| The case marking pattern for each noun being inflected depends on the noun's degree of animacy. |
| Other words use the forms of the genitive case or the nominative case in place of the accusative, depending on their animacy. |
| The most natural hierarchy of animacy and definiteness places transitive subjects higher than transitive object. |
| The split may sometimes be linked to animacy, as in many Australian Aboriginal languages, or to aspect, as in Mayan languages. |
| To a lesser extent, a noun's animacy or humanness may add another layer of complexity. |
| A few Australian languages, such as Diyari, are split among accusative, ergative, and tripartite alignment, depending on animacy. |
