Where does the verb go?
2,330 languages with data
“I eat apples” — Chinese and English put the verb in the middle; Japanese, Korean and Turkish put it last (“I apples eat”); Classical Arabic, Welsh and many Austronesian languages often put it first. In this sample, verb-medial and verb-final languages are about equally common.
From Grambank: the unmarked order in transitive clauses.
Verb first 338
ArabicFilipinoEgyptian ArabicLevantine ArabicCebuanoIlokoHiligaynonRiffianHassaniyyaWarayBikolPampangaBatak TobaKʼicheʼBiniMakasarPangasinanTausugKinaray-aNiasMaranaoWelshYucatec MayaKaqchikelTamasheqSamoanIbanagNgasPnarMasbatenyoWayuuTayart TamajeqAmisMāoriWest Coast BajauGarifunaTonga (Tonga Islands)Central DusunTalaandig-BinukidBantoanon
Verb in the middle 907
ChineseEnglishIndonesianPortugueseFrenchSwahiliWu ChineseVietnameseCantoneseItalianMin Nan ChineseHakka ChineseHausaPolishIgboUkrainianDutchThaiLingalaSerbian-Croatian-BosnianKhmerGreekHausa States FulfuldeTsongaZuluCzechHaitianSwedishCongo SwahiliShonaXhosaBelarusianKashmiriKikuyuDanishSouthern SothoUmbunduMinangkabauFinnishLao
Verb last 866
No fixed order 219
RussianMadureseSanaani ArabicBugineseGuaraniLibyan ArabicArmenianBalineseLithuanianGeorgianAlbanianManggaraiNuerTawallammat TamajaqBatak KaroJjuLoziBertaSayaNorthern GumuzAbkhazGagauzIrishAsháninkaBlinTicunaKhalaj TurkicLenduTohono O'odhamCherokeeInnu-aimunMacushiMi'kmawNheengatuPiapocoYeleAjyíninka ApurucayaliCamsáYamiBangime