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Nasal Indicator

To nasalise means to say it through one’s nose.  In TPB system of Romanised Teochew, “`” (found on same key as “~”) is added after vowel/diphthong or consonant to be nasalised.  Originally I used the standard nasal indicator, i.e. “~” above the nasal letter but found it difficult to type, hence impractical.  Indicator for nasal sounds is essential because 2 words with same sequence of Roman letters and same tone would represent 2 different Teochew words if one is nasal while the other is not. 

Examples:
a` = nasal a, e.g. ka`₃ = orange, ka₃ = cut with scissors; ka`<sub>4</sub> = daring, ka<sub>4</sub> = to grind
ai`= nasal ai, e.g. ai`<sub>1</sub> = free (have nothing to do), ai<sub>1</sub> = mother
ao` = nasal ao, e.g. gu10 ao`<sub>3</sub> = a type of slimy toad, ao<sub>3</sub> = cup or mug
e` = nasal e, e.g. pe`<sub>1</sub> = level, pe<sub>1</sub> = crawl; te`₁ = to obstruct, te₁ = tea
g` = nasal g, e.g. g`ao₁ = boil for a long time, gao₁ = clever
i` = nasal i, e.g. i`₁ = round, i₁ = maternal auntie; i`<sub>5</sub> = (bird) swift, i<sub>5</sub> = will/intention 
ia` = nasal ia, e.g. ia`<sub>1</sub> = win, ia<sub>1</sub> = coconut
iao` = nasal iao, e.g. iao`<sub>2</sub> = lift open, iao<sub>2</sub> = (name of a person)
io` = nasal io, e.g. io`<sub>1</sub> = sheep, goat or ocean, io<sub>1</sub> = kiln
iu` = nasal iu, e.g. iu`<sub>4</sub> = dig out (using finger), iu<sub>4</sub> = friend
o` = nasal o, e.g. O`<sub>54</sub> mng<sub>1</sub> = Macau, variant of O<sub>54</sub> mng<sub>1</sub>
oi` = nasal oi, e.g. oi`<sub>1</sub> = free (has nothing to do), oi<sub>1</sub> = shoes
ou` = nasal ou, e.g. hou`<sub>4</sub> (= tiger)
ua` = nasal ua , e.g. ua`<sub>4</sub> = bowl, ua<sub>4</sub> = I or me.
ue` = nasal ue, e.g. hue`<sub>1</sub> = unreasonable, hue<sub>1</sub> = come back
ui` = nasal ui , e.g. kui`<sub>1</sub> = high
g` = nasal g, e.g. g`in<sub>1</sub> = silver or money, g`ou₂ = 5

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