class C get '-an'. 'Talu' (Class B) = woman. 'Vel' = tall. How do you say 'tall woman'?
- Talu velen (Correct answer)
- Talu velon
- Talu velan
- Velen talu
Correct answer: Talu velen
Class B requires '-en' on adjective: 'vel' + '-en' = 'velen'. Phrase: 'Talu velen.'
Zorathi noun classes dictate the adjective suffix: A→'-on', B→'-en', C→'-an'. 'Talu' is Class B → adjective gets '-en'. 'Vel' (tall) + '-en' = 'velen'. Full phrase: 'Talu velen' (adjective after noun). Using '-on' or '-an' would apply the wrong class suffix.
Question 3: In Veltari, adjectives must agree with nouns in BOTH number (singular vs plural) and gender (M/F). Singular M = '-im', Plural M = '-imon', Singular F = '-af', Plural F = '-afon'. 'Nalu' (F, plural) = horses. 'Bren' = fast. What is 'fast horses'?
- Nalu brenafon (Correct answer)
- Nalu brenaf
- Nalu brenimon
- Nalu brenim
Correct answer: Nalu brenafon
Plural feminine: '-afon'. 'Bren' + '-afon' = 'brenafon'. Phrase: 'Nalu brenafon.'
Veltari adjectives carry two agreement features simultaneously: gender and number. Nalu is feminine plural → combined suffix is '-afon'. 'Bren' (fast) + '-afon' = 'brenafon'. Full phrase: 'Nalu brenafon.' Using '-af' would be singular. Using '-imon' or '-im' would apply the masculine forms.
Question 4: Invented Snarvic: all adjectives are invariable (never change form) regardless of noun gender or number. 'Mako' (F, tree), 'makos' (F plural, trees), 'doru' (M, man). Adjective 'vel' = tall. 'Tall trees' = ?
- Makos vel (Correct answer)
- Makos velon
- Makos vels
- Vel makos
Correct answer: Makos vel
Invariable adjectives never change: 'vel' stays 'vel' regardless of number or gender.
Snarvic adjectives are invariable — they do not agree with the noun in any feature. 'Vel' remains 'vel' whether the noun is masculine, feminine, singular, or plural. 'Tall trees' = 'Makos vel' (plural noun + unchanged adjective). Adding suffixes like '-on' or '-s' to the adjective incorrectly treats it as variable.
Question 5: In Drelvic, animacy controls adjective agreement: animate nouns use adjective suffix '-tal', inanimate use '-rak'. 'Kenu' (dog, animate) + 'shor' (fast). What is 'fast dog'?
- Kenu shortal (Correct answer)
- Kenu shorrak
- Shortal kenu
- Kenu shor
Correct answer: Kenu shortal
Dog is animate → '-tal'. 'Shor' + '-tal' = 'shortal'. Phrase: 'Kenu shortal.'
Drelvic adjective agreement is based on animacy, not gender: animate nouns trigger '-tal' on the adjective, inanimate nouns trigger '-rak'. A dog is animate, so 'shor' (fast) takes '-tal' → 'shortal'. Full phrase: 'Kenu shortal.' Using '-rak' would incorrectly treat the dog as inanimate.
Question 6: In Trelkan, adjectives that come before the noun take prefix 'a-', adjectives that follow take suffix '-o'. In 'Avel brak' vs 'Brak velo', what is the rule?
- Pre-nominal adjectives take 'a-' prefix; post-nominal adjectives take '-o' suffix. (Correct answer)
- All adjectives take both 'a-' and '-o'.
- Prefix 'a-' marks nouns; suffix '-o' marks verbs.
- Position does not affect adjective form.
Correct answer: Pre-nominal adjectives take 'a-' prefix; post-nominal adjectives take '-o' suffix.
'Avel brak' = adjective (a+vel) before noun; 'brak velo' = noun before adjective (vel+o).
Trelkan adjective morphology is position-sensitive: pre-nominal (before the noun) → prefix 'a-' (e.g., 'a-vel' = the big one before the noun); post-nominal (after the noun) → suffix '-o' (e.g., 'vel-o' = big, placed after). This tests your ability to infer a rule about the relationship between syntactic position and morphological form.
DLAB Noun and Adjective Agreement 2
In invented language Frentic, nouns are masculine (M) or feminine (F).
Adjectives add '-im' for M and '-af' for F. 'Brak' (M, stone) + 'vel' (big).
What is 'big stone'?