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Chlouvānem/Syntax: Difference between revisions
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==Verb phrase== | ==Verb phrase== | ||
===Copula=== | |||
The main Chlouvānem copula is the verb "to be", ''jalle'', which is also [[Chlouvānem/Morphology#The_verb_.22to_be.22_.28jalle.29|the most irregular of all Chlouvānem verbs.]] It has three main uses. First of all, it expresses the identity of two noun phrases, i.e. X = Y: | |||
{{Gloss | |||
| phrase = lūṣya lilyā kalineh vi. | |||
| gloss = Lūṣya.<small>DIR</small>. <small>1SG.GEN-DIR</small>. female's_younger_sister.<small>DIR.SG</small>. be.<small>IND.PRES.3SG.PATIENT.EXTERIOR</small>. | |||
| translation = Lūṣya is my younger sister. | |||
}} | |||
{{Gloss | |||
| phrase = šinnus lili ū. | |||
| gloss = walrus.<small>DIR.SG</small>. <small>1SG.DIR</small>. be.<small>IND.PRES.1SG.PATIENT.EXTERIOR</small>. | |||
| translation = I am the walrus. | |||
}} | |||
It can also express belonging to a class or subset, i.e. X = one of many Y: | |||
{{Gloss | |||
| phrase = lāltaṣveya aṣasārjaiṭe marta vi. | |||
| gloss = Lāltaṣveya.<small>DIR</small>. Aṣasārjaiṭa-<small>LOC</small>. city.<small>DIR.SG</small>. be.<small>IND.PRES.3SG.PATIENT.EXTERIOR</small>. | |||
| translation = Lāltaṣveya is a city in Aṣasārjaiṭa. | |||
}} | |||
When it expresses X = one of many Y, but the condition is thought to be temporary, or is related to animate subjects, then the subject complement must be in essive case. Often whether a noun must take essive or direct case is idiomatic; facts of political geography are marked as immutable, as in the sentence above (even though borders might change), while working as something is marked as temporary, with the essive case: | |||
{{Gloss | |||
| phrase = numminaiṣa dārṇāliląs vi. | |||
| gloss = Numminaiṣa.<small>DIR</small>. figurative_artist-<small>ESS.SG</small>. be.<small>IND.PRES.3SG.PATIENT.EXTERIOR</small>. | |||
| translation = Numminaiṣa is a figurative artist. | |||
}} | |||
However, high ranks of the Inquisition and of the military always take the direct case, as do references to dead people: | |||
{{Gloss | |||
| phrase = lileikhurāvi yukahināri mæmihūmya dhūltalila ē. | |||
| gloss = Lileikhurāvi. Yukahināri.<small>DIR</small>. Mæmihūmya.<small>DIR</small>. writer.<small>DIR.SG</small>. be.<small>IND.PAST.3SG.PATIENT.EXTERIOR</small>. | |||
| translation = Lileikhurāvi Yukahināri Mæmihūmya was a writer. | |||
}} | |||
The copula also has an existential use, often in locative-trigger voice or with a locative complement: | |||
{{Gloss | |||
| phrase = uñjulā raivātą virā. | |||
| gloss = there.<small>MEDIAL</small>. notebook-<small>ESS.SG</small>. be.<small>IND.PRES.3SG.EXTERIOR-LOC</small>. | |||
| translation = There, near you, there's a notebook. | |||
}} | |||
{{Gloss | |||
| phrase = lili mæn līve šulka dvārma jali. | |||
| gloss = <small>1SG.DIR</small>. <small>TOPIC</small>. apartment-<small>LOC.SG</small>. five.<small>DIR</small>. room.<small>DIR.SG</small>. be.<small>IND.PRES.3PL.PATIENT.EXTERIOR</small>. | |||
| translation = In my apartment there are five rooms. | |||
}} | |||
====Zero-copular sentences==== | |||
Zero-copular sentences are permitted in Chlouvānem, but only in certain cases; note that, in any case, leaving the copula is still correct, even if often not the use a native would do. The omission of the copula, however, is only permitted in the present tense.<br/>The copula is nearly always omitted when the subject is a determiner (i.e. ''nenē'', ''nunū'', ''sora'', ''læti'', etc., often possessive pronouns too) and when the predicate is an undeclinable adjective-like word (i.e. ''cami'', ''lalla'', ''hulābdān'', etc.): | |||
{{Gloss | |||
| phrase = nunū lilyai buneyi jṛṣṇa. | |||
| gloss = that.<small>MED.DIR</small>. my-<small>GEN</small>. female's_older_sister-<small>GEN.SG</small>. backpack.<small>DIR.SG</small>. | |||
| translation = That is my older sister's backpack. | |||
}} | |||
{{Gloss | |||
| phrase = dāneh dulmaidanų nanū lalla. | |||
| gloss = Dāneh.<small>DIR</small>. Dulmaidana-<small>ABL</small>. more. tall. | |||
| translation = Dāneh is taller than Dulmaidana. | |||
}} | |||
It is usually omitted when in a genitive construction (i.e. a X<small>GEN</small>-Y<small>DIR</small>-kind translation of "to have"): | |||
{{Gloss | |||
| phrase = švaragūlani thudam. | |||
| gloss = Švaragūlan-<small>GEN</small>. dog.<small>DIR.SG</small>. | |||
| translation = Švaragūlan has a dog. | |||
}} | |||
Finally, it is common to omit it (or the similarly copular verb ''ndǣke'' (to become)) when the meaning of "becoming Y from X" is implied by a noun in the exessive case followed by another in the translative case: | |||
{{Gloss | |||
| phrase = lūṣyi glūkam nūlinyañīnat murkadhānan. | |||
| gloss = Lūṣya-<small>GEN.SG</small>. brother.<small>DIR.SG</small>. leaf.counter-<small>EXESS.SG</small>. inquisitor-<small>TRANS.SG</small>. | |||
| translation = Lūṣya's brother, who was a time-waster<ref>In Chlouvānem literally "one who counts leaves".</ref>, is now studying to become an Inquisitor. | |||
}} | |||
===The tense-aspectual system=== | ===The tense-aspectual system=== | ||
The Chlouvānem tense-aspectual system is formed by three times of action (past, present, and future) and two aspects (imperfective and perfective). It is however often considered to be a monoaspectual system, as the tense-aspect combinations (hereafter simply ''tenses'', cf. Chlouvānem ''avyāṣa'', pl. ''avyāṣai'') which are not strictly perfective are not imperfective, but do not distinguish aspect at all - in fact, they can (and, as for the past, very frequently) have perfective meaning too. | The Chlouvānem tense-aspectual system is formed by three times of action (past, present, and future) and two aspects (imperfective and perfective). It is however often considered to be a monoaspectual system, as the tense-aspect combinations (hereafter simply ''tenses'', cf. Chlouvānem ''avyāṣa'', pl. ''avyāṣai'') which are not strictly perfective are not imperfective, but do not distinguish aspect at all - in fact, they can (and, as for the past, very frequently) have perfective meaning too. | ||