3. Construct form: To make a construct form the letter _e_ is added
to the first of two nouns, _toloe fera_ hill, _fuli abae ai_ men's
handwork. When the first member ends in _a_ the _ae_ sometimes
contracts to _e_, _fufue ai_ seed, _aqale mwai_ ten baskets, but
_maae rodo_, a night; also when the first noun ends in _o_ the _oe_
is contracted to _e_: _abole ai_ a log, _abolo_ a piece. This _e_
may be added to words which have not a distinct noun termination:
_naoe gula_ the chief place.
4. Genitive relation: The genitive relation of nouns one to another
is effected by the use of the propositions _ni_ and _i_: _ni_ is
used mainly in construction: _baea ni sugela_ deceitful words, _gwai
ni gwaila_ anointing oil; _ni_ expresses purpose: _si gula ni lea
inia_ a place for him to go to, _rosuli ni manatai gami_ hear us in
mercy. In certain words _li_ replaces _ni_: _maalimaea_ enemy,
_maalitafa_ a channel in a reef; _i_ is used also to denote purpose:
_lea i fasifa_ came to sell it. Location, which also denotes place
whence, is shown by _i_, _geni i Saa_, a Sa'a woman. _Si_ is used in
certain phrases: _ofu si doo_ bundles, _ro tooni si doo_ two
thousand.
The genitive is frequently omitted _olu teu flour_, three measures
of flour, _mumudi fangala_ crumbs of food, _mwane Saa_, a Sa'a man,
_falisi vine_ a vineyard.
The possessive _ana_ may be used to denote the genitive: _luma ana
foaa_ house of prayer, _tala ana fanualama_ way of peace. A genitive
relation is also shown by the use of the suffixed pronoun of the
third person singular or plural in agreement with the idea expressed
in the second noun of the pair: _i tolona fera_ on the tops of the
hills, _gwouda na ai gi_ men's heads.
The ordinary personal pronouns are used as possessive in cases where
the pronoun can not be suffixed: _afe nau_ my wife, _arai nia_ her
husband.
The instrumental prefix i occurs: _kamu_ to eat areca nut, _ikamu_ a
line spatula.
5. Plural: To show plurality _gi_ is used, following the noun _na
mwane gi_ the men. The word _oro_, many, may be attached: _na mwane
oro gi_ many men, _tani ai oro_ many people.
The personal pronoun plural third _gera_ is used to mark plurality:
_gera fiolo_ the hungry, _gera priest da adea urina_ the priests
acted thus.
Totally and completion are shown by _sui_ finished or _sui na_:
_afutada sui_ they all, _gera lea sui na_ they have gone already. To
express totality the suffixed pronoun singular third and all persons
plural are added to a root _afuta_, formed from _afu_ to complete,
with _ta_ noun termination: _afutanafera_ all the land, _afutana
nonigu_ all my whole body. It is a question whether the numeral
_qalu_ eight is used like _walu_ in Sa'a of an indefinite number,
e.g., _qalu fera_ all lands; but _te si nafera_ seems to be the
proper usage.
6. Gender: There is no grammatical gender. The words _mwane_ male,
_geni_ female, are added when the noun does not carry a sex
distinction.
7. Nouns of relationship: With the exception of sasi brother,
sister, nouns of relationship are never used with a suffixed
pronoun: _maa nau_ my father. The prefix _mwai_, denoting
reciprocity of relationship, may precede: _mwai asi nau_ brethren.
In speaking of pairs of people _ro_ is used: _ro mwai sasina_ two
brothers. The _na_ of _sasina_, _telana_, etc., is a noun
termination and is not the suffixed pronoun.
The articles _ni_ for the singular and _ote_ for the plural are used
of women: _ni aia_ a female relation, _ote geni_ women.
The word for father is _maa_; the article _na_ may be prefixed: _na
maa nau_ my father. The Rev. A. I. Hopkins says that _maaka nau_ is
also commonly used as meaning my father. The word for child is
_mwela_, _mwela na ai_ So-and-So's son, _mwela nia_ his child; _aia_
is used for female relations with _ni_ as singular article and _ote_
as plural: _mwaemwane_ sister, _ni mwaemwane_ a man's sister.
The adjective _gale_ little, is used preceding the noun to describe
something young: _ro fe gale bola_ two young pigeons. The article
used with _te_, mother, is _ni_: _ni te nau_ my mother; _ta ro mwai
telana nau_ my wife and child, _ta ro mwai fungona_ two
relations-at-law; _ai_ person, man, is used as a vocative: _mwela
ai_ hey, you there! _na ai oe_ your people, _ai ni raoa_ a servant,
_ai tou_ the little one, the lesser.