What is a zero affix?

Definition
	A zero affix is the member of a set of inflectional affixes which is represented by the absence of an expected morpheme.

Example: Mangga Buang (Papua New Guinea)

Here is a set of affixes in which one member of the set is a zero affix:

Word	Gloss	Personal pronoun prefixes
aa-lipis ga-lipis a-lipis lipis la-lipis	‘I/we washed’ ‘you (sing.) washed’ ‘you (plural) washed’ ‘he/she/it washed’ ‘they washed’	aa- ‘I/we' ga- ‘you (sing.)’ a- ‘you (plural)’ Ø ‘he/she/it’ la- ‘they’

Concept module: zero affix
In overview module: Glossary (Linguistics): Z
In modular book: Glossary of linguistic terms, by Eugene E. Loos (general editor), Susan Anderson (editor), Dwight H., Day, Jr. (editor), Paul C. Jordan (editor), and J. Douglas Wingate (editor)
In bookshelf: Linguistics

This page is an extract from the LinguaLinks Library, Version 5.0 published on CD-ROM by SIL International, 2003. [Ordering information.]

Page content last modified: 5 January 2004