'Want' Complement Subjects
Complex sentences · one world map for each value
WALS codes 283 languages for this feature. The most frequent value, “The complement subject is left implicit”, covers 144 of them (51%); the least frequent, “'Want' is expressed as an uninflected desiderative particle”, covers 8.
That value is most frequent in Eurasia (79% of the 71 languages coded there) and least frequent in North America (18% of 45).
Among families with at least eight coded languages, Sino-Tibetan is the most uniform: 18 of 20 have “The complement subject is left implicit”.
Trans-New Guinea is the most divided, its largest group reaching only 4 of 10.
The complement subject is left implicit144 languages · 51%
The complement subject is expressed overtly72 languages · 25%
Both construction types exist14 languages · 5%
'Want' is expressed as a desiderative verbal affix45 languages · 16%
'Want' is expressed as an uninflected desiderative particle8 languages · 3%
One map per value; each dot is a language WALS codes with that value.
By macro-area
| Value | Africa | Eurasia | Papunesia | Australia | North America | South America |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The complement subject is left implicit | 32 | 56 | 24 | 12 | 8 | 12 |
| The complement subject is expressed overtly | 17 | 7 | 21 | 4 | 20 | 3 |
| Both construction types exist | 9 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 'Want' is expressed as a desiderative verbal affix | 0 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 13 | 14 |
| 'Want' is expressed as an uninflected desiderative particle | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| All values | 58 | 71 | 57 | 21 | 45 | 31 |
Inside the largest families
| Family | Coded | Most frequent value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austronesian | 40 | The complement subject is left implicit | 50% |
| Niger-Congo | 23 | The complement subject is left implicit | 70% |
| Afro-Asiatic | 20 | The complement subject is left implicit | 45% |
| Sino-Tibetan | 20 | The complement subject is left implicit | 90% |
| Indo-European | 17 | The complement subject is left implicit | 71% |
| Pama-Nyungan | 13 | The complement subject is left implicit | 85% |
| Trans-New Guinea | 10 | 'Want' is expressed as a desiderative verbal affix | 40% |
| Uto-Aztecan | 9 | 'Want' is expressed as a desiderative verbal affix | 67% |
Languages to explore
The most fully coded languages with each value.
- The complement subject is left implicit: English, French, Russian, Finnish, Spanish, Turkish
- The complement subject is expressed overtly: Amele, Greek (Modern), Abkhaz, Persian, Hausa, Arabic (Egyptian)
- Both construction types exist: Georgian, Tukang Besi, Oromo (Harar), Ju|'hoan, Koromfe, Miya
- 'Want' is expressed as a desiderative verbal affix: Japanese, Evenki, Chukchi, Yaqui, Kayardild, Guaraní
- 'Want' is expressed as an uninflected desiderative particle: Fijian, Mapudungun, Urubú-Kaapor, Samoan