tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Wed Apr 08 18:11:58 1998
[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next]
Re: KLBC
- From: Qov <[email protected]>
- Subject: Re: KLBC
- Date: Wed, 08 Apr 1998 18:09:32 -0700
I sent this, and my mailer said it went out, but it never showed up on the
website, so I'm going to resend it.
At 15:26 98-04-07 -0700, boSo' wrote:
}jInIDlI' qon mu'tlhegh
Few problems here ...
}(does every verb require a preffix, or is this alright?)
}(oops word order...)
Every time you write a verb you must consider the prefix, but sometimes the
correct prefix is the null prefix.
}qon mu'tlhegh jInIDlI'
Getting closer, but not yet ...
}(if in doubt just reverse what it would be in english!! }:-) )
No, actually. English sentences you can often write using other than SVO
order. like that one. And the placement of elements other than the subject
verb and object follows Klingon rules, not reversed English ones. The words
that pronouns and implied subjects refer to should come early in the
sentence. And once you start writing Klingon more easily, a learned rule
that says "do it backwards" will work against you and confuse you.
I assume you are aiming for "I am trying to write a sentence." You've done
well in that you have the right words, including the right type 7 verb
suffix {-lI'} to indicate that the action is ongoing at the time you are
referring to. and that there is a definite goal. Here are the pieces you
are missing.
I'm going to break it into two pieces, "I write a sentence" and "I am trying
[it]." That's the way the Klingon will work.
As you speculated, you need a prefix on each verb. They also need to be the
prefixes that refer to the correct subject AND object. The subject of both
verbs is "I." The object of {qon} is {mu'tlhegh} so you need to indicate a
3rd person ("it") object. The correct prefix is thus {vI-}. What is the
object of {nID}? A little complicated, isn't it. It's actually the entire
sentence "I am writing a sentence" That's also 3rd person, so use {vI-} again.
Now the bit you know, but didn't completely finish. Object-Verb-Subject.
mu'tlhegh vIqon - "I write a sentence."
vInIDlI' "I am trying [it]."
The last step you'd better read section 6.2.5 to follow. I said before that
one sentence was the object of the other. Thus you must use the "sentence
as object" construction, with {'e'}. Simply write the subject that is the
object, then following it write the sentence that has it as the object,
placing the word {'e'} in the object position. A final tricky wrinkle: you
aren't allowed to use a type 7 suffix, like {-lI'} on the verb that has
{'e'} as its object. So if you nede to convey the idea of completion or
continuity, and it makes sense, put the aspect marker on the verb before the
{'e'}.
Thus:
mu'tlhegh vIqonlI' 'e' vInID
"I am trying to write a sentence."
Hard to believe that one sentence could have so much explanation, eh? Try
these to see if the explanation worked.
I see the targ.
The tribble eats the grain.
I see the tribble eat the grain.
The tribble hates me.
I know that the tribble hates me.
Qov [email protected]
Beginners' Grammarian