7 suliaKapvimi

If you want to talk about having something in your possession, you add the affix -Ka- directly to the end of a noun:

ulu + Ka + ven? =
uluKaven?	Do you have an ulu?
ulu + Ka + vunga =
uluKavunga	I have an ulu.

-Ka- deletes a final -k sound that comes before it:

Kagitaujak + Ka + vâ =
KagitaujaKavâ?	Does he/she have a computer?
Kagitaujak + Ka + ngi + tuk
KagitaujaKangituk	He/she doesn’t have a computer.
titigautik + Ka + vutit =
titigautiKavutit	You have a pen.
uKâlautik + Ka + jon? =
uKâlautiKajon?	Do they have a phone?

 

THE ENDING -LIK

If you want to say, 'he/she has something,' Nunatsiavummiutitut speakers avoid the construction Ka + vuk, and use the affix -lik instead:

titigutiKavâ ?	Does he/she have a pen?
Âa, titigutilik.	Yes, he/she has a pen.

The affix -lik deletes a final -k sound that comes before it: 

atuagak + lik
atuagalik	He/she has a book.

Note, too, that -lik is not used to make a negative sentence; the construction Ka + ngi + tuk is used instead:

Auka, atuagaKangituk.	No, he/she does not have a book.
Auka, titigutiKangituk.	No, he/she does not have pen.

 

The affix -taKak- is added to noun roots to express the English idea of ’something has... in it.’ This affix behaves in a similar way to -Ka- :

kâfitaKakKâ ?	Is there coffee in it?
Âa, kâfitalik	Yes, there is coffee in it.
Auka, kâfitaKangituk.	No, there is no coffee in it.

Note that -taKak- can be added directly to a root ending in a consonant with no change in sound:

alakkasaijat + taKak + Kâ  =
alakkasaijattaKakKâ ?	Does it have any paper in it?
Âa, alakkasaijattalik	Yes, there is paper in it.
Auka, alakkasaijattaKangituk.	No, there is no paper in it.

 

 

In Inuktut, we use different endings to distinguish between the singular (one of something), the dual (two of something) and the plural (3+ of something):

illuk	one house
illok	(two) houses
illuit	(3+) houses

You can often recognize the dual form of a noun becuase the last vowel sound in the word is a long vowel: 

titigutik / allautik	(one) pen
titigutek / allautek	two pens
uKâlautik	one phone
uKâlautek	two phones
Kagitaujak	computer
Kagitaujâk	two computers

If the last vowel sound in a word is a double vowel or a vowel combination, it is not always easy to distinguish the singular from the dual. In this case, you have to rely on the context of the conversation:

ukkuak	one door
ukkuak	two doors
sâk	one table
sâk	two tables

 

In Inuktut, the plural is used to talk about three or more of any noun:

inuk	person
inok	two people
inuit	people (3+)

Note how the -it ending deletes the final -k sound of the singular form of the noun:

itsivautak	chair
itsivautait	chairs (3+)

If the last vowel sound in the singular form of a noun is -i, the plural ending turns it into a long i (e) sound followed by -t:

angutik	man
angutet	men (3+)
titigutik	pen
titigutet	pen (3+)

If the last vowel sound in the singular form of a noun is a long vowel or a vowel combination, the plural ending is just -t :

ukuak	door
ukuat	doors (3+)
sâk	table
sât	tables (3+)