Example 55-54

sa zom la
sa
this/that
zom
man
la
def
that man
Comment:
Not entirely satisfactory because historically sa [...] la was DEM but there was no separate DEF. In the early 19th century, postposed la emerged as indeterminate between DEM and DEF while sa [...] la continued as unambiguously DEM. Also in the 19th century plain nouns could be DEF (especially in Baissac's (1888) folktales). The latter use is now rare and, in modern usage, noun + postposed la corresponds closely to preposed the + noun in English. While DEM sa + noun is most often followed by la, examples without la do occur.
Type:
naturalistic spoken
Source:
Own knowledge