Grammar Highlight Each Day: About Adjectives

[PeHruS9@aol.com]

Disclaimer:  This is only a highlight of a point or two of Klingon grammar.  
It is not an exhaustive teaching tool.

Today I will use material beyond that which you will find in TKD.

The adjective comes right after the noun it modifies.  Examples:  loD jen = 
tall man (loD = man; jen = be tall)
puq run = short child (puq = child; run = be short in stature)
betleH jej = sharp blade of honor (betleH = blade of honor; jej = be sharp)
chatlh jeD = thick soup (chatlh = soup Klingon style; jeD = be thick)

The actual highlight of the day is:  You can have only one adjective after a 
noun.  The only affix to the adjective you are allowed is the suffix {-qu'} = 
very.  Examples:  loD jenqu' = very tall man; puq runqu' = very short child; 
betleH jejqu' = very sharp blade of honor; chatlh jeDqu' = very thick 
Klingon-style soup.

Now I go outside of TKD.  You can have two other suffixes besides {-qu'}.  
You may use either {-be'} or {-Ha'}, too.  While the use of the suffix {-be'} 
is unrestricted, there is some restriction coming from Marc Okrand while I 
was chatting with him upon using {-Ha'}.  Thus, it is safe to use adjectives 
which Marc Okrand has listed in the dictionary and additions to the 
dictionary that already have {Ha'}.  
Examples:  Soj tlhorghHa' = bland food (Soj = food; tlhorgh = be pungent, 
tlhorghHa' = be bland)
'etlh jejHa' = dull blade ('etlh = blade; jejHa' = dull, i.e., unsharp)
tIqa' vIghro' jotHa' = uneasy Tika cat (tIqa' = Klingon fraidy cat-like 
animal; vIghro' = Klingon cat-like animal; jot = be calm, jotHa' = be uneasy)

Finally, you may not use any other verb suffixes on adjectives modifying 
nouns.  Thus, you may not say be' jenlaw' = apparently tall woman; be' jenrup 
= ready-to-be-tall woman.  That's not Klingon.

peHruS