Page:A Concise Grammar of the Malagasy Language.djvu/24

 Insertion of a consonant (s, v, or z) before the final a: there are a few exceptions to this.

Vowel-changes, usually taking place among the vowels of the accented syllable, viz. i (or y) into a or e.

Vowel-changes, usually taking place among the vowels of the accented syllable, viz. ai into e.

The government of cases by Malagasy verbs is often puzzling, because, while many verbs govern direct accusatives, others require the preposition àmy to be inserted between them and the cases they govern; while others, again, have both constructions. Thus, mitèny àminy, 'to speak to him;' mitèny àzy, 'to reprove him' (i.e. to speak at him).

Again, many Malagasy verbs take two accusatives, which may refer to person and thing, instrument and object, or limiting accusative and object.