Dicontu Grandiu

Created to be an alternative to Esperanto. Dicontu Grandiu is supposed to be more easily spoken by speakers of gendered languages than Esperanto because of its simple-to-use quad-gender system.

Phonology

Vowels (stressed/unstressed)

front	back
i/i~ɪ	u/ʊ
e/ɛ	o/ɔ
a/a~ə

Note: Vowels marked with an acute accent (stressed syllable) always make their stressed sound.

Orthography

Letter	IPA	Notes
A	/a/	as in father but more frontal
B	/b/
C	/k/ or /s/	/s/ after s or before e or i, /k/ if not
Ĉ	/t͡ʃ/	as in check
D	/d/
E	/e/	as in egg
F	/f/
G	/g/	almost always as in goal
H	/h/, /∅/	as in house or silent
I	/i/	as in feet
J	/j/	as in yes
Ĵ	/d͡ʒ/	as in jet
K	/k/
L	/l/
M	/m/
N	/n/	as in night
O	/o/	as in flow
P	/p/
QU	/kw/	as in queen
R	/r/	trilled or not, depending on speaker
S	/s/	always voiceless as in see
T	/t/
U	/u/	as in boot
V	/v/
W	/w/
X	/ks/	as in box
Y	/i/	less common variant of I
Z	/z/

Diphthongs

Letters	IPA	Notes
AI	/aɪ/	as in guy
AU	/aʊ/	as in cow
EI	/eɪ̯/	as in train
ÉI	/ei/	as in stay, eat
EU	/əʊ̯/	similar to blow, but more open
OI	/ɔɪ/	as in toy
UI	/ui/	as in you, eat
UÍ	/wi/	as in queen

Syntax

SVO is used 75% of the time, but the only real word-order rule is that the subject must come before any object. Adjectives usually follow their head nouns. Indirect objects usually come before direct objects. Prepositional phrases do not usually start sentences.

Nouns

Nouns have four genders: masculine, feminine, common (or epicene), and neuter. Many nouns come in two or more different genders, and the gender changes the meaning. For example, a padro (masculine) is a father, but a padre (common) is a parent. And an enfante (common) is a baby, but an enfantu (neuter) is a child still in the womb. If a word appears in a gender it does not usually appear in, a general meaning is implied. If a living thing is strangely made neuter, it usually means the person or thing is deceased. If an inaminate object is made common, it is either being personified metaphorically or suddenly animate, like in a fairy tale. If a normally masculine or feminine thing is made common, it is being generalized. For example, florninas (feminine) are flower girls, but flornines would be a respectful way to refer to a group of flower girls and boys. They also come in two numbers (singular and plural) and four cases: oblique, for subjects, direct objects, and predicate nominatives; dative, for indirect objects; genitive, for possessors, composition, reference, and more; and ablative for intruments, causes, and comparisons. When speaking about specific places, the ablative changes to a locative case, meaning "at ____".

Noun declension chart

	Masculine	pl	Feminine	pl	Common	pl	Neuter	pl
Oblique	pádro	pádros	mátra	mátras	enfánte	enfántes	céilu	céilus
Genitive	pádroi	pádron	mátrai	mátran	enfántei	enfánten	céilui	céilun
Dative	padró	padrós	matrá	matrás	enfanté	enfantés	ceilú	ceilús
Ablative	pádrom	padróm	mátram	matrám	enfántem	enfantém	céilum	ceilúm

Verbs

Verbs conjugate according to 4 tenses (perfect, preterite, present, future), 2 numbers (singular/plural), 2 persons (1st person/other), 2 moods (indicative/jussive), 2 voices (active/passive), and 2 aspects in the active voice (perfective/imperfective). There are 2 voices: active and passive. These conjugate the same way, but with a stem change. For example, vider means "to see", while vuder means "to be seen." Vider is an example of the active voice, and vuder the passive. In multi-syllable verb stems, the second syllable changes (-er is the infinitive suffix).

Voice Change Chart

	Conj. 1 active	Conj. 1 passive/Conj. 2 active	Conj. 2 passive
a-stem	au	a	u
e-stem	éi	e	o
i-stem	ai	i	u

1st person verbs

Indicative mood

	Perfective sg	Perfective pl	Imperfective sg	Imperfective pl
Perfect	audatov/adatov	audantov/adantov	audativ/adatov	audantiv/adantov
Preterite	audatin/adatin	audantin/adantin	audati/adatin	audanti/adantin
Present	audato/adato	audanto/adanto	audatoi/adato	audantoi/adanto
Future	audatos/adatos	audantos/adantos	audatol/adatos	audantol/adantos

Jussive mood

	Perfective sg	Perfective pl	Imperfective sg	Imperfective pl
Perfect	audutov/adutov	auduntov/aduntov	audutiv/adutov	auduntiv/aduntov
Preterite	audutin/adutin	auduntin/aduntin	auduti/adutin	audunti/aduntin
Present	auduto/aduto	audunto/adunto	audutoi/aduto	auduntoi/adunto
Future	audutos/adutos	auduntos/aduntos	audutol/adutos	auduntol/aduntos

Note: Perfective does not exactly align with the perfect tense in English. Perfective future means "will be done", perfective present means "is done now", preterite past means "has been done", and perfective perfect means "had been done".

2nd/3rd person verbs

Indicative mood

	Perfective sg	Perfective pl	Imperfective sg	Imperfective pl
Perfect	audatan/adatan	audantan/adantan	audatav/adatan	audantav/adantan
Preterite	audatis/adatis	audantis/adantis	audatiĵ/adatis	audantiĵ/adantis
Present	audata/adata	audanta/adanta	audatas/adata	audantas/adanta
Future	audates/adates	audantes/adantes	audatel/adates	audantel/adantes

Jussive mood

	Perfective sg	Perfective pl	Imperfective sg	Imperfective pl
Perfect	audutan/adutan	auduntan/aduntan	audutav/adutan	auduntav/aduntan
Preterite	audutis/adutis	auduntis/aduntis	audutiĵ/adutis	auduntiĵ/aduntis
Present	auduta/aduta	audunta/adunta	audutas/aduta	audantas/adunta
Future	audutes/adutes	auduntes/aduntes	audutel/adutes	auduntel/aduntes

Non-finite forms

Active infinitive: auder Passive infinitive: ader Active gerund: audar Passive gerund: adar

Participle Stems (for nouns or adjectives)

	Active	Passive
Past	audan-	adan-
Present	aud-	ad-
Future	audel-	adel-

"To be"

There are two versions of the verb ester, to be, distinguished in the indicative mood. There is the copula, which uses the shortened forms (O homo es felizio = The man is happy), and the existential, which uses the longer forms (Estatas homo felizio = There is a happy man). This verb also does not have a finite passive voice.

1st person forms

Indicative mood

	Perfective sg	Perfective pl	Imperfective sg	Imperfective pl
Perfect	estatov/eratov	estantov/erantov	estativ/erativ	estantiv/erantiv
Preterite	estatin/eratin	estantin/erantin	estati/erati	estanti/eranti
Present	estato/sum	estanto/somo	estatoi/sum	estantoi/somo
Future	estatos/sumos	estantos/somos	estatol/estol	estantol/adantol

Jussive mood

	Perfective sg	Perfective pl	Imperfective sg	Imperfective pl
Perfect	estutov	estuntov	estativ	estantiv
Preterite	estutin	estuntin	estati	estanti
Present	estuto	estunto	estutoi	estuntoi
Future	estutos	estantos	estutol	estuntol

2nd/3rd person forms

Indicative mood

	Perfective sg	Perfective pl	Imperfective sg	Imperfective pl
Perfect	estatan/eratan	estantan/erantan	estatav/erat	estantav/erant
Preterite	estatis/erats	estantis/erants	estatiĵ/erat	estantiĵ/erant
Present	estata/es	estanta/sont	estatas/es	estantas/sont
Future	estates/estes	estantes/estes	estatel/estel	estantel/sontel

Jussive mood

	Perfective sg	Perfective pl	Imperfective sg	Imperfective pl
Perfect	estutan	estuntan	estutav	estuntav
Preterite	estutis	estuntis	estutiĵ	estuntiĵ
Present	estuta	estunta	estatas	estantas
Future	estutes	estuntes	estutel	estuntel

Non-finite forms

Active infinitive: ester Passive infinitive: uster Active gerund: estar Passive gerund: ustar

Conditional mood

Sometimes speakers use a periphrastic conditional mood. To create this form, combine an indicative perfective preterite form of the copula ester with the infinitive form of a verb. For example, "If I slept in the night, I would eat it." is "Si me erátin dormer en us nóctus, sum lu comer."

Example texts

The Lord's Prayer

Dicontu Grandiu	English
Padro men, kui en céilu es, holufuta nomu toi. Réichu toi venutes, voluntu toi estuta, sicut en céilu et en térra. Donnutes mes hodie pánu men, jé pardonutas més transgrésios men, et pardonanto transgréses men. Jé ne condecutas mes a temtácio, sed guídutas ex málu. Kolqué u réichu es toi, et u poténĉu jé a glora, éterne jé sempre. Amen.	Our father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.