Kandi/Sandbox
What it says on the tin
A collection of glossed interlinears in the Tsan language.
Predicative complements
Simple predicative expressions
In Tsan, the predicative complement of an expression is equivalent to the predicate itself. All content words are predicates in their own right, due to a stative suffix, which has parallels in the English copula. The stative is a null suffix in the third person proximate homus, and the person and number congruate with the subject, whilst the gender congruates with the topic. The subject can also be marked independently.
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(1) |
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(2) |
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(3) |
Predicative nominatives
If the subject of the expression is stated independently, it is marked with a specifier, (SPEC), which roughly translates as the English relative determiner that which, or the construction it is […] that is […]. The post-vocalic form is –n and the post-consonantal form is –i.
The predicative complement, or predicate, agrees with the topic. The topic, most often the subject, is marked with the third person singular homus suffix, as well as the specifier.
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(2.5) |
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(2.6) |
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(2.7) |
Predicative accusatives
Tsan has one copula, and one copula only. In English you may find a variety of related verbs with similar function to the main copula to be; for example to feel, to seem and to become. In Tsan, the semantics of these verbs are all conveyed by means of modifying the copula with evidentials, mood markers, applicatives and other constructions.
Typically, what may be percieved as an increase in valency is marked with the copula and an appropriate applicative-like affix. The former subject is always demoted to the object or patient.
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(2.8) |
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(2.9) |
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(2.10) |
Intransitive clauses
When you accept that two content words in a predicative expression co-function as predicate and subject, it is not difficult to imagine other clauses with one core argument. The simplest are the corresponding English intransitive clauses. Tsan makes an important dichotomy between stative and dynamic content words.
Stative clauses
Stative predicates, such as to hang, to lie, to be on fire, to taste like and to know are almost exclusively expressed by means of the copula suffix. See also predicative complements, which is an equivalent interpretation.
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(3.11) |
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(3.12) |
Dynamic clauses
Dynamic predicatives on the other hand, including to run, to lay, to put on fire, to savour, and to learn, are formed with a conjugating dynamic prefix, acting in the same manner as the copula.
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(3.13) |
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(3.14) |
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(3.15) |
Flexibility of arguments and predicates
It is in these dynamic and static clauses that Tsan first exhibits its flexibility of arguments. By simply switching the prefixes of the content words, the meaning is reversed or changed drastically.
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(3.16) |
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(3.17) |
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(3.18) |
What's actually inside
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(-) |