Tlamachtiliztli 32 Tē- and tla-: Non-specific object markers, Part 1

Te– is a non-specific human object marker referring to humans, and  tla– is in turn a non specific non-human object marker.  It can refer to animals, plants, and inanimate things. At times, tla– can also refer to people.

Xiquittacān tlamanēxtilli īcā tē- // Let’s look at some examples with tē-

• Maria mītztlamāca. / Maria feeds you.
• Maria tētlamāca. / Maria feeds someone.
• Notatah quipalehuia Tomás. / My dad helps Tomás.
• Notatah tēpalehuia. / My dad helps people.
• Juan quicahcayāhqui nopipi. / Juan lied to my sister.
• Juan tēcahcayāhqui. / Juan lied to someone.

Xiquitta tlamanēxtilli īcā tla- // Let’s look at some examples with tla-

• Nonanān tlachicuēnia chihchicuēyi. / My mom washes clothes every eight days.
• Totahtzin tlanāmictia Chicōntepēc. / The priest marries in Chicontepec.
• Felipe quiāmati tlaōniz. / Felipe likes to drink alcohol.
• Nochichi quiāmati tlapēhuaz. / My dog likes to hunt.
• Ne cahuayoh tlahuel etic itlamāmāl. / That horse’s load is heavy.