Cherokee/Verb Template

Cherokee verbs are very complex in their morphology. A Cherokee verb requires, at minimum, a pronominal prefix, a verb root, an aspect suffix, and a tense suffix. The aspect suffix will differ between verbs, so it is common for the verb root and and aspect suffix to be combined into a verb "stem." Every verb has five possible aspects, and, therefore, five possible stems. In addition to the required components of a Cherokee verb, there are optional components including the prepronominal prefixes, the reflexive prefix, the middle voice prefix, the incorporated noun, and the derivational suffixes. All of these components follow a predictable order, as shown in the following table. Components in the same column cannot co-occur within a Cherokee verb. Components in bold are the minimum required for a Cherokee verb.