nominativdefinit

Nominativdefinit is a linguistic term describing the combination of nominative case marking and definiteness on a noun phrase. It refers to the form a noun takes when it is in the nominative grammatical case (typically the subject position) and definite (referable to a specific, identifiable entity). The concept is most common in languages with explicit case systems and a marker of definiteness, whether as a separate article or as a bound morpheme on the noun.

Morphology and realization vary across languages. In languages with separate definite articles, the nominativdefinit form arises when the noun is accompanied by its definite determiner in the nominative. For example, in German the nominative definite phrase der Hund marks both nominative case and definiteness. In languages that mark definiteness by suffix, a bound definite ending on the noun yields a nominativdefinit form, such as hunden (the dog) or bilen (the car) in appropriate Scandinavian varieties. The exact shape depends on gender, number, and phonology of the language.

Functionally, a nominativdefinit noun phrase typically serves as a subject or other element in the nominative role, while the definite marker signals that the referent is known to the speaker and listener. The term is useful for contrasting with nominativ indefinit phrases, where the noun is nominative but not definite, or with other case-marked definite forms that do not occupy the nominative.

See also: nominative case, definite article, noun phrase.