- Teket Lau is a VSO language by default, but the subject can be moved to the end of the sentence to emphasise it
- Phrases in a single sentence are linked by a "dummy pronoun" that agrees with the subject of the preceding clause
- In practice: "I want to bite that" → "Want I it bite that" → "La ulmat kuu ete imaln taet ket"
- While the word is literally translated as "it", it can be easier to think of it as "that"
- "La ulmat kuu ete imaln taet ket" → "I want that it is bitten"
- Questions are preceded with the query marker "tii"; yes/no questions are preceded with "tii" and end with "a"
- Stress falls on the penultimate syllable in verbs, and the ultimate syllable everywhere else. Secondary stresses fall on alternate syllables preceding the primary stress. Suffixes do not affect stress, except in plurals
- Statements, consisting of the entire turn at speech, are preceded by a "primary honorific" acknowledging the position of the listener in the tribe's hierarchy, and followed by a "secondary honorific" acknowledging the listener's relationship to the tribe
- For example, "sien" is a primary honorific used when the listener is superior to the speaker
- "Seiket" is a secondary honorific used when the listener is not a member of the speaker's family unit
- In practice: "Sien, I'm going to the store. Do you want anything, seiket?"
- Primary honorifics tend to be dropped in informal contexts
- Greetings are used with the 'ket' honorific, regardless of which honorifics would normally apply
- "La ... ket", in writing
- "Ha ket", spoken
- Or, when part of a greater statement: "Hi, I want to bite that" → "Ha, ulmat kuu ete imaln taet ket"
- Verbs are paired with a pronoun that agrees with the class of the direct object, if there is one, or the subject, if there is no direct object
- In some formal registers, usually used when addressing superiors, verbs are left unconjugated and the pronoun is left intact
- Note that the pronoun in this verb phrase is not the subject, even if the verb is agreeing with the subject
- Verbs otherwise conjugate into a form that combines the verb with the pronoun, and so the verb itself agrees with the subject's or object's noun class
- In practice: To be → "Ka kit" (unconjugated), to be → "Kaki" (conjugated)
- To worry → "Urhi ete" (unconjugated), to worry → "Urhit" (conjugated)
- "I'm worried" → "Urhi ete kuu" (unconjugated) → "Urhit kuu" (conjugated)
- Nouns are grouped into one of four classes: holy, hunter, animate (sometimes "edible"), and inanimate (sometimes "inedible").
- Also referred to respectively as the first, second, third, and fourth noun classes
- Holy and inanimate nouns are treated as uncountable, and no distinction is made grammatically between singulars and plurals
- Adpositions are treated as suffixes, and come in two forms
- Dynamic adpositions imply a change in position, and append to the verb
- Static adpositions do not, and append to the noun
- If an affix would create a series of three consecutive vowels, it instead stands as a separate word, and an 'h' is appended in its place
- Direct objects are marked with the prefix "ta"
- Possessions are marked and followed by the owner of the possession. Leaving the owner off implies it is owned by the speaker
- In practice: "My animal" → "Anmira kuu"
- "Your song" → "Msaniis se"
- "My ear" → "Anhuth"
- Alienable possessions (which can be lost and recovered) are marked by the prefix "an", inalienable possessions (which, if lost, are lost forever) are marked by the prefix "m"
- Many ketal mark body parts as alienable, as they regenerate if lost
- Indirect objects are always treated as possessions. If the owner of the object is unknown, it is said to be owned by itself
- In practice: John gave the book itself to me
- "Var" is a prefix that expresses that something is possible or emphasises that it is true; "iul" is a prefix that negates the word it is attached to, either expressing that it isn't so or creating that word's antonym
- The final consonant is often dropped, leaving "va" and "iu"
- Note that these do not translate directly to "yes" and "no", and cannot be used on their own
- Apologies and thanks are expressed by a suffix appended to the noun experiencing that emotion
- "naan" → "regretful"
- "I'm sorry for biting you" → "Bite I regretfully you" → "La imet kuunaan tase ket"
- "re" → "grateful"
- "Thank you for coming with me" → "Come with you me thankfully" → "La tentcen se takuure ket"
- The traditional response to "thank you" is with "kuure" alone
- Adjectives and adverbs follow the word they describe
- Colour terms ("bright", "dark", "warm", and "cool") are usually used comparatively: the apple is not only "warm", it is "warmer than the leaf"
- The present tense tends to be unmarked, with "sul" and "sulure" used to mark the habitual
- The present continuous is marked by combining the past and present tense
- In practice: "I have been waiting" → "La lant vhan sul kuu ket"