Re: clothing

[Alan Anderson <aranders@netusa1.net>]

ja' muHwI':
>What we have:
>{tuQ} "wear (clothes)"
>{tuQmoH} "put on (clothes)"
>{tuQHa'moH} "undress"

The existence of both {tuQ} and {tuQmoH} confused me greatly until we
got another example of a transitive verb with {-moH} on it.  From the
Skybox S20 card {Ha'quj} "Klingon Sash":

  ...tuQtaHvIS Hem.  ghaHvaD quHDaj qawmoH.
  "...He wears it proudly as a reminder of his heritage."

Here, {qawmoH} has the same sort of object as {qaw} would, and the
one actually remembering -- the "object of causation" -- is marked
with {-vaD} as the beneficiary of the verb.

The parenthetical "clothes" on {tuQ} and {tuQmoH} tells me that they
both have the thing being worn as the usual object.  The {-moH} on
{tuQmoH} says that "put on" means the same thing as "cause to wear",
or "put (clothes) on [someone else]".  {tuQHa'moH} "undress" seems to
refer to taking clothes off someone else.  For disrobing oneself, I'd
say simply {tuQHa'} -- or, even more simply, {teq} "remove, take off".

>So I'd say {jItuQ} for "I'm not naked"; {jItuQmoH} "I'm getting dressed" and
>{jItuQHa'moH} "I'm getting naked, I'm undressing" (very loose translations).

{jItuQmoH} means to me "I dress [someone else]."  Perhaps I help my
son button his shirt and tie his shoes.  {jItuQHa'moH} is obviously
"I undress [someone else]."

>How do I say "put on s.th.", like "Put your shoes on!"

Easy:  {waqlIj tItuQchoH} "Begin to wear your shoes."

>{waqmeylIj tItuQmoH} sounds pretty silly, because it gives me the funny
>picture of a pair of shoes wearing pants and a shirt :-)
>Is there a way to recast that??

No need to recast.  Just recognize that the {-moH} suffix makes the
verb talk about *causing* someone to wear (or remove) clothes.

-- ghunchu'wI'