In September 1984, two organizations, Central University for Nationalities and the Institute of Minorities in Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, made some revisions to the Li orthography.
The Hlai language's orthography was finalized with the publishing of a textbook entitled Basic Li Course (Pinyin: Liyu Jichu Jiaocheng; Chinese: 黎语基础教程).
Notes: [7][clarification needed] [ia] [ua] [ɯa] [ai] [aːi] [ɵi] [oːi] [ui] [uːi] [ɯːi] [au] [aːu] [eːu] [iu] [iːu] [ou] [aɯ] [eɯ] [am] [aːm] [em] [eːm] [im] [iːm] [om] [oːm] [ɯm] [ɯːm] [an] [aːn] [en] [eːn] [in] [iːn] [oːn] [un] [uːn] [ɯn] [ɯːn] [aȵ] [aːȵ] [eȵ] [uȵ] [uːȵ] [aŋ] [aːŋ] [eŋ] [eːŋ] [iŋ] [iːŋ] [oŋ] [oːŋ] [uːŋ] [ɯŋ] [ɯːŋ] [ap] [aːp] [ep] [eːp] [ip] [iːp] [op] [oːp] [ɯp] [ɯːp] [at] [aːt] [et] [eːt] [it] [iːt] [oːt] [ut] [uːt] [ɯt] [ɯːt] [aȶ] [aːȶ] [eȶ] [oːȶ] [uȶ] [uːȶ] [ak] [aːk] [ek] [eːk] [ik] [iːk] [ok] [oːk] [uːk] [ɯk] [ɯːk] Has Hlai has 3 tones.
"The word "kun" can also be used together with a number and a classifier to modify nouns, e.g., KunPLhlaustwozuenCLkauusolder sisterfuuekweaveriensskirtpaens.decorative patternKun hlaus zuen kauus fuuek riens paens.PL two CL {older sister} weave skirt {decorative pattern}"The two older sisters were weaving skirts with a decorative pattern."5.
However, in Hlai language these different actions are distinguished by different verbs, e.g., [13][14] The adjective goes after the subject, e.g., Zuu hom coem hauux long baisias.
The adjective goes after the noun that is modified, e.g., dhop kieu cloth blue/green "蓝布，(a) blue cloth" veengs paens shirt/top colorful "花衣服，(a) loud (pronounced colors) shirt" fun long rain big "大雨，heavy rain" hwous enyx mountain small "小山，(a) small mountain / hill" blongs peek house tall "高房子，(a) tall house" ceeng hleny flower good "好花，(a) pretty flower" The adjective is placed before the verb, e.g., Meuu dais dais lax as.
da hleny not good "不好，not good" da peek not tall "不高，not tall" vaeu reek most bad "最坏，worst" duix hlenymuuen most beautiful "最美丽，most beautiful" paens dhatdhat colorful/floral truly/really "很花，very colorful" hlenyfaty baisias happy very much "很高兴，very happy" Either "dhuas" or "bhi", denote comparative degree; the former one is a Hlai word, the latter a loan word.
According to my Hlai language consultant, Mr. Liu, "The word veau could possibly imply a derogatory, an exaggerated or overstated statement."
Also, some monosyllabic adjectives express an increasing degree by the adding of a prefix, which combines the initial consonant of that adjective with a vowel like "i" or "u"; and the tone of the prefix is the first tone, e.g., li- loek prefix dark "黑漆漆，pitch-dark" ri- raeux prefix sparse "稀疏，sparse" gu- goeks prefix concave "黑漆漆，full of bumps and holes/uneven" ghu- ghaeu prefix clear "清澈，clear" kaeu- laepplaepp white something looks bright "亮晶晶，something is so white as to be bright" loek- tingting black something looks dark "黑漆漆，something is so black as to be dark" tax fous-qiettqiett rice hot something looks hot "饭热乎乎，the hot rice" small fish "小鱼，small fish" fish small "小的鱼，small fish" small chicken "小鸡，chick" chicken small "小的鸡，chick" small finger "小指，small finger" finger small "小的手指，small finger" The word "long" is used to describe something big or large, and can either be placed before the noun or after; either way the emphasis is on the former word, e.g., big water buffalo "大的水牛，big buffalo" water buffalo big "大水牛，big buffalo" big wind "大的风，big wind."
hlaustwobuntenhomCLFganmoney(==hlaustwobuntengan)moneyhlaus bun hom gan (= hlaus bun gan)two ten CLF money = two ten money"twenty dollars"fusthreebuntenlangCLFkaichicken(==fusthreebuntenkai)chickenfus bun lang kai (= fus bun kai)three ten CLF chicken = three ten chicken"thirty chickens""Fuet" needs to go with a classifier to modify a noun, e.g., fuettenlangCLFduiswater buffalofuet lang duisten CLF {water buffalo}"ten water buffalo"However, "fuet" can be placed in front of nouns, which are also classifiers, e.g., bafivefuettenbouxCLF/yearba fuet bouxfive ten CLF/year"fifty years"fusthreefuettenwaeuCLF/bowlfus fuet waeuthree ten CLF/bowl"thirty bowls"In Hlai language, there is no word for the number "zero"; some areas adopted the loan word "lengs" (零，zero), e.g., zuuoneghwaenhundredlengszerobafivezuu ghwaen lengs baone hundred zero five"one hundred and five (105)"However, the number "zero" can be represented by the conjunction "uengx" or "loms", e.g., zuuoneghwaenhundreduengxandhlaustwo(hom)(CLF)zuu ghwaen uengx hlaus (hom)one hundred and two (CLF)"one hundred and two (102)"fusthreenguenthousandlomsagainhlaustwofuetten(hom)(CLF)fus nguen loms hlaus fuet (hom)three thousand again two ten (CLF)"three thousand and twenty (3020)"(1) when any single digit from 1 to 9 is placed after "fuet", "ghwaen", "nguen", or "vaens", the relation between the digit and the word is addition, e.g., tenoneten one"eleven (11)"tentwoten two"twelve (12)"(2) when any single digit from 1 to 9 is placed before "fuet", "ghwaen", "nguen", or "vaens", the relation between the digit and the word is multiplication, e.g., threetenthree ten"thirty (30)"twohundredtwo hundred"two hundred (200)"A.
Moreover, the prefix "pas-" (男性，man) or "bais-" (女性，woman) can be added to the words "tom" and "cuty", to indicate gender, e.g., pas- tom male prefix middle "次子，the son in the middle" bais- cuty female prefix tail "幺女，the youngest daughter" When ordinal numbers apply to things, usually the phrase is constructed by "ghwous" + "zuu" + a proper classifier to represent the first one, e.g., ghwous zuu kuuengx head one classifier for tree "头一棵，the first (tree)" To present the last one, usually the phrase is constructed with the words "baiscuty" + "zuu" + a proper classifier, e.g., baiscuty zuu hom last/tail one classifier "最后一个，the last (one)" To present the middle one(s), usually the phrase is constructed with the words "baistom" + "zuu" + a proper classifier, e.g., baistom zuu lang middle one classifier "第二，或第三…，the 2nd, or 3rd…" Usually, any accuracy in communication is done with loan words from Chinese, e.g., dhoeis-iet dus first group "第一组，the first group" dhoeis-bhoeix dhuix eighth team "第八队，the eighth team" dhoeis-dzis bhaenx second class "第二班，the second class" In Hlai culture, people use a way similar to the Chinese Zodiac to count years, and even days, e.g., For counting months, in Hlai culture, there are two kinds of calendar: one is following the Han's solar calendar, e.g., The other is following the Han's lunar calendar, e.g., hlaus fus (hom) two three (classifier) "两三（个），two or three" ba dom (hom) five six.
The word "zaux" in this construction can be omitted, e.g., Zuu hom as neix loepp fuet dza gins.
paem na dhuus zuutom guen meet he in part way "在半路上碰见他，meet him part way" Sometimes, the word "zuutom" means "half",e.g., zuu pas zuutom one classifier for man half "一人一半，each one (gets) half" Another word to represent the uncertainty of a given amount is "gei" (几, 若干, several), which implies the amount is less than ten, e.g., gei hwan neix several day this "这几天，these days" Mansnyoengx zaux gei zuen aeu buuen.
"The interrogative word "uuras" ("asras") can be a subject, an attribute, or an object, e.g., Uuraswho?gongxlook forhou?meUuras gongx hou?who?
"These adverbs are usually placed before the adjectives to modify them, e.g., vaeumostreekbadvaeu reekmost bad"worst"duixmosthlenymuuenbeautifulduix hlenymuuenmost beautiful"most beautiful"zangstoofoushotzangs foustoo hot"too hot"nguenxgesevenhlenygoodnguenxges hlenyeven good"even better"loeppvaixexactlyhlenygoodloeppvaix hlenyexactly good"just right"But, the adverbs "dhat" and "baisias" are placed after the adjectives.
"That link noun phrases: HouIduuengxgivemeuuyoudheuuAUXzuuonehomCLFcoemfruitlongbigkuandhlaustwohomCLFguengs.basketHou duuengx meuu dheuu zuu hom coem long ku hlaus hom guengs.I give you AUX one CLF fruit big and two CLF basket"I'll give you the big fruit and two large baskets.
"In the construction of phrases like "dacaux…koms…" ("not only…but also…"), the conjunctions "but also" ("koms", "uengx", or "toep") must be placed in the second clause, between the verb and the object.
"However, the prepositional phrase of "niens" can also be placed after averb, e.g., feiwalkniensalonghyoenridgedaxfieldfei niens hyoen daxwalk along ridge field"walk along the ridge of the field"KunaeuTheyaensaccording tolaeustaengworkgieustrongkuandgaxweakbuuencomegauxtoengs.distributeKunaeu aens laeustaeng gieu ku gax buuen gauxtoengs.They {according to} work strong and weak come distribute"They distributed the work according to the capability of the laborers.
"Since more and more young generation Li have mingled with Han culture, sometimes they express the purpose by using the loan word "uis" or "uisliaeus".
"There are several words used in the interrogative mood, like "hos", "yos", "os", "hyos", "zuumos", "huux", "hauux", "yax", "nex/nix", "zuurasve", "bas/vixbas", and "zuuras/cuusras".
These words strongly express the speaker's feeling, e.g., Meuuyouriensaydhiurightdhatveryho!EXCMMeuu rien dhiu dhat ho!you say right very EXCM"You're right!
a. Noun (the head word) + noun 猪aekmeat肉boupig猪 肉aek boumeat pig"pork"牛hauhorn角duiswater buffalo牛 角hau duishorn {water buffalo}"buffalo's horn"b. Noun + adjective nomswaterghancoldnoms ghanwater cold"cold water"veengsshirt/topbaennewveengs baenshirt/top new"new shirt/top"The word "enyx" (小, small) is the exception where the modifier is placed before the head word, e.g., enyxsmallveengsshirt/topenyx veengssmall shirt/top"kid's shirt (it also means brassiere)"enyxsmallduiswater buffaloenyx duissmall {water buffalo}"calf (young water buffalo)"enyxsmalldziengxfingerenyx dziengxsmall finger"little finger (pinkie)"c. Noun+ verb fokplacegauxsleepfok gauxplace sleep"a place for sleeping"datybirdbhenyflydaty bhenybird fly"(a) flying bird(s)"d. Noun+ pronoun pashlausolder brotherhoumypashlaus hou{older brother} my"my older brother"blongshousehauuxthatblongs hauuxhouse that"that house"e. Number + classifier + Noun (the head word) The modifier, which is constructed with a number and classifier, must be placed before the head word.
Usually, when the modifier is an adjective or adverb, the modifier is placed before the head word, e.g., hlenygoodcoemsharphleny coemgood sharp"so sharp"reekbadcoemsharpreek coembad sharp"not sharp"duixmostreekbadduix reekmost bad"worst"bhaeisalreadyreekbadbhaeis reekalready bad"already (gone) bad"Only few adverbs, like "dhat" (真, 很, really, very) or "baisias" (非常, 极, very much, most), are placed after the head word, e.g., dzuunsquickdhatverydzuuns dhatquick very"very quick"hlenygoodbaisiasvery muchhleny baisiasgood {very much}"very good"Also, when the modifier is a demonstrative pronoun, interrogative pronoun or noun, the modifier is placed after the head word, e.g., vaetpoorneixthisvaet neixpoor this"this poor"longbigdhongneixlike thislong dhongneixbig {like this}"this big"peekhighdhonghauuxlike thatpeek dhonghauuxhigh {like that}"that high"bheengwideras?How?bheeng ras?wide How?
Usually, the verb is placed before the object, e.g., laxeattaxricelax taxeat rice"eat rice (the meaning is to eat)"dzueislookqiasbookdzueis qiaslook book"read book (the meaning is to read)"dheuutakehauuxthatdheuu hauuxtake that"take that one"ngwaetycallmeuuyoungwaety meuucall you"(I'll) call you"bhiekcarry (something) on shouldermesheswhat?bhiek meshes{carry (something) on shoulder} what?
Usually, a noun, pronoun or phrase can act as an object; sometimes, a number or verb can also be a subject, e.g., The construction is Verb + person-object + lax/dheuu + thing-object, e.g., BaisdzaMotherduuengxgivenaherlaxauxiliary wordzuuoneruetCLriens.skirtBaisdza duuengx na lax zuu ruet riens.Mother give her {auxiliary word} one CL skirt"Mother gave her a skirt.
"Although some verbs in double-object sentences do not imply the giving-receiving relation, the auxiliary word "lax", which indicates that the subject is "helping" the person-object, is still needed.
Usually, the attribute, which can be an adjective, a noun, a pronoun, a number, a verb, or different kinds of phrases, is placed after the head word, except when a number acts as an attribute, the number must be placed before the head word, e.g., aek duis meat water buffalo "牛肉，beef" feekx hweek skin banana "香蕉皮，banana peel" coem coeis fruit litchi "荔枝果，litchi (fruit)" dzuuem kai egg chicken "鸡蛋，chicken egg" Na kueng rien tun Hlai.
veengs dhuus blongs hauux shirt/top in house that "在那房子的衣服，the shirt (that is) in that house" hluuekueng naeus buuen hauux girl just come that "那位刚来的姑娘，that girl (who) just came" zuu lang duis lax gans kuuem one classifier water buffalo eat grass full "一只吃饱草的水牛，a water buffalo (that) eats grass (until it's) full" qi meuu buuen hauux time you come that "你来的那个时候，that time (when) you came" The adverbial modifies or defines verbs or adjectives, in order to indicate the why, how, when, and where of the verb, or the degree of the adjective.
The progressive relationship The conjunction words that express a progressive relationship between clauses are "loms" (又, still),"oms" (还, 却, yet),"ruus" (都, all), "koms" (连, even/also), and their similar phrases such as "dacaux…koms/uuloms…"(不但...而且...，not only... but also...), e.g., Fas bhaeis cop, na loms da beuu.
Another related conjunction word "cuusnaus/casnus" can be added between two options to express a question, e.g., Na hei cuusnaus hou hei？ He go or I go?