Test of Mongolian as a Foreign Language cheat sheet

Mongolian is vowel-harmony based: a word's suffixes match back vowels (а, о, у) or front vowels (э, ө, ү); listen for the vowel class to predict the ending.

Long vowels are phonemic and held roughly twice as long as short vowels (e.g., the difference between short and long а changes word meaning), so duration is a cue to meaning.

The consonant letters that mark a syllable break differ from Russian-style clusters; Mongolian rarely allows consonant clusters at word start, so an initial cluster often signals a Russian loanword.

Question intonation rises on the final syllable; statements fall. Yes/no questions typically end in the question particle уу/үү or юу/юу.

Case endings are the main cue to grammatical role in speech: -ыг/-ийг marks accusative (direct object), -д/-т dative-locative, -аас/-ээс ablative (from).

Numbers and counters: nouns generally stay singular after a numeral, so 'two books' is хоёр ном (no plural suffix), which listeners must not misread as one item.

Negation in speech is post-verbal: -гүй (without/not) or битгий + verb for prohibitions; listen for the negative element after the verb stem.

Informal speech drops case endings and shortens vowels; formal or news speech keeps full endings, so register predicts how much morphology you will hear.

Mongolian Cyrillic uses ө and ү, which are distinct letters from о and у; confusing them changes words, so check these first when a word looks unfamiliar.

The Cyrillic letters ъ and ь mark hard and soft signs respectively and carry no independent sound; they appear mainly in Russian loanwords.

Word order is subject–object–verb (SOV); the verb sits at the end of the clause, so the predicate is found by scanning to the right.

Modifiers precede the noun: adjectives, genitive nouns, and relative clauses all come before the head noun (e.g., 'the book I bought' = миний авсан ном).

Genitive case marks possession: -ын/-ийн/-ны/-ний/-ий, with the form chosen by the preceding vowel and consonant.

Plural suffixes -ууд/-үүд and -нар/-нэр attach after the stem; after a numeral the singular is normally used instead.

Text cohesion relies on switch-reference and topic marking: the particle нь marks a known topic, while бол marks a contrasted topic.

Vowel harmony governs suffix choice: back-vowel words take -аа/-оо/-уу type endings; front-vowel words take -ээ/-өө/-үү.

Case system core endings: nominative (bare), genitive -ын/-ийн, accusative -ыг/-ийг, dative-locative -д/-т, ablative -аас/-ээс, instrumental -аар/-ээр, comitative -тай/-тэй.

Verb tense: present-future -на/-нэ/-но/-нө; past -сан/-сэн/-сон/-сөн or -в; future/intent -х/-х болно.

The negative copula is биш ('is not'); the negative of existence is байхгүй ('there is not'), distinct from үгүй used in other negations.

Personal pronouns: би, чи, та, тэр, бид, та нар, тэд; та is the polite 'you' and takes plural та нар.

Question particles: уу/үү after vowels and consonants respectively for yes/no; юу after vowels; -в for past yes/no questions.

Postpositions follow the noun and take genitive or bare case: дээр (on), дор (under), дотор (inside), өмнө (before), дараа (after).

Derivational suffixes build vocabulary: -ч (agent, e.g., багш 'teacher' from баг 'group/class'), -лаг/-лэг (adjectival), -лах/-лэх (verb-forming).

Mongolian Cyrillic has 35 letters: the Russian 33 plus ө and ү; alphabetize Ө after О and Ү after У.

Capitalization: sentence-initial words and proper nouns are capitalized; Mongolian does not capitalize days, months, or languages.

Punctuation follows Russian conventions: « » guillemets for quotation, comma before conjunctions, and a dash (-) for the copula in definitions.

A formal letter opens with Эрхэм хүндэт + name/title and closes with Хүндэтгэсэн, + signature; informal letters use Сайн байна уу? as greeting.

Paragraph structure in expository writing: topic sentence, supporting detail, concluding sentence; the verb stays final in each clause.

Dates are written year.он month.сар day.өдөр or numerically as 2024.05.01; time uses цаг (hour) and минут (minute).

Loanwords from Russian keep original spelling in Cyrillic (e.g., театр, компьютер), while native words follow vowel harmony in inflection.

Mongolian has no articles (a/an/the); definiteness is shown by word order or the topic particle нь, so speakers omit articles entirely.

Greeting register: Сайн байна уу? is formal/plural; Сайн уу? is informal; reply is Сайн, баярлалаа.

Vowel harmony must be maintained in real time: choose suffix vowels to match the stem's back/front class before speaking.

Politeness is marked by та (polite you), the suffix -аарай/-ээрэй for polite requests, and баярлалаа for thanks.

Pronunciation: the letter л is often a lateral [ɮ] between vowels; х is a voiceless velar fricative, not English [k].

Stress is generally on the first syllable of a word; unstressed short vowels reduce toward schwa, affecting perceived rhythm.

Conversational fillers and backchanneling (тийм, за, одоо) maintain turn-taking; silence is less acceptable than in some languages.

Numbers above ten combine units: арван нэг (11), хорь (20), зуу (100), мянга (1000); speakers build these compositionally.

Self-introduction formula: Намайг ___ гэдэг. ('I am called ___'), followed by Би ___ -аас ирсэн ('I come from ___').

Asking for repetition: Дахин хэлнэ үү? ('Please say again') uses the polite request suffix -нэ үү.

Expressing inability: verb stem + -ж/-ч чадахгүй ('cannot'); ability uses чадна ('can').

Past narration in speech uses -сан/-сэн or -в; the -в form is common in spoken recounts and written news.

Possession in speech: genitive noun + байна for 'have' (Надад ном байна = 'I have a book'); байхгүй for 'do not have'.

Comparatives use -аас/-ээс + adjective (энэ тэрнээс том = 'this is bigger than that'); superlative uses хамгийн.

Directions and location use postpositions: дээр (on/above), доор (under), дотор (inside), хажууд (beside), ойр (near).

Time expressions: өнөөдөр (today), маргааш (tomorrow), өчигдөр (yesterday), одоо (now); clock time uses цаг + минут with -д for 'at'.

Numbers in fast speech: арван (10) often reduces to арван~арн; listen for the unit word before the noun to catch quantities.

Case suffix -аас/-ээс in speech marks both 'from' and the comparative, so context (motion verb vs. adjective) disambiguates.

The particle юм at clause end marks a statement of fact or explanation; its presence signals the speaker is clarifying.

Imperatives: verb stem alone is a command; -аарай/-ээрэй softens it to a request; битгий + stem forbids.

Loanword stress often differs from native stress, so Russian-origin words may be stressed later in the word; expect variation.

Discourse markers: тэгэхээр (so/therefore), гэхдээ (but), учир нь (because) signal logical relations in extended speech.

Numbers and dates in announcements: сар (month), өдөр (day), он (year) follow the numeral; цаг (hour) precedes минут (minute).

Verb aspect: -ж/-ч байна marks progressive ('is doing'); -ж/-ч байсан marks past progressive.

The suffix -даг/-дэг/-дог/-дөг marks habitual or repeated action in the present.

Reflexive-possessive suffixes -аа/-ээ/-оо/-өө attach to nouns to mean 'one's own' (e.g., гэртээ = 'at one's own home').

The conditional uses -вал/-вэл/-бол/-бөл ('if'); the concessive uses -вч ('although').

Reciprocal and cooperative meanings use -лд-/-лц- (e.g., уулзах 'to meet each other' from уулах-related stems).

Causative suffix -уул/-үүл or -лга/-лгэ makes a verb transitive ('cause to do').

The copula байна links noun predicates in the present; it is omitted in some colloquial statements but required in formal writing.

Adjective comparison: хамгийн + adjective = superlative; -аас/-ээс + adjective = comparative; no separate 'more' word is needed.

Recognize the topic particle нь and contrastive бол to track subject vs. topic across sentences.

Relative clauses precede the noun and end in a participle: -сан/-сэн (past), -даг/-дэг (habitual), -х/-х (future).

Quotative гэж introduces reported speech and often follows a clause before a verb of saying or thinking.

The ablative -аас/-ээс marks origin, cause, and comparison; the instrumental -аар/-ээр marks means or instrument.

Concessive -вч and conditional -вал/-вэл are common in argumentative texts; identify them to follow logical structure.

Numbers in text: use of digits vs. spelled-out numerals follows style; dates use он/сар/өдөр or numeric form.

Lexical cohesion: repeated key nouns and pronouns (энэ, тэр, тэдгээр) link sentences; track referents to answer detail questions.

Verb-final rule: every clause ends with its predicate; subordinate clauses precede the main clause.

Genitive forms must agree with the stem's final sound: -ын after consonants except н, -ийн after н and vowels, -ны/-ний after vowels in some stems.

Accusative -ыг/-ийг is required for definite direct objects; indefinite objects may appear bare.

Formal writing uses full case endings and avoids colloquial elision; contractions like -ж байна stay uncontracted.

Numbers in formal documents are often written in both digits and words to prevent alteration.

Sentence connectors: Гэхдээ (however), Тиймэсэн (therefore), Үүнээс гадна (in addition) begin new clauses and are followed by a comma.

Check vowel harmony across the whole sentence: a suffix that breaks harmony is a spelling error, not a stylistic choice.

Polite request suffix -аарай/-ээрэй/-оорой/-өөрөй agrees in vowel harmony with the verb stem.

Permission: verb + -ж/-ч болно ('may do'); prohibition: -ж/-ч болохгүй ('may not').

Offering and inviting: verb stem + -ъя/-ье (let's) for joint action, e.g., явъя ('let's go').

Describing ongoing action in speech: -ж/-ч байна; past ongoing: -ж/-ч байсан.

Expressing likes: надад ___ таалагддаг ('I like ___', habitual -даг), vs. таалагдлаа for a specific instance.

Apology and thanks: Уучлаарай (sorry), Баярлалаа (thanks), with Зүгээр (it's fine) as a reply.

Clarifying numbers in speech: repeat the unit word (арван тав, хорин гурав) and pause before the noun to avoid mishearing.

Distinguish ө [ɵ] from у [ʊ] and ү [u]: minimal pairs exist, so vowel quality, not just length, carries meaning.

Final -н vs. -нг: the velar nasal [ŋ] appears word-finally in some stems and is not the same as [n].

Question tags: тийм үү? ('right?') and тийм биз? ('probably, right?') invite confirmation and rise in pitch.

Numbers in announcements often drop the final -н of арван before a unit; expect арван нэг to sound like 'арва нэг'.

Case endings may be reduced in fast speech, but the vowel class of the ending still matches the stem; use harmony as a check.

Reported speech in listening: гэж + verb of saying; the quoted clause precedes гэж, so the verb comes last.

Time and schedule cues: -д/-т marks 'at' a time; -аас/-ээс + -д/-т marks 'from...to' ranges.

Plural suffixes: -ууд/-үүд (general), -нар/-нэр (people), -д (some nouns); after numerals the singular is standard.

The comitative -тай/-тэй/-той means 'with' or 'having'; it also forms 'to have' with байна.

The ablative -аас/-ээс covers 'from', 'than' (comparative), and 'because of'; context selects the reading.

Verb negation: -гүй after nouns/adjectives ('without'), -сангүй/-сэнгүй for past negative, битгий for prohibitive.

The suffix -х/-х before болно expresses future or possibility ('will' / 'can').

Diminutives and politeness: -хан/-хэн softens adjectives (жижигхан 'a little small').

Postpositions take genitive: миний өмнө ('before me'), түүний дараа ('after him'); some take bare case (гэрт ойр 'near the house').

Identify the head noun of a long noun phrase: modifiers and relative clauses all precede it, so scan leftward from the noun.

Participle -сан/-сэн in a relative clause marks past; -х/-х marks future or unrealized.

The particle нь often refers back to a previously mentioned noun; resolve it before answering pronoun questions.

Quotative гэж + гэх/хэлэх frames reported speech; the content clause comes immediately before гэж.

Case stacking is limited: a noun usually carries one case ending, but genitive + postposition is common.

Loanwords keep Russian spelling (театр, компьютер) and may not follow vowel harmony in derived forms.

Text type cues: news uses -в past and full endings; narrative uses -сан/-сэн and more connectives.

Orthographic rule: ө and ү are separate letters; writing о for ө is a spelling error that changes meaning.

The soft sign ь and hard sign ъ appear only in loanwords and do not affect vowel harmony.

Sentence punctuation: comma separates subordinate clause from main clause; colon introduces lists; dash marks copular definitions.

Formal address: Эрхэм хүндэт + title; closing: Хүндэтгэсэн, + name; date placed at top right.

Paragraphs in Mongolian expository prose typically open with a general statement and end with the predicate-bearing conclusion.

Numerals: compound numbers are written as separate words (хорь нэг = 21) or with digits; do not hyphenate.

Consistency check: every suffix vowel must match the stem's back/front class; mixed harmony is the most common written error.

Turn-taking: use тийм (yes), за (okay), одоо (now) to hold the floor; a direct question expects a verbal reply, not silence.

Formality shift: switch from чи to та when addressing strangers or elders; the verb endings stay the same.

Requesting clarification: Юу гэсэн бэ? ('what did you say?') is informal; Дахин хэлнэ үү? is polite.

Expressing opinion: Миний бодлоор... ('in my opinion'); agreement: Би зөвшөөрч байна ('I agree').

Describing sequences: эхлээд (first), дараа нь (then), эцэст нь (finally) structure spoken narratives.

Numbers and prices: төгрөг (currency) follows the numeral; asking price uses Хэд вэ? ('how much?').

Pronunciation caution: х is a fricative, г between vowels is voiced [ɣ]; these differ from English k and g.

Vowel length is phonemic: short vs. long vowels distinguish words, so duration must be tracked, not just quality.

The letter й forms diphthongs (ай, ой, уй, эй); these count as one syllable nucleus in fast speech.

Consonant assimilation occurs at morpheme boundaries; the case ending -д may surface as [t] after voiceless consonants.

Pitch accent: yes/no questions rise at the end; wh-questions (юу, хэн, хаана) typically fall.

Numbers in dates: он (year) follows the numeral; сар (month) and өдөр (day) follow theirs; listen for the unit word.

Reported commands use гэж + verb; the imperative stem inside the quote is unchanged.

Register cues: formal speech keeps full case endings and та; informal speech drops endings and uses чи.

Pronoun case forms: намайг (me, acc.), надад (to me), надаас (from me), надтай (with me); similar patterns for чи/та.

The verb байх ('to be/exist') is irregular in some forms: байна (present), байсан (past), байх (future).

The suffix -маар/-мээр expresses desire ('want to'): явахмаар байна ('I want to go').

The suffix -гүй on nouns means 'without' (усгүй 'waterless'); on verbs it negates.

Adverbs of degree: маш (very), их (much), бага (little), тун (quite); they precede the adjective.

The particle ч means 'even' or 'also' depending on position; it follows the focused element.

Compound verbs: auxiliary байна follows -ж/-ч to mark progressive; follows -аад/-ээд to mark resultant state.

Scan for the verb first: it is clause-final, and its tense suffix identifies the time frame of the whole clause.

Distinguish -даг/-дэг (habitual) from -ж байна (progressive); both can translate as English simple present.

The genitive + байна construction expresses possession ('X has Y'); байхгүй negates it.

The suffix -тай/-тэй marks both 'with' and 'having'; with байна it forms 'have'.

Concessive -вч and conditional -вал/-вэл signal argument structure; mark them when summarizing a text.

Referents: тэр/энэ may point to a noun or a whole clause; check the nearest compatible noun first.

Loanword recognition: Russian-origin words keep Cyrillic spelling and often lack vowel harmony in suffixes.

Vowel harmony check: suffix vowels must match the stem's class; mixed forms are errors even if understandable.

Genitive allomorphs: -ын (after most consonants), -ийн (after н and vowels), -ны/-ний (after vowels in some stems).

Accusative -ыг/-ийг attaches after the stem; the object may be bare when indefinite.

Verb-final order: place the predicate last; move time/place adverbials before the object.

Formal letters: greeting line, body paragraphs, closing Хүндэтгэсэн, signature, date.

Punctuation: « » for quotes, comma before гэхдээ/учир нь, dash for copular definitions.

Numbers: write units separately (хорь тав = 25); do not insert hyphens or apostrophes.

Introductions: Намайг ___ гэдэг; Би ___ -аас ирсэн; Би ___ настай ('I am ___ years old').

Politeness: та for 'you' (polite), -аарай/-ээрэй for requests, баярлалаа for thanks, уучлаарай for apology.

Ability: verb + -ж/-ч чадна (can); inability: -ж/-ч чадахгүй.

Permission: -ж/-ч болно; prohibition: -ж/-ч болохгүй; prohibition command: битгий + stem.

Ongoing action: -ж/-ч байна; habitual: -даг/-дэг; past: -сан/-сэн or -в.

Numbers: арван (10), хорь (20), гуч (30), дөч (40), тавь (50), жар (60), дал (70), ная (80), ер (90), зуу (100).

Location: дээр (on), дор (under), дотор (in), хажууд (beside), өмнө (front), ард (behind).

Minimal pairs: ө vs. о and ү vs. у differ in tongue position; mishearing them changes words, so verify with context.

Long vowels are written doubled in Cyrillic (аа, ээ, оо, өө, уу, үү) and held longer in speech.

The diphthongs ай, ой, уй, эй, үй behave as single syllables; do not split them when parsing.

Case ending -аас/-ээс may reduce to -аас~-ас in fast speech; the vowel class still matches the stem.

Question particle уу/үү follows vowel harmony; юу is used after vowels in some contexts.

Numbers in speech: unit words (он, сар, өдөр, цаг, минут) follow numerals and mark what is being counted.

Reported speech: the quoted clause precedes гэж, and the verb of saying comes last.

Case endings summary: genitive -ын/-ийн, accusative -ыг/-ийг, dative-locative -д/-т, ablative -аас/-ээс, instrumental -аар/-ээр, comitative -тай/-тэй.

Tense suffixes: present-future -на/-нэ/-но/-нө; past -сан/-сэн/-сон/-сөн or -в; future -х/-х.

Aspect: -ж/-ч байна (progressive), -даг/-дэг (habitual), -аад/-ээд (resultant).

Negation: биш (copula), байхгүй (existence), -гүй (without/negation), битгий (prohibitive).

Plural: -ууд/-үүд, -нар/-нэр; numerals take singular nouns.

Pronouns: би, чи, та, тэр, бид, та нар, тэд; case forms are irregular for би/чи.

Postpositions take genitive or bare case: дээр, дор, дотор, өмнө, дараа, ойр, хажууд.

Find the predicate: the clause-final verb carries tense and mood; parse backward from it.

Relative clauses precede the noun and end in participles: -сан/-сэн (past), -даг/-дэг (habitual), -х (future).

The topic particle нь marks given information; бол marks contrast; both help track subjects.

Quotative гэж introduces reported speech and follows the quoted clause.

Case endings on nouns mark grammatical roles; the accusative -ыг/-ийг signals a definite object.

Numbers: dates use он/сар/өдөр; compound numerals are written as separate words.

Text type: news uses -в past; narrative uses -сан/-сэн and more connectives.

Alphabet: 35 Cyrillic letters including ө and ү; alphabetize Ө after О and Ү after У.

Vowel harmony: suffix vowels match the stem's back/front class; check every suffix.

Genitive allomorphs: -ын, -ийн, -ны, -ний; choose by final sound and vowel class.

Verb-final order: predicate last; subordinate clause before main clause.

Formal letter structure: greeting, body, closing Хүндэтгэсэн, signature, date.

Punctuation: « » for quotes; comma before гэхдээ/учир нь; dash for copular definitions.

Numbers: units written separately; no hyphens or apostrophes.

Polite request: -аарай/-ээрэй/-оорой/-өөрөй, matching vowel harmony.

Permission: -ж/-ч болно; prohibition: -ж/-ч болохгүй; prohibitive command: битгий + stem.

Joint action: -ъя/-ье ('let's'), e.g., явъя ('let's go').

Opinion: Миний бодлоор...; agreement: Би зөвшөөрч байна; disagreement: Би санал нийлэхгүй байна.

Sequence markers: эхлээд, дараа нь, эцэст нь.

Numbers: арван, хорь, гуч, дөч, тавь, жар, дал, ная, ер, зуу, мянга.

Pronunciation: х is a fricative; г between vowels is voiced [ɣ]; л between vowels is [ɮ].

Vowel harmony in speech: the suffix vowel matches the stem, so predict the ending from the stem's vowel class.

Long vowels are phonemic and held longer; short vs. long distinguishes words.

Question intonation: yes/no rises; wh-questions (юу, хэн, хаана) fall.

Case endings carry grammatical roles: -ыг/-ийг accusative, -д/-т dative-locative, -аас/-ээс ablative.

Numerals take singular nouns; listen for the unit word (он, сар, өдөр).

Negation is post-verbal: -гүй, байхгүй, битгий + stem.

Reported speech: quoted clause precedes гэж; verb of saying last.

Vowel harmony: back-vowel stems take -аа/-оо/-уу endings; front-vowel stems take -ээ/-өө/-үү.

Case endings: genitive -ын/-ийн, accusative -ыг/-ийг, dative-locative -д/-т, ablative -аас/-ээс, instrumental -аар/-ээр, comitative -тай/-тэй.

Tense: present-future -на/-нэ/-но/-нө; past -сан/-сэн/-сон/-сөн or -в; future -х/-х.

Aspect: -ж/-ч байна (progressive), -даг/-дэг (habitual), -аад/-ээд (resultant).

Negation: биш (copula), байхгүй (existence), -гүй (without), битгий (prohibitive).

Plural: -ууд/-үүд, -нар/-нэр; numerals take singular nouns.

Postpositions: дээр, дор, дотор, өмнө, дараа, ойр, хажууд.

Parse from the predicate: the clause-final verb marks tense and mood.

Relative clauses precede the noun and end in participles: -сан/-сэн, -даг/-дэг, -х.

Topic particle нь marks given information; бол marks contrast.

Quotative гэж follows the quoted clause and precedes the verb of saying.

Accusative -ыг/-ийг marks a definite direct object.

Dates: он/сар/өдөр follow numerals; compound numerals are separate words.

Text type: news uses -в past; narrative uses -сан/-сэн and more connectives.

Letters: 35 Cyrillic letters including ө and ү; alphabetize Ө after О and Ү after У.

Vowel harmony: every suffix vowel matches the stem's back/front class.

Genitive allomorphs: -ын, -ийн, -ны, -ний; chosen by final sound and vowel class.

Verb-final order: predicate last; subordinate clause before main clause.

Formal letter: greeting, body, closing Хүндэтгэсэн, signature, date.

Punctuation: « » for quotes; comma before гэхдээ/учир нь; dash for copular definitions.

Numbers: units written separately; no hyphens or apostrophes.

Requests: -аарай/-ээрэй/-оорой/-өөрөй, matching vowel harmony.

Permission: -ж/-ч болно; prohibition: -ж/-ч болохгүй; prohibitive command: битгий + stem.

Joint action: -ъя/-ье ('let's'), e.g., явъя.

Opinion: Миний бодлоор...; agreement: Би зөвшөөрч байна; disagreement: Би санал нийлэхгүй байна.

Sequence markers: эхлээд, дараа нь, эцэст нь.

Numbers: арван, хорь, гуч, дөч, тавь, жар, дал, ная, ер, зуу, мянга.

Pronunciation: х is a fricative; г between vowels is [ɣ]; л between vowels is [ɮ].

Vowel harmony in speech: suffix vowels match the stem, so predict the ending from the stem's vowel class.

Long vowels are phonemic; short vs. long distinguishes words.

Question intonation: yes/no rises; wh-questions (юу, хэн, хаана) fall.

Case endings: -ыг/-ийг accusative, -д/-т dative-locative, -аас/-ээс ablative.

Numerals take singular nouns; listen for the unit word (он, сар, өдөр).

Negation is post-verbal: -гүй, байхгүй, битгий + stem.

Reported speech: quoted clause precedes гэж; verb of saying last.