ntf

Egyptian

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

 

• (reconstructed) IPA^(key): /(ja)nˈtaf/ → /(ʔa)nˈtaf/ → /(ʔa)nˈtaf/

• (Middle Egyptian, c. 1700 BCE) IPA^(key): /(ja)nˈtaf/
• (Amarna-period Late Egyptian, c. 1350 BCE) IPA^(key): /(ʔa)nˈtaf/
• (latest Late Egyptian, c. 800 BCE) IPA^(key): /(ʔa)nˈtaf/

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /nɛtɛf/, /ɛntɛf/
  • Conventional anglicization: netef, entef

Pronoun

 m sg 3. stressed (‘independent’) pronoun

1. he, him (see usage notes)

Usage notes

Unlike the suffix pronouns and dependent pronouns, the independent pronouns are not tied to any other element of the sentence. Nevertheless, the meaning of an independent pronoun depends on context:

• After an infinitive, it is the subject of the verb.
• Before a noun, its meaning can be ambiguous:
  • In the first and second person, it could be the subject of a noun phrase.
  • Alternatively, in all persons, it can be the predicate of a noun phrase.
  • If the noun is a participle, then in all persons it could be either the subject or the predicate of a noun phrase.
  • If the demonstrative pronoun pw is placed between the pronoun and the noun, the pronoun is definitely the predicate.
• Before an adjective, in the first person only, it is the subject of an adjectival phrase.

When the independent pronoun is the subject it may, but does not always, indicate an emphasised subject.

Inflection

Old Egyptian personal pronouns

	number	first person	second person		third person
			masculine	feminine	masculine	feminine
suffix pronouns	singular	∅, .j	.k, .kj1	.ṯ, .ṯn	.f, .fj1	.s, .sj1
	dual	.nj	.ṯnj		.snj
	plural	.n	.ṯn		.sn
enclitic (‘dependent’) pronouns	singular	w, wj, wy	kw, k, ṯw, ṯ	ṯm, ṯn	sw, s	s
	dual	—	ṯnj		snj
	plural	n	ṯn		sn
stressed (‘independent’) pronouns	singular	jnk	ṯwt	ṯmt	swt	stt
	dual	—	—		ntsnj
	plural	—	ntṯn		ntsn, jntsn
stative (‘pseudoparticiple’) endings	singular	.kj, .k	.tj, .t		∅, .j	.tj, .t
	dual	—	.tjwn		.wy, .wj	.ty
	plural	.wn, .nw			∅, .w, .y, .wy	.tj, .t
Only when attached to a dual noun or prospective participle.

Middle Egyptian personal pronouns

	number	first person	second person		third person
			masculine	feminine	masculine	feminine
suffix pronouns	singular	∅, .j	.k, .kj1	.ṯ, .t	.f, .fj1	.s, .sj1
	dual2	.nj	.ṯnj, .tnj		.snj
	plural	.n	.ṯn, .tn		.sn, .w3
enclitic (‘dependent’) pronouns	singular	wj, w	ṯw, tw	ṯn, tn	sw, st	sj, s, st
	plural	n	ṯn, tn		sn, st
stressed (‘independent’) pronouns	singular	jnk	ntk, ṯwt2	ntṯ, ntt, ṯwt2	ntf, swt2	nts, swt2
	plural	jnn3	ntṯn, nttn		ntsn
stative (‘pseudoparticiple’) endings	singular	.kw	.tj, .t, .tw3		∅, .w	.tj, .t, .tw3
	plural	.wn, .wjn	.tjwn, .tjwnj		∅, .w, .y
proclitic (‘subject form’) pronouns3	singular	tw.j	tw.k	tw.t	sw	sj, st
	plural	tw.n	tw.tn		st
Only when attached to a dual noun or prospective participle. Only in formal texts, especially religious texts. Only in postclassical (Neo-Middle Egyptian) texts.

Late Egyptian personal pronouns

	number	first person	second person		third person
			masculine	feminine	masculine	feminine
suffix pronouns	singular	∅, .j	.k, .kw	.t	.f, .fj	.s, .st, .sw
	plural	.n	.tn, .twn		.w, .sn1
enclitic (‘dependent’) pronouns1	singular	wj	tw, tj		sw, st
	plural	n, wn	twn		sn, st
stressed (‘independent’) pronouns	singular	jnk	mntk, mtwk	mntt, mtwy	mntf	mntst, mntjst
	plural	jnn	mnttn		mntw
stative (‘pseudoparticiple’) endings1	singular	.kw, .k	.tj, .tw		∅, .w, .y	.tj, .tw
	plural	.nw	.tn		∅, .w, .y
	unmarked (later)	∅, .tw
proclitic (‘subject form’) pronouns	singular	tw.j	tw.k	tw.t	sw	st, sw
	plural	tw.n	tw.tn		st, sw, swt
Only in formal texts, especially religious texts.

Derived terms

• mtw

Descendants

• Akhmimic Coptic: ⲛⲧⲁϥ (ntaf)
• Bohairic Coptic: ⲛⲑⲟϥ (nthof)
• Fayyumic Coptic: ⲛⲧⲁϥ (ntaf)
• Sahidic Coptic: ⲛ̄ⲧⲟϥ (n̄tof)

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /nɛtɛf/
  • Conventional anglicization: netef

Verb

 3-lit.

1. (transitive) to besprinkle, to water (a plot of land)

Inflection

Conjugation of ntf (triliteral / 3-lit. / 3rad.) — base stem: ntf, geminated stem: ntff

infinitival forms			imperative
infinitive	negatival complement	complementary infinitive1	singular	plural
ntf	ntfw, ntf	ntft	ntf	ntf

‘pseudoverbal’ forms
stative stem	periphrastic imperfective2		periphrastic prospective2
ntf	ḥr ntf	m ntf	r ntf

suffix conjugation
aspect / mood	active	passive	contingent
			aspect / mood	active	passive
perfect	ntf.n	ntfw, ntf	consecutive	ntf.jn	active .tj1, .tw2
		active .tj1, .tw2
terminative	ntft
perfective3	ntf	active .tj1, .tw2	obligative1	ntf.ḫr	active .tj1, .tw2
imperfective	ntf	active .tj1, .tw2
prospective3	ntf	ntff	potentialis1	ntf.kꜣ	active .tj1, .tw2
		active .tj1, .tw2
subjunctive	ntf	active .tj1, .tw2

verbal adjectives
aspect / mood	relative (incl. nominal / emphatic) forms		participles
	active	passive	active	passive
perfect	ntf.n	active .tj1, .tw2	—	—
perfective	ntf	active .tj1, .tw2	ntf	ntf, ntfw5, ntfy5
imperfective	ntf, ntfy, ntfw5	active .tj1, .tw2	ntf, ntfj6, ntfy6	ntf, ntfw5
prospective	ntf, ntftj7	—	ntftj4, ntft4
Used in Old Egyptian; archaic by Middle Egyptian. Used mostly since Middle Egyptian. Archaic or greatly restricted in usage by Middle Egyptian. The perfect has mostly taken over the functions of the perfective, and the subjunctive and periphrastic prospective have mostly replaced the prospective. Declines using third-person suffix pronouns instead of adjectival endings: masculine .f/.fj, feminine .s/.sj, dual .sn/.snj, plural .sn. Only in the masculine singular. Only in the masculine. Only in the feminine.

Alternative forms

Alternative hieroglyphic writings of ntf  

ntf	ntf
[since the Old Kingdom]

References

• James P[eter] Allen (2010) Middle Egyptian: An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs, 2nd edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 52.
• Erman, Adolf, Grapow, Hermann (1928) Wörterbuch der ägyptischen Sprache‎^[1], volume 2, Berlin: Akademie-Verlag, →ISBN, pages 356.6–356.8
• Faulkner, Raymond Oliver (1962) A Concise Dictionary of Middle Egyptian, Oxford: Griffith Institute, →ISBN, page 142