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Celabrian: Difference between revisions
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→Definiteness
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There are three levels of definiteness in Celabrian: | There are three levels of definiteness in Celabrian: | ||
*Definite: Something specific that is known to both the speaker and listener, that has been previously mentioned, or that is uniquely specified. Equivalent to English "the" in "I saw '''the''' car." | *'''Definite:''' Something specific that is known to both the speaker and listener, that has been previously mentioned, or that is uniquely specified. Equivalent to English "the" in "I saw '''the''' car." | ||
*Semidefinite: Something specific that is identifiable by the speaker but not the listener or that has not been previously mentioned. Equivalent to English "a" in "I saw '''a''' car." | *'''Semidefinite:''' Something specific that is identifiable by the speaker but not the listener or that has not been previously mentioned. Equivalent to English "a" in "I saw '''a''' car." | ||
*Indefinite: Refers non-specifically to a member of a class. Equivalent to English "a" in "I need '''a''' car." | *'''Indefinite:''' Refers non-specifically to a member of a class. Equivalent to English "a" in "I need '''a''' car." | ||
Nouns unmarked for definiteness are semidefinite by default. The definite article is ''-<u>ə</u>n'' (added before case endings). | Nouns unmarked for definiteness are semidefinite by default. The definite article is ''-<u>ə</u>n'' (added before case endings). | ||
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In addition to definite and indefinite articles, Celabrian has partitive and negative articles. The partitive article is ''-<u>a</u>'' (equivalent to the ablative case and the plural/mass indefinite article). It refers to a non-specific quantity of something. It is equivalent to English "some" in "I want '''some''' coffee." | In addition to definite and indefinite articles, Celabrian has partitive and negative articles. The partitive article is ''-<u>a</u>'' (equivalent to the ablative case and the plural/mass indefinite article). It refers to a non-specific quantity of something. It is equivalent to English "some" in "I want '''some''' coffee." | ||
The negative article is '' | The negative article is ''k<u>a</u>-''. It specifies none of something, and is equivalent to English "no" in "I see '''no''' car." | ||
The articles are summarized in the table below: | The articles are summarized in the table below: | ||
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! Negative | ! Negative | ||
| None of something. || colspan="4" | | | None of something. || colspan="4" | k<u>a</u>- | ||
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