Ffííxrru Verbs

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Contents 1 Aspect 2 Mood 3 Negation 4 Person, Number, Gender 4.1 Subject Agreement 4.2 Object Agreement 5 Politeness 6 Tense 7 Voice

Aspect

There is no aspect distinction in Ffííxrru.

Mood

Moods are expressed with special mental state verbs.

Negation

To negate a verb, lengthen its first vowel and change its first consonant. The consonant usually becomes a fricative or affricate. If the verb starts with a vowel, the prefix qh- is used instead.

James killed Mary.
Éfitthdo Mááriqh aTshaams.
(éfitth = to kill, Méri = Mary, Tshems = James)
---
James did not kill Mary.
Qhééfitthdo Mááriqh aTshaams.

Person, Number, Gender

Number is only distinguished in the first person. Gender is only distinguished insofar as objects are treated differently.

The verb usually indicates subject agreement, i.e. the person of the subject. Object agreement is used for passive voice.

Subject Agreement

• 1st person singular: unmarked
• 2nd person: suffix -la
• 3rd person: suffix -do
• 1st person plural exclusive: suffix -ung
• 1st person plural inclusive: suffix -esh
• dummy 3rd person: suffix -(g)lash
• dummy for objects: infix -ax- after the stressed syllable
• neuter pronoun (for objects): infix -eqh- after the stressed syllable

Object Agreement

• 1st person singular: suffix -lai
• 2nd person: suffix -(b)ree
• 3rd person: suffix -fa
• 1st person plural exclusive: suffix -(d)ang
• 1st person plural inclusive: suffix -us
• dummy 3rd person: suffix -kxau
• dummy for objects: infix -ell- after the stressed syllable
• neuter pronoun (for objects): infix -og- after the stressed syllable

Politeness

There are five degrees of politeness in Ffííxrru, expressing the relationship between subject and object:

• If subject and object have equal status, the basic form is used.
• If the subject is a child and the object an adult, the stressed syllable is doubled.
• If the subject is an adult and the object a child, the stressed syllable is lengthened.
• If the subject is inferior to the object (standing below her/him in the hierarchy of society), the stressed prefix bánd(u)- (for an action), zímb(a)- (for a perception) or úúg(i)- (for a mental state) is used.
• If the subject is superior to the object (standing above her/him in the hierarchy of society), the prefix kx(u)- (for an action), qhl(a)- (for a perception) or thei- (for a mental state) is used, and the verb is stressed on its last syllable.

Politeness is only indicated if both the subject and the object are humans.

Tense

There are only two tenses in Ffííxrru: past and present. Future is marked with modal (mental state) verb.

In action and perception verbs, past tense is unmarked. Present tense is formed by repeating the verb. But the repetition is in the infinitive, not conjugated.

James killed / was killing Mary.
Éfitthdo Mááriqh aTshaams.
(éfitth = to kill, Méri = Mary, Tshems = James)
---
James kills / is killing Mary.
Éfitthdo éfitth Mááriqh aTshaams.

James saw the big hut.
Oltthádo ngikxengíls óóthooas rrotsheTshéms.
(oltthá = to see, kxengíls = hut, óthoo = big)
---
James sees the big hut.
Oltthádo oltthá ngikxengíls óóthooas rrotsheTshéms.

In mental state verbs, present tense is unmarked. Past tense uses the prefix be-. If the verb starts with a vowel, a consonant is introduced between the prefix and the verb.

John loves Mary.
Éérruudo Mémeri mmTshétshems.
(éérruu = to love, Méri = Mary, Tshems = James)
---
John loved Mary.
Beshéérruudo Mémeri mmTshéthsems.

Voice

Passive voice does not use an auxiliary or a special verb form. Instead you replace the subject agreement suffix with an object agreement suffix.

Usually subject and object are switched, too, but that's not a requirement.

James killed Mary.
Éfitthdo Mááriqh aTshaams.
(éfitth = to kill, Méri = Mary, Tshems = James)
---
James was killed by Mary.
Éfitthfa aTshaams Mááriqh.

1. Introduction
2. Pronunciation
3. Nouns
4. Verbs
5. Pronouns
6. Attributive Clauses and Adjuncts
7. Word Order
8. Numbers
9. Vocabulary
10. Sample Text

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