D'ni Grammar Rules

To make a noun plural, simply add the suffix "-tee".

The noun converter suffix "-ehts" makes a noun into an adjective.

Using the suffix "-ah" makes a verb imperative.

The infinitive ("to <blank>") is the basic form of every verb, but in context, it can also be 1st person singular ("I <blank>").

The verb's person (1st, 2nd, or 3rd) is changed by adding a suffix. The verb's tense is changed by adding a prefix.

Verb Converter Suffixes: -tahv - changes a verb into a noun. -tahn - changes a verb into a personal noun. -ahl - changes the verb into an adjective or participle.

Adjective Converter Suffixes: -th - changes an adjective into a noun. -sh - changes an adjective into an adverb.

D'ni is written from left to right. Punctuation is placed at the beginning of the sentence, not the end.

As in English, nouns must generally have an article attached to it. The definite article ("the") is the prefix "reh-" . The indefinite article ("a"/"an") is the prefix "ehrth-." Articles ("a," "an," "the") are attached directly to the noun. Prepositional phrases always come after the noun they modify.

Pronouns are attached to the verb as an indication of person, regardless of whether there is already a subject defined. Adverbs always come after the verb they modify.

Adjectives always follow the noun they modify.

The D'ni used numbers to indicate the degree to which something was happening, rather than terms like "a lot" or "a little." In D'ni, the number 1 had the least significance, and the number 25 had the greatest. If you wanted to exaggerate the degree, one would use a number greater than 25.

Examples: "I'm a little sleepy" is written "ken ederahl b'fah" ("I am sleepy to 1") in D'ni. "I'm exhausted" is written "ken ederahl b'fahsee" ("I am sleepy to 25") in D'ni. "I'm dead on my feet" is (or could be) written "ken ederahl b'breesee" ("I am sleepy to 50") in D'ni.

The word "of" is used three ways:

The possessive word "okh" is used to indicate a single person's possession of an object. This is commonly seen in English as the contraction "'s."

Example: "Gehn's book" is written "rehsehv okh Gehn" in D'ni.

The D'ni indicate group ownership of an object or a group of objects with the prefix "t'."

Example: "The D'ni Empire" is written "rehgahn t'D'nee" in D'ni.

Using the prepositional form of "of," as in, "the design of the tunnel," is done using the D'ni word "tso".

Example: "The design of the tunnel" is written "rehsaytahv tso rehbishta" in D'ni.

Thanks to the now-defunct D'ni Archives website for permission to post portions of their content in the Archive, and to RAWA for some pointers.