ergative
/ˈɜrɡətɪv/
noun
- An ergative verb or an ergative case form.
- In English, 'break' is a common ergative because it can be used both transitively and intransitively.
- The student learned to identify ergatives by checking if the object of the transitive sentence becomes the subject of the intransitive one.
- Some linguists argue that English has many ergatives, such as 'grow,' 'change,' and 'improve.'
adjective
- Describing a verb where the subject of an intransitive use is the same as the object of a transitive use, often allowing the verb to be used without an object.
- Many English verbs like 'cook,' 'open,' and 'melt' can be used in an ergative pattern.
- In the sentence 'The window broke,' the verb 'broke' is ergative because you can also say 'Someone broke the window.'
- The teacher explained that 'The door opened' is an ergative use of the verb 'open.'
- Relating to a grammatical system in some languages where the subject of a transitive verb is marked differently from the subject of an intransitive verb.
- Basque is a well-known ergative language, where the agent of a transitive verb takes a special case.
- In an ergative language, the word for 'I' changes form depending on whether the verb is transitive or intransitive.
- Linguists study ergative constructions to understand how different languages express who does an action.