Gender (li-N-ga
) in Nouns
Gender is the class in which noun or pronoun is placed under. There are three types of genders in Marathi: masculine
(pu-lli-N-ga
),
feminine (stvree-li-N-ga
) and
neuter (na-pu-sa-ka-li-N-ga
).
In Marathi, the form of noun changes according to gender as demonstrated in following table:
| English | pu-lli-N-gee
| stvree-li-N-gee
| na-pu-sa-ka-li-N-gee
|
|---|---|---|---|
| dog | ku-tvraa
| ku-tvree
| ku-tvre
|
| horse | gho-daa
| gho-dee
| gho-de
|
| young man (woman) | tva-ru-tna
| tva-ru-tnee
| - - - |
| cow (bull) | bai-la
| gaa-y
| - - - |
Confusing ? Probably so, as there are no clearly defined rules for identifying gender in Marathi. The tradition and custom decides the gender system in marathi. The more you speak and listen to Marathi, better you'll get at it. Here are some key points:
- Whenever the gender of living animals is known, then all masculine living animals are classified
as pu-lli-N-gee
and feminine living animals
as stvree-li-N-gee
. For example,
boy (mu-la-gaa
)
or girl (mu-la-gee
).
- Sometimes the gender of living animals cannot be specified. For example, if one were to say
'that calf' (tve waa-sa-roo
) then it is considered as
neuter (na-pu-sa-ka-li-N-gee
).
- Most of the non-living things are considered as masculine or feminine, and if not, then are treated
as neuter. For example, rock (kha-da-ka
) is masculine,
soil (maa-tvee
) is feminine but
sky (aa-kaa-sha
) is neuter.
In Marathi, pronouns should agree with the noun form based on gender. For example,
'that horse' (tvo gho-daa
) and 'that horse' (female)
(tvee gho-dee
). Here you cannot use
pronoun tvee
with masculine form of noun horse
(gho-daa
).
Let's learn more about genders in pronouns later.
