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This weaker version of the hypothesis posits that language influences cognitive processes but does not entirely determine them. An example is how speakers of different languages might have different memory recollections based on available vocabulary.

Evidentiality refers to the way different languages express the source and certainty of information. For example, some Indigenous languages of the Americas are known to have complex evidentiality systems influencing how information and knowledge are conveyed.

Languages differ in how they express movement and path. For instance, Spanish often emphasizes the path of motion, while English tends to highlight the manner of movement, potentially influencing cognitive patterns when envisioning motion.

This suggests that language determines thought, and that linguistic categories limit and determine cognitive categories. An example would be color perception, where speakers of languages with more color words can discriminate hues more distinctly.

This aspect suggests that the vocabulary a culture or profession develops for particular topics can influence and reflect the importance and attention to detail paid to these topics. Examples include sailors having extensive terminology for winds and sea conditions.

Languages that heavily use tense-aspect systems might affect how speakers perceive and articulate the passage of time. For example, English speakers often think and discuss time in a linear way due to the language's range of tense-aspect combinations.

Suggests that languages with grammatical gender may lead speakers to attribute masculine or feminine characteristics to objects, influencing thought. For example, a bridge is 'die Brücke' (feminine) in German, possibly leading to descriptions of it having traditionally feminine attributes.

Some languages use absolute directions (e.g., north, south) rather than relative directions (e.g., left, right). This can influence spatial cognition and memory, as seen with languages like Guugu Yimithirr, which rely on cardinal directions.

Different languages express the concept of plurality in various ways, which may affect how speakers perceive quantity and groupings. For example, Japanese does not obligatorily mark plural, which can lead to a different cognitive approach to singularity and plurality.

Languages with specific numerical systems might shape how individuals think about numbers. For instance, the Pirahã people, with limited number words, have shown differences in recognizing exact quantities compared to speakers of languages with more developed numerical vocabularies.

Languages that have grammatical structures to describe hypothetical situations might influence how speakers understand and engage with counterfactual scenarios. English, for example, uses conditional constructs, which could influence counterfactual reasoning.

Research shows that language can affect how colors are distinguished. For instance, Russian speakers, who have different words for light blue ('goluboy') and dark blue ('siniy'), can discriminate shades of blue faster than English speakers.

Whorf analyzed the Hopi language and concluded that the Hopi's perception of time was not divided into past, present, and future like in Western languages. He argued that this influenced their concept of time as more cyclical than linear.