Mirad Grammar/Verbs
The Verb Stem
edit- Verbs in Mirad are listed in the dictionary under the present active infinitive (see Mirad Grammar/Verbs#Non-finite Forms), such as yexer....to work. The infinitive minus the er ending is the stem. The stem is used as the base for all other verbal instantiations. The infinitive as listed in the dictionary is usually active in voice, but occasionally a passive infinitive ending in -wer will be lexicalized because it is somehow special, so then, the stem is the infinitive minus the -wer ending. All Mirad verbs are conjugated in the same way and there are no exceptions.
- This shows how to determine the stem of a verb listed in the dictionary:
Verb Stems SIMPLE INFINITIVE STEM+INFINITIVE ENDING yexer....to work yex+er poser....to (come to a) stop pos+er xer....to do x+er xwer....to happen, be done (PASSIVE) x+wer
Verb Formants
edit- The active stem of verbs most often end in one of the following verb formants:
Verb Formats Verb Formant Function Examples -xer action or causation xer....to do, saxer....to create, agaxer....to magnify, yixer....to use -xler forceful action yixler....to employ -xrer more forceful action yixrer....to wear out -ber gesture ber....to put, aber....to apply, yujber....to close -bler forceful gesture yujbler....to lock -brer more foreful gesture yobrer....to knock down -ser state or becoming ser....to be, eser....to exist, aser....to become, zyaser....to widen, become wider -per motion or going per....to go, yaper....to ascend, paper....to fly -ier action toward subject bier....to take, nier....to consume, ifier.'..to enjoy, dier....to ask -uer action toward object buer....to give, nuer....to supply, ifuer....to please, duer....to suggest -ner various verbs uxner....to motivate, axner....to behave -der communication der....to say, vader....to affirm, yevder....to judge -drer writing drer....to write, teedrer....to report, taxdrer....to record -ter knowing ter....to know, tester....to understand, teater....to see -fer volition fer....to want, ifer....to love, ufer....to hate -ver some modal verbs yiver....to have a right to, yuver....to have a duty to -ker various verbs aker....to win, oker....to lose, eker....to play -jer opening/closing ijer....to begin, ujer....to end, tajer....to be born, tojer....to die, yijer....to open -ler various verbs baler....to press, boler....to support, beler....to carry, daler....to speak -[aiu]rer tool use ukarer....to shovel, purer....to drive, myekirer....to mill -zer perform an art dazer....to dance, dezer....to act, deuzer...to sing
Verb Categories
edit- Verbs have morphological categories, which involve changes to the verb not always found in the dictionary, but developed through rule-bound affixation (such as live, lives, lived, living). They also have lexical categories, which involve derived forms usually listed in dictionaries (enjoy, enjoyable, enjoyment)
Morphological Categories
edit- Verbs are inflected with the following morphological categories:
- 2 STATES: finite, non-finite
- 4 TENSES: present, past, future, atemporal1
- 5 ASPECTS: simple, progressive, perfect, imminent, potential
- 2 VOICES: active, passive
- 2 MOODS: indicative, hypothetical
Note 1: The term "atemporal" means that tense is not marked. For example, in Mirad, Pu! is the imperative of the verb per....to go. It means Go! and is atemporal. The -u ending is an atemporal hypothetical mood marker.
- In effect, the PERSON/NUMBER category is not listed above, because this category does not affect the morphology of the Mirad verb form itself. The Mirad verb form stays the same for all persons and numbers. That information is contained in the external subject pronouns governing the verb. In English, for example, the verb "be" has several different forms in the present tense verb form depending on the person and number (I am, you are, he is, we are, etc.), but not so in Mirad. The following chart shows how the English pattern differs from the corresponding single Mirad verb form se for all persons and numbers:
Verb ser (to be) Unchanged for person/number PERSON NUMBER ENGLISH MIRAD 1st Singular I am at se 2nd you are et se 3rd he/she/it is it se 1st Plural we are yat se 2nd you are yet se 3rd they are yit se
- This invariability of person/number exists for all tenses.
Lexical Categories
edit- In addition, verbs can be described in terms of the following opposing lexical categories. By lexical, is meant that verbs having different lexical properties are listed in the dictionary and have nothing to do with conjugation.
STATIVE | DYNAMIC |
---|---|
ser....to be | xer....to do |
INTRANSITIVE | TRANSITIVE |
agaser....to grow large | agaxer....to magnify |
SUBJECT-DIRECTED | PATIENT-DIRECTED |
bier....to take | buer....to give |
REFLEXIVE | NON-REFLEXIVE |
utvyixer....to wash up (wash oneself) | vyixer....to wash |
INCHOATIVE | CAUSATIVE |
tujper....fall asleep | tujber....put to sleep |
AUTONOMOUS | DYNAMIC |
yijer....to open (by itself) | yijber....to (make it) open |
RECIPROCAL | NON-RECIPROCAL |
hyuittujber....to kill one another | tujber....to kill |
GESTURAL | LOCOMOTIVE |
baser....to stir, budge | paser....to move |
SUBJECT-ORIENTED | OBJECT-ORIENTED |
teetyiker....to be hard of hearing | teetyikwer....to be hard to hear |
Non-finite Forms
edit- Non-finite verb forms are
- not conjugated for person or number
- cannot form a predicate
- and do not have a subject.
- There are three kinds of non-finite verb forms in Mirad:
- infinitives: the dictionary lookup form of a verb, ending in -er
- gerunds: verbal nouns, ending in -en
- participles: verbal adjectives, ending in -a
Infinitives
edit- Verbs are listed in the dictionary under the active voice simple aspect infinitive form, which always ends in er and means to X, or rarely the passive voice simple aspect infinitive form, which ends in wer and means to be Xed. The part of the verb form minus the -er or -wer is the verb stem.
INFINITIVE | STEM | ENDING |
---|---|---|
agser....to grow | ags- | -er |
igxer....to quicken | igx- | -er |
per....to go | p- | -er |
xwer....to happen, be done | x- | -wer |
- The infinitive in Mirad is used very much as its counterpart in English. The infinitive can be marked for two aspects (simple, perfect) and two voices (active, passive), as shown in the chart below, where the verb stems are underlined:
ASPECT | ACTIVE VOICE | PASSIVE VOICE |
---|---|---|
Simple | igxer....to quicken | igxwer....to be quickened |
Perfect | igxayer....to have quickened | igxawer....to have been quickened |
- In the above chart,
- the verb stem is igx- and
- the infinitive marker is -er;
- the simple aspect active voice marker is zero;
- the simple aspect passive voice marker is w;
- the perfect aspect active voice marker is -ay-;
- the past aspect passive voice marker is -aw-.
The passive voice infinitive of a verb will not appear in the dictionary unless it has a special meaning, such as xwer to happen. The perfect infinitives are never listed in the dictionary.
Gerunds
edit- The gerund is a verbal noun like English playing in playing ball.
- The gerund has two possible aspects (simple and perfect) and two possible voices (active and passive):
ASPECT | VOICE | ENDING | EXAMPLE |
---|---|---|---|
Simple | Active | -en | agaxen....magnifiying, magnification |
Simple | Passive | -wen | agaxwen....being magnified |
Perfect | Active | -ayen | byekayen....having cured |
Perfect | Passive | -awen | byekawen....having been cured |
- Note: Intransitive verbs like per to go do not have a passive gerund form.
- Lexicalized gerunds, such as sanxen formation, forming generally appear in the dictionary in the active voice.
- Some examples of gerund usage:
- (sanxer....to form) Ha sanxen bi hia mar efxa amroni bi jabi.....The forming (or: formation) of this star took millions of years.
- (deuzer....to sing) Iyta deuzen sa gla via.....Her singing was very beautiful.
- (poper....to travel) Popen se yika yex.....Traveling is hard work.
- (teeter....to hear) Teetwen fiay se glatesa av dezuti.....Being heard well is important for actors.
- (teater....to see) Teaten se vyatexen......Seeing is believing.
- (uper....to come) His se ha jeb bi Upen.....This is the season of Advent (coming).
- (tadier....to get married) Ata tadiayen ewa jodi bixa tepzex.....My having married twice drew attention.
- (aker....to win) At voy ta ita akawen hua nuz.....I did not know about his having won that prize.
- Gerunds, being verb forms, can take direct and indirect objects:
- At ifxwe bey eta buayen at hua nas.....I am pleased by your having given me that money.
- Tojben eut voy se kebiyaf.....Killing yourself is not an option.
- The special gerundive ending -eyn gives a nuance emphasizing the action as a single act, much like the English endings -ment or -tion. Here are a few examples showing the difference between -en and -eyn.
- yanlaxen....combining ≠< yanlaxeyn....combination
- xen....doing ≠< xeyn....action, deed
- zayben....advancing ≠< zaybeyn....advancement
- Another special gerundive (but lexical) ending is -un, which expresses the result of an action, eg.:
- zyegxer....to puncture ≠< zyegxun....a puncture
- zyeuber....to transmit ≠< zyeubun....a broadcast
- deuzer....to sing ≠< deuzun....a song
Participles
edit- Participles are verbal adjectives and can modify nouns and pronouns. Since they act as adjectives, they have the adjectival ending -a. Participles are marked by aspect (simple, progressive, perfect, imminent, potential) and voice (active, passive).
- The aspect markers per voice are:
ASPECT | VOICE | FORM | EXAMPLE |
---|---|---|---|
Progressive | Active | -ea- | tejea....living |
Passive | wea | xwea....happening | |
Perfect | Active 2 | -ya | pya....gone (< pyaa1) |
Passive | -wa | xwa....done (< xwaa1), drawa2....written | |
Imminent | Active | -oa | tojoa....about to die |
Passive | -woa | dodelwoa....about to be announced | |
Potential | Active | -ua | tojbua....lethal |
Passive | -wua | opoxwua....unstoppable |
- 1: The double aa in the perfect endings is reduced to a.
- 2: The wa ending is changed to awa after stems ending in a double consonant, the second being l or r. Example: dr- (to write) becomes drawa (written).
- Note 1: The perfect active particple ending in -ya is used only for intransitive verbs like per (to go). He is gone. is expressed by Wit se pya.
- Note 2: The potential aspect, represented by the vowel u is much like the conditional in English, but is not considered a tense in Mirad. For example, tojbu means would kill and the participle tojbua means lethal (referring to something that would/has the potential to kill). More about this in a later section.
- Note 3: There is another form of the progressive participle that falls in the lexical, rather than morphological category, in that such forms are listed in the dictionary as adjectives. For example, in the phrase The animals bothering our bird feeder..., the participle bothering would be oboxea in Mirad. By inserting the letter y between the verb stem and the participial ending, the participle becomes an adjective denoting a propensity or habit, as in bothersome (oboxyea). Such participles are invariably in the active voice. Most such adjectives in English end in -ive as in repulsive or -ly as in wiggly or -ous as in circuitous. Such adjectives in Mirad are listed in the dictionary and end in -yea.
- Adverbial participles can be made from the above adjectival participles, by suffixing the letter y. Examples:
- Iyt yepa ha tim deuzeay.....She entered the room singing.
- Ujbaway ha dodal, it pia.....The speech having been finished, he left.
- Also, the above participles can be converted into abstract nouns by suffixing n. Examples:
- tiluwa....drinkable → tiluwan....potability
- tojbua....lethal → tojbuan....lethality
- mansea....shining → he mansean bi iyta deuzen....the brilliance of her singing
- aakaxyea....inventive → aakaxyean....inventiveness
- Furthermore, these participles can sometimes be pronominalized with s for things and t for people or living things. These forms can, in turn, be pluralized:
- xwa....done → xwas....what is done, a happening
- xwa....done → xwasi....happenings, deeds
- otwa....unknown → otwas....what is not known, a mystery
- osexea....destroying → osexeas....a destroyer
- tojbua....lethal → tojbuas....something lethal, a lethal thing
- tojboa....moribund → tojboati....people about to die, fatal cases
- tejea....living → tejeat....a living person
- tejea....living → tejeasi....living things
- There is a special tenseless, nominalized, animate participle used for agent nouns (English one who does something, Xer, Xant, Xist), which refers to a person who habitually does some action, perhaps as a profession or trade. These agent nouns end in -ut.
- sexut....builder
- nuut....supplier
- tojbut....killer
- ifut....lover
- akuti....winners
- Note: There is a slight difference of meaning between the tensed participial pronoun ha akeat....the one winning and the non-tensed agent noun ha akut....the winner.
- Similarly, there is a special tenseless, nominalized, inanimate participle used for a thing that performs the action denoted by the verb stem. These agent nouns end in -us.
- yuxus....aid (a thing that helps)
- byuxwus....button (a thing that gets touched on the keyboard)
- paxus....motive (a thing that moves one)
- jaupus....precedent (a thing that comes before)
- The above -us ending contrasts with the endings -ar (instrument), -ir (machine), -ur (motor, engine), which are physical objects and not always suffixed to a verbal root.
Finite Forms
edit- In Mirad, finite verb forms are those that can take a person subject, serve as a predicate, and be conjugated. Finite verb forms are conjugated by using suffixes indicating, through their presence or absence, the following categories:
- TENSES
- present
- past
- future
- atemporal
- MOODS
- indicative
- hypothetical
- ASPECTS
- simple
- progressive
- perfect
- imminent
- potential
- VOICES
- active
- passive
- reflexive
- reciprocal
- Person and number are not marked on the verb form itself. For example, am, is, are, which change according to the person subject in English, are all expressed with the same verb form in Mirad: se. Thus, at se....I am, et se....you are, it se....he/she/it is, etc.
Moods
edit- There are two moods in Mirad:
- indicative
- hypothetical.
Indicative Mood
edit- The indicative form of the verb indicates an action or state that occurs in actual time, such as he went, he is going, he will go.
- The indicative mood has three tenses, present, past, future, indicated by the suffixes -e, -a, and -o, respectively.
Hypothetical Mood
edit- Wheras the indicative verb forms expresses actuality in time, the hypothetical mood expresses one of the non-actuality situations below and uses the vowel u.
- a command , i.e. the IMPERATIVE (Go!)
- a wish or suggestion, i.e. the HORTATIVE or JUSSIVE (May the king live long!, Let's celebrate!)
- an unrealized situation, i.e. the SUBJUNCTIVE (It is important that you be early.)
- an imagined if-then-situation, i.e. the CONDITIONAL (If I were rich, I would be happy.)
Aspects
edit- There are five aspects in the Mirad verb system.
- the SIMPLE aspect (default), i.e. non-progressive, non-perfect, non-imminent, and non-conditional.
- the PROGRESSIVE aspect, i.e. an action or state on-going in the particular tense, using ey
- the PERFECT aspect, i.e. an action or state anterior or already completed, using ay
- the IMMINENT aspect, i.e. an action or state about to happen, using oy
- the POTENTIAL aspect, i.e. an action potentially happening, using uy
The Simple Aspect
edit- Unless specifically marked, the default aspect is simple, i.e. non-progressive, non-perfect, non-imminent, and non-conditional. Three indicative tenses can be expressed in the simple aspect:
- Present with e
- Past with a
- Future with o.
- Unless specifically marked, the default aspect is simple, i.e. non-progressive, non-perfect, non-imminent, and non-conditional. Three indicative tenses can be expressed in the simple aspect:
- An atemporal verb ending in u in the simple aspect is considered hypothetical and expresses three things, depending on how it is used in the sentence:
- a conditional like I would go (if...)
- an imperative like Go!
- a hortative like Let's go!
- a subjunctive like (It is important that) we go.
- An atemporal verb ending in u in the simple aspect is considered hypothetical and expresses three things, depending on how it is used in the sentence:
- Here is a chart showing the simple, active voice instantiations of the Mirad verb per (to go) with the endings underlined:
MOOD | TENSE | ASPECT | VOICE | INSTANTIATION | VERB per |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Indicative | Present | Simple | Active | At pe....I go | |
Indicative | Past | Simple | Active | At pa....I went | |
Indicative | Future | Simple | Active | At po....I will go | |
Hypothetical | Atemporal | Simple | Active | Conditional | At pu....I would go |
Hortative/Optative/Jussive | Van yat pu!....Let's go! | ||||
Imperative | Pu tam!....Go home! | ||||
Subjunctive | Se efwa van et pu.....It is necessary that you go. |
- Note that the last four instantiations are the same tense, but differ in syntax. For example, if the verb form is hypothetical, atemporal, simple, active and has no subject, it operates as an imperative.
The Simple Indicative Present Active Tense
edit- The simple indicative present instantiation is marked with the vowel suffix e and has a non-progressive (habitual) aspect as in English I work or I live. Progressive aspect forms like I am studying are explained later.
- Examples:
- At yexe be tam. ....I work at home.
- Hia tom se nam. ....This building is a store.
- Examples:
The Simple Indicative Past Active Tense
edit- The simple indicative past tense instantiation is marked with the vowel suffix a and has a non-progressive (punctual) meaning as in English I did something at some particular point in time. The simple past contrasts in aspect with the past progressive (I was doing something) or the present perfect (I have done something), or past potential (I would have done something). The simple past is punctual, that is, it describes an event that occurred at a particular point in time.
- Examples:
- Iyt iba ha nyuf zojub. ....She received the package yesterday.
- At ujba ha dyes ji iwa jwobi. ....I finished the book three hours ago.
- His kyesa exag hijub.....This happened twice today.
- Examples:
The Simple Indicative Future Active Tense
edit- The simple indicative future tense is marked with the vowel suffix o and has the same meaning as in English I will do something at some particular point in the future.
- Examples:
- Yit tadso zajab.....They are going to get married next year.
- Hua kaxon ujako. ....That solution will work.
- Examples:
The Simple Hypothetical Atemporal Active Tense
edit- A verb form ending in u like pu has no time value and is used to express unreal actions or states, such as the imperative, hortative, conditional, or subjunctive.
- Examples:
- Upu him!....Come here! (IMPERATIVE)
- Von upu! ....Don't come! (NEGATIVE IMPERATIVE)
- Ha edeb fu teater et. ....The king would like to see you. (CONDITIONAL)
- Ven at su et, at dolu. ....If I were you, I would be quiet. (CONDITIONAL)
- Van yeyt ujaku be yeytia yexnadi. ....May all you (women) succeed in your careers. (HORTATIVE)
- Van yat ijbu bay fyadil. ....Let's begin with a prayer. (JUSSIVE)
- Se kyitesa van et puu jwa. ....It's important that you arrive early. (SUBJUNCTIVE)
- Se kyitesa von et puu jwo.....It's important that you not arrive late. (NEGATIVE SUBJUNCTIVE)
- Examples:
- A verb form ending in u like pu has no time value and is used to express unreal actions or states, such as the imperative, hortative, conditional, or subjunctive.
- Hypothetical verb forms ending in -u can be interpreted in various ways, depending on the following syntactical patterns in the sentence:
- Generally, if a verb form ending in -u begins a sentence and has no subject, then it is an IMPERATIVE (a command). For example, Ipu!, Go away!.
- If the verb form has a subject not preceded by the complementizers van, ven, or von, then it is probably a CONDITIONAL predicate like At fu per.....I would like to go..
- If the subject of the verb is preceded by ven....if, then it is a CONDITIONAL clause as in Ven at su nasikat.......If I were a rich man..
- If the subject is preceded by Van....that/let/may or von....don't, then it is a HORTATIVE wish like Van et yagteju.....May you live long. or a JUSSIVE suggestion like Van yat fyadilu.....Let us pray. or a prohibition like Von tiliu his!....Don't drink this!.
- Hypothetical verb forms ending in -u can be interpreted in various ways, depending on the following syntactical patterns in the sentence:
Voices
edit- Mirad has four voices:
- Active
- Passive
- Reflexive
- Reciprocal.
Active Voice
edit- The default voice is active, i.e. the subject of the verb is doing the action.
- At teata ha kyes.....I saw the event.
Passive Voice
edit- A verb form is converted from active to passive by inserting a w just before the last vowel of the verb form. The past passive particle ending -waa is usually abbreviated to -wa (done is xwa). However, if the verb stem ends in a consonant plus l or r, then -wa is changed to -awa for ease of pronunciation, eg. drawa....written.
- The following chart shows the distinction between active and passive voice of various verbs:
Contrasting Active and Passive Voice VERB FORM ACTIVE ACTIVE
EXAMPLEPASSIVE PASSIVE
EXAMPLEInfinitive xer
to doAt fe xer fi.
I want to do well.xwer
to be doneEse hyos xwer.
There is nothing to be done.Present Participle sexea
constructingHa yansyem sexea hia tom...
The firm constructing this building...sexewa
being constructedHis se sexewa.
This is under construction.Present xe
do/doesAt xe fi be tistam.
I do well in school.xwe
is doneHuyenasi hoj xwe.
Such things are never done.Past Participle xaa
having doneIyt, xaa hya iyta yex,...
She, having done all her work,...xwa
doneHyas se xwa.
Everything is done.Past tojba
killedDuhat tojba hwut?
Who killed that guy?tojbwa
was killedDuhaj it tojbwa?
When was he killed?Hypothetical bakxu
healBakxu at!
Heal me!bakxwu
be healedVan it bakxwu.
May he be healed.
- Many intransitive verbs cannot be made passive. For example, tajer....to be born is intransitive (takes no object) and has no passive voice form. However, the transitive verb tajber....to bear, give birth can be passive, as in Ha tudet tajbwa zajub.....The child was delivered yesterday (as opposed to Ha tudet taja zajub.....The child was born yesterday.) Notice the following verb:
- Ha mes uja.....The door opened (by itself). (medio-passive)
- Ha mes ujpa.....The door came open. (dynamic medio-passive)
- Ujbu ha mes.....Open the door. (transitive active)
- Ha mes ujbwa.....The door was opened (by someone). (passive)
Reflexive Voice
edit- A verb is made reflexive by prefixing the reflexive pronoun ut (self), for example:
- tojber....to kill → uttojber....to kill oneself
- vyilxer....to wash → utvyilxer....to wash up
- teater....to see → utteater....to see oneself
- yalber....to lift → utyalber....to lift oneself → Utyalbu!....Lift yourself up!
- trer....to know → uttrer....to know oneself → Uttru!....Know thyself!
Reciprocal Voice
edit- A verb is made reciprocal by prefixing the reciprocal pronoun hyuit....one another, for example:
- tojber....to kill → hyuittojber....to kill one another
- vyilxer....to wash → hyuitvyilxer....to wash one another
- teater....to see → hyuitteater....to see one another
- Both the reflexive pronoun and reciprocal pronoun can be used as standalone objects. However, the plural form yut is used if the subject is plural, for example:
- Yit vyilxa yut.....They (f.) washed up. (= washed selves).
- Ha twobeti dizeuda hyuit.....The boys laughed at one another.
- The word hyuit is a hybrid of hyit....the same one combined with hyut....the other one.
Aspects Revisited
edit- Mirad verbs have the following aspects:
- SIMPLE -- this is the default aspect, shown above, i.e. NON-PROGRESSIVE, NON-PERFECT, NON-IMMINENT, and NON-POTENTIAL.
- PROGRESSIVE -- this is an aspect where the verb describes an on-going action or state spread over time.
- PERFECT -- this presents the action or state as anterior, or completed prior to another action or state.
- IMMINENT -- this describes an action or state about to happen.
- POTENTIAL -- this refers to an action or state where something is possible.
The Simple Aspect
edit- The following chart presents Mirad verbs in the Simple aspect. In the active voice, the tense vowels a, e, o, and u are affixed to the stem. In the passive voice, the passive marker consonant w is inserted between the stem and the final tense vowels. The simple present tense refers to actions or states that are habitual (I regularly go to school.), regular (The earth revolves around the sun.), or permanent (Blue is a color.). The simple past refers to actions or states that occurred at a fixed point in time (I did my homework last night.). The simple future refers to actions or states that will occur at some particular point in the future (The sun will rise tomorrow at dawn.). The simple atemporal hypothetical ( = conditional) refers to an imagined action or state that has not be realized (You would make a good president.).
Simple Aspect ASPECT TENSE MOOD ACTIVE VOICE PASSIVE VOICE Simple Present Indicative At xe....I do Has xwe....It is done Simple Past Indicative At xa....I did Has xwa....It was done Simple Future Indicative At xo....I will do Has xwo....It will be done Simple Atemporal Hypothetical At xu....I would do Has xwu....It would be done
Note: Absence of tense (Atemporal) + Hypothetical mood = CONDITIONAL
The Progressive Aspect
edit- The following chart presents Mirad verbs in the Progressive aspect. The present tense vowel e followed by a buffer consonant, are inserted between the stem and the final tense vowel. The buffer consonant is y in the active voice, or w in the passive voice.
Progressive Aspect ASPECT TENSE MOOD ACTIVE VOICE PASSIVE VOICE Progressive Present Indicative at xeye....I am doing Has xewe....it is being done Progressive Past Indicative at xeya....I was doing Has xewa....it was being done Progressive Future Indicative at xeyo....I am going to be doing Has xewo....it will be happening Progressive Atemporal Hypothetical at xeyu....I would be doing Has xewu....it would be happening
The Perfect Aspect
edit- The following chart presents Mirad verbs in the Perfect aspect. The past tense vowel a following by a buffer consonant are inserted between the stem and the final tense vowel. The buffer consonant is y in the active voice, or w in the passive voice.
Perfect Aspect ASPECT TENSE MOOD ACTIVE VOICE PASSIVE VOICE Perfect Present Indicative At xaye....I have done Has xawe....It has been done Perfect Past Indicative At xaya....I had done Has xawa....It had been done Perfect Future Indicative At xayo....I will have done Has xawo....It will have been done Perfect Atemporal Hypothetical At xayu....I would have done Has xawu....It would have been done
The Imminent Aspect
edit- The following chart presents Mirad verbs in the Imminent aspect (sometimes referred to as the Prospective aspect). The future tense vowel o following by a buffer consonant are inserted between the stem and the final tense vowel. The buffer consonant is y in the active voice, or w in the passive voice. Not that only indicative mood imminent tenses are ever used.
Imminent Aspect ASPECT TENSE MOOD ACTIVE VOICE PASSIVE VOICE Imminent Present Indicative At xoye....I am about to do Has xowe....It is about to be done Imminent Past Indicative At xoya....I was about to do Has xowa....It was about to be done
The Potential Aspect
edit- The following chart presents Mirad verbs in the Potential aspect. The hypothetical vowel u followed by a buffer consonant are inserted between the stem and the final tense vowel. The buffer consonant is y in the active voice, or w in the passive voice. The future potential and hypothetical potential aspects are never used.
Potential Aspect ASPECT TENSE MOOD ACTIVE VOICE PASSIVE VOICE Potential Present Indicative At xuye....I am to do Has xuwe....It is to be done, it is doable Potential Past Indicative At xuya....I was to do Has xuwa....It was to be done, it was doable
Verb Conjugation Chart
edit- The following chart presents the totality of the Mirad affirmative verb conjugation system using the verb xer....to do and its passive xwer....to be done, happen. The rows beginning with a light blue background are finite forms, while those beginning with light green are non-finite forms.
STATE | MOOD | ASPECT | TENSE | VOICE | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
ACTIVE | PASSIVE | ||||||
Finite | Indicative | Simple | Present | xe does |
xwe is done, happens | ||
Past | xa did |
xwa was done, happened | |||||
Future | xo will do |
xwo will be done, will happen | |||||
Hypothetical | xu would do, do! |
xwu would be done, would happen, be done! | |||||
Indicative | Progressive | Present | xeye is doing |
xewe is being done, is happening | |||
Past | xeya was doing |
xewa was doing, was happening | |||||
Future | xeyo will be doing |
xewo will be happening | |||||
Hypothetical | xeyu would be doing be doing! |
xewu would be happening | |||||
Indicative | Perfect | Present | xaye has done |
xawe has been done, has happened | |||
Past | xaya had done |
xawa had been done, had happened | |||||
Future | xayo will have done |
xawo will have been done, will have happened | |||||
Hypothetical | xayu would have done |
xawu would have been done, would have happened | |||||
Indicative | Imminent | Present | xoye is about to do |
xowe is about to be done, is about to happen | |||
Past | xoya was to be done |
xowa was to be done, was to happen | |||||
Potential | Present | xuye is supposed to do |
xuwe is supposed to happen | ||||
Past | xuya was supposed to do |
xuwa was supposed to be done, was supposed to happen | |||||
Infinitive | Simple | xer to do |
xwer to be done, to happen | ||||
Perfect | xayer to have done |
xawer to have been done, to have happend | |||||
Participle | Progressive | xea doing |
xewa being done, happening | ||||
Perfect | x(a)ya2 having done |
x(a)wa1 done, happened | |||||
Imminent | xoa about to do |
xowa about to happen | |||||
Potential | xua bound to do |
xuwa doable | |||||
Gerund | Simple | xen doing |
xwen being done, happening, event | ||||
Perfect | xayen having done |
xawen having happened |
- Note 1: The perfective passive participle usually ends in -wa, but occasionally the longer form -awa is used, especially if the verb stem ends in a consonant followed by l or r that make the shorter form harder to pronounce, eg. pyuxrwa becomes pyuxrawa (shocked).
- Note 2: Intransitive verbs such as per to go have no passive forms. An expression such as They are gone. would be translated as Yit se pya.
Negative Forms
edit- All of the above verb forms are affirmative. The indicative and conditional forms can be made negative by preceding the negative adverb voy (not, 'nt, doesn't, don't). Those forms that are subjunctive, jussive, or imperative ending in -u use the negative subordinate conjunction von (don't, let not, lest).
- Voy mamilo.....It will not rain. (indicative)
- Von mamilu.....Let it not rain. (subjunctive)
- Von yat fuyaku.....Let us not despair. (jussive)
- At voy te.....I don't know.
- Von pu!....Don't go. (imperative)
- At voy xu hus.....I would not do that.
How to Express Certain English Tenses
edit- English speakers have some tenses that do not fit into the above schema:
- The English tense I have been studying French for four years. is translated in Mirad by At tixeye Ferad ji uwa jabi.....I am studying French since four years. (Mirad present progressive tense).
- The English tense I had been studying is translated in Mirad by At tixeya. (Mirad past progressive tense).
- The English tense I am going to be starring in that role. is translated in Mirad by At dezdebeyo be hua dezgon. (Mirad future progressive).
- The modern Black English tense Don't you be doing that. is handled in Mirad by Von et xeyu hus. (Mirad imperative progressive).
Transitive vs. Intransitive Verbs
edit- Transitive verbs, which can take a direct object, oppose themselves to intransitive verbs, which do not take a direct object. Some verbs are marked overtly for transitivity.
- Verbs that end in xer (to do, -ify, -ize) are by nature transitive, and often have intransitive counterparts in ser (to be, become, -ify, -ize). Likewise, verbs ending in ber (to put, take) are transitive and have intransitive counterparts in per (to go). Here are some examples:
Transitive vs. Intransitive TRANSITIVE INTRANSITIVE xer....do ser....be agxer....grow (something) agser....grow (up) amxer....heat, make hot amser....become hot, heat up puxer....throw puser....jump per....go ber....put aber....put on aper....get on yaber....raise yaper....rise poxer....stop (something) poser....(come to a) stop yuber....bring yuper....approach yeber....insert yeper....enter
- At agxe vobi.....I grow [TRANSITIVE] plants.
- Ha vobi agseye ig.....The plants are growing [INTRANSITIVE] fast.
- Poxu ha pur!....Stop [TRANSITIVE] the car!
- Ha pur posa.....The car stopped [INTRANSITIVE].
- At yaba ha mis.....I raised [TRANSITIVE] the window.
- Ha maar yapaye.....The sun has risen [INTRANSITIVE].
Marking -jer Verbs for Transitivity
edit- Note the following verbs, whose stems end in j are hard to pronounce with intransitive s and transitive x, so these two endings are placed with p and b, respectively, although the presence of the p is optional, i.e. it's presence or absence can slightly change the meaning from static to dynamic, eg. tujer....to sleep vs. tujper....to fall asleep. The transitive forms can be either active or passive.
Marking -jer Verbs for Transitivity INTRANSITIVE TRANSITIVE STATIC DYNAMIC ACTIVE PASSIVE Ha mes yija
The door opened.Ha nasyef yijpa
The purse came open.At yijba ha mes.
I opened the door.Ha mes yijbwa bey yelput.
The door was opened by an intruderHa mes yuja.
The door closed.Ha yanup yujpa.
The meeting adjourned.At yujba ha mes.
I closed the door.Ha mes yeyfe yujbwer ja sumjob.
The door should be closed by bedtime.Ha dezun ijaye.
The play has started.Ha par ijpa boy poys.
The car started up immediately.At ijba ata tyal.
I started my meal.Ha tyal ijbwa jwa.
The meal was started early.Ha dezun ujaye.
The play has ended.Ata yex ujpaye.
My work has come to an end.A ujba ha dyes.
I finished the book.Ha dyes hyoj ujbwa.
The book never got finished.Ha tob toja zomoj.
The man died yesterday evening.Ha tob tojpa.
The man dropped dead.Hot tojba ha twob?
Who killed the man?Ha twob tojbwa bey ita tayd.
The man was killed by his wife.Teju.
Live!.Tejpu!.
Come alive!.Yat efe tejber ha twob.
We need to revive the man.Ha twob yofwa tejbwer.
The man could not be revived.Ha tobot taja zojub.
The baby was born yesterday.Hoj ha tobot tajpo?
When will the baby pop out?Iyt tajba awa twobot zojub.
She gave birth to a baby boy yesterday.Ha twobot tajbwa jo eymoj.
The baby boy was birthed after midnight.At tija jwe.
I woke up on time.It voy tijpa.
He did not come to..At tijbo et jwa.
I will wake (you) up early.At voy fe tijbwo gra jwa.
I don't want to be woken too early.At tujeya.
I was sleeping.At tujpeya.
I was falling sleep.At tujbo it.
I will put (him) to sleep..Ha tobot tujbwo glojo.
The baby will be put to sleep soon.
Reflexive Verbs
edit- Reflexive verbs, where the object refers back to the subject, work just as in English, where the object is a reflexive pronoun, eg.:
- At tujboye aut.....I am going to kill myself.
- Tru eut!....Know thyself!
- It gobla iut bey goblar.....He cut himself with a knife.
- Ot yefe yuxer out.....One must help oneself.
- Sometimes, verbs are reflexive lexically and incorporate the reflexivity in the actual verb form using ut as the prefix:
- uttujber....commit suicide (= self-kill)
- utboler....support oneself (= self-support)
- utdider....wonder (= self-ask)
- Sometimes, verbs are used reflexively in Mirad even though they are used simply intransitively in English, eg.:
- Et efe vyilxer eut.....You need to wash up [= wash yourself]. (or)
- Et efe utvyilxer.....You need to wash up [= self-wash].
Omission of Prepositions After Certain Verbs
edit- Some verbs inherently incorporate a preposition and so it is not necessary to use that assumed preposition before what would normally be an indirect object.
Inherent Propositions PREPOSITION-INCORPORATING VERB EXAMPLE per....go (to) Pu tam! (Not: Pu bu tam!) Go home.
It pa Paris.....He went to Paris.der....say (to), tell Du at eta dyun.....Tell me your name.
Du at has.....Tell it to me.peser....wait (for) Pesu at.....Wait for me. buer....give (to) Buu at hua dyes.....Give me that book.
- As in English, in omitting the inherent preposition in a sentence with both a direct object and an indirect object, place the indirect object before the direct object. If the direct object comes first, then the preposition must be overtly specified before the indirect object, eg. Buu at hus.....Give me that. or Buu hus bu at.....Give that to me. See more about this in the chapter on Syntax.
Causative vs. Inchoative Verbs
edit- A causative verb has the sense to make something have some quality, whereas an inchoative verbs means to become of take on the quality of something.
Derived from Adjectives
edit- Adjectives can be converted into transitive/causative and intransitive/inchoative verbs. Causative verbs are always transitive (taking an object), while inchoative verbs are intransitive (not taking an object). English causative / inchoative verbs often end in -ify like magnify, or -ate, liberate, or ize, like sensitize.
- To derive a causative verb from an adjective, add the suffix xer....to do to either the stem or the whole adjective (with the a ending). Whether you do the former or the latter depends on several factors, but the end result is slightly different in nuance. A verb with adjective stem + xer is slightly more idiomatic or less literal than the adjective stem + axer.
-axer vs -xer in Transitive Verbs ADJECTIVE CAUSATIVE/TRANSITIVE CAUSATIVE/TRANSITIVE -xer LITERAL IDIOMATIC aga
bigagaxer
to magnifyagxer
to growana
oneanaxer
to unifyanxer
to uniteyona
apartyonaxer
to separateyonxer
to cutyaga
longyagaxer
to lengthenyagxer
to stretchyuga
slowyugaxer
to retardyugxer
to brakesana
formalsanaxer
to formalizesanxer
to formgea
equalgeaxer
to equalizegexer
to copy, equatejaa
priorjaaxer
to prioritizejaxer
to prepare
- To derive an inchoative verb from an adjective, add the suffix ser....to be to either the stem or the whole adjective.
Creating Inchoative Verbs ADJECTIVE INCHOATIVE/INTRANSITIVE INCHOATIVE/INTRANSITIVE -ser LITERAL IDIOMATIC aga
bigagaser
to get biggeragser
to growana
oneanaser
to unifyanser
to unite, become unitedyona
apartyonaser
to become separateyonser
to break
- Be careful to use the transitive, causative verb form when you have a direct object, and the intransitive, inchoative verb form when no direct objects are present or possible, eg.:
- Ansu ey yet golxwo.....Unite or you will be divided. [INTRANSITIVE]
- At yontadsa hoj at sa eta jag.....I got divorced when I was your age. [INTRANSITIVE]
- Hisi agaxo hos et teate.....These will magnify what you see. [TRANSITIVE]
- Hia tud agseye ig.....This child is growing up fast. [INTRANSITIVE]
- Ata tayd agxe vosi be oyebzom.....My wife grows flowers out back. [TRANSITIVE]
Derived from Nouns
edit- Transitive/causative/active and intransitive/inchoative/passive verbs can also be formed from nouns. The sense of the former is to make be X and of the latter, to become X.
Verbs Derived from Nouns NOUN TRANSITIVE/CAUSATIVE/ACTIVE INTRANSITIVE/INCHOATIVE/PASSIVE mog....ash mogxer
to incineratemogser
to become ashesyan....collection yanxer
to collectyanser
to get togethertad....spouse tadxer
to marrytadser
to get marriedyom....ice yomxer
to freeze/make iceyomser
to freeze/become icemag....fire magxer
to burn, set fire tomagser
to burn, get burneduk....void ukxer
to emptyukser
become empty, empty out
Intermediary Causative Verbs
edit- Intermediary verbal causatives like have/get my car washed, make/force him go, get one's hair cut are formed by suffixing the causative verb infix -ux- (active) or uxw (passive) to the stem of the verb signifying the action to be arranged or caused by someone other than the subject, eg.:
- At gorbuxo ata tayeb zamaj.....I will get my hair cut tomorrow.
- Et voy yafe puxer at.....You cannot make me go.
- It tojbuxa yit.....He had them killed.
- At efe vyilxuxer ata par.....I need to have my car washed.
- Et upuxwa him hesav.....You were made to come here for some reason.
- At bakambuxo et.....I will have you hospitalized.
- Et voy yafe deuzuxer at.....You cannot make me sing.
- At hihiduxwa.....I was tickled (= made to laugh).
- Eta deuz hihiduxa yat.....Your song tickled us. (= Made us laugh.)
- Van het ivasuxu weti.....May someone get you guys to be happy.
- Hua enzyukpur uzpuxa ha pur.....That motorcycle caused the car to veer.
Subject-directed vs. Patient-directed Verbs
edit- The directionality of some verbs can be distinguished by the verbal formant infix -i- for an action or motion toward the speaker and -u- for an action or motion away from the speaker toward some patient, eg.:
Directional Verbs SUBJECT-DIRECTED PATIENT-DIRECTED bier....to take buer....to give nier....to consume nuer....to supply nyier....to order nyuer....to deliver nunier....to buy nunuer....to sell nazunier....win a prize nazunuer....award a prize noysier....pay off noysuer....charge ojbier....borrow ojbuer....lend tadier....get married taduer....marry off papier....take flight papuer....send off flying pipier....set sail pipuer....dock simbier....take a seat simbuer....offer a seat tampier....leave home tampuer....arrive home tamier....settle in tamuer....shelter nuxbier....to buy nixbuer....to sell telier....to eat teluer....to feed gonbier....to participate gonbuer....to share tilier....to drink tiluer....to ply with drink teubier....to swallow teubuer....to spit out teatier....to observe, watch teatuer....to show taxier....to memorize taxuer....to remind alier....to breathe in aluer....to breathe out, expire ilier....to absorb iluer....to pour ifier....to enjoy ifuer....to please dier....to ask duer....to suggest tier....to learn tuer....to inform pier....to depart puer....to arrive kebier....to choose kebuer....to distribute byier....to originate byuer....to target mempier....to take off mempuer....to land sinier....visualize sinuer....display xier....to result xuer....to cause yifier....to get up the courage yifuer....to encourage, challenge yafonier....to gain power yafonuer....to empower trier....to become acquainted with truer....to acquaint with, introduce to tepizier....to pay attention to tepizuer....to draw attention to
- In some cases, the directionality can be both ways in a verb, in which case the verb formant infix -ui- (a hybrid form) is used, eg.:
- nunier ....to purchase (subject-directed)
- nunuer....to sell (patient-directed)
- nunuier....to trade (subject & patient-directed)
- tier....to learn, realize (subject-directed)
- tuer....to inform, tip off (patient-directed)
- tuier....to communicate (subject & patient-directed)
- alier....to breathe in, inhale (subject-directed)
- aluer....to breathe out, exhale (patient-directed)
- aluier....to breathe, respire (subject & patient-directed)
- bier ....to take (subject-directed)
- buer....to give (patient-directed)
- buier....to give and take, exchange (subject & patient-directed)
Verbs with Vectorial Prefixes
edit- Prepositions and directional adverbs can be prefixed to verbs in order to change their vectorial semantics. A preposition ending in b will assimilate to p before the verb per....to go and a preposition ending in b will lose the b before a verb beginning with b. Here are some examples:
Verb Prepositional Prefixes PREPOSITION/ADVERB TRANSITIVE VERB INTRANSITIVE VERB ab....on aber....apply aper....get on, mount ob....off ober....remove oper....get of, dismount eb....between eber....block eper....intervene yab....up yaber....raise yaper....rise yob....down yober....take down yoper....descend yub....near yuber....bring near yuper....approach yib....far yiber....take away yiper....go far away yeb....in yeber....insert yeper....enter yeb....in yepuxer....throw in yepuser....jump in oyeb....out oyeber....expose oyeper....exit oyeb....out oyepuxer....eject oyepuser....jump out zyu....round zyuber....rotate zyuper....revolve zya....throughout zyaber....spread zyaper....tour av....for avdaler....plead avper....pursue ov....against ovber....oppose ovper....countervene yan....together yanber....compose yanper....meet yon....apart yonber....separate yonper....separate iz....direct izber....lead izper....head uz....curved uzber....divert uzper....diverge yuz....around yuzbexer....surround yuzper....circulate yiz....beyond yizber....transfer yizper....surpass zoy....back, re- zoyber....return zoyper....go back
Verbs with Other Semantics-altering Prefixes
edit- As in English and many other languages, prefixes can be used on verbs to reverse, mitigate, or otherwise alter the semantics:
Expressing re- with zoy- or gaw-
edit- The prefix zoy-....back or gaw-1....again are used like the English prefix re-, eg.:
- ember....to position → zoyember....to reposition, replace
- buer....to give → zoybuer....to return (an object), give back
- sanxer....to shape, form → zoysanxer....to reshape, reform, transform
- zyauber....to broadcast → gawzyauber....to re-broadcast
- taja....born → gawtaja....reborn
- aber....to apply → gawaber....to reapply
- uper....to come → zoyuper....to return (come back)
- teaper....to visit → gawteaper....to revisit
- uper....to come → zoyuper....to return, come back
- buxer....to push → zoybuxer....to repel, push back
- puxer....to throw → zoypuxer....to reject, throw back, jettison
- Note 1: The prefix gaw- before a consonant is pronounced like the gaw in the English word gawk. It is short for ga awa jod or gawa meaning one more time, again. If the "re-" word means to do something again, then gaw- is used, eg. To reconvene ( = meet again)....gawyanuper If the sense of back is intended, than the prefix zoy- is used, eg. To return ( = come back)....zoyuper. Both prefixes are used in the expression Come back again!....Gawzoyupu!.
- Until we meet again. is expressed by Ju van yat gawyanupo.
Expressing de-, dis-, un- with lo-
edit- The prefix lo- reverses the semantics of a verb and is like English dis-, de-, or un-, eg.:
- saxer....to build, construct → losaxer....to destroy, deconstruct
- anxer....to unite → loanxer....to disunite
- xer....to do → loxer....to undo
- Note the difference between o- and lo-.
- odoparuwa....unarmed (= not armed)
- lodoparuwa....disarmed (= from the verb lodoparuer....to disarm)
Expressing co- with yan-
edit- The prefix yan-....together is used as the English co-, eg.:
- exer....to operate → yanexer....to cooperate
- tamer....to dwell → yantamer....to cohabit
- napber....to put in order → yannapber....to coordinate
Making Verbs Completive with ik-
edit- Verbs can be made completive by prefixing them with ik- (fully). Such verbs are comparable to phrasal verbs in English with up and other prepositions as in to eat up. Here are some examples in Mirad:
- tojber....to kill → iktojber....to kill off, exterminate
- telier....to eat → iktelier....to eat up
- ujber....to finish → ikujber....to finish off/up
- gofler....to rip → ikgofler....to rip up
- drer....to write → ikdrer....to write down
- byexer....to beat → ikbyexer....to beat up
Making Verbs Continuative with je-
edit- Verbs can be given a continuative nuance with the addition of the prefix je-:
- daler....to talk → jedalar....to go on talking, to blabber
- tejer....to live → jetejer....to go on living, to survive
- yexer....to work → jeyexer....to go on working, to keep working
- teaxer....to look → jeteaxer....to watch
- teexer....to listen → jeteexer....to keep listening, to pay attention
- duler....to insist → jeduler....to nag
Making Verbs Inchoative with ij-
edit- Verbs can be given an inchoative nuance with the addition of the prefix ij-:
- texer....to think → ijtexer....to start to think
- ifier....to enjoy → ijifier....to start liking
- tyer....to know → ijtyer....to get to know
Making Verbs Terminative with uj-
edit- Verbs can be given a terminative nuance with the addition of the prefix uj-:
- telier....to eat → ujtelier....to finish eating
- dyeer....to read → ujdyeer....to finish reading
- ufteuder....to complain → ujufteuder....to quit carping
Giving Verbs a Nuance of Pleasure with if-
edit- tyoper....to walk → iftyoper....to stroll
- tuyuxer....to finger → iftuyuxer....to tickle
- teaxer....to look → ifteaxer....to ogle (voyeuristically)
- piper....to sail → ifpiper....to go cruising
- teuder....to shout → ifteuder....to laugh
Giving Verbs a Nuance of Displeasure with uf-
edit- tosier....to feel → uftosier....to get angry
- eker....to play → ufeker....to fight
- der....to say → ufder....to express displeasure
- aluer....to exhale → ufaluer....to huff
- daler....to talk → ufdaler....to rant
Giving Verbs a Nuance of Prohibition with of-
edit- bier....to take → ofbier....to steal
- deler....to declare → ofdeler....to ban
- yeper....to enter → ofyeper....to intrude, break in
- zeyper....to cross → ofzeyper....to transgress, poach
- gelxer....to copy → ofgelxer....to pirate, plagiarize
- bekuluer....to administer medicine → ofbekuluer....to dope
- nuxuer....to pay → ofnuxuer....to bribe, pay off, suborn
Giving Verbs a Nuance of Holiness with fya-
edit- bexler....to keep → fyabexler....to enshrine
- buer....to give → fyabuer....to sacrifice
- der....to say → fyader....to bless
- daler....to speak → fyadaler....to preach, sermonize
- diler....to request → fyadiler....to pray
- deuzer....to sing → fyadeuzer....to chant
- ifrer....to love dearly → fyaifrer....to worship, adore
- jader....to predict → fyajader....to prophesy
- miluer....to sprinkle → fyamiluer....to sprinkle with holy water
- ojvader....to promise → fyaojvader....to swear
- xeler....to practice → fyaxeler....to celebrate
- koser....to hide → fyakoser....to go on a retreat, go into hermitage
- teazer....perform a show → fyateazer....to perform a miracle
Giving Verbs a Nuance of Profanity with fyo-
edit- der....to say → fyoder....to curse
- diler....to request → fyodiler....to conjure
- tyezer....to perform magic → fyotezer....to engage in black magic
- xer....to do → fyoxer....to sin
Expressing Good Actions with fi-
edit- der....to say → fider....to praise
- fer....to want → fifer....to mean well
- xer....to do → fixer....to do well
- yaker....to expect → fiyaker....to hope
- yuxer....to help → fiyuxer....to benefit
Expressing Bad Actions with fu-
edit- yevder....to judge → fuyevder....to critique negatively
- fer....to want → fufer....to will ill
- der....to say → fuder....to badmouth
- napxer....to arrange → funapxer....to mess up
- yuxer....to help → fuyuxer....to abuse
Expressing More Intense Actions with az-
edit- yujber....to close → azyujber....to lock
- der....to say → azder....to emphasize
- duer....to suggest → azduer....to urge
- dizeuder....to laugh → azdizeuder....to guffaw
Expressing Less Intense Actions with oz-
edit- der....to utter → ozder....to whisper
- duer....to suggest → ozduer....to hint
- dizeuder....to laugh → ozdizeuder....to chuckle
- uvteuder....to moan → ozuvteuder....to whimper
- tyoper....to walk → oztyoper....to limp
Expressing pre-, fore- with ja-
edit- der....to tell → jader....to foretell, predict
- teater....to see → jateater....to foresee, preview
- ter....to know → jater....to presage, have foreknowledge of
- yever....to judge → jayever....to prejudge
- juder....to date → jajuder....to antedate
Expressing post-, after- with jo-
edit- juder....to date → jojuder....to postdate
- texer....to think → jotexer....to reflect on, review
- uvder....to express sadness → jouvder....to mourn, regret
- ibler....to obtain → joibler....to inherit
Expressing excessively with gra-
edit- telier....to eat → gratelier....to overeat
- fer....to want → grafer....to covet
- der....to say → grader....to exaggerate
- daler....to talk → gradaler....to yammer
Expressing inadequately with gro-
edit- fyinder....to value → grofyinder....to underestimate
- mageler....to cook → gromageler....to undercook
- xaer....to perform → groxaer....to underperform
Expressing counter-, contra- with ov- or oyv-
edit- axler....to act → ovaxler....to counteract
- apyexer....to attack → ovapyexer....to counterattack
- daler....to speak → ovdaler....to oppose
- der....to say → oyvder....to contradict
- ber....to put → oyvber....to reverse, overturn
- texer....to think → oyvtexer....to contest, disagree
- per....to go → oyvper....to contravene
Expressing on behalf, for with av-
edit- axler....to act → avaxler....to act on behalf of
- daler....to speak → avdaler....to advocate, speak on behalf of
Making Verbs Reflexive with ut- (self-, auto-)
edit- tojber....to kill → uttojber....to commit suicide
- vyovider....to flatter → utvyovider....to flatter oneself
- zaypuxwer....to be propelled → utzaypuxwer....to be self-propelled
- fider....to praise → utfider....to brag
- gober....to decrement → utgober....to autodecrement
Making Verbs Reciprocal with hyuit- (one another)
edit- tojber....to kill → hyuittojber....to kill one another
- ifer....to love → hyuitifer....to love one another
Expressing inter-, intra- with eb- (between)
edit- tadier....to marry → ebtadier....to intermarry
- zyaber....to spread → ebzyaber....to intersperse
- vyexer....to relate → ebvyexer....to interrelate
Expressing the Opposite of an Action with o- (un-)
edit- bexler....to keep → obexler....to release, let go of
- aynser....to integrate → oaynser....to disintegrate, to decay
- beler....to carry → obeler....to drop
- bier....to take → obier....to leave, relinquish
- boser....to be quiet → oboser....to be upset
- drer....to write → odrer....to erase
- Note: If the base verb already begins with the negative prefix o-, then the prefix is changed to ol-, eg. obexler....to release → olobexwa....to unreleased
Expressing a Public or Official Action with do-
edit- Do- is a stub for dot (society).
- afder....to allow → doafder....to authorize
- bier....to take → dobier....to conquer, take over, take control of
- tojber....to kill → dotojber....to execute
- buer....to give → dobuer....to dedicate
- daler....to speak → dodaler....to orate, speak in public
- deler....to declare → dodeler....to announce
- drer....to write → dodrer....to publicize, report
Giving Verbs a Nuance of Truth with vya-
edit- der....to say → vyader....to avow, be frank
- ber....to set, put → vyaber....to control
- napxer...to arrange, order → vyanapxer....to adjust
- kexer....to seek → vyakexer....to investiage
- tuer....to inform → vyatuer....to advise
Giving Verbs of Nuance of Falseness with vyo-
edit- der....to say → vyoder....to lie, to misstate
- tester....to understand → vyotester....to misunderstand
- tuer....to inform → vyotuer....to misinform, to deceive
- xer....to do → vyoxer....to do wrong, fail, misdo
- yuxler....to serve → vyoyuxler....to betray, to serve unfaithfully
Making Verbs Positive with va-
edit- der....to say → vader....to affirm
- texer....to think → vatexer....to believe
- yeker....to expect → vayeker....to presume
- bier.....to take → vabier....to accept
Making Verbs Negative with vo-
edit- der....to say → voder....to deny
- texer....to think → votexer....to doubt
- yeker....to expect → voyeker....to rule out
- bier.....to take → vobier....to reject
Making Verbs Suppositional with ve-
edit- der....to say → veder....to conjecture
- texer....to think → vetexer....to suppose, hypothesize
- yovder....to blame → veyovder....to indict, accuse
Speeding up Verbs with ig-
edit- pier....to leave → igpier....to flee
- pyoser....to drop → igpyoser....to plummet
- tyoper....to walk → igtyoper....to run
- yeper....to enter → igyeper....to rush in
Slowing up Verbs with ug-
edit- paser....to move → ugpaser....to amble
- teaxer....to look → ugteaxer....to gaze
- ilper....to flow → ugilper....to trickle
- tilier....to drink → ugtilier....to sip
Expressing the Nuance of Suddenness with yok-
edit- baxer....to stir → yokbaxer....to startle
- hihider....to laugh → yokhihider....to burst out laughing
- teaser....to appear → yokteaser....to suddenly appear
- yoktojer....to die → yoktojer....to drop dead
Expressing the Notion of Fixedness with kyo-
edit- byaser....to stand → kyobyaser....to stand still
- kexer....to seek → kyokexer....to hound, stalk
- teaxer....to look → kyoteaxer....to stare, glare
- texer....to think → kyotexer....to obsess with, fixate on
Expression the Notion of Randomness with kye-
edit- der....to say → kyeder....to guess, divine
- per....to per → kyeper....to fluctuate
- poper....to travel → kyepoper....to wander
- napxer....to order → kyenapxer....to scramble
- bier....to take → kyebier....to select
Expressing the Notion of Change with kya-
edit- baser....to make a move → kyabaser....to shift
- sanxer....to form → kyasanxer....to transform
- xer....to do/make → kyaxer....to change
- napxer....to order → kyanapxer....to shuffle
- dyanxer....to phrase → kyadyanxer....to paraphrase
Expressing Covert Actions with ko-
edit- ber....to put → kober....to hide
- beler....to carry → kobeler....to smuggle
- bier....to take → kobier....to steal
- ebkyaxer....to exchange → koebkyaxer....to traffic
- exer....to operate → koexer....to spy, operate under cover
- fler....to wish for → kofler....to covet, be jealous of
- apyexer....to attack → koapyexer....to ambush, to sneak-attack
- loexer....to destroy → koloexer....to sabotage
Expressing Actions with Intentionality with ke-
edit- teaxer....to look → keteaxer....to scan
- vyaxer....to prove → kevyaxer....to experiment
- tier....to learn → ketier....to be interested in
Expressing Lateral Actions with ku-
edit- buxer....to push → kubuxer....to rebuff, shun
- der....to say → kuder....to comment, remark
- tyoper....to step → kutyoper....to step aside
Expressing Near Actions with yub-
edit- der....to say → yubder....to intimate, hint
- gexer....to equate → yubgexer....to approximate
- bixer....to pull → yu(b)bixer....to attract, draw near
- teaxer....to look → yubteaxer....to scrutinize, examine
Expressing Distance Actions with yib- (far, tele-)
edit- drer....to write → yibdrer....to wire, telegraph
- bixer....to pull → yi(b)bixer....to distract
- tuier....to communicate → yibtuier....to telecommunicate
- nyuxer....to deliver → yibnyuxer....to mail, post
Expressing up-, super- with yab-
edit- ber....to put → ya(b)ber....to raise, to put up
- bixler....to drag → ya(b)bixler....to dredge up
- uper....to come → yabuper....to come up
- nogyanxer....to scale → yabnogyanxer....to scale up, escalate
Expressing down-, sub- with yob-
edit- ber....to put → yo(b)ber....to lower, put down
- kyaber....to shift → yobkyaxer....to downshift
- musper....to climb → yobmusper....to climb down
- nogyanxer....to scale → yobnogyanxer....to downscale
Expressing in- with yeb-
edit- ber....to put → ye(b)ber....to insert, put in
- beler....to carry → ye(b)beler....to import
- uzber....to bend → yebuzber....to inflect
- yujber....to close → yebyujber....to enclose, include
Expressing out-, ex-, extra- with oyeb-
edit- ber....to put → oye(b)ber....to put out, expose
- beler....to carry → oye(b)beler....to export
- uber....to send → oyebuber....to emit, send out
- yujber....to close → oyebyujber....to exclude
Expressing pro-, forward with zay-
edit- ber....to put → zayber....to advance, put forward
- kexer....to seek → zaykexer....to scout out
- puxer....to throw → zaypuxer....to propel, thrust
- tyoper....to walk → zaytyoper....to progress, to walk forward
Expressing back-, retro-, re- with zoy-
edit- uber....to send → zoyber....to send back
- kixer....to bend → zoykixer....to reflect
- puxer....to throw → zoypuxer....to repel
- neadper....to track → zoyneadper....to backtrack
Expressing across, trans-, over-, cross- with zey-
edit- per....to go → zeyper....to cross, transit
- beler....to carry → zeybeler....to transport, convey
- drer....to write → zeydrer....to transcribe
- kyober....to fix → zeykyober....to transfix, transplant
- vyayeker....to check → zeyvyayeker....to crosscheck
Expressing through, per- with zye-
edit- per....to go → zyeper....to permeate, get through
- kexer....to seek → zyekexer....to rummage, sift through
- drer....to write → zyedrer....to cross out, draw a line through
- iluer....to pour → zyeiluer....to soak
- koper....to sneak → zyekoper....to sneak through
Expressing all over, widely, all about with zya-
edit- ber....to put → zyaber....to spread
- buer....to give → zyabuer....to distribute
- ijber....to open → zyaijber....to open wide
- nuxer....to pay → zyanuxer....to disburse
- puxer....to throw → zyapuxer....to scatter, cast about
Expressing mid-, center with ze-
edit- ber....to put → zeber....to balance
- byaser....to stand → zebyaser....to straddle
- der....to say → zeder....to interject
- pyoser....to fall → zepyoser....to sag
- poxer....to stop → zepoxer....to interrupt
Expressing futurity with oj-
edit- ber....to put → ojber....to put off, postpone
- bier....to take → ojbier....to borrow
- fer....to want → ojfer....to wish, aspire
- texer....to think → ojtexer....to plan
- teater....to see → ojteater....to envision
- vader....to affirm → ojvader....to promise
Expressing past with aj-
edit- ber....to put → ajber....to pass, relegate to the past
- der....to say → ajder....to evoke, hearken, recount
- embier....to occupy → ajembier....to haunt
- texer....to think → ajtexer....to reminisce, to reflect
- uvtosder....to express sadness → ajuvtosder....to apologize
- nexer....to store → ajnexer....to archive
Expressing present with ej-
edit- buer....to give → ejbuer....to present
- eser....to exist → ejeser....to attend, to be present
- nuxer....to pay → ejnuxer....to pay cash
- tuer....to inform → ejtuer....to update
- uvtosder....to express sadness → ejuvtosder....to apologize
Expressing a stretched out action with yag- (long)
edit- beser....to stay → yagbeser....to linger
- bexer....to hold → yagbexer....to conserve, preserve
- daler....to talk → yagdaler....to ramble
- dodaler....to orate → yagdodaler....to harangue
- fer....to want → yagfer....to yearn, pine
- teaxer....to look → yagteaxer....to stare
- fer....to want → yagfer....to yearn, pine
Expressing a brief action with yog- (short)
edit- drer....to write → yogdrer....to abbreviate
- teaxer....to look → yogteaxer....to glance at
- tujer....to sleep → yogtujer....to snooze, nap
- gobler....to cut → yoggobler....to cut short, truncate
Some Hybrid Prefixes
editThe prefix kui- is a hybrid of ku- (lateral) and ki- (diagonal)
- per....to go → kuiper....to wobble
- tyoper....to walk → kuityoper....to limp
The prefix zao- is a truncated hybrid of zay- (forward) and zoy- (backwards), eg:
- baser....to move → zaobaser....to rock
- per....to go → zaoper....to alternate
- beler....to carry → kuibeler....to shuttle, ferry
- pyoser....to fall → kuipyoser....to pendulate
The prefix yaob- is a hybrid of yab- (up) and yob- (down). The final b- is assimilated or dropped before a b or p.
- baser....to move → yaobaser....to bob
- per....to go → yaoper....to heave
- beler....to carry → yaobeler....to shuttle, ferry
- peper....to ride → yaopeper....to jounce
- puser....to jump → yaopuser....to hop, bounce
The prefix bui- is a hybrid of bu- (to) and bi- (from), eg:
- drer....to write → buidrer....to correspond
- -er....to x → buier....to trade
- beler....to carry → buibeler....to shuttle, ferry
- xer....to do → buixer....to push and pull, spring
- poper....to travel → buipoper....to travel to and fro, travel round trip
The prefix uiz- is a hybrid of uz- (crooked) and iz- (straight), eg:
- drer....to write → uizdrer....to squiggle
- der....to say → uizder....to equivocate
- baser....to move → uizbaser....to wiggle, to squirm
- per....to go → uizper....to careen, reel
- paser....to move → uizpaser....to swerve, yaw
The prefix zui- is a hybrid of zu- (left) and zi- (right), eg:
- drer....to write → uizdrer....to squiggle
- buxer....to push → zuibuxer....to push around
- baser....to move → zuibaser....to sway, totter
- per....to go → zuiper....to zigzag
- pasler....to shake → zuipasler....to wobble
The prefix aoyeb- is a hybrid of (a)yeb- (in) and oyeb- (out), eg:
- ber....to put → aoyeber....to insert and extract
- tiexer....to breathe → aoyetiexer....to breath in and out
- paper....to fly → aoyepaper....to fly in and out
The prefix aob- is a hybrid of ab- (on) and ob- (off), eg:
- ber....to put → aober....to put on and off
- per....to go → aoper....to get on and off, embark and disembark
The prefix vao- is a hybrid of va- (yes) and vo- (no), eg:
- der....to say → vaoder....to decide
- daler....to talk → vaodaler....to waffle
- duder....to answer → vaoduder....to answer yes or no
- kyaxer....to change → vaokyaxer....to redact
- texer....to think → vaotexer....to deliberate, vacillate
The prefix uij is a hybrid of uj- (end) and ij- (begin)
- ber....to put → uijber....to switch off and on
- daler....to talk → uijdaler....to stutter
The prefix yuij is a hybrid of yuj- (close) and yij- (open)
- ber....to put → yuijber....to open and close, blink
The prefix huim is a hybrid of hum (there) and him (there)
- paper....to fly → huimpaper....to fly here and yon
- per....to go → huimper....to wander
- kexer....to seek → huimkexer....to search high and low
Different Nuances of teaxer with Prefixes
edit- teaxer....to look, behold, regard
- aybteaxer....to supervise, look over
- ajteaxer....to look back on (retrospect)
- eynteaxer....to squint
- fizteaxer....to respect
- fuzteaxer....to disrespect
- gawteaxer....to review, re-look
- hyuitteaxer....to look at one another
- ibteaxer....to ignore
- igteaxer....to glance, glimpse
- ifteaxer....to marvel at
- izteaxer....to view directly, confront, aim
- jateaxer....to preview
- jeteaxer....to watch, observe
- joteaxer....to review
- kateaxer....to look for
- keteaxer....to scan
- kiteaxer....to look askance
- koteaxer....to peek, spy
- kozyeteaxer....to peep
- kozyoteaxer....to peer
- kuteaxer....to observe
- kyeteaxer....to browse
- kyoteaxer....to stare, glare
- oteaxer....to ignore, overlook
- ufteaxer....to glare, leer
- ugteaxer....to gaze
- yagteaxer....to gape, gawk
- yebteaxer....to inspect
- yibteaxer....to view from afar
- yogteaxer....to glance at
- yokteaxer....to get a glimpse of
- yubteaxer....to examine
- yuibteaxer....to look near and far
- yuzteaxer....to look around, circumspect
- yanteaxer....to view together
- yizteaxer....to look beyond, overlook
- vyateaxer....to investigate, check out
- vyoteaxer....to view wrongly
- zateaxer....to face, confront
- zayteaxer....to look ahead, expect
- zoyteaxer....to look back
- zeyteaxer....to look across
- ziteaxer....to look to the right
- zuteaxer....to look to the left
- zuiteaxer....to look right and left
- zyateaxer....to look all over, survey
- zyeteaxer....to look through, peruse
- zyoteaxer....to squint
- yobteaxer....to look down
- yaobteaxer....to look up and down
- zaoteaxer....to look back and forth
- yabteaxer....to look up
- yubketeaxer....to pry
- uzteaxer....to look indirectly at
- oyebteaxer....to look out
- ojteaxer....to peer into the future
- marteaxer....to star-gaze
- tabteaxer....to autopsy
Modal Verbs
edit- Modal verbs are auxiliary verbs that are usually followed by the main verb in the infinitive or a subjunctive dependent clause and have to do with wanting, permitting, prohibiting, being able, being unable, needing, being obliged to do something, etc.
Principal Modal Auxiliary Verbs
edit- Mirad has a set of modal auxiliary verbs that can be followed by a main verb in the infinitive mode. This is very much like Enlish modal auxiliary verbs in the following examples:
- I want to go.
- You must wait.
- You may stay.
- I dare say.
- Here is a chart showing the main modal auxiliary verbs in Mirad:
Principle Modal Auxiliary Verbs TYPE POSITIVE NEGATIVE Permission afer....may
ayfer....mightofer....may not
oyfer....might notAbility yafer....can yofer....cannot Need efer....need to Obligation yefer....must
yeyfer....shouldoyefer....must not
oyeyfer....should notDesire fer....want to Enjoyment ifer....love to, enjoy
iyfer....like toufer....hate to
uyfer....dislike toCourage yifer....dare to yufer....be afraid to, fear Liberty yiver....have a right to, be free to yuver....be bound to, be supposed to Expectation yaker....expect to yoker....be surprised to Conation yeker....try to
- These modal auxiliary verbs are often followed by a verbal infinitive, as in the following examples:
- At fe ter.....I want to know.
- Wit yifa yeper.....He dared to enter.
- Yat yafe teater yet.....We can see you.
- Duven et yaka aker?....Did you expect to win?
- Diwe yeku xer ga fi.....Please try to do better.
- If the modal verb is in the hypothetical aspect (conditional), then the sense is somewhat mitigated, as in these examples:
- At fe per.....I want to go.
- At fu per.....I would like to go.
- Et yafe aker.....You can win.
- Et yafu aker.....You could win.
- Yet yefe iper.....You must leave.
- Yet yefu iper.....You ought to leave.
- Post-y-gliding the stem vowel of the modal verb also reduces the strength, for example:
- At ife et. ....I love you.
- At iyfe et. ....I like you.
- Et yefe iper.....You must leave.
- Et yeyfe iper.....You should leave.
- Iyt yafe aker.....She can win.
- Iyt yayfe aker.....She might win.
- At ufa uda tuz.....I hated that art.
- At uyfa uda tuz.....I disliked that art.
- The use of l and r intensify the meaning of the auxiliary verbs, eg:
- Et yuve puer jwe.....You are supposed to arrive on time.
- Et yuvle tepzexer.....You have to pay attention.
- Et yuvre buer nas.....You absolutely must give money.
- At yeka ser yeva.....I tried to be fair.
- At yekla ujber jwa.....I strove to finish early.
- At yekra nixer ga nas.....I struggled (= worked hard)) to earn more money.
- Iyt ife eker zyun.....She loves to play ball.
- Iyt ifla teater et.....She was delighted to see you.
- Iyt ifre teaper him.....She adores visiting here.
- Here are some examples showing how these modal verbs are used as auxiliaries:
- Et afe oyeper ay ifeker.....You may go out and play.
- Yat efa tujer.....We needed to sleep.
- Ot ofe mavier him.....One is prohibited to smoke here.
- Mavier him ofwe.....Smoking here is prohibited.
- At ife dyeer.....I love to read.
- Duven et fe yeper?....Do you want to come in?
- At fu teaper et edjub.....I would like to visit you some day.
- It ufaye hyaj teaxwer.....He has always hated being looked at.
- Duven et iyfe per tilami?....Do you like going to bars?
- At uyfe tijer gra jwa.....I dislike waking up too early.
- Et yafe xer hyehos et fu.....You can do whatever you like.
- Et yefer xer ad vyaas.....You must do the right thing.
- Et yeyfe voy daler huuyen azay.....You should not talk so loud.
- At yeyfa ter ga fi.....I should have known better.
- At voy yifu der hyea fuas.....I would not dare say anything bad.
- Von yufu der hos et tesde.....Don't be afraid to say what you mean.
- Et yive dier yevanavdut.....You have a right to ask for a lawyer.
- Yat voy yuvle kyoejer.....We are not bound to stick around.
Subject-oriented vs. Patient-oriented Modal Verb Forms
edit- All of these modal verbs can be passive, in which case they are "patient-oriented" rather than "subject-oriented." The participial adjective yafa....able is subject-oriented and refers to a person, whereas the passived adjective yafwa....possible is patient-oriented and refers to a thing or event. Here is a chart of the principal modal verbs and corresponding participial adjectives with this subject/object-orientation distinction shown:
Subject-oriented vs. Patient-oriented Modal Verb Forms MODAL TYPE SUBJECT-ORIENTED SUBJECT-ORIENTED PATIENT-ORIENTED PATIENT-ORIENTED VERB ADJECTIVE VERB ADJECTIVE Permission afer
mayafa
allowedafwer
be permittedafwa
permissableNecessity efer
needefa
needfulefwer
be necessaryefwa
necessary, requiredProhibition ofer
be unallowedofa
prohibitedofwer
be prohibitedofwa
bannedPossibility yafer
be ableyafa
ableyafwer
be possibleyafwa
possibleObligation yefer
mustyefa
obligedyefwer
be obligatoryyefwa
obligatoryDuty yeyfer
shouldyeyfa
supposed, duty-boundyeyfwer
be supposedyeyfwa
dueImpossibility yofer
be unableyofa
unableyofwer
be impossibleyofwa
impossibleVolition fer
wantfa
desirousfwer
be desirablefwa
desirable, wantedLove ifer
love
iyfer
likeifa
enamored
iyfa
fondifwer
be loved
iyfwer
be likedifwa
lovable
iyfwa
likeableHate ufer
hate
uyfer
dislikeufa
averse
uyfa
displeasedufwer
be hated
uyfwer
be dislikedufwa
odious
unlikedCourage yifer
dareyifa
daring, braveyifwer
be safeyifwa
safeFear yufer
be afraidyufa
afraidyufwer
be a dangeryufwa
frighteningJoy iver
enjoyiva
gladivwer
be a joyivwa
enjoyableSorrow uver
be sorryuva
sorry, saduvwer
be a shameuvwa
regrettable
- Examples of subject-oriented forms:
- At se yafa xer hes.....I am capable of doing anything.
- Et ofe teater hia dyezun.....You are not allowed/are prohibited to see this film.
- Duven at afe per hum?....Am I allowed to go there?
- Yat fu ter eta dyun.....We would like to know your name.
- Piti ufe beser be mel.....Fish hate to remain on dry land.
- At ajay ifa dazer.....I once loved to dance.
- Et se iva, at yife der.....You are beautiful, I dare say.
- At yeyfa xer has ga ig.....I should have done it sooner.
- Von yufu; At yupeye.....Fear not; I am coming.
- Et yefe puer ja eymaj.....You must arrive before noon.
- Yet yofe daler je ha dezun.....You people must not talk during the performance.
- Yat yeyfe (= se yeyfa) aker.....We should (= are bound/supposed/due) to win.
- At ive teater et bakser.....I'm glad to see you get better.
- Su iva.....Be happy.
- At uvu (= su uva) teater et iper.....I would be sad to see you leave.
- Examples of patient-oriented forms:
- Afwe (= se afwa) mavier him.....It is permissible to smoke here.
- Ofwe (= se ofwa*) puxer fyumul him.....It is prohibited to throw litter here.
- Fwe (= se fwa) van yet dolu.....It is desired that you stop talking.
- Voy yafwe beser him gajob.....It is not possible to remain here any longer.
- Yofwa av at ivteuder.....It was not possible for me to laugh.
- Yefwe van et piu ig.....It is essential that you leave quickly.
- He yeyfwe ober ata tyoyafi?....Is it obligatory to remove my shoes?
- Ga yux efwo.....More help will be needed.
- Yuxren se ufwa xetyen.....Slavery is an odious practice.
- Uvwe van wit oka.....It's a shame that he lost.
- *lofwa is used for unwanted for disambiguation purposes.
Deriving Causatives from Modal Stems
edit- Various causative verbs can be formed from modal stems, as shown in the chart below:
Deriving Causatives from Modal Stems SUBJECT-ORIENTED PATIENT-ORIENTED afxer....allow (someone to do sthg.) afwaxer....permit (something to be done) efxer....require efwaxer....necessitate ofxer....prohibit ofwaxer....prohibit yafxer....enable yafwaxer....make possible yefxer....oblige yefwaxer....make obligatory yofxer....cripple yofwaxer....disable yifxer....embolden yifwaxer....make safe yufxer....intimidate yufwaxer....make frightening ifxer....please ifwaxer....make pleasant
Creating Modal Verbs and Adjectives with Modal Stem Suffixes
edit- Verb stems can be suffixed with modal participles to produce related modal verbs and adjectives. The first chart shows the modal participles themselves that can be suffixed to verb stems. Subject-oriented forms refer only to people, while patient-oriented forms (ending in -wa) refer only to things.
Modal Suffixes Subject-oriented Patient-oriented -yafa....able to X, -able -yafwa....possible to X -yofa....unable to X -yofwa....impossible to X -ifa....fond of Xing, Xophile -ifwa....enjoyable to X -ufa....averse to Xing, Xophobic -ufwa....unenjoyable to X -yika....hard of Xing -yikwa....hard to X -yuka....comfortable/easy Xing -yukwa....easy to X -yaka....expecting to X yakwa....expected/likely to X -efa....in need of Xing -efwa....necessary to X -yefa....obliged to X -yefwa....obligatory/due to X -yufa....afraid of Xing -yufwa....frightening to X
- This table shows some of these modal suffixes applied to actual verb and noun stems:
Modals and Orientation ORIENTATION POSITIVE ADJECTIVE POSITIVE VERB NEGATIVE ADJECTIVE NEGATIVE VERB Subject teatyafa
able to see, sightedteatyafer
be able to seeteatyofa
blindteatyofer
be blindPatient teatyafwa
visibleteatyafwer
be visibleteatyofwa
invisibleteatyofwer
be invisibleSubject teetyafa
able to hear, hearingteetyafer
be able to hearteetyofa
deafteatyofer
be deafPatient teetyafwa
audibleteetyafwer
be audibleteeyofwa
inaudibleteeyofwer
be inaudiableSubject dalyafa
able to speakdalyafer
be able to speakdalyofa
mute, dumbdalyofer
be mute, dumbSubject doabifa
patrioticdoabifer
be patrioticdoabufa
rebelliousdoabufer
rebelSubject tosyafa
sensitivetosyafer
be able to feeltosyofa
insensitivetosyofer
be numbedPatient tayotyafwa
palpabletayotyafwer
be palpabletayotyofwa
numbtayotyofwer
be impalbable, numbPatient testyukwa
easy to understandtestyukwaxer
make easily understoodtestyikwa
hard to understandtestyikwaxer
make hard to understandSubject tudyaka
pregnant, expectingtudyaker
be expectingPatient mamilyakwa
likely to rainmamilyakwer
to be expected to rainmamilyokwa
unlikely to rainmamilyokwer
to be unlikely to rainSubject tilefa
thirstytilefer
be thirstySubject telefa
hungrytelefer
be hungryPatient tejefwa
vitaltejefwer
be vitalSubject tujefa
sleepytujefer
be sleepySubject nasefa
poor, needynasefer
be needySubject dudyefa
accountable, responsibledudyefer
be responsiblePatient texiyefwa
noteworthytexiyefwer
be noteworthy
Sensing Verbs
edit- Verbs involving the senses, such as sight or hearing, follow a similar pattern, as the following chart shows:
TYPE | teab....eye teata....visual |
teeb....ear teeta....audial |
teib....nose teita....olfactory |
teub....mouth teuta....gustatory |
tayob....skin tayota....tactile |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Receptive Active |
teater see |
teeter hear |
teiter smell |
teuter taste |
tayoter feel |
Receptive Passive |
teatwer be seen |
teetwer be heard |
teitwer be smelled |
teutwer be tasted |
tayotwer be felt |
Stative | teaser seem |
teeser sound |
teiser smell |
teuser taste |
tayoser feel |
Dynamic Active |
teaxer look at |
teexer listen |
teixer sniff |
teuxer taste |
tayoxer touch |
Dynamic Passive |
teaxwer be looked at |
teexwer be listened to |
teixwer be sniffed |
teuxwer be tasted |
tayoxwer be touched |
Causative Active |
teatuer show |
teetuer make hear |
teixuer make smell |
teuxuer offer a taste |
tayoxuer make feel |
Causative Passive |
teatuwer be shown |
teetuwer be made to hear |
teituwer be made to smell |
teutuwer be given a taste |
tayotuwer be made to feel |
Inchoative Active |
teatier perceive, catch sight of |
teetier catch the sound of |
teitier get a whiff of |
teutuer get a taste of |
tayotier get the sensation of |
Inchoative Passive |
teatiwer be perceived |
teetiwer be heard |
teitiwer be whiffed |
teutiwer be tasted |
tayotiwer be felt |
Negative-Modal Patient-oriented Stative |
teatyofer be blind |
teetyofer be deaf |
teityofer be unable to smell |
teityofer be unable to taste |
tayotyofer be insensitive |
Negative-Modal Patient-oriented Stative |
teatyofwer be invisible |
teetyofwer be inaudible |
teityofwer be undetectable odorwise |
teityofwer be insipid |
tayotyofwer be undetectable by touch |
Negative-Modal Patient-oriented Causative |
teatyofxer blind |
teetyofxer deafen |
teityofxer desensitize to smell |
teutyofxer desensitize to taste |
tayotyofxer desensitize |
Negative-Modal Patient-oriented Causative |
teatyofwaxer make invisible |
teetyofwaxer make inaudible |
teityofwaxer make odorless |
teutyofwaxer render tasteless |
tayotyofwaxer numb |
- Examples of usage:
- At teatyofxwa bey ha mani.....I was blinded by the lights.
- Ha xeus sa teetyofxyea.....The noise was deafening.
- Hia tit se gla teatiyafa.....This pupil is very perceptive.
- Hua bekil se teityofwa.....That medicine is odorless (impossible to smell).
- Teatyofwaxu ha vyuni.....Make the spots invisible.
- Ha magmeb yonprex tayotyafwa zya ha mir.....The volcano eruption could be felt throughout the world.
Frequentative Verbs
edit- Frequentative verbs or repetitive action verbs can be formed with the infix -eg- placed between the verb stem and verb ending, eg.:
Frequentative Verbs NORMAL FREQUENTATIVE pyaser....jump pyaseger....bounce paper....fly papeger....flitter kobirer....steal kobireger....pilfer braser....shake braseger....vibrate brasea....shaking brasegea....vibrating
Hybridized Verbs
edit- Verbs that involve motion directions that change back and forth can be formed by hybridizing the stem vowel or the vowel of the vectorial prefix. Here are some examples:
Frequentative Verbs FIRST DIRECTION SECOND DIRECTION HYBRIDIZED DIRECTION pyaser....jump pyoser....fall pyaoser....bounce, undulate buer....give bier....take buier....exchange nuer....furnish nier....consume nuier....trade tuer....inform tier....learn tuier....communicate yaper....ascend yoper....descend yaoper....go up and down zayper....go forward zoyper....go back zaoper....vacillate vader....affirm voder....deny vaoder....decide yijber....open yujber....close uijber....valve baser....stir boser....be still baoser....vibrate
Biradical Verbs
edit- There are a few verbs in Mirad which are composed of two verb roots, called biradical verbs. Sometimes the last letter of the first verb root gets dropped. Here are a few:
Biradical Verbs Root 1 Root 2 Biradical Verb kex-....to seek bi-....to take kebier....to choose kox-....to hide bi-....to take kobier....to steal kox-....to hide p-....to go koper....to sneak kox-....to hide geldr-....to copy kogeldrer....to plagiarize kox-....to hide f-....to want kofer....to covet kax-....to reveal d-....to say kader....to disclose kax-....to reveal teax-...to look kateaxer....to locate teat-....to see p-....to go teaper....to visit teat-....to see d-....to tell teader....to testify tax-....to remember dr-....to write taxdrer....to record teat-....to see yof-....to be unable teatyofer....to be blind teet-....to hear dr-....to write teedrer....to report teet-....to hear p-....to go teeper....to attend teet-....to hear tu-....to inform teetuer....to notify teet-....to hear yik-....have a hard time teetyiker....to strain to hear teet-....to hear yof-....to be unable teetyofer....to be deaf tes-....to mean d-....to say tesder....to explain
Expressing Habitual Actions and States
edit- Mirad uses the term gel jubyen (as a habit) to express a verb reflecting habitual action, eg:
- At tijeya be yiwa jwobi gel jubyen.....I used to wake up at 9 o'clock. (Lit. I was waking up at 9 o'clock as a habit.).
- The term hyujod....one another occasion (or be aj....in the past) is use to express once (upon a time), eg:
- At sa tuxut hyujod (~ be aj) sa tuxut. ....I once was a teacher.
- The term vyabxelay (routinely) can also be used, eg:
- Yat eke duz yuz bi ha doym vyabxelay.....We play music around town routinely.
Expressing an Immediate Past
edit- To express an immediate past, such as in the sentence "We have just gotten married.", Mirad uses the adverb ejnay (newly) much like the word just in English:
- Yat tadsaye ejnay.....We have just gotten married.
- Ejnay tadxwa.....Just married.
- Wit dokebiwa ejnay.....He was just elected.
- At ujbaya yex ejnay hoj iyt yebupa.....I had just finished work when she came in.
Verb Predicate Types
edit- Mirad verb predicates can be classified as follows:
- Voice
- Active (The subject is the doer of the action)
- Passive (The subject is the receiver of the action)
- Middle (The subject is both the agent and patient)
- Reflexive (The subject is also the patient.)
- Reciprocal (Plural subjects interact.)
- Stativity
- Stative (Does not involve action)
- Dynamic (Action is involved)
- Valency
- Impersonal (There is no subject)
- Transitive (There is an object)
- Intransitive (There is no object)
- Auto-transitive (The subject is a patient and there is no agent)
- Anti-transitive (There is the patient but an agent is assumed)
- Causative (Subject causes an action to be performed)
- Copula (X is Y)
- Other
- Modal (can, must, should, wants to...)
- Auxiliary (help to, hope to, prepare to + verb)
- Motion (run, go, ride...)
- Communication (say, answer, claim that...)
- Gesture (put, shake, hit...)
- State/Stative (be, become, live, be born...)
- Action/Dynamic (do, act, make)
VOICE | STATIVITY | VALENCY | EXAMPLE |
---|---|---|---|
active | stative | impersonal, -agent, -object | Mamilo zajub.....It will rain tomorrow. |
active | stative | impersonal, -agent, +complement | Sa gla oma.....It was very cold. |
active | stative | impersonal, +subject | Ese het be ha mes.....There is someone at the door. |
active | stative | copula, subject + noun/adjective complement | Et se ata twud.....You are my son. At aseye epyextipa.....I am becoming angry. |
middle | stative | auto-transitive, +subject=patient -agent -object | Iyt toja.....She died |
middle | stative | auto-transitive, +subject=patient +agent -object | Ha mes yija.....The door opened. |
active | stative | intransitive, +subject -object | Et bokso.....You will get sick. |
active | stative | transitive, sense, +subject +object | At teate et.....I see you. |
active | stative | transitive, modal, +subject +verb complement | At fe per.....I want to go. |
active | stative | intransitive, subject-oriented modal, -subject +verb complement | Yofwe teater.....It is impossible to see. |
passive | stative | patient-oriented modal, +subject | Mamil yakwe.....Rain is expected. |
middle | dynamic | anti-transitive, +subject=patient +agent -object | Ha mes yijpa.....The door came open. |
active | dynamic | intransitive, +subject -object | Ha fab pyosa.....The tree fell. |
active | dynamic | transitive, +subject +-object | Yit pyoxa ha fab.....They felled the tree. |
passive | dynamic | intransitive, +subject, -object | Ha fabi pyoxwa.....The trees were felled. |
active | dynamic | transitive, +subject, +object | Obu eta tef.....Take your hat off. |
active | dynamic | ditransitive, +subject, +object +object | Von et buu iyt ha nas.....Don't give her the money. |
active | dynamic | transitive, motion, +subject, +destination/origin | Yupu ha mees.....Approach the bench. Pu tam!....Go home! (you implied) |
active | dynamic | causative, +subject +object, +agent | At tayegobluxo Jon.....I will get my hair cut by John. |
passive | dynamic | causative, +subject +object, +agent | At tayegobluxwo.....I will get my hair cut. |
active | dynamic | auxiliary, ditransitive, +patient +verb object | Yuxu at xer his.....Help me do this. |
passive | dynamic | auxiliary, ditransitive, +patient +verb object | At tuxwa eker duz.....I was taught to play music. |
middle | dynamic | reflexive, +subject = patient, -object | Iyt uttojba.....She killed herself. |
active | dynamic | reciprocal, +subjects = patients | Yit voy hyuitdale gaj.....They don't talk to one another anymore. |