tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Fri Nov 13 08:45:46 2009
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RE: Yet another newbie!
buSwI' (Karl-Filip Faxen) wrote:
>>
>> {mu'Hom laDlu' yeplu'qu'niS}
>> (if I got that right...)
>
>I do not think I got it right, I think it should be:
> {mu'Hom laDlu'taHviS yeplu'qu'niS}
"One must be very careful when (while) one reads the Dictionary."
Ain't that the truth!
A couple of points:
"Dictionary" is {mu'ghom}. A *{mu'Hom} - {mu'} "word" + {-Hom} "diminutive" - would be a "wordlet, minor word, etc." (A grammatical "particle" perhaps?)
The suffixes {-vIS} and {-nIS} are always written with a capital /I/; there is no lower-case /i/ in Okrand's transliteration system. /I/ indicates a dull /ih/ sound (e.g. "it", "sit") and not the /ee/ sound (e.g. "eat", "seat"). Okrand used capital letters for sounds that are pronounced a bit differently than an English speaker - more specifically, an English speaking actor! - would normally want to pronounce them.
Finally, watch the order of suffixes:
TKD 32: As with Klingon nouns, Klingon verbs may take suffixes falling into a number of types based on their relative position following the verb. There are nine types of verb suffixes. Unlike Klingon nouns, Klingon verbs may take prefixes. Thus, if suffix types are indicated as numbers, the structure of a Klingon verb is: PREFIX-VERB-1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9.
This would be {yepnISlu'}: {-nIS} is Type 2, {-lu'} is Type 5. Examples:
yInlu'taH 'e' bajnISlu'
Survival must be earned. TKW
yay chavlu' 'e' bajnISlu'
Victory must be earned. TKW
OTOH {-qu'} is a Rover and "can come just about anywhere except following a Type 9 suffix" (TKD 4.3). In your sentence {-qu'} could follow the verb or either suffix, depending on the exact meaning you want to convey. E.g.:
yIntaHbogh tlhIngan Soj tlhol jablu'DI' tIvqu'lu'
Klingon food is best when served fresh and live. S21
Okrand's comments WRT with another Rover {-be'} "not" are instructive:
ghob tIvnISbe'lu'
One need not enjoy virtue. TKW
TKW 48: The Klingon construction {tIvnISbe'} means "does not need to enjoy"; {tIvbe'nIS} would mean "needs to not enjoy", an utterly different concept.
HINT: If you're having trouble with the finer points of {-lu'} (indefinite subject), a good work-around is just to rephrase in the second person. E.g.:
<<tlhIngan Hol mu'ghom>> DalaDtaHvIS bIyepqu'nIS.
When you read (While reading) "The Klingon Dictionary",
you must be very careful.
<<tlhIngan Hol mu'ghom>> DalaDchugh, vaj yIyepqu'!
If you read "The Klingon Dictionary", then be very careful!
<<tlhIngan Hol mu'ghom>> DalaDtaHvIS yIyep!
Be careful reading "The Klingon Dictionary"!
--
Voragh
Canon Master of the Klingons