tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Sun Mar 08 23:04:49 1998

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Re: qacheghlu'



At 12:41 98-03-08 -0800, beHwI"av wrote:
}Hello Qov,
}>At 21:25 98-03-06 -0800, beHwI"av wrote:

}>Additionally, when a verb already implies a change of motion or state, for
}>example {moj} (become), {chegh} return, {choH} (change), and lots of others,
}>{choH} carries the idea of "begin to".  A change to the state of change.
}>{chungchoH} would be "begin to accelerate," or "change the rate of
}>acceleration."  I think in your case {qachegh} was mostly a prefix error
}>that you didn't recognize. {qacheghchoH} would mean "I begin to return you"
}>You might say it if you were giving someone a tour and you got to the end of
}>the route and were turning around to take them home again.
}
}	Ahh, so maybe I'd have been best using {-vaD} on the noun
}instead of {-Daq}.
}
}	*KlI*vaD jIcheghchom

{-choH} not {-chom}.  Do you mean to say that you begin to return?  Why did
you not say simply {jIchegh}?

}	Correct prefix, because KLI is the indirect object? 

Correct prefix because there is no direct object of the verb.

}I'm I
}correct in assuming that {-vo'}, {-vaD} and {-Daq} all denote indirect
}objects?

No.  {-vaD} denotes an indirect object.  The other type 5 noun suffixes have
differnt meanings.  {-vo'} and {-Daq} are prepositional concepts.   Read
about them in the relevant sections in the Nouns chapter.

}Or could I add {-mo'} too? (I look at the sentence and can't
}see if it's he/she/it|none or  he/she/it| he/she/it, I'll assume I can
}add {-mo'} until you tell me otherwise.)

If the action of the main verb takes place because of something, then you
can use {-mo'}.

tajmo' jIchegh.
"I returned because of the knife."

Look at the meanings of the suffixes and use them appropriately.

}	{-'e'} is a different kettle of fish I don't want to get into
}just now.

The straightforward meaning of {-'e'} is just an emphatic.  Simpler than the
others.

}>}	tlhIngan Hol vIghojlI' 'e' vIqaghpu'.
}>}	DaH tlhIngan Hol vIHaDqa'.
}>
}>majQa'. Quite an improvement. Showing that one action was finished before
}>another began *IS* a time to use the perfective, but there's a rule that
}>says that no type 7 suffix (like {-pu'} can be used on the verb following
}>{'e'}, so the {qaghpu'} can't stay there.  You can still get the timing of
}>the events across with something like:
}
}	Not after {-'e'}, I can live with that.

Incorrect.  Not after the word {'e'}.  The noun suffix {-'e'} is quite
unrelated.  

}>Ah, then: {yIDoghQo'}.  "Nothing" in English doesn't mean "don't give me
}>that" to me.  It may be regional slang.
}
}	I know it doesn't mean that, but I wanted to write "What you
}say are empty words, they mean nothing!"

In Klingon, always write what you mean.  

}>tlhIngan Hol HAS rules, and you must use them.  
}
}	Yes, I know that, but when you translate them into English I
}see the English words and think; "Well it's wrong in English because
}it is missing these qualities. However in Klingon with the rules
}aplied it looks perfectly good to me."

With practice you will learn to distinguish.

}>When you see me translate something from your Klingon into imperfect
}>English, go back and look at the Klingon, and the rules in TKD that govern
}>it, to find the error in your Klingon that the ungrammatical English
}>translation reflects.  
}
}	Don't forget to leave out the things like the, a and an. It's
}ust a way of doctoring your sentace the way everybody doctors it...

Not true.  {targh} means any of "a targ" "the targ" "targ" and "targs."  I
will translate it as whichever is appropriate for the sentence.  Don't think
e're doctoring sentences.  Every preposition matters to the meaning.

}>}	{qaQaQ} - I am good to you	{QaQ} - be good
}>}
}>}It's my goodness and I point it to you.
}>
}>AHA!  We have the root of your misconceptin and can weed it out! This is
}>wrong and I will now attempt to explain why.
}>
}>}	In what sense could you use [{QaQ} - be good] as a verb with
}>}an object? 
}>
}>Very good question. You cannot use {QaQ} with an object.  It is what is
}>known as an "intransitive" verb, so it doesn't take an object.  So any
}>prefix other than jI-, bI-, ma-, Su- or nothing is wrong.  In English "good"
}>doesn't take an object either.  You never good someone.  You can be good for
}>someone's benefit, however, and ...
}>
}>}How would you express "to"?
}>
}>This is where you use {-vaD}
}
}	So the intransive verb can take on an indirect object. Ahh! I
}never understood his before. Sure I could translate it tlh->E, but I
}didn't understand it the other way around. Thanks.

Grammatically I don't believe it is technically an indirect object.  But it
is a valid use of {-vaD}.  Read section 3.3.5.

}	A different question pops into my head now, can you use the
}Type 5 noun suffixes (with the exception {-'e'}, because I'm not going
}there) with transive verbs only if you either make the object none or
}clearly state a different object? Or can you only use them if their is
}no direct object? (I may have figured this out already, but I'm
}looking for an example to see whether or not I'm correct.)

You'd have to give me an example for me to figure out what you are saying here.

}>}	To get to my true question why is the verb {QaQ} different
}>}from the verb {ghIm}? (In Klingon not in English!)
}>
}>In Klingon and English, the difference is that {ghIm} and "exile" can have a
}>direct object, the person who is exiled, while {QaQ} and "good" can't have a
}>direct object, they are "stative" verbs, expressing a condition.  You'll
}>come up against this question of objects again, and in some cases we aren't
}>exactly sure what the object of a Klingon verb can be, but it's pretty clear
}>in this case.  The way the translations are given in the dictionary
}>indicates what object the verb can take.  For example, most people consider
}>that {'Ij} cannot take a direct object, because it is translated as
}>"listen", not "listen to."  In English we don't "listen a song" so in
}>Klingon we probably can't *{bom 'Ij}.  This is all part of what I was saying
}>earlier about paying close attention to the exact meaning of the verb.
}
}	So in English the verb "listen" is intransive, but it's not
}certain for Klingon. (How do you treat it then, as intransive?)

In English the verb "listen" by itself is intransitive, but "listen to" is
transitive.  I personally treat {'Ij} as intransitive.

}jIghojqangqu'law''a'? jIghojqangqu'ba'!

jIHoj.

Qov     [email protected]
Beginners' Grammarian                 



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