Basic Vocabulary and Grammar
In this lesson, we'll learn some basic vocabulary and grammar rules in SUL.
SUL has just five words for people - I, you, and so on - plus one for things, and none of them says whether someone is male or female:
| English | SUL | Written | Hear |
|---|---|---|---|
| I/me | us | usuuss | |
| you | ok | okookk | |
| he/she/they (singular) | ogat | ogatooggaatt | |
| we | ef | efeeff | |
| they | eget | egeteeggeett | |
| it (a thing) | ut | utuutt |
The word xhe covers he, she, and they (one person) - you never have to know or guess someone's gender to talk about them.
There is no special word for "you all". Like every other word in SUL, you make it more-than-one by gluing the plural word onto it with the n glue: you-plural = oknos (you all).
And you rarely need it: a plain noun says nothing about how many (dog = one dog, three dogs, dogs in general). Glue on the plural word only when "more than one" is the point, or a number when the exact count matters.
SUL words are short and spelled exactly the way they sound, so they are easy to say and easy to remember.
| English | SUL | Written | Hear |
|---|---|---|---|
| go | ogak | ogakooggaakk | |
| eat | aguf | agufaagguuff | |
| say | agif | agifaaggiiff | |
| hello | afus | afusaaffuuss | |
| thank | osuf | osufoossuuff | |
| yes | is | isiiss | |
| no | ak | akaakk |
In SUL, you build bigger meanings by gluing words together with the glue letter n. In lessons the glue is drawn as a - so it is easy to see where one piece ends and the next begins.
For example: me-go = me + n + go = "usnogak" (I go)