What does ergative mean?
In linguistics, the ergative is the case — or, more broadly, the grammatical pattern — used to mark the subject of a transitive verb in languages with ergative–absolutive alignment. In such languages, the doer of an action like 'lift' receives special marking, while the subject of an intransitive verb like 'sleep' and the object of a transitive verb are treated alike under the absolutive case. This contrasts sharply with familiar nominative–accusative languages such as English, Latin, or Russian, where subjects of transitive and intransitive verbs share one form. Ergative alignment appears in languages as diverse as Basque, Tibetan, Hindi, Inuktitut, Dyirbal, and many others, making it one of the most studied phenomena in typology. Linguists also speak of 'ergative verbs' in English — verbs like 'break', 'melt', or 'open' that can be used transitively ('she broke the cup') or intransitively ('the cup broke') without any change in form. Though technical, the term illuminates how differently human languages can organise who does what to whom.
The grammatical case that marks the subject of a transitive verb in ergative–absolutive languages.
"In Hindi, the ergative appears after subjects of perfective transitive verbs."
Often discussed alongside its counterpart, the absolutive case.
Relating to or denoting an ergative case, language, or construction; also describing a verb that can be used transitively and intransitively without formal change.
"English has many ergative verbs, including 'boil', 'freeze', and 'sink'."
Used when referring to multiple instances of the ergative case across different languages, or to multiple ergative verbs within a single language.
"Many Australian languages mark their ergatives with a suffix of the form -nggu or similar."
In about a quarter of the world's languages — including Basque and Tibetan — 'she' in 'she sleeps' looks nothing like 'she' in 'she lifts it', because those languages use a special case called the ergative.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of ergative
The term derives from Greek 'ergon' meaning 'work' or 'action', combined with the adjectival suffix '-ative'. It was coined in the late 19th century by philologists studying Caucasian languages to describe case systems in which transitive subjects receive distinctive marking. It shares its Greek root with words like 'energy' (literally 'in-work') and 'surgery' ('hand-work').
Related word forms
How ergative is actually used
A highly technical term confined to linguistics and grammar instruction; rarely encountered outside academic writing. As an adjective it can describe either whole languages (e.g., 'an ergative language') or individual verbs that alternate between transitive and intransitive uses without morphological change.
Easily confused with ergative
'Energetic' means full of energy, while 'ergative' is a linguistic term relating to a grammatical case marking transitive subjects.