Yes and no questions in languages: Difference between revisions

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<blockquote>
__NOTOC__
{|<br>
From http://aveneca.com/yesno.html
|-<br>
 
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" |<br>
== Two-Form languages==
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" |<br>
A two-form language has two words for yes and no. One for a positive answer, and one for a negative one. Languages include English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Hungarian and Greek.
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" |<br>
 
|-<br>
{|
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" |<br>
|-
| align="center" |<br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''English'''
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" |<br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE ANSWER'''
|-<br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE ANSWER'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" |<br>
|-
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" |<br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE QUESTION'''
| align="center" |<br>
| align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Yes''' <br />I killed him.
|}<br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''No''' <br />I didn't kill him.
<br>
|-
<blockquote><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE QUESTION'''
= name="yesno" =<br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Yes''' <br />I killed him.
<br><br>
| align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''No''' <br />I didn't kill him.
This is a small page I threw together aimed at giving a brief overview of the different systems used to express equivalents of the words ''yes'' and ''no''.[[File:yes-no-buttons.jpg]]<br><br>
|}
<br><br>
 
== name="" ==<br><br>
==Three-form languages==
<br><br>
Three-form languages  have three words, two for ''yes'', and one for ''no''. The two words for ''yes'' are distinguished by whether they answer a positive or negative question. Three-form langauges include German, Scandinavian, Icelandic and French.
A two-form language has two words for yes and no. One for a positive answer, and one for a negative one. Languages include English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Hungarian and Greek.<br><br>
 
<blockquote><br><br>
{|
{|<br><br><br>
|-
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''Scandinavian'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''English'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE ANSWER'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE ANSWER'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE ANSWER'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE ANSWER'''<br><br><br>
|-
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE QUESTION'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE QUESTION'''<br><br><br>
| align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Ja''' <br />I killed him.
| align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Yes''' <br />I killed him.<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Nej''' <br />I didn't kill him.
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''No''' <br />I didn't kill him.<br><br><br>
|-
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE QUESTION'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE QUESTION'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Jo''' <br />I killed him.
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Yes''' <br />I killed him.<br><br><br>
| align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Nej''' <br />I didn't kill him.
| align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''No''' <br />I didn't kill him.<br><br><br>
|}
|}<br><br>
==Four-form languages==
</blockquote><br><br>
 
<br><br>
Four-form languages have two words for ''yes'', and two for ''no''. They are distinguished by whether both the question and the answer is positive or negative. Examples include Early Modern English and Romanian.
name=""Three-form languages have three words, two for ''yes'', and one for ''no''. The two words for ''yes'' are distinguished by whether they answer a positive or negative question. Three-form langauges include German, Scandinavian, Icelandic and French.<br><br>
 
<blockquote><br><br>
{|
{|<br><br><br>
|-
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''Early Modern English'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''Scandinavian'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE ANSWER'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE ANSWER'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE ANSWER'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE ANSWER'''<br><br><br>
|-
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE QUESTION'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE QUESTION'''<br><br><br>
| align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Yea''' <br />I killed him.
| align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Ja''' <br />I killed him.<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Nay''' <br />I didn't kill him.
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Nej''' <br />I didn't kill him.<br><br><br>
|-
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE QUESTION'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE QUESTION'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Yes''' <br />I killed him.
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Jo''' <br />I killed him.<br><br><br>
| align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''No''' <br />I didn't kill him.
| align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Nej''' <br />I didn't kill him.<br><br><br>
|}
|}<br><br>
 
</blockquote><br><br>
==Agreement languages==
<br><br>
In an agreement language the important distinction is not whether the answer is positive or negative, but rather agreement with the question stated. Roughly, in these languages, ''yes'' can be exchanged for "That's correct" and ''no'' for "That's not correct". Agreement languages include Japanese, Russian and Tok Pisin.
name=""Four-form languages have two words for ''yes'', and two for ''no''. They are distinguished by whether both the question and the answer is positive or negative. Examples include Early Modern English and Romanian.<br><br>
 
<blockquote><br><br>
{|
{|<br><br><br>
|-
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''Japanese'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''Early Modern English'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE ANSWER'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE ANSWER'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE ANSWER'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE ANSWER'''<br><br><br>
|-
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE QUESTION'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE QUESTION'''<br><br><br>
| align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Hai''' <br />I killed him.
| align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Yea''' <br />I killed him.<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Iie''' <br />I didn't kill him.
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Nay''' <br />I didn't kill him.<br><br><br>
|-
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE QUESTION'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE QUESTION'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Iie''' <br />I killed him.
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Yes''' <br />I killed him.<br><br><br>
| align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Hai''' <br />I didn't kill him.
| align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''No''' <br />I didn't kill him.<br><br><br>
|}
|}<br><br>
 
</blockquote><br><br>
==Echo languages==
<br><br>
An echo language is a language that doesn't use specific words for ''yes'' and ''no'', but rather restates the main verb of the question. Some echo languages do have words for ''yes'' and ''no'' as well, but their usage is usually quite restricted compared to non-echo languages. Echo languages include Mandarin, Finnish, Latin and Welsh.
name=""In an agreement language the important distinction is not whether the answer is positive or negative, but rather agreement with the question stated. Roughly, in these languages, ''yes'' can be exchanged for "That's correct" and ''no'' for "That's not correct". Agreement languages include Japanese, Russian and Tok Pisin.<br><br>
 
<blockquote><br><br>
{|
{|<br><br><br>
|-
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''Mandarin'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''Japanese'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE ANSWER'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE ANSWER'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE ANSWER'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE ANSWER'''<br><br><br>
|-
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE QUESTION'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE QUESTION'''<br><br><br>
| align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Shā le''' <br />I killed him.
| align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Hai''' <br />I killed him.<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Méi yǒu''' <br />I didn't kill him.
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Iie''' <br />I didn't kill him.<br><br><br>
|-
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE QUESTION'''
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE QUESTION'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Shā le''' <br />I killed him.
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Iie''' <br />I killed him.<br><br><br>
| align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Méi yǒu''' <br />I didn't kill him.
| align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Hai''' <br />I didn't kill him.<br><br><br>
|}
|}<br><br>
</blockquote><br><br>
<br><br>
name=""An echo language is a language that doesn't use specific words for ''yes'' and ''no'', but rather restates the main verb of the question. Some echo languages do have words for ''yes'' and ''no'' as well, but their usage is usually quite restricted compared to non-echo languages. Echo languages include Mandarin, Finnish, Latin and Welsh.<br><br>
<blockquote><br><br>
{|<br><br><br>
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''Mandarin'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE ANSWER'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE ANSWER'''<br><br><br>
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''POSITIVE QUESTION'''<br><br><br>
| align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Shā le''' <br />I killed him.<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Did you kill him? <br />'''Méi yǒu''' <br />I didn't kill him.<br><br><br>
|-<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" | '''NEGATIVE QUESTION'''<br><br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Shā le''' <br />I killed him.<br><br><br>
| align="center" | Didn't you kill him? <br />'''Méi yǒu''' <br />I didn't kill him.<br><br><br>
|}<br><br>
</blockquote><br><br>
<br><br>
{|<br><br>
|-<br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" |<br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" |<br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" |<br><br>
|-<br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" |<br><br>
| align="center" |<br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" |<br><br>
|-<br><br>
| bgcolor="#e7c465" align="center" |<br><br>
| bgcolor="F7E8B1" align="center" |<br><br>
| align="center" |<br><br>
|}<br>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>

Latest revision as of 09:55, 5 June 2019

From http://aveneca.com/yesno.html

Two-Form languages

A two-form language has two words for yes and no. One for a positive answer, and one for a negative one. Languages include English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Hungarian and Greek.

English POSITIVE ANSWER NEGATIVE ANSWER
POSITIVE QUESTION Did you kill him?
Yes
I killed him.
Did you kill him?
No
I didn't kill him.
NEGATIVE QUESTION Didn't you kill him?
Yes
I killed him.
Didn't you kill him?
No
I didn't kill him.

Three-form languages

Three-form languages have three words, two for yes, and one for no. The two words for yes are distinguished by whether they answer a positive or negative question. Three-form langauges include German, Scandinavian, Icelandic and French.

Scandinavian POSITIVE ANSWER NEGATIVE ANSWER
POSITIVE QUESTION Did you kill him?
Ja
I killed him.
Did you kill him?
Nej
I didn't kill him.
NEGATIVE QUESTION Didn't you kill him?
Jo
I killed him.
Didn't you kill him?
Nej
I didn't kill him.

Four-form languages

Four-form languages have two words for yes, and two for no. They are distinguished by whether both the question and the answer is positive or negative. Examples include Early Modern English and Romanian.

Early Modern English POSITIVE ANSWER NEGATIVE ANSWER
POSITIVE QUESTION Did you kill him?
Yea
I killed him.
Did you kill him?
Nay
I didn't kill him.
NEGATIVE QUESTION Didn't you kill him?
Yes
I killed him.
Didn't you kill him?
No
I didn't kill him.

Agreement languages

In an agreement language the important distinction is not whether the answer is positive or negative, but rather agreement with the question stated. Roughly, in these languages, yes can be exchanged for "That's correct" and no for "That's not correct". Agreement languages include Japanese, Russian and Tok Pisin.

Japanese POSITIVE ANSWER NEGATIVE ANSWER
POSITIVE QUESTION Did you kill him?
Hai
I killed him.
Did you kill him?
Iie
I didn't kill him.
NEGATIVE QUESTION Didn't you kill him?
Iie
I killed him.
Didn't you kill him?
Hai
I didn't kill him.

Echo languages

An echo language is a language that doesn't use specific words for yes and no, but rather restates the main verb of the question. Some echo languages do have words for yes and no as well, but their usage is usually quite restricted compared to non-echo languages. Echo languages include Mandarin, Finnish, Latin and Welsh.

Mandarin POSITIVE ANSWER NEGATIVE ANSWER
POSITIVE QUESTION Did you kill him?
Shā le
I killed him.
Did you kill him?
Méi yǒu
I didn't kill him.
NEGATIVE QUESTION Didn't you kill him?
Shā le
I killed him.
Didn't you kill him?
Méi yǒu
I didn't kill him.