loan words, especially for words or concepts that may otherwise not yet be standardized in Sikkimese. Because of this, non-literate speakers may have difficulty with these loan words. Conversely, the spoken language borrows more from neighboring Nepali as well as English. Spoken language is more likely to be code switched with these than in written language. Noun phrases and constituents Noun phrases Noun phrases are made up of nouns with their proceeding or following modifiers, proforms much like pronouns, demonstrative words, and nominalized clauses. The order in which noun modifiers follow is (demonstrative) + noun + adjective + numeral + (demonstrative). Whenever the quantity of a noun is specified, the noun is not pluralized. It would like something like "sister three" rather than "sisters three". Nouns, adjectives, postposition phrases, noun compliment clauses, and relative clauses can all be considered genitive-marked noun modifiers. The word classes Nouns Nouns in Denjongke have two forms: a proper form and an ordinary form. The ordinary form is used in common day-to-day speech between friends and family, while the proper form is used in more formal situations. Most Denjongke speakers do not know every form of these nouns, but knowing the formal form shows proficiency in the language. These two forms can be formed by adding a certain suffix or prefix, but others have a completely different spelling. Most nouns have one or two syllables, compound words, though still nouns, may have 3 or more syllables. Verbs Verbs in Denjongke show a state of being, feeling, or describe the happenings of events. Most verbs carry one syllable to help differentiate themselves from adjectives, and also carry two forms, the proper and ordinary forms. Adjectives Adjectives vary from two to three syllables in order to, as forementioned above, help tell the difference between a verb and an adjective. It is often hard to tell the difference between a verb and an adjective because they both end in "-bo" or "-po". See also Bhutia people Lepcha people Lepcha language Indigenous peoples of Sikkim History of Sikkim References Further reading Dead link South Bodish languages Languages of Sikkim Languages of Nepal Languages of India Languages of Bhutan Languages written in Tibetan script