éí
See also: Appendix:Variations of "ei"
Navajo
[edit]Pronoun
[edit]éí
- it, that one, that, those (demonstrative pronoun, not present or visible)
- Used to mark and/or refer to the subject of a sentence.
- Awééʼ éí tʼáá naaki ńdeezid. Éí Dlíníbaaʼ wolyé.
The baby is only two months old. She is called Dlíníbaaʼ. - Shimá bimósí tʼóó ahayóí ndi, éí shicheii bighandi kéédahatʼį́.
My mother has a lot of cats, but they (the cats) live at my grandfather's house.
- Awééʼ éí tʼáá naaki ńdeezid. Éí Dlíníbaaʼ wolyé.
Usage notes
[edit]Usually refers to something remote from and invisible to the speaker.
However, éí is often used as a filler word to help smooth the flow of a sentence. It can be used to separate two words that would otherwise seem to be connected. In this sense, éí is often translated as "as for":
- Shí ʼéí Tłʼaaí yinishyé. ― As for me, I'm called Lefty; My name is Lefty. (because "shí Tłʼaaí" would be confusing)