ABSTRACT
The universal fact about the morphology of the Igbo verb is that all negative verb forms have an obligatory vowel prefix whereas affirmative ones do not; the only known exceptions being the perfective verb form affirmative with -1A suffix as its marker, and the corresponding narrative verb form affirmative. In a simple sentence expressing past tense meaning, this suffix is an indispensable part of the verb. It is not an optional marker as has been assumed, nor does it express both past and present. It is generally agreed that one cannot meaningfully discuss the grammar of a tone language without indicating the varying pitches themselves. The question as to whether literature should be tone-marked or not has been settled in favour of not indicating pitch in literary productions except when tone-marking is needed for purposes of avoiding ambiguity.
