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Abstract The tense markers that have the function of mood are found in many languages including English. The tense marker “xiè” in the Xinmi dialect of Henan Province also has the function of expressing mood. “Xiè” in the Xinmi dialect can be attached to time words and verbs to indicate that the action occurred in the past； “xiè” can also appear at the end of a declarative sentence to indicate that the content of the sentence is contrary to reality. It is a typical counterfactual virtual marker. After adding the counterfactual marker “xiè” to a declarative sentence， it usually carries a feeling of regret； “xiè” can appear at the end of interrogative sentences with explicit syntactic features such as specific questions， choice questions， positive and negative questions， to convey a tone of inquiry. Yes or no questions do not have explicit syntactic features and “xiè” cannot be added to the end of the sentence to express a tone of inquiry.
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Received: 04 December 2024
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2024, Vol. 63 
