Proto-Rathmosian: Difference between revisions

The primary division in verbal morphology is made between dynamic or '''Class I''' verbs and stative or '''Class II''' verbs. Dynamic verbs denote actions and verbs of motion while stative verbs refer to states of being and include the large class of adjectival verbs, such as ''dreg-'' "to be red". Semantics govern the class to which a given verb belongs.  

Class I verbs have two conjugations: the '''imperfect''', denoting incompleted or continuous action often understood as non-past, and the '''perfect''' denoting completed action, usually referring to the past. Class I verbs may also be '''active''', in which the subject is focussed, or '''passive''' in which the patient is promoted to the subject of the verb. Passive forms are created by lengthening the vowel of the root, e.g. ''ker-'' "rule" (active), ''keer-'' "ruled" (passive). As Class II verbs are stative they are understood to be imperfect and have only one conjugation, and as they are always intransitive they have no passive. However Class II verbs may be taken over into Class I with an inchoative sense.