Introduction to Navajo Questions
Any competent speaker of any language will be able to form questions. This resource is a combined grammar and lexicon of Navajo questions. We provide a description of three kinds of questions along with glossed examples and audio recordings of them. We think this resource will be useful to students and teachers of this language, and to professional linguists within and outside Navajo communities.
We distinguish three distinct kinds of questions: Yes/no questions, Content Questions, and Alternative Questions. We treat Tag Questions as a subtype of Yes/no questions. For this project we draw on previous work by Fernald & Perkins (manuscript), Young & Morgan (1987), Young, Morgan & Midgette (1992), and others cited in References [link].
| Da’ | Na’nízhoozhígóó | díníyá? |
| Q | Gallup-to | 2-go.F |
| Are you going to Gallup? | ||
| Mary | ha’át’íí | nayiisnii’? |
| Mary | what | 3-3-buy.P |
| What did Mary buy? | ||
| ’Atsį́’ísh | ’éí | doodaii’ | łóó’ísh | nínízin? |
| meat-Q | TOP | or | fish-Q | 3-2-want.NI |
| Do you want meat or fish? | ||||
Example (1) is a yes/no question, which has ‛yes’ or ‛no’ as an answer. Questions like this are used to ask whether a particular statement is true or not. In this example, the statement being asked about is Na’nízhoozhígóó díníyá, which means ‛You are going to Gallup’.
Content questions, like example (2), do not have simply ‛yes’ or ‛no’ as an answer. Rather than supplying a statement and asking whether it is true or not, they have the effect of providing a statement with some missing information, and they ask what that information is. In (2), the idea is that Mary bought something, and the question asks what that something is.
Alternative questions present the addressee with a choice between two or more options. Note that the English gloss in example (3) can be understood as either a yes/no question (if the intonation is rising on fish) or an alternative question (if the intonation is falling on fish). In Navajo, the sentence is an alternative question for which the appropriate answer will indicate which one of the choices is desired.
Glossing conventions and a note on morphology are here [link].
An example search has returned 50 entries
ʼÁłah ʼaleehdi ʼamá bééhániih daats’í bá ’ádazhniiyą́ą́’? ʼÁko daatsʼí nímasii łaʼ ʼakǫ́ǫ́ dííkááł.
group gathering-at mother 3-3-remember perhaps 3-for 4-pl-eat.P so perhaps potatoes some there 3-2-take.OC.F’Adą́ą́dą́ą́’ísh tł’óo’di nishínílnish?
yesterday-Q outside-at 2-work.PBikáá’ dah ’asdáhí bikáa’gi doodaai’ ni’góó daats’í nishdaah?
chair 3-top-at or floor-on perhaps 1-sit.NIBá’ólta’íísh níyá?
3-for-3-teach-Q 3-come.PCh’ah ’éí doodaii’ nák’ee sinilí łizhinígíí daats’í nee hólǫ́’?
hat or sunglasses perhaps 2-with 4-exist.NICh’iyáán nináhíłnihgo haa nízahjį’ ’ánádįįh?
food 3-2-buy.R how 3-long.N-up.to 3-become.none.RChidí daats’í bee hólǫ́ doodaii’ niísh chidí nee hólǫ́?
car maybe 3-with 4-exist.N or 2-Q car 2-with 4-exist.NIChidí naat’a’íísh hooghan yikáá’góó ch’ét’a’ doodaii’ dził bąąhgóósh ch’ét’a’?
airplane-Q hogan 3-over-along 3-fly.P or mountain 3-side-along-Q 3-fly.PDid the airplane fly over the house or along the mountainside?
bookmark- -ísh enclitic for yes/no questions
- -káá’ on, on top offind in Navajo Postposition Lexicon
- location
- -góó to, toward, along, on, with a numeral it indicates a datefind in Navajo Postposition Lexicon
- location
- -ąąh on, besidefind in Navajo Postposition Lexicon
- location
- -góó to, toward, along, on, with a numeral it indicates a datefind in Navajo Postposition Lexicon
- location
Chidí naat’a’íísh hooghankáá’góó ch’ínísaal ’éí doodaii’ dziłghą́ą́’góó daats’í?
airplane house-over-along over-3-fly.P TOP or mountain-attached-along perhapsDa’ ’ałní’ní’ą́ąjį’ tł’óo’di nishínílnish?
Q noon-until outside-at 2-work.PDid you work outside up to noon?
bookmark- da’ particle for yes/no questions
- ’ałní’ní’ą́ąjį’ noon-untilfind in Navajo Adverb Lexicon
- -jį́’ up to, as far asfind in Navajo Postposition Lexicon
- time
- -di atfind in Navajo Postposition Lexicon
- location
- Perfective (P) (yi, ni, si, yi-∅)find in Navajo Verb Modes
- naashnish workfind in Navajo Verb Modes
Da’ chidíísh bee hólǫ́ doodaii’ ni daats’í chidí nee hólǫ́?
Q car-Q 3-with 4-exist.NI or 2 maybe car 2-with 4-exist.NIDa’ Ron saad nináánéíłkaah ya’?
Q Ron word 3-3-investigate.I QDah díníilghaazhísh ’íilnilaa?
fry.bread-Q 3-2-make.PDibé bitsį’ doodago béégashii bitsį’ daats’í nínízin?
sheep 3-meat or cow 3-meat possibly 3-2-want.NIDichin nínízin ya’?
hungry 2-want.NI QDíidí háísh bichidí?
this who-Q 3-carDíí chąą’ shą’ háádę́ę́’ niníyęęzh?
this manure-Q where-from 3-ooze.PDíí haa yit’éego ’atiin?
this how 3-be.NI roadDíí yihahígíí biyi’, háísh tówónaanígóó ch’aa deeyá?
this year.IGII within who overseas.GOO travel 3-going.F-QGohwééh nayiisnii’ídiísh bił bééhózin?
coffee 3-3-buy.P-at-Q 3-with 3-know.NIDo they know where he bought the coffee?
bookmark- Perfective (P) (yi, ni, si, yi-∅)find in Navajo Verb Modes
- nahashniih buy, sellfind in Navajo Verb Modes
- -di atfind in Navajo Postposition Lexicon
- -ísh enclitic for yes/no questions
- location
- -ił withfind in Navajo Postposition Lexicon
- Neuter Imperfective (NI)find in Navajo Verb Modes
- bééhózin there is knowledgefind in Navajo Verb Modes
Gohwééh t’áá bizhání ’éí doodaii’ ’abe’ biłgo daats’í nínízin?
coffee only TOP or milk perhaps 3-with 3-2-want.NIGohwééh t’áá bizhání ’éí doodaii’ ’abe’ biłgo daats’í nínízin?
coffee only TOP or milk 3-with-GO perhaps 3-2-want.NIGohwééh t’áá bizhání ’éí doodaii’ ’abe’ biłgo daats’í nínízin?
coffee only TOP or milk 3-with-GO perhaps 3-2-want.NIHa’a’aahdę́ę́sh naaghan ’éí doodago e’e’aahdę́ę́sh naaghan?
east-from-Q 2-home TOP or west-from-Q 2 homeHa’át’éegoshą’ t’áadoo díníyáa da?
why-Q neg 2-go.sg.P NEGHa’át’íí biniiyé ’ákǫ́ǫ́ díníyá?
what 3-for.purpose there 2-start.go.PHa’át’íí shį́į́ biniinaa łeech’ąą’í nidahał’in?
what perhaps 3-because dog pl-3-bark.IHa’át’íísh nizhé’é yaa naaghá?
what-Q 2-father 3-about 3-do.CIHa’át’ííshą’ hastiin dóó ’at’ééd ’áyiilaa?
what-Q man and girl 3-3-make.PHa’át’íí lá nizhé’é yaa naaghá?
what Q 2-father 3-about 3-do.CIhaa níłnééz
Haa’ísh neezgai?
where-Q 3-hurt.NHaaʼí lá áshį́į́h nííníʼą́?
where-Q salt 3-2-handle.SRO.PHáágóó shą’ díníyá?
where-to.Q 2-go.FHái da shą’ tsinaa’eeł ’ájiilaa lá?
who DA Q boat 3-4-make.P DISCHáí lá bá nidáá’?
who Q 3-for 2-enemyway.ceremonyHáísh tsinaa’eeł ’áyiilaa?
who-Q boat 3-3-make.PHáísh yiską́ągo ’adoogis?
who-Q tomorrow 3-wash.FHáidígíísh ʼałkʼésdisí deeshį́į́ł?
which.one-ÍGÍÍ-Q candy 3-1-eat.FMary ha’át’íí nayiisnii’?
Mary what 3-3-buy.PNichidí háadishą’ nííníłbą́ą́z
2-car where-at-Q 3-2-park.PNiłísh bééhosin doodaii’ biłísh bééhozin?
2-with-Q 3-know.CI or 3-with-Q 3-know.CIDo you know or does s/he know?
bookmark- -ísh enclitic for yes/no questions
- -ił withfind in Navajo Postposition Lexicon
- accompaniment
- Continuative Imperfective (CI)find in Navajo Verb Modes
- bééhózin there is knowledgefind in Navajo Verb Modes
- doodaii’ particle or
- Continuative Imperfective (CI)find in Navajo Verb Modes
- bééhózin there is knowledgefind in Navajo Verb Modes
Yiską́ągo Na’nízhoozhídi háadish ’adeeshį́į́ł ninízin?
tomorrow Gallup-at where-Q 2-eat.F 2-want.CIWhen you go to Gallup tomorrow where do you want to eat?
bookmark- yiską́ągo tomorrowfind in Navajo Adverb Lexicon
- háá-P.ENCLITIC where
- -sh enclitic for content questions
- -di atfind in Navajo Postposition Lexicon
- Future (F)find in Navajo Verb Modes
- yíshą́ eat itfind in Navajo Verb Modeslook up conjugationhide conjugation ▾
- Continuative Imperfective (CI)find in Navajo Verb Modes
- nisin think, wantfind in Navajo Verb Modes




