tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Wed Jan 21 01:00:37 1998
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Re: chas' sentences (Was: (no subject))
- From: Qov <[email protected]>
- Subject: Re: chas' sentences (Was: (no subject))
- Date: Wed, 21 Jan 1998 00:59:49 -0800
At 16:10 98-01-07 PST, chas wrote:
>}yiHmey DaparHa' vISov.
>}I know you like tribbles.
>
>I told you last time to read about SAO in section 6.2.5.
>Now read it again and correct this sentence, using {'e'} where it is
>required.
>
>[chas types with a red face]
>
> yIHmey DaparHa' 'e' vISov.
majQa'. qaghong 'e' DacherghlaHlaw'mo' jIbel.
> Your next assignment:
>
> 1. Write {yIH} seventeen times, spelled correctly.
> yIH yIH yIH yIH yIH yIH yIH yIH
> yIH yIH yIH yIH yIH yIH yIH yIH yIH
majQa'. bIlobchu'. qabIjtaHbe'.
> 2. Translate the following:
>
> ghuvetlh buQ yIHraj 'e' vIlegh.
> I saw your tribble threaten that baby.
You've used your (plural), talking about joint ownership of the
tribble by more than one person. Nothing wrong with that, or the
sentence, just unexpected. Simply looking for variety?
> Qob yIHraj.
> Your tribble is dangerous.
maj.
> Qob yIHraj qopnISlu'.
> Someone should arrest that dangerous tribble.
One grammatical error, and two differences from what I asked for.
{Qob yIH}, as you demonstrated above, means "the tribble is
dangerous." To say "dangerous tribble," you'll find that the
adjective section of the verbs chapter prescribes a different word
order.
I said "that" not "your" tribble, and, seeing as you have to fix this
one anyway, give me two sentences, one saying "someone shoud arrest
that dangerous tribble" and the other saying "that dangerous tribble
should be arrested." Subtle difference, but there.
> chutmey SaHbe' 'e' vIQub.
> I suspect it does not care about the laws.
maj. But I said "suspect" not "think." Use the vocab.
> jIHeghpa' yIHraj non bep'a' 'e' vIleghta'.
> Before I die I will see your rotten tribble in hell.
Very nice try. Few problems, though. You were aiming for "I will
see your tribble suffer greatly," a very fair recast for what is a
pretty colloquial expression in English.
You could have been more literal with this and said:
{jIHeghpa' ghe''orDaq yIHraj vIlegh}
but this might be nonsense to a Klingon, based as it is on an English
idiom.
> yIHraj bIghHa'Daq lunge'.
> The guards will take your tribble away to jail.
Careful. You've broken up the OVS of the main clause with a noun+Daq. See
page 60. "Any noun in the sentence indicating something other than subject
or object comes first, before the object noun."
> yuQ SuD chargh 'e' neHHey Sajvetlh.
> That pet apparently wants to conquer the green planet.
Don't mix noun suffixes and verb suffixes. And don't use {'e'} with SAO
when the second verb is {neH}. {-Hey} is a suffix you put on a noun, to
indicate uncertainty about the noun. {-law'} is a suffix you put on a verb
to indicate uncertainty about the verb. The "apparently" is this sentence
refers to the verb.
yuQ SuD chargh neHlaw' Sajvetlh
> jotHa' jIH nabmeyHeymo' yIHDaj.
> The animal's apparent plans make me uneasy.
This subject of the sentence I gave is "this animal's apparent plan." The
verb is "make uneasy." The object is "me." Simple OVS sentence. Try
again. Look at the verb suffix {-moH} in 4.2.4 for a hint.
> yIH yIgho'. yIH yIbeQqu'.
> Step on the tribble. Flatten it.
You need {-moH} again here. {yIbeQqu'moH} "cause it to become very flat"
Qov [email protected]
Beginners' Grammarian