-li

See also: Appendix:Variations of "li"

Alemannic German

Etymology

From Middle High German -līn. Compare Yiddish ־ל (-l).

Suffix

-li

1. forms diminutives of nouns

Derived terms

Alemannic German terms suffixed with -li

Brüechli

Chriesibäumli

Chäschtli

Chüechli

Drämmli

Färli

Gänterli

Heidëchsli

Liibli

Maitli

Määrli

Müesli

Purggli

Rüebli

Schwöschterli

Zältli

Chickasaw

Suffix

-li (class I first-person singular subject marker)

1. I (subject of an active transitive or active intransitive verb)

Suffix

-li (transitive-forming verb suffix)

1. forms or indicates an active transitive verb

Choctaw

Etymology 1

Suffix

-li (verb-forming suffix)

1. forms or indicates an active transitive verb

Etymology 2

Suffix

-li (class I first-person singular)

1. the subject of an active transitive verb

   I

2. the subject of an active intransitive verb

   I

Inflection

Choctaw Person Markers

			class I			class II		class III		class N		imperative
			+s	+C	+V	+C/i	+a/o	+C	+V	+C	+V	+C	+V
first-person	singular	initial	-li			sa-	si-	a̱-	am-	ak-		n/a
		medial						-sa-	-sam-
	paucal		ī-		il-	pi-		pi̱-	pim-	kī-	kil-
	plural					hapi-		hapi̱-	hapim-
second-person	singular		is-	ish-		chi-		chi̱-	chim-	chik-		∅
	plural		has-	hash-		hachi-		hachi̱-	hachim-	hachik-		ho-	oh-
third-person			∅			∅		i̱-	im-	ik-

Czech

Etymology

Inherited from Old Czech li, from Proto-Slavic *li.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ lɪ]

Conjunction

-li

1. if

   Utíkej odtud, je-li ti život milý. ― Run away from here if you like your life.

   • 1878, Jan Neruda, Písně kosmické:

     bude-li každý z nás z křemene, je celý národ z kvádrů

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

2. whether

   Nevím, přijde-li. ― I don't know whether he comes.

Particle

-li

1. (dated or literary or dialectal) question-forming interrogative particle

   Není-li pravda? ― Is it not true?

Derived terms

• jestli
• pakli
• zdali

Further reading

• “-li”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
• “-li”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
• “li”, in Internetová jazyková příručka (in Czech), 2008–2025

Eastern Huasteca Nahuatl

Etymology 1

Cognate to Classical Nahuatl -lin

Suffix

-li

1. a suffix that makes nouns.

Etymology 2

Suffix

-li

1. alternative spelling of -lli

Fala

Pronoun

-li

1. Clitic form of le (“to him, to her, to them”)

See also

Fala personal pronouns

			nominative	dative	accusative	disjunctive
singular	first person		ei	me, -mi		mi
	second person		tú	te, -ti		ti
	third person	m	el	le, -li	uLV, oM	el
		f	ela		a	ela
plural	first person	common	nos	musL nusLV nos, -nusM		nos
		m	noshotrusM			noshotrusM
		f	noshotrasM			noshotrasM
	second person	common	vos	vusLV vos, -vusM		vos
		m	voshotrusM			voshotrusM
		f	voshotrasM			voshotrasM
	third person	m	elis	le, -li	usLV, osM	elis
		f	elas		as	elas
third person reflexive			—	se, -si		sí

Dialects:  ^L Lagarteiru   ^M Mañegu   ^V Valverdeñu

References

• Valeš, Miroslav (2021), Diccionariu de A Fala: lagarteiru, mañegu, valverdeñu (web)‎, 2nd edition, Minde, Portugal: CIDLeS, published 2022, →ISBN, page 187

Finnish

Etymology 1

-la +‎ -i (nominal suffix)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /-li/, [-li]

Suffix

-li

1. Forms diminutive nouns.

Usage notes

Preceding -a-, -ä-, -i- usually changes to -e- (compare -ella).

Alternative forms

• -eli

Derived terms

Finnish terms suffixed with -li (nominal)

epeli

hauveli

hommeli

kikkeli

kurnaali

pippeli

pusseli

-uli

vauveli

• -listo

Etymology 2

-la +‎ -i (i-lative singular)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /-li(ˣ)/, [-li(ʔ)]

Suffix

-li

1. Forms some terminative adverbs.

Derived terms

Finnish terms suffixed with -li (adverbial)

mikäli

sikäli

German

Etymology

Cognate with Alemannic German -li.

Suffix

-li n

1. (Southern Germany, Switzerland) suffix used to create a diminutive form

   Synonym: -lein

Derived terms

German terms suffixed with -li

Brötli

Häusli

• Mütterli

Related terms

• Kantönligeist
• Müsli
• Plätzli
• Rindsplätzli

Greenlandic

Pronunciation

• (Nuuk) IPA^(key): /-li/, [-lɪ]

Suffix

-li (v-v^?, additive^?)

1. (intransitive, with stative verbs) [verb] more
2. (transitive, with stative verbs) cause to [verb] more

Usage notes

Fusions with three verbs in the following manner:

angivoq (“be large”) → allivoq (“become larger”), allivaa (“make larger, enlarge”)

mikivoq (“be small”) → millivoq (“become smaller, shrink”), millivaa (“make smaller”)

takivoq (“be long”) → tallivoq (“become longer”), tallivaa (“make longer”)

Derived terms

Greenlandic terms suffixed with -li

allivaa

allivoq

millivaa

millivoq

taamaalivoq

tallivaa

tallivoq

Suffix

-li (enclitic)

1. but
   • "Tasiilami efterskoleqalernissaa Jakob Sivertsen-ip sulissutigaa", Atuagagdliutit

     Kalaallit Nunaanni efterskoleliortiternissaq piumassuseqarfigineqarpoq, aningaasassaqartinneqanngillalli

Further reading

• Vestgrønlands Grammatik, p. 118-119, F.A.J. Nielsen, 2014

Igbo

Alternative forms

• -ri (Owerri, Umuahia)

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -iː

Suffix

-li

1. Used to form simple past tenses of verbs.

   melili (as in Roger Federer melili Yoshihito Nishioka na US Open.)

Italian

Pronoun

-li

1. (enclitic) alternative form of li

   dare (“to give”) → darli (“to give them”)

   vendere (“to sell”) → venderli (“to sell them”)

   servire (“to serve”) → servirli (“to serve them”)

Usage notes

• Appended to present active infinitive verb forms to accusative dative forms when the object is third plural masculine person. The final -e of the original infinitive is removed :

-are → -arli

-ere → -erli

-ire → -irli

Where the verb ends in -rre, the final re is removed, leaving behind just an -r:

introdurre (“to introduce”) → introdurli (“to introduce them”)

In any case, after the suffixation, there is only a single r and no vowels immediately before -li.

Anagrams

• il, il-

Latin

Suffix

-lī

1. inflection of -lus:
   1. nominative/vocative masculine plural
   2. genitive masculine/neuter singular

Lower Sorbian

Alternative forms

• -lic

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *li; cognate with Upper Sorbian -li, Polish -li, Czech -li.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /li/, [lʲi]

Particle

-li

1. used after a verb form to introduce a polar question

   Spiš-li? ― Are you sleeping?

   Sy-li Bóžy syn? ― Are you the Son of God?

   Wiźiš-li to? ― Do you see that?

Conjunction

-li

1. if

   Synonyms: joli, gaž, gaby

   Coš-li, ga móžoš. ― If you want, then you may.

   Jo-li tam, ga jo derje. ― If he’s there, then it’s all right.

   Zmejoš-li pjeńeze, dosć změjoš pśijaśelow. ― If you have money, you’ll have plenty of friends.

   Maš-li to na mysli, ga cyń. ― If you’re thinking of it, do it.

Further reading

• Starosta, Manfred (1999), “-li”, in Dolnoserbsko-nimski słownik / Niedersorbisch-deutsches Wörterbuch (in German), Bautzen: Domowina-Verlag

Maltese

Etymology

lil +‎ -i

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /lɪ/

Suffix

-li

1. to me

Middle English

Etymology 1

Suffix

-li

1. alternative form of -ly (“adjectival suffix”)

Etymology 2

Suffix

-li

1. alternative form of -ly (“adverbial suffix”)

Pennsylvania German

Etymology

From Middle High German -līn. Compare Yiddish ־ל (-l).

Suffix

-li

1. (diminutive) -ling, -let

Derived terms

• Hundli
• Wutzli

Pitjantjatjara

Pronoun

-li (first person dual nominative, bound form of ngali)

1. we two

Usage notes

Bound pronouns can be used instead of the regular "long form" pronouns. They act as clitics that attach to the last word of the first noun phrase in the sentence, or the conjunctions ka or munu if present.

Related terms

Pitjantjatjara personal pronouns (nominative case)

	singular	dual	plural
first person	ngayulu (I) Bound form: -ṉa	ngali (we two) Bound form: -li	nganaṉa (we, more than two) Bound form: -la
second person	nyuntu (you) Bound form: -n	nyupali (you two)	nyura (you, more than two)
third person	paluṟu (he/she/it)	pula (they two)	tjana (they, more than two) Bound form: -ya

Polish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /li/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -i
• Syllabification: -li

Particle

-li

1. (dated) interrogative particle: introduces a yes-no question

   Synonym: czy

2. (dated) emphatic particle

   Synonyms: -że, -no, -ci, -to

Suffix

-li

1. virile nominative/vocative plural of -ły

Further reading

• -li in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Turkish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Turkic *-lig

Ottoman Turkish ـلو (-lı, -li, -lu, -lü)

Ottoman Turkish ـلی (-lı, -li, -lu, -lü)

Turkish -li

Inherited from Ottoman Turkish ـلی (-lı, -li, -lu, -lü), from ـلو (-lı, -li, -lu, -lü), from Proto-Turkic *-lig.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /li/, /ˈli/

Suffix

preceding vowel
a / ı	e / i	o / u	ö / ü
-lı	-li	-lu	-lü

-li

1. with, containing; forms adjectives from nouns. This usage is treated as a "case suffix" and is separated from proper nouns by an apostrophe.

   Antonym: -siz

   ‎kafein (“caffeine”) + ‎-li → ‎kafeinli (“caffeinated, containing caffeine”)

2. of, from; of a nation or place. This usage is treated as a "word-forming suffix" and is not separated from proper nouns by an apostrophe. The demonym formed this way functions equally as an adjective and as a noun. It is commonly encountered in surnames derived from the names of towns and cities.

   ‎İstanbul (“Istanbul”) + ‎-li → ‎İstanbullu (“[a person] from Istanbul”)

   ‎Tokat (“a city in northern Anatolia”) + ‎-li → ‎Tokatlı (“[a person] from Tokat”)

3. Added to sports organizations to form names for their fans.

   ‎Ardahanspor (“a soccer team”) + ‎-li → ‎Ardahansporlu (“a person who supports this team”)

Usage notes

• Stress is carried onto the suffix when appended to a word with stress on the last syllable:

  üzüm /yˈzym/ becomes üzümlü /y.zymˈly/; Kars /ˈkaɾs/ becomes Karslı /kaɾsˈɫɯ/

• Stress doesn't shift when appended to a word that is stressed elsewhere:

  çikolata /t͡ʃi.koˈɫa.ta/ becomes çikolatalı /t͡ʃi.koˈɫa.ta.ɫɯ/; Bursa /ˈbuɾ.sa/ becomes Bursalı /ˈbuɾ.sa.ɫɯ/

Derived terms

Turkish terms suffixed with -li

abajurlu

abalı

abartılı

abartmalı

Abu Dabili

acıklı

açıklamalı

Adaklı

adaletli

adalı

adamakıllı

Adıyamanlı

adlı

afili

Afyonkarahisarlı

Afyonkarahisarlılaştıramadıklarımızdan mısınız

ağaçlı

ağılı

ağırbaşlı

ağızlı

ağlamaklı

Ağlı

aharlı

ahenkli

Ahırlı

ahlaklı

Ahmetli

akıllı

akıllıca

alakalı

Alanyalı

Alaplı

albenili

aldatmalı

aletli

alımlı

alınlı

alkollü

Amerikalı

analı

Andorralı

Angolalı

Ankaralı

anlamlı

anlayışlı

anlayışsız

Antalyalı

antimonlu

Arjantinli

Armutlu

aromalı

Artuklu

Arubalı

asitli

Asyalı

Aşkabatlı

ateşli

Atinalı

atlı

Avrupalı

avrupalı

avurtlu

Avustralyalı

Avusturyalı

ayaklı

ayazlı

aylı

aylıklı

ayrıntılı

Azerbaycanlı

azılı

azimli

azotlu

babalı

Babalı

bacaklı

bağımlı

bağlı

baharatlı

baharlı

Bahçeli

bahriyeli

bakımlı

balgamlı

balıklı

ballı

baltalı

bandıralı

basiretli

basurlu

başarılı

başlı

Batı Asyalı

Batı Avrupalı

batılı

Bayraklı

bazlı

becerikli

Bekilli

Belaruslu

Belçikalı

Belgratlı

belli

benekli

bereketli

Berlinli

bıyıklı

biberli

bilgili

bilgisayarlı

bilinçli

bir türlü

birleşmeli

Bişkekli

bluzlu

Boğazlıyan

boklu

borçlu

boyalı

böcekli

Brezilyalı

Budapeşteli

buhranlı

bulutlu

Bursalı

burunlu

buzlu

büyülü

cafcaflı

Cakartalı

canlı

cazibeli

ceketli

Cenevreli

cerahatli

cerbezeli

cesaretli

cezalı

Cezayirli

cibiliyetli

Cihanbeyli

coşkulu

cüsseli

çakmaklı

çalımlı

Çameli

Çamlıhemşin

Çamlıyayla

çamurlu

Çanakkaleli

çayırlı

çekik gözlü

çeneli

çeşitli

çiçekli

Çiğli

çikolatalı

çilekli

Çilimli

çilli

Çinli

çizgili

çocuklu

çokgözlü

çubuklu

Dağıstanlı

dağlı

dalgalı

dallı

damarlı

Danimarkalı

dayalı

değerli

dekorlu

delikanlı

demirli

deneyimli

dengeli

Denizlili

denli

Dereli

dertli

detaylı

devamlı

Develi

dikenli

Dikili

dikişli

dikkatli

dilli

dinli

dirençli

dişli

Doğu Avrupalı

doğulu

dokunaklı

donatımlı

dönüşlü

dörtlü

dudaklı

Descendants

• Ladino: -li
• Greek: -λής (-lís)

Uzbek

Etymology

Inherited from Chagatai ـلیغ (-lığ), ـلیک (-lig), ـلوغ (-luğ), ـلوک (-lüg), from Proto-Turkic *-lig.

Suffix

-li

1. used to form descriptive adjectives from nouns

Derived terms

Uzbek terms suffixed with -li

ahamiyatli

bronli

farqli

hikmatli

imonli

izohli

jonli

kasrli

kerakli

kuchli

lazzatli

loyli

maʼnoli

moyli

musiqali

nomli

nufuzli

oqibatli

ongli

qandli

qonli

qorli

quvvatli

quyoshli

sifatli

soatli

sonli

soqolli

sovunli

spirtli

tafsilli

tartibli

taʼsirli

totli

umurtqali

zararli

zirhli

ziyonli

gʻamzali

shiddatli

Wutunhua

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [li]

Etymology 1

From Mandarin 裡／里 (“inside”).

Suffix

-li

1. Marks the locative case:
   1. in, at (location of an action)

      ggaiggan lhokang-li huaiqa kan-di-li.

      The teacher is reading a book in the classroom.

      (Quoted in Sandman, p. 52)

   2. to (direction of an action; optional for place names)

      ngu rongbo-li qhi-zhe.

      I am going to Longwu.

      (Quoted in Sandman, p. 52)

Etymology 2

Janhunen et al. speculates that this is from Mandarin 來／来 (“to come”).

Suffix

-li

1. An evidential suffix, marking that the subject has personally experienced the event/situation but that they were not personally responsible for instigating the event/situation, or did not have full control over the experience.

References

• Juha Janhunen, Marja Peltomaa, Erika Sandman, Xiawu Dongzhou (2008), Wutun (LINCOM's Descriptive Grammar Series), volume 466, LINCOM Europa, →ISBN
• Erika Sandman (2016), A Grammar of Wutun‎, University of Helsinki (PhD), →ISBN

Yao

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *dɪ̀ (“to be - irregular verb”)

Verb

-li

1. to be in a place
2. to be in a state

Derived terms

• juli (“Class 1 form of "-li"”)
• jili (“Class 9 form of "-li"”)

References

• Ciyawo - English Dictionary: Dikishonale ja Ŵakulijiganya