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ona vs. ni: Difference between revisions
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Jan Ke Tami (talk | contribs) (Created page with "How to use '''ona''' and '''ni''' and their differences: '''ona''' is a third person pronoun, similar to English's ''it, they, she, him, themselves, etc''. '''ona''' can contain the information of a noun phrase (a head noun plus its modifiers), here are some examples: *mi kepeken ilo. ona li pona. - I'm using a tool. It [the tool] is good. *jan Mimi li moku e kili ona. - Mimi is eating her [Mimi's] fruit. *kasi mute li lon. ona laso li pona. - There are many plants. Th...") |
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{{DISPLAYTITLE:{{tp|ona}} vs. {{tp|ni}}}}<!-- {{tp title|ona|ni}} results in a broken title. -->
The pronouns {{tp|[[ona]]}} and {{tp|[[ni]]}} are used differently depending on context and is sometimes misunderstood by learners. The word {{tp|ona}} is a {{w|third-person pronoun}}. It can contain the information about a content phrase. While {{tp|ni}} is a demonstrative pronoun, similar to English's ''this'' / ''that''.
{{Example
|mi kepeken ilo. <mark>ona</mark> li pona.
|mi kepeken ilo {{idsp}} <mark>ona </mark>li pona
}}
{{Example
|jan Alu li moku e kili <mark>ona</mark>.
▲*mi kepeken ilo. ona li pona. - I'm using a tool. It [the tool] is good.
|jan [ale luka uta] li moku e kili <mark>ona</mark>
*kasi mute li lon. ona laso li pona. - There are many plants. The blue ones [plants] are good.▼
}}
{{Example
|kasi mute li lon. <mark>ona laso</mark> li pona.
▲
|kasi mute li lon {{idsp}} <mark>ona laso </mark>li pona
}}
Besides being able to contain the information of a noun phrase,
{{Example
▲Besides being able to contain the information of a noun phrase, it can also hold the information of an entire sentence. Not only that, the information that ''ni'' contains can come after it is said, examples:
|I'm using a tool. This [using a tool] is good.
}}
*mi moku e kili. ona li pona. - I eat a fruit. It [the fruit] is good.▼
*mi moku e kili. kili ni li pona. - I eat a fruit. This fruit is good.▼
Note that when {{tp|ona}} is used, the phrase {{tp|ijo ni}} can be used instead, with {{tp|ijo}} being substituted with any [[content word]]:
Notice in the first example of each (mi kepeken ilo), how substituting ''ona'' for ''ni'' changes the meaning of the second part. Here are more examples of the difference ''ona'' and ''ni'' can make in a sentence:▼
*mi wile ala moku e kili ona - I don't want to eat her fruit.▼
{{Example
*mi wile ala moku e kili ni - I don't want to eat this fruit.▼
*mi sona e toki mute. ni li pona. - I know many languages. This [knowing many languages] is good.▼
}}
{{Example
|mi moku e kili. kili ni li pona.
}}
▲Notice in the first example of each ({{tp|mi kepeken ilo}}), how substituting
<div style="column-count: 2;">
{{Example
|I don't want to eat <mark>her fruit</mark>.
}}
{{Example
|mi wile ala moku e <mark>kili ni</mark>.
}}
</div>
<div style="column-count: 2;">
{{Example
|mi sona e toki mute. <mark>ona</mark> li pona.
|I know many languages. <mark>They</mark> [the languages] are good.
|mi sona e toki mute {{idsp}} <mark>ona </mark>li pona
}}
{{Example
|mi sona e toki mute. <mark>ni</mark> li pona.
▲
|mi sona e toki mute {{idsp}} <mark>ni </mark>li pona
}}
</div>
[[Category:Grammar]]
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