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The construct state or ''status constructus'' is a noun form occurring in Afro-Asiatic languages. It is particularly common in Semitic languages (such as Arabic, Hebrew, and Syriac), in the Berber languages, and in the extinct Egyptian language. Forms analogous to the construct state are also found in some other languages, such as Dholuo. In Semitic languages, nouns are placed in the construct state when they are modified by another noun in a genitive construction. Note that this differs from the genitive case of European languages in that it is the head (modified) noun rather than the dependent (modifying) noun which is marked. However, in Semitic languages with grammatical case (e.g. Classical Arabic), the modifying noun in a genitive construction is placed in the genitive case in addition to marking the head noun with the construct state. In some non-Semitic languages, the construct state has various additional functions besides marking the head noun of a genitive construction. Depending on the particular language, the construct state of a noun is indicated by various phonological properties (e.g. a different suffix, different vowels or different stress) and/or morphological properties (such as inability to take a definite article). ==Semitic languages== In the older Semitic languages, the use of the construct state is the standard (often only) way to form a genitive construction with a semantically definite modified noun. The modified noun is placed in the construct state, which lacks any definite article (despite being semantically definite), and is often phonetically shortened (as in Biblical Hebrew). The modifying noun is placed directly afterwards, and no other word can intervene between the two. For example, an adjective that qualifies either the modified or modifying noun must appear after both. (This can lead to potential ambiguity if the two nouns have the same gender, number and case; otherwise, the agreement marking of the adjective will indicate which noun is modified.) In some languages, e.g. Biblical Hebrew and the modern varieties of Arabic, feminine construct-state nouns preserve an original ''-t'' suffix that has dropped out in other circumstances. In some modern Semitic languages, the use of the construct state in forming genitive constructions has been partly or completely displaced by the use of a preposition, much like the use of the modern English "of", or the omission of any marking. In these languages (e.g. Modern Hebrew and Moroccan Arabic), the construct state is used mostly in forming compound nouns. An example is Hebrew ''bet ha-sefer'' "the school", lit. "the house of the book"; ''bet'' is the construct state of ''bayit'' "house". Alongside such expressions, the construct state is sometimes neglected, such as in the expression ''mana falafel'' (a portion of falafel), which should be ''menat falafel'' using the construct state. However, the lack of a construct state is generally considered informal, and is inappropriate for formal speech. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Construct state」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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