Content words

    From sona pona

    Content words are the main type of word in Toki Pona, contrasted with particles. Many speakers classify them as a part of speech. They are a class of words that are flexibly used like nouns, verbs, and modifiers (adjectives and adverbs), depending on their placement in the sentence structure. Specific content words also have preposition or preverb senses.

    By the books[edit | edit source]

    Toki Pona: The Language of Good[edit | edit source]

    In the dictionary section of the book Toki Pona: The Language of Good, content words are each defined as adjectives, nouns, or verbs. Other senses of these words can be derived from these definitions. For example, for a content word defined as a verb, possible noun senses include "something that is verbed" and "the act of verbing". This is supplemented by the analysis of using any content word as a transitive verb. For example, A li B e C means "A causes C to be B".

    Toki Pona Dictionary[edit | edit source]

    The Toki Pona Dictionary, in the section "Notes on lipu pu", mentions the content word analysis saying "it may be more appropriate or accurate".[1] A specific analysis that the book recommends is one by kala kala on Reddit.[2]

    References[edit | edit source]

    1. Lang, Sonja (2021). "Notes on lipu pu". Toki Pona Dicionary. Illustrated by Vacon Sartirani. Tawhid.
    2. kala kala (u/pisceyo). (8 October 2019). "Toki Pona Analysis: Parts of Speech". Reddit.