The Accusative Marker '-n'
Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
The '-n' suffix marks a specific direct object in Amharic, helping you distinguish who is doing what to whom.
- Add '-n' to definite direct objects: 'wusha-n ayyahu' (I saw the dog).
- Do not use '-n' for indefinite objects: 'wusha ayyahu' (I saw a dog).
- If the object ends in a vowel, it often becomes '-n' or '-in' depending on the stem.
Accusative Marker Formation
| Noun Type | Indefinite | Definite | Definite + Accusative |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Consonant-ending
|
Bet
|
Betu
|
Betun
|
|
Vowel-ending
|
Wusha
|
Wushaw
|
Wushawn
|
|
Proper Name
|
Kebede
|
Kebede
|
Kebeden
|
|
Pronoun
|
Ene
|
Ene
|
Enen
|
Meanings
The '-n' suffix is an accusative marker used to indicate that a noun is the definite direct object of a transitive verb.
Definite Direct Object
Marks a specific, known object.
“መጽሐፉን ገዛሁ (Mätshafun gäzzahu - I bought the book)”
“ልጁን ጠራሁት (Lijun tärrahut - I called the boy)”
Reference Table
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Affirmative
|
Noun-n + Verb
|
Mätshafun gäzzahu
|
|
Negative
|
Noun-n + Al-Verb-m
|
Mätshafun al-gäzzahum
|
|
Question
|
Noun-n + Verb?
|
Mätshafun gäzzah?
|
|
Short Answer
|
Noun-n + Verb
|
Mätshafun
|
|
Plural
|
Nouns-och-n + Verb
|
Mätshafotochun gäzzahu
|
|
Possessive
|
Noun-e-n + Verb
|
Mätshafe-n gäzzahu
|
Formalitätsspektrum
መጽሐፉን ገዛሁ። (General)
መጽሐፉን ገዛሁ። (General)
መጽሐፉን ገዛሁ። (General)
መጽሐፉን አምጥቼዋለሁ። (General)
The Accusative Spotlight
Function
- Direct Object Receives action
Requirement
- Definite Specific noun
Beispiele nach Niveau
ውሻውን አየሁ
I saw the dog.
መጽሐፉን አነበብኩ
I read the book.
ምግቡን በላሁ
I ate the food.
ቤቱን አየሁ
I saw the house.
ጓደኛዬን ጠራሁት
I called my friend.
አዲሱን መኪና ገዛሁ
I bought the new car.
መምህሩን ጠየቅኩት
I asked the teacher.
ስራውን ጨረስኩ
I finished the work.
ያየሁትን ሰው አላውቀውም
I don't know the person I saw.
የገዛኸውን መጽሐፍ አሳየኝ
Show me the book you bought.
የጠፋውን ቁልፍ አገኘሁት
I found the lost key.
የሚወዱትን ምግብ አዘዙ
They ordered the food they like.
እርሱ የጻፈውን ደብዳቤ አነበብኩ
I read the letter he wrote.
የተሰጠውን ስራ በደንብ ሰራ
He did the assigned work well.
ያመጣኸውን ስጦታ በጣም ወደድኩት
I really liked the gift you brought.
የተደበቀውን እውነት አወጡ
They revealed the hidden truth.
ያቀረቡትን ሀሳብ በሙሉ ተቀበልን
We accepted all the ideas they presented.
የተናገረውን ንግግር በደንብ አስታውሳለሁ
I remember the speech he gave well.
የመረጡትን መንገድ መከተል አለብን
We must follow the path they chose.
የተሰማውን ስሜት በግልጽ ገለጸ
He clearly expressed the feeling he felt.
ያየነውን ክስተት በታሪክ መዝገብ አስቀመጥን
We recorded the event we saw in the history book.
የተፈጠረውን ችግር ለመፍታት ሞከርን
We tried to solve the problem that occurred.
የጠበቅነውን ውጤት አላገኘንም
We didn't get the result we expected.
የተቀበልነውን ትምህርት ለሌሎች እናካፍላለን
We will share the lesson we received with others.
Leicht verwechselbar
Learners think -u is the object marker.
Learners add -n to possessives incorrectly.
Learners add -n to the subject.
Häufige Fehler
Mätshaf-n
Mätshaf
Wusha ayyahu
Wushan ayyahu
Bet-n
Betun
Ene-n
Enen
Mätshafun al-gäzzahu
Mätshafun al-gäzzahum
Lij-n
Lijun
Buna-n
Bunawn
Yä-gäzzahu-n mätshaf
Yä-gäzzahut-n mätshaf
Sra-n
Srawun
Kebede-n
Kebeden
Yä-tänägärä-n
Yä-tänägäräwun
Yä-täsämmä-n
Yä-täsämmäwun
Yä-täräyä-n
Yä-täräyäwun
Yä-täsätä-n
Yä-täsätäwun
Satzmuster
___-n ገዛሁ
___-n አየሁት
___-n ጨረስኩ
___-n አዘዝኩ
Real World Usage
ቡናውን አምጡልኝ።
መጽሐፉን አነበብኩት።
ስራውን በደንብ እሰራለሁ።
ሆቴሉን አሳዩኝ።
ፎቶውን ወደድኩት።
ምግቡን አዘዝኩ።
Check Definiteness
Don't add to subjects
Combine with -u
Listen to natives
Smart Tips
If you can point to it, it is definite. Add -n.
Always use -n for people.
Always mark your order with -n.
Double check all direct objects for -n.
Aussprache
Suffixation
The -n is pronounced as a clear 'n' sound at the end of the word.
Statement
Betun ayyahu ↘
Falling intonation for a statement.
Einprägen
Eselsbrücke
Think of the '-n' as a 'Net' that catches the object of the sentence.
Visuelle Assoziation
Imagine a fisherman throwing a net (the '-n') over a specific fish (the object) to pull it into the sentence.
Rhyme
When the object is clear and you want to be seen, add the letter n to the end of the scene.
Story
Abebe is holding a ball. He throws the ball. In Amharic, he throws the 'ball-n'. The ball is the object, so it gets the net.
Word Web
Herausforderung
Write 5 sentences about things you see in your room using the -n marker.
Kulturelle Hinweise
The usage is standard and universal in the capital.
Similar usage, but sometimes speakers omit the -u before the -n in casual speech.
More emphasis on the definite article -u before the -n.
The accusative -n is a common feature in Semitic languages, derived from ancient case systems.
Gesprächseinstiege
ምን ገዛህ?
ማንን አየህ?
ስራውን ጨረስክ?
የገዛኸውን መጽሐፍ ወደድከው?
Tagebuch-Impulse
Häufige Fehler
Test Yourself
መጽሐፍ___ ገዛሁ (I bought the book).
Which is correct?
Find and fix the mistake:
መኪና-n ገዛሁ (I bought a car).
Arrange the words in the correct order:
All words placed
Click words above to build the sentence
I saw the house.
Answer starts with: a...
Use 'ቡና' (coffee) and 'ጠጣሁ' (drank).
Which needs -n?
Add -n to 'ቤት'.
Score: /8
Ubungsaufgaben
8 exercisesመጽሐፍ___ ገዛሁ (I bought the book).
Which is correct?
Find and fix the mistake:
መኪና-n ገዛሁ (I bought a car).
አየሁ / ሰውየውን / እኔ
I saw the house.
Use 'ቡና' (coffee) and 'ጠጣሁ' (drank).
Which needs -n?
Add -n to 'ቤት'.
Score: /8
FAQ (8)
No, -n is strictly for definite objects.
No, it only marks the noun.
The vowel might change or take -n directly.
Yes, it is standard in all Amharic dialects.
Never. Subjects are unmarked.
Usually by the context or the -u suffix.
No, 'the' is -u. -n is the object marker.
Your sentence might be ambiguous.
Scaffolded Practice
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4
Mastery Progress
Needs Practice
Improving
Strong
Mastered
In Other Languages
Personal 'a'
Amharic -n is for all definite objects, not just humans.
Accusative case
German changes the article; Amharic adds a suffix to the noun.
wo particle
Japanese 'wo' is a separate particle; Amharic -n is a suffix.
Fatha (case ending)
Arabic is inflectional; Amharic is agglutinative.
None
Chinese has no case markers.
Direct object pronouns
French is pronoun-based; Amharic is noun-based.
