i-, prefix
/i/
An isiXhosa, isiZulu, and isiNdebele singular noun prefix found in some words originating in these languages. For examples, see ibandla, ibutho, idlozi, ikhowe, ikrwala, iqabane, itongo. Cf. um-.
- Note:
- In Xhosa, Zulu and Ndebele, the plural of words beginning i- is formed by replacing this prefix with ama-. In South African English. this pattern is not always observed, the plural sometimes being formed by adding the English plural suffix -s to the singular form; less often, the singular form is used, unchanged, as a plural. See also ama- and ili-.
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