zherdu (brothers) -> zherdu + t = zherdut (one of the brothers)
There is a twist to excerptals with the names of tribes that have zero plurals. Ethnonyms that end with a vowel simply add -t. Ethnonyms that end with an -s or -ss change the -s or -ss to -t. Ethnonyms that end in any consonant other than -s (including -t) add -et:
Diskwe -> Diskwet (one of the Disque)
Gekhieng -> Gekhienget (one of the Ge-xieng)
Natshu -> Natshut (one of the Nachu)
Nyang -> Nyanget (one of the Nyang)
Pulan -> Pulanet (one of the Pulan)
Tetiyen -> Tetiyenet (one of the Tetien)
Paramais -> Paramait (one of the Paramais)
Tshaptshapiss -> Tshaptshapit (one of the Chapchapiss)
Mektosakwet -> Mektosakwetet (one of the Mektosakwet)
The excerptal is used for body parts a person has more than one of when they appear with a possessive:
Fas aas e bwolwut na is.
something COP-PRS in eye-EXCPT of 1s
There is something in my eye.
Amerina khafarkhen dumat na wan.
Amerina scratch-PST thumb-EXCPT of 3s
Amerina scratched her thumb.
This also applies to clothes of which more than one is usually worn:
Agrat na Keisha shehe*en ukh ye.
sock-EXCPT of Keisha fall-PST off PREP-ADV
Keisha's sock fell off.
Av Kankonikes emen in tzataki bikuren ash fega, mem ubasen os az famoi dehoyenen tzatakat na wan am az buhangem en er kalis.
when Kankonian-PL see-PST one shoe hang-PST on tree 3p believe-PST NEG that someone lose-PST-PST shoe-EXCPT of 3s but that buhangem PST LOC process
When Kankonians saw one shoe hanging in a tree, they believed not that someone had lost his or her shoe, but that the buhangem was at work.
The singular rather than the excerptal is used when which one of your eyes, legs, feet, etc. you are talking about is specified:
Is apsithien pumus utshi na is.
1s raise-PST hand left of 1s
I raised my left hand.
Nor is the excerptal used when there is no possessive:
Ar wahazas umbe ufoyan zeksisites oba eueras hekhio!
2s be_able_to-PRS now change channel-PL without move-PRS finger
Now you can change channels without moving a finger!
When an adjective describes both/all of the nouns referred to by an excerptal, the adjective comes after the excerptal noun. When the adjective describes only the one of the nouns referred to by the excerptal, it comes before the noun. So, "one of my blue eyes" would be "oimonet wowum" (both of the speaker's eyes being blue), but if the speaker had heterochromia iridum and wanted to say "the blue one of my eyes", he would say "wowum oimonet".
Excerptals (usually "met") also translate the pronoun "one" in sentences like "I want the red one":
Is fuiras gudum met.
3s want-PRS red 3e
I want the red one.
Ar as almonas deyit mui wan as wanzasha deyit.
2s PRS smart 2e and 3s PRS sweet 2e
You're the smart one and she's the sweet one.
Is as almonas wit mui wan as wanzasha wit.
1s PRS smart 1e and 3s PRS sweet 1e
I'm the smart one and she's the sweet one.
If you need to make the singular of a plural noun that doesn't have a singular, turn it into an excerptal: homoses (parents) -> homoset (parent).
Mass nouns are treated as singular in Kankonian:
Is betzithas suzu. Wan as titel.
3s love-PRS wool. 3s PRS warm
I love wool. It is warm.
In English, mass nouns for foods and drinks stay singular even if there are a number of bottles, bowls, cups, etc. of them, but pluralize when "multiple varieties of" is meant ("This store sells exotic meats"). In Kankonian, the reverse is true. Plural nouns can frequently be found if there are multiple, physically separated concentrations of a food or drink, so three bottles of apple juice are often referred to as "weltes" (juices) or plates of salad as "wekores" (salads). "Em weltes na bepis" can even be used to mean "three bottles/cups of apple juice". However, pluralization is not used to refer to types:
Er ham khab vithev pasuez tzemauizas.
at this store meat exotic sell-PSV-PRS
This store sells exotic meats.
unless a number word or word like "argas" (many) appears in the sentence to force the food/beverage word to become plural:
Seshit sestrip zash Kole Sezalis Lana hauess houmans o tepisas 240 man wekores.
chef world-renowned APPOS Kole Palladium Lana know-PRS EQC-how one make-PRS 240 different salad-PL
World-renowned chef Kole Palladium Lana knows how to make 240 different salads.
Ham pundush benzinas opores mui klanatzades mui ezoyes zash em man shukhes!
this smoothie include-PRS strawberry-PL and banana-PL and orange-PL APPOS three different fruit-PL
Strawberries, bananas, and oranges are in this smoothie -- three different fruits!
As in many languages, many food words such as "haihas" (cake), "shufski" (pie) or "bemarkez" (candy) can be used as both count nouns and mass nouns in Kankonian. These take the plural forms as plural count nouns (and also the excerptal forms as excerptal count nouns):
Er thebevatia blat shufskas tzemauizen leken.
at bakery twenty pie-PL sell-PSV-PST yesterday
The bakery sold twenty pies yesterday.
The singular rather than the plural is normally used for describing meat: thakali* (lamb), uphath (chicken), gonizha (squid/calamari), kudan (salmon), puripo (shrimp). Unlike English, the singular is used with bivalves: eksakraka (oyster), zemir (mussel), bolme (clam), khirbas (scallop). One would say, "Is shelimen eksakraka" for "I ordered oysters", not "Is shelimen eksakrakas".
Numbers between 1 and -1 inclusive (including 0) take the singular form. Numbers greater than 1 or less than -1 use the plural form.
Teret hugem er ham huzhus benzinas noto 0.5.
family average LOC that planet include-PRS child 0.5
The average family on that planet has 0.5 kids.
"In o re argas" (one or more) or other constructions with "or" that include the number one are singular:
An id au in o bam baizh wahazas hazi ad sharabporiri famoi er els.
have done_to even one or two arrest be_able_to-PRS make to unemployable someone LOC there
Even having one or two arrests can make someone unemployable there.
To indicate that a nominal can refer to either something singular or something plural, place o es (or -s) after the singular form. "O es" is used regardless of the way the singular pluralizes -- no matter if it takes an -es plural, an -as plural, or an irregular plural:
Ar he az as hoimas, shemebet spyu ar mui yed o es ad ar as salishas.
2s as that PRS father relationship between 2s and son or PL to 2s PRS important
As a father, the relationship between you and your son(s) is important.
Doef Pi*oso Zhanel arditzen kahupha hasp hous houmans o kheskas shara o es ad ar.
Doef Sodium Zhanel write-PST book famous about EQC-how one raise-PRS daughter or PL of 2s
Doef Sodium Zhanel wrote a famous book on how to raise your daughter(s).
Et goyart ad zhered o es mui zwaniz o es ad ar.
IMPRTV kind to brother or PL and sister or PL to 2s
Be kind to your brother(s) and sister(s).
If the noun has no singular, use the plural form and follow it with o et (-et being an excerptal suffix):
Yakh o be*esen er els, yau o regudeos anas udravishes ka*azos amasi ab homoses o et ad o.
if one grow_up-PST LOC there then one probably have-PRS view-PL political different from parents or EXCPT to one
If you grew up there, you probably have different political views from your parent(s).
If the singular in English would be expressed by an excerptal in Kankonian, use the excerptal followed by "o es":
En arat bwolwut o es na ar as istenda zadar.
PST lose eye-EXCPT or PL of 2s PRS experience traumatic
To have lost your eye(s) is a traumatic experience.
Note that the following adjective comes after the "o es" or "o et" and not immediately after the base nominal:
Wrong: Tzehimez sherm o es os ad hesi tri khetz ad o pure.
language native or PL FUT for speak SUP easy for one always
Right: Tzehimez o es sherm os ad hesi tri khetz ad o pure.
language or PL native FUT for speak SUP easy for one always
Your native language(s) will always be the easiest for you to speak.
The pronominal equivalent of a "[singular] o es" construction is "wan o mem" (s/he/it or they):
Rehinet aswid o es mui kailoret wan o mem.
find-IMPRTV error or PL and correct-IMPRTV 3s or 3p
Find the error(s) and fix it/them.
The pronominal equivalent of a "[plural] o et" construction is "mem o met" (they or one of them):
*agitet emihomoses o et shfehil ad ar mui azirethet mem o met.
contact-IMPRTV grandparents or EXCPT surviving to 2s and teach-IMPRTV 3p or 3e
Contact your surviving grandparent(s) and teach her/him/them.
And the pronominal equivalent of an "[excerptal] o es" construction is "met o mem" (one of them or they):
Yakh ar araten angat o es na ar, borunez ad yaviril id met o mem umbe aas.
if 2s lose-PST leg-EXCPT or PL of 2s technology for regenerate done_to 3e or 2p now exist-PRS
If you have lost your leg(s), there now exists the technology to regenerate it/them.
"Zhit" (a connective meaning "for") normally takes a singular nominal as its object:
Hames oeas on en sharab zhit wakhavan.
that-PL trick-PL NEG PST bad for parakeet
Those tricks were not bad for parakeets.
The word "halite" (everyone, everybody) is plural in Kankonian and should take a plural pronoun (mem, not wan):
Halite lesas skayu markam na mem.
everybody should-PRS pick_up jacket of 3p
Everybody should pick up their jackets.
The following nominals are also plural: halis (everything), star (the rest), eis (any), eidu (anyone), eilag (anything), khile (both, each), fa (some), myu (a few), layas (several), hales (all).
The following nominals are singular: hiel (what), famoi (someone), fas (something), ou (nobody), akh (nothing), mayat (another), khehek (another), pleinte (either), pleos (neither), nos (none).
"Il" (who) can be singular or plural depending on the individual circumstances.
Argas is plural when it means many and singular when it means much. Tu is plural when it means few and singular when it means little/not much. Reanti is plural when it means how many more and singular when it means how much more. retotu is plural when it means how many fewer and singular when it means how much less. Baphash (enough) is plural with a count noun and singular with a mass noun.
When halis (everything), star (the rest), eis (any) or any other "any" word, khile (each -- but not in the sense of both), tu (few), pleinte (either) or pleos (neither) is the pronoun in a question, its antecedent in the answer will not be wan (it) nor mem (they), but a repeated eis, halis, etc.:
Mahan pleinte welantz iskutekhos?
-So, pleinte hoos.
Will either design work?
-Yes, it will.
Mahan pleinte welantz iskutekhos?
-Thi, pleos hoos.
Will either design work?
-No, neither will.
Sometimes an "any" word will take a "some" word as a response:
Mahan eilag meshudzas ar?
-So, fas hoas.
Is anything bothering you?
-Yes, something is.
"One in" in a statistic is considered plural:
1 zapan 4 welas er Dzhunsu anas zhudalamelka az muyestailarizen dyu homoses ad mem.
1 out_of 4 child-PL LOC Junsu have-PRS credit_card REL cosign-PSV-PST by parents to 3p
1 in 4 children on Junsu has a credit card cosigned by his or her parents.
A band or a corporation is referred to as "they", not "it":
Blintzshai*ap pagodomen pad zanam dyu mem.
Blintzshai*ap release-PST album ten-ORD by 3p
Blintzshai*ap have released their tenth album.
Sentu gai*eten zankyu deviska shinas ab tzemau na mem id zazhidas kam meitel oiri.
Sentu earn-PST ten-five quadrillion sina-PL from sale of 3p done_to cellphone-PL on last year
Sentu made fifteen quadrillion sinas from its sales of cellphones last year.
A distributive plural, i.e. a noun one of which belongs to each of many is kept in the singular if each has only one of them. For instance, you would say:
Geteres Dantonik alushen hothos na mem hair heshra.
soldier-PL Danton-ian sacrifice-PST life of 3p for heshra
The Dantonese soldiers gave their life for the heshra.
Instead of:
Geteres Dantonik alushen hothas na mem hair heshra.
soldier-PL Danton-ian sacrifice-PST life-PL of 3p for heshra
The Dantonese soldiers gave their lives for the heshra.
The exception is with a noun like "shakti" (house) for which more than one possessor could be ambiguous. In such cases, the singular is used if the multiple possessors share a single unit, and the plural used if the multiple possessors each have their own unit:
Is shahemden shakti na Zhoya mui Vrandi.
1s go_down_to-PST house of Zhoya and Vrandi
I went down to Zhoya and Vrandi's house.
Kam sayup spas is adiros shaktas na Mark mui Asha.
on next week 1s visit-FUT house-PL of Mark and Asha
Next week, I will visit Mark's and Asha's houses.
Wiri mui mopiga retelen shakti na mem.
man and woman paint-PST house of 3p
The man and woman painted their house. [They live in the same house.]
Wiri mui mopiga retelen shaktas na mem.
man and woman paint-PST house-PL of 3p
The man and woman painted their houses. [They live in different houses.]
Nouns referring to sets of things with -es or -as at the end and no singular form are plural. To refer to one pair/set, one must use the word "bapad" (pair) or "pad" (set).
in bapad na horoboses: one pair of pants
in bapad na winas: one pair of panties
in pad na vwanzanes: one suit
bam bapades na horoboses: two pairs of pants
bapadet na winas: one of the pairs of panties
Nouns that are plural in English but do not have a plural ending are singular in Kankonian, and refer to one pair/set of something:
in izhudia: one pair of headphones
in zhulad: one pair of sunglasses
in medozhod: one set of braces
bam izhudias: two pairs of headphones
zhuladet: one of the pairs of sunglasses
It should be noted that the word "pitzis" (guts, innards) is plural, even though it does not end in -as nor -es, and has no singular:
Chaka katen pitzis hes tairak, mui mem ushen le*sh we.
Chaka cut-PST guts out_of fish and 3p come_out-PST free ADV
Chaka cut the guts out of the fish, and they came right out.
Proper names, such as Gadami, Gemahas, Ching, Connie, Dan and Zafiya, are pronounced and spelt in Roman characters as in their native languages. There are no words for Mr., Mrs., Miss or Ms. in Kankonian. To refer to Kankonians by surname, simply use their last name; when speaking of or to other nationalities, address them by the title in their native language.
The words "Zherdu" (Brothers) or "Zwanzu" (Sisters) come before a family name:
Zherdu Isme as pahatra ad pomoshsheizipi tri hasp na Kankonia.
brother-PL Isme PRS troupe to air-racing SUPL famous of Kankonia
The Brothers Isme are Kankonia's most famous air-racing troupe.
When you are speaking to someone, put "zha" before his or her name:
Zha Phoriphio, nasuet ad lei!
VOC Phoriphio come-IMPRTV to here
Phoriphio, come over here!
Zha famoi, iskalar kuniet is!
VOC somebody please help-IMPRTV 3s
Somebody please help me!
Possession, or the concept of "of" or "'s", is formed by putting the connective "na" before the possessor: na mopiga (the woman's), bludzhinz na mopiga (the woman's blue jeans), na tzenoreth (of the palm tree), grurgh na tzenoreth (the root of the palm tree), na Tara (Tara's), pumus na Tara (Tara's hand), dephudanas (the anarchists'), shakti na dephudanas (the anarchists' house).
"Na", "ad", "hous", "non", "id" and "dyu" are used to connect to nouns where we would put the head noun after the other noun in English (e.g. sports section). With connectives like these, the head noun comes first.
"Na" is a general indicator that something is of something else:
voshayid na rina: lung cancer
kren na luzkat: lunch bag
zoden na pezikas leopard shark (lit. shark of wrinkles)
Blahatz na Yoilanes: Lily Day
Specifically, "na" can indicate location or citizenship in a place:
bauwor na *uthis: town drunk
lausent na hagash: village mayor
zantas na Spanitz: flag of Spanitz
Also use "na" to indicate that something is made of or from something:
shufski na kopbuzes: blueberry pie
homut na somupis: ears, tails and snout of the tapir
zuad na tamatzir: rattan arrow
Or is a part of someone or something's body:
khod na harg: goat ear
*ine na Shaleyik: Shaleyan hair
Use "ad" when the head noun is intended for the purpose of the other noun:
fakram ad etemas: primary (lit. election for nominees)
oyezyes ad maikros: screenplay (lit. play for movie)
koshetz ad sheizipi: racing organization
kargash ad donames: summit meeting (lit. meeting for presidents)
Or for the use of the other noun:
iksakalos ad kala: overhead projector (lit. camera for plastic)
Use "hous" to indicate that the head noun is about the non-head noun:
ili hous yetzuwa: nature show
atzwan hous geletes: leash law
lahaim hous podekes yigo: nuclear weapons report
reking hous agrandes: sports section
Use "non" to indicate the charge for something:
baizh non adekluoi: arson arrest
Use "id" to indicate that something is done to the non-head noun:
tzemau id phoshupes: tire sale
inzitzi id hokules: raspberry picking
dzhiu id hupam: back rub
abamfash id feshmetes: sandwich eater
tzemaufash id falish: marijuana seller
pipetz id pleues: gay-bashing
uigard id aidispos: math teacher
Use "dyu" to indicate that an action is done by an agent:
khafarkh dyu ze*ya: nail scratch
skili dyu peksis: insect bite
Use "dyu" to denote authorship:
kahupha dyu Paez Vakhamban Asal: Paez Meitnerium Asal book
asoka dyu Blintzshai*ap: Blintzshai*ap CD
The connective "rod" is used after an element name and before a number to indicate isotope:
eskhel rod 40 or Ekh-R-40: calcium-40, 40Ca
Note that the prepositional object in such noun "compounds" is often singular even where one would expect a plural. For instance, "lung cancer" is called voshayid na rina, not voshayid na rinas, even when both lungs are afflicted.
To form an appositive, use zash, meaning "which is" or "who is", between the two nominals:
Zhered zash Sean ad is uhwos ad gayam.
brother APPOS Sean to 3s go-FUT to college
My brother Sean is going to college.
Gokhan zash fufelim geshusten ham vefaf.
Gokhan APPOS baker bake-PST this bread
Gokhan the baker baked this bread.
Note that the appositive should come before other prepositional phrases: my brother Sean becomes "zhered zash Sean ad is" and not "zhered ad is zash Sean" (which would denote that the speaker's name is Sean).
Zash is also used for appositives with wir (we/us): "we students" is wir zash telemas. Other pronouns take zash too when accompanying a noun:
zha ar zash karsti: you idiot
deir zash sokamas: you architects
deyit zash beinet: one of you boys
is zash Phoriphio: I, Phoriphio
Zash also joins a pronoun and a number: "wir zash em" means "we three", and "wir zash em teyes" means "we three kings".
In an appositive that echoes back to an antecedent mentioned before in order to correctly place the modifying phrase, the word zash is used and then the nominal:
Zilas Dantonik keneksenen heshra ad mem oelfalos we, zash heshra azad ayen az wan kadanizen non khiyel.
citizen-PL Danton-ian follow-PST heshra to 3p unquestioning ADV APPOS heshra for-whom have-PST that he convict-PSV-PST for embezzlement
The Dantonese citizens followed their heshra without question, a heshra who had once been convicted of embezzlement.
Zash is used after a position as a title: "Donam zash Idve" means "President Idve". However, "Den" (Saint) does not take zash: "St. Andy" is "Den Andy".
Proper nouns like "Lehola Galaxy" or "Naspar River" consist of the common noun first, than zash, then the proper noun:
*opei zash Lehola: Lehola Galaxy
Hazas zash Naspar: Naspar River
Here are the personal pronouns in Kankonian:
is: I
ar: you (singular)
wan: he, she, it
wit: one of us
deyit: one of you
met: one of them
wir: we
deir: you (plural)
mem: they
There is also the pronoun "o", meaning one, a generic you, as in "If one wants to feel energetic in the morning, one should get a good night's sleep".
All pronouns are androgynous. Since "he", "she" and "it" all become "wan", the problem of
having two "wan's" in the same sentence can be solved by changing one to a specific noun (such as "wiri" or "mopiga") or name, or changing an "it" to "this" or "that" (ham). The translation of "it" tends to lean towards "wan" when it refers to a clearly picturable object and is the subject of a sentence, and towards "ham" when it refers to an abstract noun or action and is the object of a sentence or connective (preposition). "Ham" is also used when what is referred to is a gerund or an entire sentence or fact:
Kheri esthien shil puvur is, am ham os meshudzen is.
Kheri call-PST as loser 3s but that NEG bother-PST 3s
Kheri called me a loser, but it didn't bother me.
With statements about temperature, use "mesemiwa" (weather) to translate "it":
Mesemiwa as tziyim.
weather PRS hot
It is hot.
For sentences such as "It was then that . . .", use "enles" (time) to translate "it":
Enles en rei az kam is gerien shil *igot leshal na is.
time PST then REL at 1s notice-PST as missing purse of 1s
It was then that I noticed my purse was missing.
"Enles" also translates "it" when one is talking about the month, season, year, decade, etc.:
Enles as tan tzopu tziyim!
time PRS one summer hot
It is one hot summer!
Enles en 9472.
time PST 9472
It was [the year] 9472.
When "it" means "the answer", translate it with "demoi" (answer):
Wan steanen houmiel meshudzen is, do is emiyain ad wan az demoi en bikhat na is.
3s wonder-PST EQC-what bother-PST 1s so 1s tell-PST to 3s that answer PST knee-EXCPT of 1s
She wondered what was bothering me, so I told her it was my knee.
When "it" means "the person it turns/turned out to be", this is sometimes expressed in Kankonian with a descriptive phrase:
Jim aparen palat, mui piva az palatenen bein en Kate.
Jim feel-PST tap_on_the_shoulder and girl REL tap_on_the_shoulder-PST-PST boy PST Kate
Jim felt a tap on his shoulder, and it was Kate.
But more commonly, "meya" (person) can be used, because it's shorter and simpler:
Jim aparen palat, mui meya en Kate.
Jim feel-PST tap_on_the_shoulder and person PST Kate
Jim felt a tap on his shoulder, and it was Kate.
In newborn gender announcements, "efesh" (baby) is used for "it":
Efesh as makeke!
baby PRS boy
It's a boy!
Polite order varies. While some hold that placing others first is a sign of respect (wan mui is; ar mui wan), others take a "save the best for last" approach and find another person to be most special when she or he is placed last (is mui wan; wan mui ar).
Kankonian is very much a word-order language (subject-verb-object): "I" and "me", "he" and "him", etc. are not distinguished. "Mem" means both "they" and "them"; both "she" and "her" can be represented by "wan".
Since "wit", "deyit" and "met" are pronouns, they can also translate "you", "he", "she" or "it" when what was previously referred to is an excerptal:
Beinet harshamen ad is. Met envwetzen hakamar wowum mui engumen bomires.
boy-EXCPT wave-PST at 3s. 3e wear-PST T-shirt blue and wear_on_the_foot-PST sandal-PL
One of the boys waved at me. He was wearing a blue T-shirt and sandals.
The excerptal pronouns can also be used with numbers, so "bam met" means "two of them". Excerptal pronouns are not used with words like "many" or "few", however:
Is abamen lem argas mem.
3s eat-PST too many 3p
I ate too many of them.
Fa mem kanedenen yan na is.
some 3p crash-PST party of 1s
Some of them crashed my party.
Although a "one of" excerptal becomes "wit", "deyit" or "met", an excerptal such as "bam beinet" (two of the boys) or "em wit" (three of us) does not excerptalize when it is referred back to with a pronoun. Rather, a plural such as "mem" (for "bam beinet") or "wir" (for "em wit") would be used:
Goka* bam go*ishet g*ementizen, mem azhuweishizen im spekatem ghoshi we.
although two lamp-EXCPT break-PSV-PST 3p glue-PSV-PST so_as_to put_back_together quick ADV
Although two of the lamps were broken, they were glued back together quickly.
To say "my" or "mine", use "na" before the pronoun: na is. "Your" or "yours" would be "na ar". What is possessed comes before the possessive: *ine na is (my hair).
How to say "oneself"? For the reflexive, use "zhi-" before the pronoun: zhiis (myself), zhideir (yourselves), zhiwan (itself), zhio (oneself), etc. The reflexive pronouns comes after the verb:
Wan tethesen zhiwan.
3s kill-PST REFL-3s
He killed himself.
Zhi- can be used for prepositional objects as well as direct objects:
Versa hesias ad zhiwan.
Versa talk-PRS to REFL-3s
Versa talks to herself.
An adjective can come after the reflexive to describe it:
Is emen zhiis sevu* er wozak.
3s see-PST REFL-3s pathetic in mirror
I saw my pathetic self in the mirror.
Since pronouns and nouns are not distinguished as two different parts of speech in Kankonian, it is also correct to use zhi- before a noun or name:
Dan nawanden zhi-Dan non ham.
Dan blame-PST REFL-Dan for 3s
Dan blamed himself for it.
When these words are used to emphasize a nominal rather than to form a reflexive, such as "The early emperors did not always follow the rules of kamandra; Ekhula himself ate pork without any utensils", the adverb "erils" is placed after the nominal: Teinarevores kals os pure gepalen pomires na kamandra; Ekhula erils abamen meimas oel eis takiliges.
To indicate something done reciprocally, make *asig (each other, one another) the object of the verb:
Juan mui San rekidas *asig.
Juan and San hate-PRS RECP
Juan and San hate each other.
Hales meyez sem teret na is mutzenass *asig.
all person-PL among family of 3s resemble-PRS RECP
All the people in my family look like one another.
If "each other" means that some members of a group are doing it to others but it is not reciprocated, use "edez" instead of "*asig":
Er Yues ziyen hous tethes id edez dyu telemas er uhul aas.
LOC United_States problem about kill done_to RECP by student-PL LOC school exist-PRS
In the U.S., they have a problem with kids killing each other at school. (You would use "edez" here because you do NOT mean that Alice is killing Bob but Bob is also killing Alice.)
Compound nominals are usually head-last: shatrakh (post) + katel (board) = shatrakhkatel (bulletin board). However, body parts come after the head: shaikul (ring) + khod (ear) = shaikul-khod (earring). In these cases a hyphen is used. The connectives "na" and "ad" are also used to make compound words: denis (lint) + na (of) + dup (navel) = denisnadup (navel lint). The irregular plural "bwolwu" (eyes) is often plural as the non-head part of a compound nominal: gehez (gyration) + bwolwu (eyes) = gehez-bwolwu (oculogyric crisis). With regular body-part nominals, however, they must remain singular as non-head parts of the compound: verim (bird) + angi (leg) = verim-angi (stilt), not "verim-angas" -- similar to how we can say "men-bashing" but not "gays-bashing" in English. When only one eye is referred to, however, it is possible for a compound noun to be made from the singular "bwolwo": pupu (worm) + bwolwo (eye) = pupu-bwolwo (eye worm). When you are making a compound nominal from a verb and a nominal, and the nominal component is the head, the verb comes first: adat (to run) + gisu (wheel) = adatgisu (exercise wheel). However, compound nominals can be made from a nominal then a verb if the verb is an implied agent noun: amba (camel) + khat (to stop) = ambakhat (cowcatcher) (since "to stop" really means "stopper" here). When making a compound nominal from an adjective and a nominal, the adjective can come first, in which case it will be a solid word: pies (small) + frelith (strip, runway) = piesfrelith (airstrip). When the nominal and adjective have a space between them, the adjective will always come second: rorzi (bear) + karak (black) = rorzi karak (black bear). Bahuvrihi is common in Kankonian: a starak-tiviud (spoonbill), from starak (beak) + tiviud (paddle), is a kind of bird, not a kind of beak. Rarely, two connectives can make a compound nominal, as in bahai (up) + mer (around) = bahaimer (Ferris wheel). Compound nominals can also consist of a nominal, a verb and a suffix: ne*et (nose) + inzitzi (to pick) + -fash (-er) = ne*etinzitzifash (nose-picker).
Trees may be identified as "fega bepis" (apple tree) or "fega ve*itz" (lemon tree), to distinguish the tree from the fruit. However, such redundant names for plant and animal species as "dodo bird", "tuna fish" and "oak tree" are avoided in Kankonian. (This is a rare case of a head-first noun apposition that does not involve an animal body part.)
Verbs
Verbs in Kankonian are preceded by subjects and take the following conjugation:
abam - to eat
is abamas - I eat
ar abamas - you eat
wan abamas - s/he eats, it eats
o abamas - (generic) one eats
wit abamas - one of us eats
deyit abamas - one of you eats
met abamas - one of them eats
wir abamas - we eat
deir abamas - you all eat
mem abamas - they eat
The same pronouns can be used with different tenses. The verb in Kankonian takes on these different forms:
Infinitive: Used after a helping verb, without any ending.
Wan wahazas efil venit we.
3s be_able_to-PRS dance good ADV
He can dance well.
Present: To describe an action that is occurring right now, or a fact that always holds true, or an event or action that the speaker/writer wants to keep timeless, as in a timeline or literary analysis. The present tense is also used for something that happens sometime during a time period (such as a month or year), when a person is unsure whether it has already happened or not.
Mara gasias shures.
Mara look_at-PRS flower-PL
Mara is looking at the flowers.
Stenza hazias ad shalob meyez.
stenza make-PRS to drunk person-PL
Stenza makes people drunk.
1031: Povoyikes yeringas shil kabing ad hongdin Tzelshik zhimem.
1031 Povoian-PL declare-PRS as subjugate to reign Tzelshan REFL-3p
1031: The Povoians declare themselves subjugate to Tzelshan rule.
Kam ham oiri Nara letzas 73.
at this year Nara turn-PRS 73
Nara turns 73 this year.
Past: To describe an action or state that happened in the past, but is now completed; translates the past tense (like "ate") and in most cases the past participle (like "have eaten").
Aurea baitziten wudan.
Aurea climb-PST mountain
Aurea climbed the mountain.
Ham wailis pagodomen maikros tri spel na wan.
that director release-PST movie SUPL recent of 3s
That director has released his latest movie.
Future: To describe something that is known or predicted to happen in the future, or something that it is suggested/asked/told that someone do, or something that was suggested/asked/told that someone do that has happened. It is also used for declarations or resolutions.
Wir rezhelos er Shaleya shuyes 4 lamas.
1p arrive-FUT LOC Shaleya across 4 lami-PL
We will arrive at Shaleya in 4 lamis.
Av wan nasuos, sereret butekhes hes ye.
when 3s come-FUT bring-IMPRTV cookie-PL out PREP-ADV
When she comes, bring out the cookies.
Dzasina wafinas az ar kazos.
Dzasina suggest-PRS that 2s nap-FUT
Dzasina suggests that you take a nap.
Eris na yan ksaden is blatzos, do is hoen.
hostess of party tell-PST 3s stay-FUT so 3s do-PST
The party hostess told me to stay, so I did.
Is azfuiras az ar wahazos gedir.
3s hope-PRS that 2s be_able_to-FUT make_it
I hope you can make it.
Is akranos ar ad els.
3s take-FUT 2s to there
I'm taking you there.
Pluperfect: To describe something that was already in the past as of the time in the past you are talking about.
Is spaisenen yea na is av is theshen sokmet ash kutshus.
3s finish-PST-PST soup of 3s when 3s hear-PST knock on door
I had finished my soup when I heard a knock at the door.
Future perfect: To describe something that is in the future now, but will be in the past as of the time in the future you are talking about.
Wir phorenos 10,000 babaritas olme.
1p gain-PST-FUT 10,000 employee-PL universewide
We will have gained 10,000 employees worldwide (across the whole universe).
Enasi: To describe something that has been going on for a while and is still happening or true now.
Spei 150 oiras, wir eroenas hiramik sherev ad babwe*as ad wir.
for 150 year-PL 1p deliver-PST-PRS service from-the-heart to customer-PL of 1p
For 150 years, we have delivered from-the-heart service to our customers.
With a negative, it indicates that, for a prolonged time, something has not been going on:
Is os abamenas hathukh ma rimi we.
3s NEG eat-PST-PRS duck so long ADV
I haven't had duck in so long.
Aseni: A special tense used with certain helping verbs to translate them in conjunction with the helping verb "have".
Ar lesasen hemei az verim spirosen ad vainatz.
2s should-PRS-PST let that bird fly-FUT-PST to free
You should have let the bird fly free.
Oseni: To describe something that was predicted or planned to happen as of a point in the past, but never materialized, or something that it was suggested/asked/told that someone do that was never done. It is also used to translate "would" in the sense of "would later happen", when recounting the past.
Is draikosen ad ar kakel na yeshpeltz.
3s send-FUT-PST to 2s card of birthday
I was going to send you a birthday card.
Is ksaden yed ad is adhasharosen kumes na wan, am gubilas aas nodoi ash adul.
3s tell-PST son of 3s clean-FUT-PST room of 3s but toy-PL exist-PRS still on floor
I told my son to clean his room, but there are still toys on the floor.
Wan wovingosen meshi na wan varel dui kam ham blahatz.
3s call-FUT-PST friend of 3s back later on that day
He would call his friend back later that day.
Future-in-future: To describe something that will still have yet to be done at the point in the future you are talking about.
Er bam blatzas, wir arksasosos Hyaiskindu.
at two day-PL 1p reach-FUT-FUT Hyaiskindu
In two days, we will have yet to reach Hyaiskindu.
Stagnative: To describe what is projected to happen if a person or people do not change something, usually something negative.
Faru Donzar na Sogmordas kanek ar.
someday squad of vigilante-PL beat_up-STAG 2s
Someday the Vigilante Squad will beat you up.
Wir teminen karaph kaluk yehade hakek wan.
1p save-PST dog before car hit-STAG 3s
We saved the dog before the car hit it.
Projected future events that can be prevented are put in the stagnative, especially if you intend them to be prevented:
Akranet wan ad labat kaluk wan enkutek.
take-IMPRTV 3s to hospital before 3s die-STAG
Get her to the hospital before she dies.
Past tense is normally employed in stories:
Kam homon blahatz kam helmetz kampas, zwidan az fuiren utoi leseoti aen.
on some day in past distant prince REL want-PST marry princess exist-PST
Once upon a time, there was a prince who wanted to marry a princess.
Danny en khar ilt, hel nenetzes bmupas mui hekhias zanbam.
Danny PST fellow tall with lip-PL full and finger-PL ten-two
Danny was a tall fellow, with full lips and twelve fingers.
When the narrator is one of the characters, though, living characters and current places are referred to in the present tense:
Meshi zash Danny ad is as khar ilt, hel nenetzes bmupas mui hekhias zanbam.
friend APPOS Danny to 3s PRS fellow tall with lip-PL full and finger-PL ten-two
My friend Danny is a tall fellow, with full lips and twelve fingers.
When reminiscing over the way things were in the past, people may use past tense to describe all the people around and everything that was the way it was, even if they haven't changed yet. Past tense is sometimes used to describe people who are deceased, but present tense is used for the permanent attributes (ethnicity, gender, etc.) of the departed. If someone has seen the spirit of a person who has passed away or otherwise has evidence or proof that the person is still alive in the afterlife, or if the person's spirit is kept in a soulbox (as is often done on Keitel), s/he will always speak of that person in the present tense, except for characteristics that would have changed in the afterlife. Literary and other artistic personages are usually spoken of in the present tense when their style is discussed:
Kmashand osesas demenes na wan hous artzas ad paraitortur tri venit we na betzith er "Nayizes".
Kmashand reveal-PRS thought-PL of 3s about power to defeat SUPL good ADV of love in rose-PL
Kmashand reveals his thoughts about the power of love to conquer all in "The Roses".
Past tense is normally used for mythology that no one really believes in anymore:
Din phugisma en eksakraka naiyes az der brahelsi yagolbes aen.
the phugisma PST oyster fabled REL inside ten_million pearl-PL exist-PST
The phugisma was a fabled oyster that had ten million pearls inside.
Present tense is used for songs, even songs written and produced a long time ago:
"Beotsha" dyu Sobosas as daluye ad baizart haugi.
praseodymium by psychologist-PL PRS song for listen fun
"Praseodymium" by Sobosas was a fun song to listen to.
Past tense is used for food that has all been eaten:
Ham wivinushuri azid wir abamen shil luzkat emam en somsum.
that spaghetti REL-ACC 1p eat-PST as meal three-ORD PST delicious
That was some good spaghetti we had for dinner.
The future tense is used with "lidye" (until) when "until" refers to a point that is still in the future:
Dzena rotuos va adat lidye wan shuyesos torturkhazid.
Dzena keep-FUT VA run until 3s cross-FUT finish_line
Dzena will keep running until she crosses the finish line.
Is os sadamos lidye is wahazos rehin barud fuzwufi na is.
1s NEG go_to_bed-FUT until 1s be_able_to-FUT find hippopotamus stuffed of 1s
I won't go to bed until I can find my stuffed hippo.
News headlines are not put by default into the present tense as they are in English. Events that have already happened are placed in the past tense:
Ekluoi ekkhoeren lit Motebwas
fire break_out-PST near Motebuas
Fire breaks out near Motebuas
Events scheduled to happen use the future tense:
Lile na Akavhhutla spalsamos
cinema of ixora close-FUT
Ixora Theater to close
Trends, polls and soft news use the present tense:
83 zapanram na Kebsabazikes laitekas donam
83 percent of Kebsabhazian-PL approve_of-PRS president
83% of Kebsabhazians approve of president
Moods in Kankonian are categorized into "the three I's": indicative, imperative and irrealis. Indicatives take tense suffixes, if conjugated verbs (i.e. not infinitives), and possibly -iz- if passive. Imperatives take -et:
Imperative: To give a command.
Guiset karaph umbe!
feed-IMPRTV dog now
Feed the dog now!
To make a request gentler (Could you feed the dog?), ask "Mahan ar/deir likas helia . . .?", or "Might you mind . . .?":
Mahan ar likas helia guis karaph?
Q 2s might-PRS mind feed dog
Could you feed the dog?
"Iskalar" means "please", but it has a different connotation from the English word and implies that you are pleading.
Irrealis covers hypothetical situations, or those dreamt of, that are not the case (in works of fiction, situations that are not even true within that fictional world). These words do not take a mood suffix, nor even a tense suffix (but may take -iz if passive):
Yakh zardekes an korenes na verimes, yau mem ien e gevaheas.
if demon-PL have wing-PL of bird-PL then 3p would BE angel-PL
If demons had birds' wings, they would be angels.
A verb takes on these different forms with the different tenses and the imperative:
Infinitive: abam - to eat
Present: abamas - eats
Past: abamen - ate; has eaten
Future: abamos - will eat
Pluperfect: abamenen - had eaten
Future perfect: abamenos - will have eaten
Enasi: abamenas - has eaten
Oseni: abamosen - was going to eat
Future-in-future: abamosos - will have yet to eat
Stagnative: abamek - will eat (if things don't start getting better...)
Imperative: abamet - Eat --- !
Verbs ending in -ai, -ei and -oi change the I to Y when a suffix is added:
Infinitive: grai - to turn
Present: grayas
Past: grayen
Future: grayos
Pluperfect: grayenen
Future perfect: grayenos
Enasi: grayenas
Oseni: grayosen
Future-in-future: grayosos
Stagnative: grayek
Imperative: grayet
Verbs ending in -ss drop one S before a suffix is added:
Infinitive: pariss - to convey
Present: parisas
Past: parisen
Future: parisos
Pluperfect: parisenen
Future perfect: parisenos
Enasi: parisenas
Oseni: parisosen
Future-in-future: parisosos
Stagnative: parisek
Imperative: pariset
Verbs of two or more syllables ending in -a conjugate like this:
Infinitive: ama - to play
Present: amass
Past: amain
Future: amaus
Pluperfect: amainen
Future perfect: amainos
Enasi: amainas
Oseni: amausen
Future-in-future: amausos
Stagnative: amaik
Imperative: amait
Verbs with the accent on the penultimate syllable and an ending of -s (-as, -es, -is, -os, -us, -ous) conjugate like this:
Infinitive: haues - to know
Present: hauess
Past: hauesen
Future: hauesos
Pluperfect: hauesenen
Future perfect: hauesenos
Enasi: hauesenas
Oseni: hauesosen
Future-in-future: hauesosos
Stagnative: hauesek
Imperative: haueset
The most important of all verbs is to be. This is how to conjugate it:
Infinitive: e - to be
Present: as
Past: en
Future: os
Pluperfect: enen
Future perfect: enos
Enasi: enas
Oseni: osen
Future-in-future: osos
Stagnative: ek
Imperative: et
Another irregular verb in Kankonian is to become:
Infinitive: inya - to become
Present: inyas
Past: inen
Future: inyos
Pluperfect: inenen
Future perfect: inenos
Enasi: inenas
Oseni: inyosen
Future-in-future: inyosos
Stagnative: inek
Imperative: inet
And another irregular verb is to go:
Infinitive: uhu - to go
Present: uhwas
Past: uhwen
Future: uhwos
Pluperfect: uhwenen
Future perfect: uhwenos
Enasi: uhwenas
Oseni: uhwosen
Future-in-future: uhwosos
Stagnative: uhwek
Imperative: uhwet
The infinitive passive adds -iz; add another suffix as you do in the active:
Tairak os fuiras abamiz.
fish NEG want-PRS eat-PSV
The fish does not want to be eaten.
Tom palatizen dyu piva az esinen.
Tom tap_on_the_shoulder-PSV-PST by girl REL be_pretty-PST
Tom was tapped on the shoulder by a pretty girl.
Bantz na ar zherthizos ehem ar daitrokos pai lile.
ticket of 2s shred-PSV-FUT after 2s walk-FUT into movie_theater
Your ticket will be shredded after you walk into the movie theater.
Typical verbs form the passive this way:
abamiz - to be eaten
abamizas - is eaten
abamizen - was eaten; has been eaten
abamizos - will be eaten
abamizenen - had been eaten
abamizenos - will have been eaten
abamizenas - has been being eaten
abamizosen - was going to be eaten
abamizosos - will have yet to be eaten
abamizek - will be eaten (assuming nothing changes...)
abamizet - Be eaten!
Other types of verbs form the passive like this:
grai -> grayiz
pariss -> parisiz
ama -> amaiz
haues -> hauesiz
inya -> inyaiz
uhu -> uhwiz
The word "by" with a passive voice is translated by "dyu":
Shai*ap phardizen dyu kafawaroi.
ball catch-PSV-PST by spectator
The ball was caught by a spectator.
Passive voice corresponds to the English use of "they" when it refers to an unknown, unspecified or general personage:
Kelik ksektenizas, do wir fremetos shalang.
road fix-PSV-PRS so 1p take-FUT detour
They're fixing the road, so we'll take a detour.
Epselet hesiizas er Lakhan.
Epselet speak-PSV-PRS LOC Laxan
They speak Epselet in Laxan.
In Kankonian, a helping verb can be made passive also:
Wiri az novosizen baizh rakharten.
man REL try-PSV-PST arrest escape-PST
The man whom "they" tried to arrest escaped, or literally, The man who was attempted to be arrested escaped.
Verbs like burn, freeze, boil, condense, evaporate, etc. are transitive in their basic form. To become intransitive they need to be placed in the passive voice:
Is virakhen shakti na fuburso.
3s burn-PST house of stranger
I burned the stranger's house.
Therat virakhizen.
cloth burn-PSV-PST
The cloth burned.
Habits, practices and customs without any specific person as a subject may be expressed either as passives or in active sentences with "o" (one) as the subject:
Hapowik hesiizas er lei.
Hapoish speak-PSV-PST LOC here
They/we speak Hapoish here.
O hesias Hapowik er lei.
one speak-PRS Hapoish LOC here
They/we speak Hapoish here.
Passive verbs can also come after "inya" (to become). These involve a conjugated "inya" and a passive verb with no ending:
Ham kom inen meradeziz dyu freskines.
this place become-PST overrun-PSV by squatter-PL
This place has become overrun by squatters.
For passive participles with other linking verbs, make the linking verb passive (and appropriately conjugated) while leaving the verb in its infinitive form:
Hames shures meshizas zdapad.
that-PL flower-PL look-PSV-PRS trample
Those flowers look trampled.
Ham seshui adluiizas vifi*.
this food smell-PSV-PRS fry
This food smells fried.
To state that something is to be done, use the conjugated verb "gesh" (to stand) with "ad" to, and then the verb in the passive:
Torturfash geshas ad yeringiz.
win-AGENT stand-PRS to announce-PSV
The winner is to be announced.
If the passive verb takes a dative, invert the order of the dative and passive verb from English:
Thothui* ayinizen ad Zara shil yeshpeltz kyuam na wan.
kitten give-PSV-PST to Zara as birthday five-ORD of 3s
Zara was given a kitten for her fifth birthday.
Engoi benazizas ad ou.
tomorrow promise-PSV-PRS to no_one
No one is promised tomorrow.
Odones na wan zabedizen ab Rapa er dorumphi.
right-PL of 3s deny-PSV-PST from Rapa LOC prison
Rapa was denied his rights in prison.
Clauses headed by ep (as) always take the active instead of the passive:
Basig emelgesen netu ep hotzokh podok ien em.
droodle depict-PST ship as pirate one-eyed would see
The droodle depicted a ship as seen by a one-eyed pirate.
Is baizarten ad "Iyef hous Korukas Ar" ep Argovotones yayaras.
3s listen-PST to happy about touch-PRS 2s as giant-PL sing-PRS
I listened to "Happy to Have You" as sung by Argovotones.
To translate such phrases as "it is suggested that", "it was requested that", "it is felt that", "it was believed that", etc., do not translate the "it". Make the passive verb after "it" into the verb of the sentence, and whatever proposition is suggested, requested, felt, believed, etc. into the subject of the sentence, placing "that" at the beginning of the sentence:
Az halkashos na ar stailaros ham leyo egeletzizen.
that party of 2s sign-FUT this contract request-PSV-PST
It was requested that your party sign this contract.
This structure -- beginning a sentence with "az" -- is also used to express such locutions as "believed to be", "thought to be", "said to be", "known to be", "reputed to be", etc.:
Az ham twesatz as zabuwelmi ubasizas.
that that artist PRS bipolar believe-PSV-PRS
That artist is believed to be bipolar.
Az masetetes tethess mateles hauesizas.
that mongoose-PL kill-PRS cobra-PL know-PSV-PRS
Mongooses are known to kill cobras.
Verbs in Kankonian are kept in real tense:
Wrong: Wan azirethen ad alhas az penkas abamen bolmas.
3s teach-PST to class that starfish-PL eat-PST clam-PL
Right: Wan azirethen ad alhas az penkas abamas bolmas.
2s teach-PST to class that starfish-PL eat-PRS clam-PL
She taught the class that starfish ate clams.
There is no suffix or special form for gerunds in Kankonian. To say, "Being dumb is
unattractive", phrase it with the infinitive as "E amb as develu" (To be dumb is unattractive).
Tamin as venit.
belong PRS good
It is good to belong.
Is ubass az dartz as kasht pure.
3s believe-PRS that steal PRS wrong always
I believe that stealing is always wrong.
A gerund in the passive voice appears at the beginning of its clause, followed by "dyu" and then its patient:
Is peren hous maziniz dyu argas hagrores yughela.
3s read-PST about fight-PSV by many battle-PL ancient
I read about many ancient battles being fought.
A gerund being done by someone or something takes "dyu" afterwards:
Baitzit dyu Sakha id skebol hazien az is themetzen.
climb by Sakha done_to flagpole make-PST that 3s laugh-PST
Sakha's climbing the flagpole made me laugh. / Sakha climbing the flagpole made me laugh.
The "dyu" construction is also used with an "instead of" clause featuring a subject in English. The word "bebe*i" (instead of) begins the clause, then the verb is used, then (if there is a verb) "id" followed by the object of the verb, then "dyu" followed by what would be the subject of the verb in English:
Bebe*i phor id trenkas na pta* dyu Rapa, homoses ad wan draikas ad wan hen.
instead_of receive done_to pay-PL of net by Rapa parents to 3s send-PRS to 3s money
Instead of Rapa getting social security, his parents send him money.
To say "It is A for B to do C to D", put the verb C at the beginning of the sentence, then use "dyu" followed by the nominal B, then use "id" followed by the nominal D, then use a form of the verb "e" (to be), followed by the adjective A:
Safin dyu welas id wapishas ab homoses ad mem as orol.
keep by child-PL done_to secret-PL from parents to 3p PRS natural
It is natural for children to keep secrets from their parents.
Similarly, statements beginning "It takes", "It took", or "It will take" begin a sentence with a gerund of whatever action it takes so long to do, with id and its object if there is one, followed by the verb shunask (to take), and the amount of time. If the person, animal, or thing that took so much time or money to complete such-and-such a task is mentioned, ad (for) comes before their name:
Adhashar id gubultza shunasken em lamas.
clean done_to bathroom take-PST three lami-PL
It took 3 lamis to clean the bathroom.
Troikos id hames vitzakhes shunaskas in kinkil.
cook done_to this-PL vitzakh-PL take-PRS one kinkil
It takes one kinkil to cook this vitzakh.
Retel id kheban shunaskos veye kizanis blatzas.
paint done_to castle take-FUT about fifty day-PL
Painting the castle will take about 50 days.
Adhashar id gubultza shunasken ad Jenny em lamas.
clean done_to bathroom take-PST for Jenny three lami-PL
Adhashar id gubultza shunasken em lamas ad Jenny.
clean done_to bathroom take-PST three lami-PL for Jenny
It took Jenny 3 lamis to clean the bathroom.
Retel id kheban shunaskos ad Sunil veye kizanis blatzas.
paint done_to castle take-FUT for Sunil about fifty day-PL
Retel id kheban shunaskos veye kizanis blatzas ad Sunil.
paint done_to castle take-FUT about fifty day-PL for Sunil
Painting the castle will take Sunil about 50 days.
Hesvewi shunasken ad zhered zash Andy ad is in lami.
cry_it_out take-PST for brother APPOS Andy to 1s one lami
Hesvewi shunasken in lami ad zhered zash Andy ad is.
cry_it_out take-PST one lami for brother APPOS Andy to 1s
It took my brother Andy a lami to cry it out.
A passive clause is also used with a gerund and its object as the predicate (much as we would mark such a clause with "for" in English):
Adaz ham yan omo kuless as ovu dyu posk na is.
what-that this party really need-PRS PRS play by band of 1s
What this party really needs is for my band to play.
Kankonians cannot say "I love/like/hate it when . . ." Instead, express the loved/liked/hated scenario as a noun done by its agent:
Is betzithas dzhiu mead angat na is dyu thothu na is.
3s love-PRS rub against leg-EXCPT of 3s by cat of 3s
I love it when my cat rubs against my leg.
Skania rekidas reghul mead wan dyu ashelti ad wan.
Skania hate-PRS cheat against 3s by husband to 3s
Skania hates it when her husband cheats on her.
When the -ing verb is used as a verb instead of a gerund, after a comma, Kankonian uses the word "mos" (while) and places the verb in whatever tense the verb in the main clause is:
Luzana daitroken zipi belimes mos humishen dases.
Luzana walk-PST through hall-PL while fear-PST ghost-PL
Luzana walked through the halls, fearing ghosts.
Is efilos ashkhesti, mos oyidzhegos stares kelikzekeli we.
1s dance-FUT onstage while make_up-FUT move-PL road-draw-y ADV
I'll dance onstage, making the moves up as I go.
When the main clause has the helping verb "ien" (would), the verb after "mos" is in the past tense:
Is ien ailis dumath we, mos abamen pitza haliblatzi we.
1s would live alone ADV while eat-PST pizza all-day-y ADV
I would live alone, eating pizza all day.
If you have some but not all of the people or things mentioned doing something, use "mos", then a pronoun, immediately followed by the verb:
Beines na posk geshen ash bakhu mos met hushisen lehesh mui met duesken nephus na met mui bam met wakhiren tzizawa.
boy-PL of band stand-PST on porch while 3e smoke-PST cigarette and 3e have_off-PST shirt of 3e and two 3e drink-PST lemonade
The boys from the band stood on the porch, one smoking a cigarette, one with his shirt off, two drinking lemonade.
To describe something that is or was in the process of happening at a certain time, place the adverb "safga" somewhere in the clause:
Is zhaiwangen safga agras na is av is gerien kobonir e kumes.
3s fold-PST PROG sock-PL of 3s when 3s notice-PST cricket in room
I was folding my socks when I noticed a cricket in the room.
Mahan ar as vwetzu?
-Is vwetzas safga.
Q 2s PRS dressed
-I get_dressed-PRS PROG
Are you dressed?
-I'm in the process of getting dressed.
Kard regudeos safga amaus okoidesk av is os e labat mos watamos efesh ad is.
Kard probably PROG play-FUT video_game when 3s FUT in hospital while give_birth_to-FUT baby to 3s
Kard will probably be playing video games when I'm at the hospital having my baby.
Spei hamargas oiras, is safga moramenas shes na ozuvwi azad is ubass az wan ufoyanos bayis.
for all_these year-PL 3s PROG compose-PST-PRS piece of music for-which 3s believe-PRS that 3s change-FUT world
For all these years, I have been composing a piece of music that I believe will change the world.
Both "zhaiwangen safga" and "safga zhaiwangen", "vwetzas safga" and "safga vwetzas", "regudeos safga" and "safga regudeos", and "moramenas safga" and "safga moramenas" are correct.
The hortatory ("Let's") can be translated with the phrase "Is wafinas az wir", or "I suggest that we", along with the future tense of the verb:
Is wafinas az wir wakhiros purzad.
3s suggest-PRS that 1p drink-FUT purzad
Let's drink some purzad.
A briefer way to do it is to begin the sentence with "wir" and put the verb into the imperative:
Wir wakhiret purzad!
1p drink-FUT purzad
Sentences beginning with "May . . ." to declare a wish that something happen are translated by placing the verb in the imperative after the subject:
Vainatzos belhetet ab hazas sarz rivas phalushizen!
freedom spring-IMPRTV from river-PL where blood spill-PSV-PST
May freedom spring from the rivers where blood has been spilt!
This structure is also used in legal documents and proclamations where we would use "shall":
Aushak mead atzwanes os noashet alhakh id hias meghoida hel pharomes nairi mui gwapatz osh.
ban against law-PL NEG prevent-IMPRTV creation done_to entity-PL non-government with activity-PL similar and ends OSH
The ban on laws shall not prevent the creation of nongovernment entities with similar activities and ends.
Questions beginning in "er" (why?) questioning why someone should do something, or beginning in "eros" (why not?) encouraging someone to do something, take the imperative after the question-word opening:
Er shterenget?
why worry-IMPRTV
Why worry?
Eros morgenet ad wan karg na tzumukh?
why_not buy-IMPRTV for 3s box of chocolate
Why not buy her a box of chocolate?
"Yakh" is the Kankonian word for "if". The verb in a clause beginning with "yakh" is conjugated normally when something does have a possibility to be true or to happen:
Yakh ham wiri hesias yis, yau argas gilas hekiki tzenethas e urauzi.
if this man speak-PRS truth then many thing-PL strange happen-PRS in basement
If this man is telling the truth, then a lot of strange things are going on inside the basement.
Yakh Salina efesos, yau rayalet ayin ad wan haihas prin.
if Salina drop_by-FUT then be_sure_to-IMPRTV give to 3s cake new
If Salina drops by, be sure to give her the new cake.
To translate "if" with the irrealis (subjunctive) mood -- counterfactuals -- use the verb without any suffixes (same as the infinitive form):
Yakh meyez an shpad ekht, yau wir ien awawish adod *inam.
if person-PL have mouth zero then 1p would starve to death
If people had no mouths, we would starve to death.
Yakh is e algas, yau is ien morgen shakti prin.
if 3s BE rich then 3s would buy house new
Were I rich, I would buy a new house.
When what would hypothetically happen is in the past or future, use "yakhen" or "yakhos" instead of "yakh" and use the verb with no suffix:
Yakhen ar tzemau falish, yau wir ien an hen ad morgen id shalut.
if-PST 2s sell marijuana then 1p would have money for buy done_to sugar
If you had sold the marijuana, we would have money to buy sugar.
Yakhos bayis zakhtad, yau is ien fuir an ar hel is.
if-FUT world end then 3s would want have 2s with 3s
If the world were going to end, I would want to have you with me.
"Yazhem yakh" means "what if". For questions in which this is a real possibility, use a tense suffix for the verb:
Yazhem yakh is as lem karsk?
what_about if 3s PRS too fat
What if I'm too fat?
For counterfactuals, however, this uses a verb without a tense suffix, and -en or -os may be added to the "yakh" in "yazhem yakh":
Yazhem yakh meimas an korenes?
what_about if pig-PL have wing-PL
What if pigs had wings?
Yazhem yakhen reghithio muzapeshi a kam god yughela?
what_about if-PST civilization communist exist in era ancient
What if a communist society had existed in ancient times?
"Suppose . . ." statements with counterfactuals begin with "Sorumet yakh . . ." (Suppose if . . .). The "yakh" will become "yakhen" or "yakhos" if the counterfactual is in the past or future:
Sorumet yakh ar e ka*azosis.
suppose-IMPRTV if 2s BE politician
Suppose you were a politician.
Sorumet yakhen avim kobaphadim gezenuv soyinophadim er Tenta.
suppose-IMPRTV if-PST never consensualism replace educationism LOC Tenta
Suppose consensualism had never replaced educationism in Tenta.
Irrealis may also be used with "openg" (as if). "Opengen" and "opengos", like "yakhen" and "yakhos", may be used if the irrealis is in the past or future tense:
Wan emptshoven Danny openg wan e pleu.
3s kiss-PST Danny as_if 3s BE gay
He kissed Danny as if he were gay.
Is semishen opengen fas hakizad der is.
3s feel-PST as_if-PST something shatter inside 3s
I felt as if something had shattered inside of me.
The irrealis is also used with negative "because", when the condition in the clause governed by "because" is not true. When the condition is true, the past, present, future or whatever is used:
Ham ili as ma guhait daz pintzas na efil na wan, amon daz wan takikh we laikiras ayaspas na stormanes.
that show PRS so popular because_of number-PL of dance of 3s but-NEG because 3s accurate ADV portray-PRS life of teen-PL
That show is so popular because of its dance numbers, not because it accurately portrays teen life. [The denotation is that the show does accurately portray teen life, but that's not why it's popular.]
Ham ili as ma guhait daz pintzas na efil na wan, amon daz wan takikh we laikir ayaspas na stormanes.
that show PRS so popular because_of number-PL of dance of 3s but-NEG because 3s accurate ADV portray life of teen-PL
That show is so popular because of its dance numbers, not because it accurately portrays teen life. [The denotation is that it does not accurately portray teen life.]
Irrealis is also used in a dependent clause to agree with an irrealis main clause:
Mem ien kardas az is e zabletz.
3p would think that 3s BE crazy
They'd think I was crazy. (Not "Mem ien kardas az is as zabletz" nor "is en zabletz".)
To indicate "regardless of what may happen", the word "houmiel" (what) begins the phrase, followed by an optional subject, a conjugated "yeiz" (may), the infinitive verb and its object, and the postposition "anol" (regardless of):
Houmiel dehires yeizas shunask, is rayalos faz adaz is kuless ad kuni id ar.
EQC-what circumstance may-PRS require 3s be_sure_to-FUT do what-that 3s need-PRS for help done_to 2s
Whatever circumstances may require, I'll be sure to do what I need to to help you.
To say "stopped coming", "continues to try", "keep saying", etc., use the particle "va" in between the inflected verb and the infinitive: "khaten va nasu", "rotuas va novos".
When verbs like "hear", "see" or "imagine" are being used to take an event as their "object", the event is expressed as a complete sentence, without any connectives leading from the introductory verb. Usually the event will be in the same tense as the introductory verb. For example:
Wan emen kamar daitroken shuyes kelik.
3s see-PST elephant walk-PST across road
She saw an elephant walk across the road.
An exception is when the introductory verb is "tzaiyo" (to remember):
Is tzaiyoas ar themetzen kaikan we.
3s remember-PRS 2s laugh-PST loud ADV
I remember you laughing loudly.
When "hear", "see", "imagine", etc. is infinitive, the verb in the event will be in the same tense as the conjugated verb:
Is fuiras ovai shakti virakhizas.
3s want-PRS watch house burn-PSV-PRS
I want to watch the house burn.
When such a verb is in the imperative, the verb of event will be in the future:
Baizartet ad verim yayaros.
listen-IMPRTV to bird sing-FUT
Listen to the bird sing.
If the subject of the event is the same person or thing as the subject of the sentence, the reflexive prefix zhi- will be used:
Is odenen zhiis phoren sima ad ham onishartz.
3s picture-PST REFL-3s get-PST sima for that test
I saw myself getting a sima on that test.
If the verb such as "see" is in the passive, the verb in the event will be in the same tense, but without the -iz suffix. There are two ways to form such a sentence, with "mos" or without "mos":
Ravakh emizen uskhuphusen ash yehade na is.
hobo see-PSV-PST defecate-PST on car of 3s
The hobo was seen defecating on my car.
Ravakh emizen mos uskhuphusen ash yehade na is.
hobo see-PSV-PST while defecate-PST on car of 3s
The hobo was seen defecating on my car.
Noto tri mamiz ad wan ukmayizen adpinyeshen wasakohir na uhul.
child SUPL young to 3s catch-PSV-PST do_graffiti-PST restroom of school
Her youngest child was caught doing graffiti in the school restroom.
Noto tri mamiz ad wan ukmayizen mos adpinyeshen wasakohir na uhul.
child SUPL young to her catch-PSV-PST while do_graffiti-PST restroom of school
Her youngest child was caught doing graffiti in the school restroom.
The endings on the passive verb and the witnessed verb remain the same if the passive (main) verb is part of a relative clause:
Ravakh az emizen mos uskhuphusen ash yehade na is anen dumas in.
hobo REL see-PSV-PST while defecate-PST on car of 3s have-PST thumb one
The hobo who was seen defecating on my car had one thumb.
If the verb such as "see" is in the irrealis, the verb in the event will have no suffix:
Yakh is apar pakadzhoma avur bulush hupam na is, yau is ien heyiyet.
if 3s feel pakajooma crawl down back of 3s then 3s would scream
If I felt a pakajooma crawling down my back, I would scream.
If the main verb in such a construction is a helping verb, use the tense of the helping verb to determine the tense of sensed verb:
Is wahazen apar pilakh eueren.
3s be_able_to-PST feel ground move-PST
I could feel the ground moving. (To move takes the past tense, since "wahazen", could, is in the past.)
If the witnessed event is in the passive, use the passive -iz and then make the passive verb in the same tense as the main verb:
Hales wir ovayen phirio ashitizen.
all 1p watch-PST temple destroy-PSV-PST
We all watched the temple destroyed.
When the main verb in such a construction is an infinitive AND the verb in the witnessed event is passive, place the main verb in the infinitive, use "id", then make the passive verb in the witnessed event into a passive infinitive, followed by "dyu" (by) and the subject of the witnessed event, then proceed with the active verb in the witnessed event:
Ovai id hamiiz dyu babi as fwu*is.
watch done_to make-PSV by sausage PRS no_fun
Watching sausage be made is no fun.
When the main verb is an infinitive, the verb in the witnessed event is passive, AND the whole such phrase is the object of "ad" (to, in order to), place the infinitive verb, then "id", then a passive infinitive verb at the end of the clause, after "ad":
Argas dephudanas oyezas az atzwanes alhekhizas ad ovai id turdiz.
many anarchist-PL say-PRS that law-PL create-PSV-PRS for watch done_to break-PSV
Many anarchists say laws are created to watch being broken.
Such a construction can also be used with "ai" (to have), instead of a verb such as "to see" or "to watch":
Ham deshing arditzizen ad ai id zriziz dyu arheyizhas.
this essay write-PSV-PST for have done_to tear_apart-PSV by deconstructionist-PL
This essay was written to have torn apart by the deconstructionists.
For infinitive phrases after emotion words, use the connective "hous" (about) to introduce the phrase, and put the verb in its appropriate tense:
Karaph os ma iyef hous prebetos ar.
dog FUT so happy about see-FUT 2s
The dog will be so happy to see you.
Donam en hel zimis hous rehinen zhiis er Guzhud.
president PRS with surprise about find-PST REFL-3s in Hell
The president was surprised to find himself in Hell.
The connective "id" is used to mean that an action is "done to" something. It is used after a gerund to connect it to its object:
Adhashar id goshaniya en hethet stoern.
clean done_to toilet PST task difficult
Cleaning the toilet was a difficult task.
Ovai id zikheth id ventas dyu meyez hazias ad tzareimin is.
watch done_to shoot done_to animal-PL by person-PL make-PRS to angry 1s
Watching people shoot animals makes me angry.
Passive object-phrases like the latter example must have a verb. Instead of "seeing him happy", say "seeing him be happy":
Em id e gweimo dyu ar soerzas is.
see done_to BE sad by 2s pain-PRS 1s
Seeing you sad pains me.
Note that a second "id" is not required after the verb "e". "Id" is osed, however, with the verb inya (to become):
Zhegul na Dzhusinda as inya id mesalis.
ambition of Dzhusinda PRS become done_to pop_star
Dzhusinda's ambition is to become a pop star.
"Id" is also used when the object of a gerund is a reflexive:
Rekid id zhio as ungudma.
hate done_to REFL-one PRS problematic
Hating oneself is a problem.
Busiskhephtyud *aitzartizen ba abu id zhimem dyu halite.
symposium start-PSV-PST with introduce done_to REFL-3p by everybody
The symposium started with everybody introducing themselves.
"Ad" is used to translate "to" or "in order to", and "id" is put between the verb and the object:
Naselle adnatain kelik ad hemei id viovis ad yehade.
Naselle clear-PST path to allow done_to room for car
Naselle cleared the path to make room for the car.
When "to" is used with a meaning more like "as" than "in order to", "shil" is used instead (with "id"):
Shil mehim id Hapowik, ma di ti.
as use done_to Hapoish ma di ti
To use the Hapoish, ma di ti.
To say in order for someone to do something, use "ad" right before the verb, and end the clause with the connective "dyu" followed by whoever or whatever is doing it:
Er Kebsabaz, famoi trayas shta 27 oiras ad estemyul id wan dyu ar.
in Kebsabhaz someone have_to-PRS measure 27 year-PL for have_sex done_to 3s by 2s
In Kebsabhaz, someone must be 27 for you to have sex with him or her.
Describing waiting for someone to do something takes a similar structure:
Is geshen els mos durnen ad dugak id wasakohir dyu wiri Shaleyik.
1s stand-PST there while wait-PST for exit done_to restroom by man Shaleyan
I stood there waiting for the Shaleyan man to exit the restroom.
To say that something or someone makes it [adjective] for someone to do something, use "hazi" (to make) with the connective "az" (that), then place the verb in gerund form, followed by the passive "dyu" and the person who's doing the action as the prepositional object of "dyu", then the form of the verb to be, then the adjective (make it easy, make it difficult, make it fun, make it special, etc.):
Zhashaka hazien az phizur dyu is en re khetz.
white_sound_machine make-PST that sleep by 1s PST COMP easy
The white sound machine made it easier for me to sleep.
If the verb that it was made [adjective] for someone to do takes a direct object, put "id" and the object of "id" somewhere after that verb:
Ovai id hamiiz dyu hekas na tzumukh mui *iletes na tzumukh hazien az abam id kharagas dyu is en haugi.
watch done_to make-PSV by zebra-PL of chocolate and giraffe-PL of chocolate make-PST that eat done_to chocolate_animal-PL by 1s PST fun
Ovai id hamiiz dyu hekas na tzumukh mui *iletes na tzumukh hazien az abam dyu is id kharagas en haugi.
watch done_to make-PSV by zebra-PL of chocolate and giraffe-PL of chocolate make-PST that eat by 1s done_to chocolate_animal-PL PST fun
Watching chocolate zebras and chocolate giraffes being made made it fun for me to eat chocolate animals.
To say that something is too whatever for someone to do something to it, use the ad/id/dyu structure, using "o" after "dyu":
Ham kolab as lem woudan ad adsa*alk id wan dyu o.
that tiger PRS too noble for tame done_to 3s by one
That tiger is too noble to tame.
If the person, creature or thing is too whatever for him, her or it to do something, simply use "ad":
Sharla as lem gavonhar ad du*ug.
Sharla PRS too arrogant for apologize
Sharla is too arrogant to apologize.
If the subject that is too whatever is not the object of the associated verb (whatever it is too much of to do), use the ad/dyu structure without an "id":
Mesemiwa geye*itz en lem howei ad pheliz dyu wir.
weather outdoors PST too cold for swim by 1p
The weather outside was too cold to swim. / The weather outside was too cold for us to swim.
*uthis na wir as lem shege*i ad *ass id halis dyu halis.
town of 3p PRS too big for know done_to everybody by everybody
Our town is too big for everybody to know everybody.
Helping verbs come before the infinitive verb of their clause. They are conjugated, while the infinitive is not: likas wayu (might blow), wahazen hesi (could speak).
The aseni tense, marked with the suffix -asen, is used to translate several helping verbs:
lesasen: should have
halasen: should have (logically)
wahazasen: may have
likasen: might have, may have
trayasen: must have
shamasen: must have (logically)
There are also:
ienen: would have
wahazenen: could have
These take an infinitive action verb: shamasen abam (must have eaten).
The suffix -enos can also be used with helping verbs when they describe an event that will be completed by a point in the future:
Is halenos uspis hes ye hali shuish shuyes in lami.
1s should-PST-FUT spit out PREP-ADV all toothpaste across one lami
I should have spat out all the toothpaste one lami from now.
Masaren na deir trayenos devoliz shuyes in oiri ad gai*et id ham airaimi.
dissertation of 2p have_to-PST-FUT complete-PSV across one year for earn done_to that degree
Your dissertation must have been completed one year from now to earn that degree.
When a helping verb is the infinitive of another helping verb, it does not take an ending:
Wan likas novos khat va nagar.
3s might-PRS try stop VA work
He might try to stop working.
To translate "having" in the sense of "after having done something", use "ehem" (after) followed by a verb in the past tense:
Ehem spaisen nutwa, olan sadamen mui wahazen phizur venit we.
after finish-PST nutwa priest go_to_bed-PST and be_able_to-PST sleep good ADV
Having finished the nutwa, the priest went to bed where he was able to sleep well.
But sometimes "having" is without an "after" implied, and this translates as just a "wakh" (as) with a subject pronoun:
Shohazir muye en pensadis, wakh wan tethesen 347,000 meyez.
dictator also PST murderer as 3s kill-PST 347,000 person-PL
The dictator was also a murderer, having killed 347,000 people.
The phrase "he az as" literally means "qua that is", and describes a consideration that a person is something, similar to starting a sentence with "Being" or "As":
He az as raravik, emenos na is enas amasi ab na ar.
as that PRS rural life of 1s PST-PRS different from of 2sg
Being rural, my life has been different from yours.
He az as Kankonik, is khamhaumas ad ar.
as that PRS Kankonian 1s have_something_to_say-PRS for 2s
As a Kankonian, I have something to say to you.
"As" can also be replaced by another verb:
He az shtaas 19 oiras, is gravas stormanes.
as that measure-PRS 19 year-PRS 1sg understand-PRS teen-PL
Being 19, I understand teen-agers.
"As" (or "shtaas" or whatever) stays in present tense, regardless of the actual tense of the sentence:
He az as teinarevor, Ekhula vwetzen sholatar we.
as that PRS emperor Ekhula dress-PST opulent ADV
Being an emperor, Ekhula dressed opulently.
A pronoun can be placed before "he az as" if that clause in the sentence refers to a different subject than is being referred to in the main clause:
Ar he az as dephudanis, is osubass az ar ien grav swetalish na is.
2s as that PRS anarchist 1s doubt-PRS that 2s would understand patriotism of 1s
You being an anarchist, I doubt you'd understand my patriotism.
Only the following verbs are considered helping verbs and therefore able to take an unconjugated verb, without a suffix, followed by its own object:
agel: to be supposed to
asp: to seem
atzethim: to succeed
aunerdzh: not to know what it's like to
azfuir: to hope
el: to have permission to
fartz: to take it upon oneself to
fretz: to be unable to wait to
fuir: to want
gikel: to agree to
hal: should (logically)
helia: to mind
hig: to prefer
hilmis: to be willing
himam: to remember to
i(en): would
kram: to plan to
kules: to need
kus: to fail to
les: should
lik: might
*is: to begin to (with can't)
mai: to be about to (be on the verge of doing)
meadsa*am: to know better than to
novos: to try, to attempt
ogaud: to refuse
opish: to long, to yearn, to die to
rayal: to be sure to
roumd: to be meant to
sagarzh: to be out to
sagriya: to desire
sam: to be destined to, will
sederm: would hate
shakwan: to dare
sham: to have to, must (logically)
shiang: to consider
spladik: to decide
ster: to manage to
thluk: to forget to
trai: to have to
udeyat: to choose
uhom: to find oneself
vard: to bother to
vrin: to really, really want
wahaz: to be able to
wasemb: to be unwilling to
wayes: to mean to
welkesh: to tend
yark: to strive
yed: would (habitually)
yeiz: to happen to; may
yoi: would love
zazad: to be to
zh*aizi: to know what it's like to
The following are the verbs used in vaic constructions, and all of these verbs take "va":
awegel: to proceed
border: will stop at nothing to
khat: to stop
*aitzart: to start/begin
peversh: to resume
raraz: to keep on
rotu: to continue, to keep
satend: to stop/discontinue/quit
shultz: to pause
spais: to finish
The word "daikiz" (to give up) also takes "va" when it governs "novos" (to try):
Is os daikizen va novos shtu.
1s NEG give_up-PST VA try yet
I haven't stopped trying yet.
Other verbs must take a gerund as an object, and use "id" to connect the gerund to any nouns:
Melia betzithas guis id hathukhes.
Melia love-PRS feed done_to duck-PL
Melia loves feeding the ducks.
Is dratz we esmiyain hesi id Hapowik.
1s slow ADV learn-PST speak done_to Hapoish
I slowly learned to speak Hapoish.
Wiri abusen abam id peksas ad abvodshum.
man resort_to-PST eat done_to insect-PL for survive
The man resorted to eating insects to survive.
Hiko keyess haues id dotzaliya.
Hiko pretend-PRS know done_to trigonometry
Hiko pretends to know trigonometry.
Ham gangi asaros virakh id kyu zes penkas.
this ceremony involve-FUT burn done_to five thousand starfish-PL
This ceremony will involve the burning of 5,000 starfish.
*ebait os zdapad id gharaph.
take_care-IMPRTV NEG trample done_to buckwheat
Be careful not to trample the buckwheat.
A non-helping verb with a "that" phrase as its object (says that she loves tacos) can take either "az" and a whole clause (with a subject and with a direct object, if possible) or a gerund (with the subject understood) and prepositional object with "id":
Maureen oyezas az wan betzithas inzhaiwanges.
Maureen say-PRS that 3s love-PRS taco-PL
Maureen oyezas betzith id inzhaiwanges.
Maureen say-PRS love done_to taco-PL
Maureen says that she loves tacos.
Maureen osatzas az wan dartzas seshui.
Maureen deny-PRS that 3s steal-PRS food
Maureen denies that she steals food.
Maureen osatzas dartz id seshui.
Maureen deny-PRS steal done_to food
Maureen denies the stealing of food.
"Ien", which means "would", is always considered to be past tense (people never use its root "i" as a standalone word). Being a helping verb, it always takes an infinitive: "ien manor" means "would lose". "Ien" can also take other helping verbs, and in these cases the helping verbs are used without tense or mood suffixes: "ien lik powor" (would might come_true) means "would have the possibility of coming true", while "ien wahaz adat" (would can run) means "would be able to run" and "ien les satend" (would should stop) means that under such a hypothetical circumstance, one would say the person should stop whatever.
"Ien" is used with counterfactual situations that one wishes:
Is shumiras az is ien e piva re almonas.
1s wish-PRS that 1s would BE girl COMP intelligent
I wish I were a smarter girl.
"Ienen" is used with past wished counterfactuals:
Is shumiras az is ienen haues az ou abamosen kainushuri.
1s wish-PRS that 1s would-PST know that no_one eat-FUT-PST lasagna
I wish I had known that no one was going to eat the lasagna.
A helping verb as a gerund takes the suffix-free form, then is followed by the infinitive verb and "id":
Kules ozhoitz id vwetz ad howo kam hali blahatz shedrazen is.
need take_care_of done_to clothes to wash on every day drain-PST 1s
Needing to do laundry every day drained me.
The past tense may be used as a gerund, with "id", to translate "having":
Is kureshen sharab hous tethesen id maglimez.
1s feel-PST bad about kill-PST done_to chimpanzee
I felt bad about having killed the chimpanzee.
This can also be done with the future:
Is waheraren hous phoros id kraiski.
1s fret-PST about get-FUT done_to shot
I fretted over the fact that I was going to get a shot.
When the past forms a gerund ("to have loved"), the word "en" is used as the gerund, followed by the infinitive verb:
En abam luzkat bamam hel donam en sudoz deyen.
PST eat meal two-ORD with president PST privilege special
To have eaten lunch with the president was a special privilege.
Is aspas en thevan houmans o troikoss f*ilatades.
1s seem-PRS PST forget EQC-how one cook-PRS pen_shell-PL
I seem to have forgotten how to cook pen shells.
Place "enet" ("en" in the imperative) before a verb with no tense or mood suffix
to make a command to have done something in the past:
Enet howo pumas na ar etza is rezhelos.
PST-IMPRTV wash hand-PL of 2s by 1s arrive-FUT
Make sure you've washed your hands by the time I arrive.
"There is", "there are" and "there will be" be are expressed as the existence of something, with the verb "a" (to exist):
Etesyal aas e shubida.
casserole exist-PRS in refrigerator
There is a casserole in the fridge.
Zanbam uwenges aen er rave.
ten-two swan-PL exist-PST at park
There were twelve swans at the park.
Ashya aos e urauzi nozgeiv.
ashya exist-FUT in cellar abandoned
There will be an ashya in the abandoned cellar.
An existential construction in which the nominal would take an -ing verb in English places "mos" after the subject, then the conjugated action verb (and object or prepositional phrase if there are any), then the verb "a":
Argas meyez mos gheisteiven ham yan aen.
many person-PL while attend-PST that party exist-PST
There were lots of people coming to that party.
Khofembas mos baitzitas badku aas.
spider-PL while climb-PRS wall exist-PRS
There are spiders climbing the wall.
A construction with "a" is used as the equivalent of a generic "they have" or "we have":
Er uhules Yuesik, argas pomires oibugmas aas.
LOC school-PL American many rule-PL pointless exist-PRS
In American schools, they have lots of pointless rules.
The word "do", used to avoid mentioning the same verb twice, is translated by conjugating the verb "ho":
Megar heyess haitokal argas we et houmans is hoas.
Megar like-PRS haitokal much ADV as EQC-how 1s do-PRS
Megar likes haitokal as much as I do.
Wan oyezen az wan adhasharen kogu na klotzab, am is os kardass az wan hoen.
3s say-PST that 3s clean-PST cage of parrot but 1s NEG believe-PRS that 3s do-PST
He said he cleaned the parrot's cage, but I don't think he did.
Parin shelimos poisalan yakh is hoos.
Parin order-FUT lungfish if 1s do-FUT
Parin will order lungfish if I will.
When you have a helping verb, you do not need "ho":
Wan oyezas az wan os kaksados ham khab, am is kardass az wan likas.
1s say-PRS that 3s NEG blow_up-FUT that store but 1s think-PRS that 3s might
He says he won't blow up that store, but I think he might.
When a verb takes a nominal and another verb, "az" is placed after the first verb, and both verbs are in their real tense:
Vugis hazien az is adaten.
snake make-PST that 1s run-PST
The snake made me run.
I fuiras az ar nasuos.
1s want-PRS that 2s come-FUT
I want you to come.
Mahan ar hemeyos az zhered ad is e*aus?
Q 2s let-FUT that brother to 1s enter-FUT
Will you let my brother enter?
Ans wailis id ham ili seress az hames pivas meshas ma dani?
how director done_to that show keep-PRS that that-PL girl-PL look-PRS so hip
How does the director of that TV show keep the girls looking so hip?
Harg pfushen az is koiloaren zipi pomosh.
goat send-PST that 1s make_one's_trajectory-PST through air
The goat sent me flying through the air.
When whatever you need, want, etc. done is in the passive, use the same construction but put the verb in question in passive voice:
Reri kulesen az zanzo siuizosen.
Reri need-PST that tooth extract-PSV-FUT-PST
Reri needed a tooth extracted.
When verbs like let/need/want are in the passive, the verb is put in passive at the end of the sentence, and the sentence begins with "az", the subject and the other verb:
Az wan abamen pa*aunges semesh haziizen.
that 3s eat-PST snail-PL live make-PSV-PST
She was forced to eat live snails.
With verbs like ask, tell, demand, dare, etc., the conjugated verb is used without "az", followed by the noun, and then whatever verb someone is asked, told, demanded, dared, etc. to do:
Kemal egeletzen mopiga draikos yawuvizitz ad wan.
Kemal ask-PST woman send-FUT DNA_tagger to 3s
Kemal asked the woman to send him the DNA tagger.
Is rapereas ar duagos ham kogu na zitar.
1s dare-PRS 2s open-FUT this cage of thylacine
I dare you to open this thylacine cage.
The verb "kuni", to help, is followed by its indirect object (the person being helped), then "ad", then the verb it takes (what you are helping the person do), in the infinitive form. Any objects of the infinitive verb are connected to the verb with "id":
Qunza kunien is ad ekhet id valia oor Zhavartik.
Qunza help-PST 1s to write done_to letter in Javarti
Qunza helped me write a letter in Javarti.
The verb "bagad", to hinder, works the same way:
Kyufa bagaden is ad skayu id bokanges.
toddler hinder-PST 1s to pick_up done_to ornament-PL
The toddler hindered my picking up the ornaments.
When a verb takes two objects, one of which is transformed into the other, use "ad" (to) before the nominal into which something is transformed and place it before the direct object:
Mahan ar hazios ad zwidan wan?
Q 2s make-FUT to prince 3s
Are you going to make him a prince?
When a verb takes a direct object and an adjective, and the adjective describes the transformation of the nominal, place "ad" before the adjective and then state the direct object:
Yahalukes ad ighitu wowum hazias ad tzareimin is.
light-PL to traffic blue make-PRS to angry 1s
Blue traffic lights make me angry.
(On Kankonia, blue traffic lights indicate stop, burgundy prepare to stop and orange go.)
Is retelos ad kiul shakti na is.
1s paint-FUT to white house of 1s
I will paint my house white.
Devo spladiken khelam ad rimi *ine na wan.
Devo decide-PST grow to long hair of 3s
Devo decided to grow his hair long.
When a verb takes two objects and rather than one being transformed into the other, one object is considered as being the other, use the non-transformative connective "shil" (as) rather than "ad":
Helemas ad Janeqavansi esthias shil Janeqa wan.
mother to Janeqavansi call-PRS as Janeqa 3s
Janeqavansi's mother calls him Janeqa.
When a verb takes a direct object and a non-transformative adjective, place "shil" before the adjective and then state the direct object:
Is shiangas shil albevik wan.
1s consider-PRS as stupid 3s
I consider him stupid.
Is poiletzas shil stoern holobwas.
1s find-PRS as difficult astronomy
I find astronomy difficult.
"Shil" can also be used with verbs that are not linking verbs but take an adjective:
Eren halites zeratzen shil vainatz.
they_say everyone be_born-PST as free
They say everyone was born free.
"Shil" can be used with "ai" (to have, in sentences like "Rick has his eyes closed") to introduce an adjective:
Is ayas shil han demoi na is.
1s have-PRS as ready answer of 1s
I have my answer ready.
"Ai" can also introduce an adverb, with "shil" before the adverb:
Is ayas shil lei dzhisuan na is.
1s have-PRS as here ansible of 1s
I have my ansible here.
But "ai" with a prepositional phrase does not require "shil" (using "shil" is still considered grammatically correct, though):
Stamos ayen spash adul uweish mui zakwiz ab levatz na wan.
Stamos have-PST all_over floor glue and glitter from project of 3s
Stamos ayen shil spash adul uweish mui zakwiz ab levatz na wan.
Stamos have-PST as all_over floor glue and glitter from project of 3s
Stamos had glue and glitter from his project all over the floor.
"Ai" can be used with an active verb as well. Simply use a conjugated "ai", then the active verb in its appropriate tense, then the subject:
Wan ayos raighios damarkis we kaushanga.
3s have-FUT play-FUT continuous ADV videogram
She'll have the videogram playing nonstop.
Jim ayen tzoyen ash stiv na wan klotzab.
Jim have-PST sit-PST on shoulder of 3s parrot
Jim had a parrot sitting on his shoulder.
In such a construction, verbs with "ien" (would) are considered past tense:
Frida ien ai adnasuen argas hen.
Frida would have come_in-PST much money
Frida would have lots of money coming in.
Wir ien wahaz ai tzoyen e karg na posk zeskis.
1p would be_able_to have sit-PST in box of band drummer
We could have the drummer sitting in the bandshell.
To introduce a passive verb with "ai", first use the form of "ai", then the passive verb with the same tense suffix as "ai" (or none for infinitives), then the subject of the passive verb:
Shanitra ayen tshemposizen ous.
Shanitra have-PST remove-PSV-PST cyst
Shanitra had the cyst removed.
Is ayos fashadizos heshra na Danton.
1s have-FUT assassinate-PSV-FUT heshra of Danton
I will have the heshra of Danton assassinated.
Wan en tzaireimin hous ai abamiz ftohom na wan.
3s PRA angry about have eat-PSV tunnel_cake of 3s
She was angry about having her tunnel cake eaten.
When "ai" is in the imperative, place the passive verb in the imperative mood, with the same voice suffix (-iz) as "ai":
Ayet kanizet dyu ham donzaris wan non dartz id kobletar na is.
have-IMPRTV beat_up-IMPRTV by that squadder 3s for steal done_to fabber of 1s
Have him beaten up by that squadder for stealing my fabber.
The word "hel" can be used to translate "with" instead of using "ai" if you are translating an adjective. Be sure to put "shil" before the adjective and put the "shil [adjective]" part of the sentence after the noun:
Jim baizarten safga ad ozuvwi hel bwolwu na wan shil kusht.
Jim listen-PST PROG to music with eye-PL of 3s as closed
Jim was listening to music with his eyes closed.
If you have a participial verb instead of an adjective, use the "mos" construction with "ai" and a passive verb:
Wan geshen vriz hezisya mos ayen sfakzekizen yehade na wan.
3s stand-PST in_a_state_of shock as have-PST wreck-PSV-PST car of 3s
She stood in shock with her car wrecked.
She stood in shock, her car wrecked.
To translate an English past participle that connects as a loose modifier to another clause, use "mos" and the passive voice:
Lekis rehinen swiu na teinarevor, mos ekelangizen mui goruzezizen.
archaeologist discover-PST tomb of emperor as rob-PSV-PST and vandalize-PSV-PST
The archaeologist discovered the emperor's tomb, robbed and vandalized.
It is also possible to use "hel" (with) with the infinitive of the verbs:
Lekis rehinen swiu na teinarevor, hel ekelang mui goruzez.
archaeologist discover-PST tomb of emperor with rob and vandalize
The archaeologist discovered the emperor's tomb, robbed and vandalized.
If the modifying phrase has both at least one past participle and at least one straight adjective, do not use "mos". Connect the adjectives directly to the other cause, using "hel" with the infinitive of the verb that would be passive in English:
Radim gasien dukhar, kwinzi mui hel poilass.
Radim look_at-PST spacecraft shiny and with wipe
Radim looked at the spacecraft, shiny and wiped.
"Shil" should be used instead of "mos" with a passive verb if you have a construction in which the particular way something is done is the point led up to by the main clause. Use "shil" followed by a passive with the real tense:
Avim is abamen bmebas shil etzetizen.
never 1s eat-PST kidney_bean-PL as heat_up-PSV-PST
I've never eaten my kidney beans heated up.
Is akranas hwoisas bupra shil hambirizas, amon shwoerenizas.
1s take-PRS whirlwind-PL burgundy as shake-PSV-PRS but-NEG stir-PSV-PRS
I take my hwoisi bupras shaken, not stirred.
Use an active verb with "mos" and "ai", and place the verb before the subject to translate a present-participal verb in a subordinate clause:
Khados daitroken ad kutshus mos ayen hambiren pumas na wan.
Khados walk-PST to door while have-PST shake-PST hand-PL of 3s
Khados walked to the door, his hands shaking.
When "to have" takes an active verb, "ai" is used with "az" and a verb in real tense:
Sobosis ayen az is asen totsha tatate.
psychologist have-PST that 1s press-PST button repeatedly
The psychologist had me press the button repeatedly.
"Ai" can also be used with "seres" (to keep). Use "seres" in its appropriate tense, then "ai", then the action verb with a passive -iz suffix and a tense suffix, then the object nominal:
Is seresen ai zhaiwangizen pumas na is.
1s keep-PST have fold-PSV-PST hand-PL of 1s
I kept my hands folded.
When a compound verb is made out of a verb and a nominal that forms the object of said verb, the nominal comes first: nuvaf (down) + abam (to eat) = nuvafabam (to sleep with one's face on the pillow, literally to eat down). Nominals may also work other ways in compound verbs: when va*ab (seagull) and wakhir (to drink) make va*abwakhir (to bite off more than one can chew), the implication is that someone is drinking like a seagull drinking soda (which will make its stomach explode). When combining an adjective and verb to make a compound verb, the adjective comes first: feser (welcoming, friendly) + betzith (to love) = feserbetzith (to embrace). Two verbs may also be combined to make a compound verb: zhaki (to crash) + enzes (to land) = zhakienzes (to crash-land). When combining an adjective and a noun for a compound verb, the adjective comes first: prin (new) + dedban (algorithm) = prindedban (to rework). Even two adjectives can form a compound verb: prin (new) + kampas (far) = prinkampas (to push the envelope). Body parts come before verbs in compound verbs: hekhio (finger) + nenya (to name) = hekhionenya (to turn in).
When an action verb is repeated, it may be gapped. Simply introduce the gapping clause with shul (whereas, while), and use the connective id where the verb would be:
Lili anas havilu ski, shul Tiy id havilu blan.
Lili have-PRS ponytail blonde whereas Tiy done_to ponytail brown
Lili has a blonde ponytail, Tiy a brown ponytail.
Nisha sereren ad is domuyizh ad yeshpeltz na is, shul Andy id uweng wopapi.
Nisha bring-PST to 1s blender for birthday of 1s whereas Andy done_to swan inflatable
Nisha brought me a blender for my birthday, Andy an inflatable swan.
To gap a repeated linking verb, introduce the gapping clause with shul and use the connective shil (as) instead of id:
Demed as alpas, shul unzit shil meui.
err PRS human whereas forgive as divine
To err is human, to forgive divine.
Tzires adetamen selmas, shul khamitzi shil tzebrang.
cheese taste-PST mild whereas chili as strong
The cheese tasted mild, the chili strong.
Adjectives
Adjectives of description come after a nominal: the old woman is "mopiga tzmofuz". Determiners (words like this, every, each, enough, few, many, various) come before one: many eggs becomes "argas kehas". Adjectives like next, only, extra, previous and outer are wobbly, although ordinal numbers (first, second, third, last) always come after the nominal.
Articles (the/a/an) are not used. "Fa" (some) is used in its sense of "more than none but not all" ("Some people like oatmeal"), but not as an article ("I bought some bottles of wine" would just be "I bought bottles of wine.")
The determiner "din" is used for "the", however, when the article indicates an animal/plant/fungus as a species:
Din pholot shiangizas shil mutra das sawai Musefi.
the water_buffalo consider-PSV-PRS as mytra according_to religion Musefi
The water buffalo is considered mytra in the Musefi religion.
Adjectives (with the exception of "ham", below) do not inflect to agree in number with the nominal they modify:
piva ilt: tall girl
pivas ilt: tall girls
pivat ilt: one of the tall girls
To inflect adjectives, use "re" before the comparative and "tri" before the superlative. The contrastive takes "hi"; the sublative, "shun":
venit: good
re venit: better
tri venit: best
hi venit: less good, not as good
shun venit: the least good
The comparative and superlative markers appear after the nominal just like the adjective, so the best grapes is "vropes tri venit".
Combine ordinal numbers with "ab" and either "tri" or "shun" to rank superlatives and sublatives:
bamamab tri salishas: the second most important
emamab tri salishas: the third most important
blatam ab tri salishas: the twentieth most important
bamamab shun salishas: the second least important
anaivir bamamab tri salishas: the second most important criterion
anaivir emamab tri salishas: the third most important criterion
anaivir blatam ab tri salishas: the twentieth most important criterion
anaivir bamamab shun salishas: the second least important criterion
Numbers 2 to 10 are written solid with -ab: holamab, zanamab. From 11 on, the ordinal number and "ab" are two separate words: zaninam ab, hospkyuam ab.
Extremes can be intensified by adding "ting" (of all) after the adjective, so "the sweetest friend of all" is "meshi tri wanzasha ting".
The word for "than" is "de":
Shukh as re bamosh de kwisi.
fruit PRS COMP sweet than cabbage
Fruit is sweeter than cabbage.
When you have the verb "hig" (to prefer, would rather) use "eg" (over) for "than" instead of "de":
Is higas fremet huvong eg shilkatan.
1s prefer-PRS take airplane over train
I'd rather take an airplane than a train.
To compare with "of", use "sem" (among) for "of":
Afra as tri burk sem em.
Afra PRS SUPL heavy among three
Afra is the heaviest of the three.
"Among" is used instead of "between" in such comparisons, even when there are only two parties being compared:
Afra as re burk sem bam.
Afra PRS COMP heavy among two
Afra is the heavier of the two.
"Sem" can be accompanied by "hales wir"/"hales deir"/"hales mem" (us all/you all/them all):
Is payoas az Van as tri almonas sem hales wir.
1s think-PRS that Van PRS SUPL intelligent among all 1pl
I think Van is the smartest of us all.
"Ded" (at all) can be placed before "re" or "hi" to mean any: "any more obvious" is "ded re ukal".
"Oulre" means "all the more", and "oulhi" means "all the less":
E defita dash hazias ad oulre deyen is.
BE anosmic simply make-PRS to only-more special 1s
Being anosmic simply makes me all the more special.
To say one thing is as X as another, use "et" between the adjective and the standard:
Ham vugis en rimi et gue* na is.
that snake PRS long as arm of 1s
That snake was as long as my arm.
Put "houmans" after "et" if the standard consists of a subject and verb:
Zwess os amass argas we et houmans wan lesas.
Zwess NEG play-PRS much ADV as EQC-how 3s should-PRS
Zwess doesn't play as much as he should.
Is os wovingas wan supung et houmans is wovingas helemas ad is.
1s NEG call-PRS 3s often as EQC-how 1s call-PRS mother to 1s
I don't call her as often as I call my mother.
Ham katel os as rimi et houmans is kuless.
this board NEG PRS long as EQC-how 1s need-PRS
This board isn't as long as I need.
The construction "os . . . et" literally translates as "not as . . . as" or "not so . . . as". However, in Kankonian, a sentence like "Zana os as tzmofuz et Nasha" (Zana is not as old as Nasha) could mean that Zana is younger than Nasha, or that Zana is older than Nasha. All we know for sure is that Zana and Nasha are not the same age. In English, "Zana is not as old as Nasha" would always mean that Nasha is older than Zana. This would be expressed in Kankonian as "Zana as hi tzmofuz de Nasha" (Zana is less old than Nasha).
To express "as/so" without using the standard afterwards, use "yels" instead of "et":
Vomyon as memtzen. Mahan mukhebz as yels memtzen?
espresso PRS bitter. Q mocha PRS as bitter
Espresso is bitter. Is mocha as bitter?
Vomyon as memtzen, am mukhebz as os yels memtzen.
espresso PRS bitter, but mocha PRS not as bitter
Espresso is bitter, but mocha is not so bitter. (Unlike "os . . . et", "os yels" always means less.)
To say that something reaches a maximum or minimum of a number, place "war" between the adjective and the number:
Meyez az nagaras er lei gai*etas argas war 500,000 pokhales alan oiri.
person-PL REL work-PRS LOC here earn-PRS much as 500,000 pokhal-PL per year
People working here make as much as 500,000 pokhales a year.
Welas az en mamiz war 5 nagaren e ham katetoukshakti.
child-PL REL PST young as 5 work-PST in that sweatshop
Children as young as 5 were working in that sweatshop.
When comparing things with the proportionate number of times bigger, longer, older, etc. something is than something else, put the times word or phrase right before "re" and use "de" instead of "et":
Haihas en baispam re burk de shufski.
cake PST twice COMP heavy than pie
The cake was twice as heavy as the pie.
Biku as kyu peses re tzmofuz de Rapa.
Biku PRS five time-PL COMP old than Rapa
Biku is five times as old as Rapa.
With fractions, "re" is not used:
Iyes na is en bamiksi rimi de iyes na ar.
story of 1s PST two-FRAC long than story of 2s
My story was half as long as your story.
To describe the concept of becoming progressively more whatever, place "dumi" before "re":
Telemas ad is inyas dumi re almonas.
student-PL to 1s become-PRS COMPCOMP COMP smart
My students are becoming smarter and smarter.
Similarly, "dumi hi" can be used to mean "less and less":
Shuyes oiras, ham yizeli inenas dumi hi afas.
across year-PL that comic_strip become-PST-PRS COMPCOMP CNTR funny
Over the years, that comic strip has become less and less funny.
Such phrases as "better yet", "older yet", "sillier yet", etc. are constructed by placing "re" before the adjective and "dui" afterwards (for adjectival uses) or "shil re" before the adjective and "dui" afterwards (for adverbial uses):
Iyes inyas re zabletz dui.
story become-PRS COMP crazy later
The story gets crazier yet.
Shil re sharab dui, movil abamen meyez!
as COMP bad later tribe eat-PST person-PL
Worse yet, the tribe ate people!
For constructions of comparison beginning with "the", such as "the harder I try", use "seng" (the more) or "sawi*" (the less) before each adjective or adverb. Follow each adjective or adverb with the subject and then the verb that apply to it:
Seng tzmofuz o shorevas, seng viriz *ine na o inyas.
the_more old one grow-PRS the_more grey hair of one become-PRS
The older you get, the greyer your hair becomes.
Seng somsum seshui as, sawi* khanzi wan as.
the_more delicious food PRS the_less healthy 3s PRS
The more delicious the food is, the less healthy it is.
Seng rimi we ar nagaras, seng argas ar trenkiizos.
the_more long ADV 2s work-PRS the_more much 2s pay-PSV-FUT
The longer you work, the more you will get paid.
To compare different adjectives, put the word "re" at the beginning of the main clause:
Re mazarias as naspewam de emenos as rimi.
COMP statue-PL PRS timeless than life PRS long
Statues are more timeless than life is long.
In yes/no questions, the word "mahan" goes at the beginning of the sentence; "re" will always come later:
Mahan re valias na zardarios as haghatzai de relizes as sepwam?
Q PRS letter-PL of gratitude PRS ornery than present-PL PRS pleasant
Are thank-you notes more ornery than presents are nice?
Mahan ar kardass az re valias na zardarios as haghatzai de relizes as sepwam?
Q 2s think-PRS that PRS letter-PL of gratitude PRS ornery than present-PL PRS pleasant
Do you think thank-you notes more ornery than presents are nice?
To equate different adjectives, put the word "et" both at the beginning of the main clause and in between the "[noun] is [adjective]" constructions:
Et Leho as salal et Kumphatri as turkvi.
as God PRS good as Kumphatri PRS evil
God is as good as Kumphatri is evil.
Constructions with "not as X as Y" that use "nearly", "half", etc. to modify the comparison require "au" (even) before the adverb in Kankonian:
Atzwanes na Tenta os as au zaniksi darkav de atzwanes na Kebsabaz.
law-PL of Tenta NEG PRS even ten-FRAC strict than law-PL of Kebsabhaz
Tenta's laws aren't one tenth as strict as Kebsabhaz's laws.
Ham seshui os as au remi somsum et houmans is fuiras az wan as.
this food NEG PRS even nearly delicious as EQC-how 1s want-PRS that 3s PRS
This food isn't nearly as delicious as I'd like it to be.
"No more" and "no less" are expressed by "re dyu nos" and "hi dyu nos" before the adjective:
Ham shiat ad peidan as re dyu nos dom de thothu.
that species to dinosaur PRS COMP by none big than cat
That species of dinosaur is no bigger than a cat.
Kata omo as hi dyu nos almonas de ar.
Kata really PRS CNTR by none intelligent than 2s
Kata is really no less intelligent than you.
Possessives that would be pronouns rather than determiners in English (mine, yours, hers, etc.) require "met" (one) before them when they come after "de" (than):
Karaph na is as re tzmofuz de met na ar.
dog of 1s PRS COMP old than 3e of 2s
My dog is older than yours.
Gaimi na ar as hi dyu nos albevik de met na is.
idea of 2s PRS CNTR by none stupid than 3e of 1s
Your idea is no less stupid than mine.
Etil na is as re rimi de met na Dan.
penis of 1s PRS COMP long than 3e of Dan
My penis is longer than Dan's.
Swiu na muwil as hi debini de met na tei.
tomb of slave PRS CNTR elaborate than 3e of king
The slave's tomb is less elaborate than the king's. / The tomb of the slave is less elaborate than that of the king.
When the adjectives/adverbs "argas" (much), "re argas" (more), "tu" (not much), "re tu" (less) and "anti" (how much) are applied to a noun to show how much something or someone fits the criteria of that noun, zash is used between the adjective/adverb and nominal:
Ham os hazias az ar as ded re tu zash wiri.
that NEG make-PRS that 2s PRS any COMP little APPOS man
That doesn't make you any less of a man.
Mahan wan as argas zash vushem-pheramis?
Q 3s PRS much APPOS brain-calculator
Is she much of a walking calculator?
Is as tu zash hoyatzol. Is as re argas zash somonosakhis.
1s PRS little APPOS chemist. 1s PRS COMP much APPOS linguist
I'm not much of a chemist. I'm more of a linguist.
Wan as anti zash borathar?
3s PRS how_much APPOS scholar
How much of a scholar is he?
"To tu zash" is used for "how little of a(n)":
Vrefri as to tu zash payofash?
Vrefri PRS how little APPOS thinker
How little of a thinker is Vrefri?
To make an SAT-style analogy between/among two or more pairs of terms, use the construction "zanikas hel" to mean "is to", and "oor" to mean "as":
Em zanikas hel oman oor thesh zanikas hel zewan.
see connect-PRS with blind as hear connect-PRS with deaf
See is to blind as hear is to deaf.
In short form, this would be written in Kankonian as:
em-oman - thesh-zewan
see:blind :: hear:deaf
When superlatives take a possessive, the superlative is translated as an adjective modifying the nominal "weos" (way). The possessive is formed with "ad":
Wir nagaren weos tri venit ad wir ad ushtonu.
1p work-PST way SUPL good to 1p to recycle
We did our best to recycle.
When an adjective is used as a prepositional object in a noun-like manner, "weos" is also placed before it:
Is inen re oshoki ad weos venit.
1s become-PST COMP close to way good
I got closer to good.
Shemebet spyu hames surtei as er naihati sharab na weos sayan.
relationship between that-PL sibling-PL PRS LOC side bad of way normal
The relationship between those siblings is on the bad side of normal.
Adjectives may come in any order:
Piva Hitik anen *ine karak mui pletes.
girl Hita-ian have-PST hair black and straight
Piva Hitik anen *ine pletes mui karak.
girl Hita-ian have-PST hair straight and black
The Hitan girl had straight black hair.
Wiri emptshoven nenetzes Bodusik mui hilis mui dom mui shapsal na mopiga.
man kiss-PST lip-PL Bodus-ian and yellow and big and luscious of woman
Wiri emptshoven nenetzes hilis mui dom Bodusik mui mui shapsal na mopiga.
man kiss-PST lip-PL yellow and big and Bodus-ian and yellow and luscious of woman
He kissed her luscious, big, yellow Bodusian lips.
Some adjectives in English do not exist as adjectives in Kankonian, but instead exist only as verbs: dyamad = to be asleep, yin = to be necessary, etc. Therefore, "Verim esinas" means "The bird is pretty" (is pretty being the verb). To say "the pretty bird", restate as "the bird that is pretty" (verim az esinas). These verbs inflect for tense (esinen, esinos, etc.) like other verbs:
Leseoti az esinen daitroken bulush kelik ad kheban.
princess REL be_beautiful-PST walk-PST down path to castle
The beautiful princess walked down the path to the castle.
To say "be very beautiful", etc., use "shayam argas we" after the stative verb: "esin shayam argas we" (be beautiful very much).
Use "re", "tri", "hi" and "shun" followed by "argas we" to compare adjectives like these:
kavineshar az yin re argas we: the more necessary procedure
kavineshar az yin tri argas we: the most necessary procedure
kavineshar az yin hi argas we: the less necessary procedure
kavineshar az yin shun argas we: the least necessary procedure
The word "twifi" is a filler adjective, like "little" or "old". It comes between the nominal and the content-filled adjective:
laderik twifi dazipapi: a catchy little tune
shakti twifi nekaktel: a nice old house
Names of sapient species (human, Grey, domehead, reptoid, ilti, lef, etc.) function as both nouns and adjectives. However, these words usually function as nouns rather than adjectives when they are in the predicate position:
Bodusikes os as taimones; mem as albazhingas.
Bodus-ian-PL NEG PRS human-PL 3p PRS domehead-PL
Bodusians aren't human, they're domeheads.
(Adjectives in Kankonian don't inflect to agree with nouns in number, so in the previous example, "human" would have been "taimon" instead of "taimones" had it been an adjective.)
Linking verbs take adjectives rather than adverbs:
Khovan meshas tziyim.
stove look-PRS hot
The stove looks hot.
The following verbs are considered linking verbs in Kankonian:
e: to be
inya: to become, to get, to turn
blatz: to stay, to remain
shorev: to grow
asp: to seem, to appear
mesh: to look
rezim: to sound
adlui: to smell
adetam: to taste
azapar: to feel (hot, cold, etc.)
semish: to feel (organically)
kuresh: to feel (emotionally)
khotsh: to vibe (linking verb for psychic sense)
kam: to act
bashwel: to run (tend to be); to get
shilzipu: to test
seshuein: to come off as
asetet: to wax
"Dad" (to vote) is not a linking verb in Kankonian and takes an adverb rather than an adjective:
Ham titiksa dadas khemehekik we pure.
this district vote-PRS liberal ADV always
This district always votes liberal.
The pro-adjective for a linking verb predicate is so (so), rather than "it" as in English:
Meyez wahazas e leflu, auyakh mem os meshas so.
person-PL be_able_to-PRS BE shy even_if 3p NEG look-PRS so
People can be shy, even if they do not look it.
The word for "this" or "that" is "ham". It agrees in number with the noun it modifies:
ham bein: that boy
hames beines: those boys
hamet beinet: one of those boys
When the meaning of "of these" or "of those" is used, preceding words take the singular or plural:
hales hamet: all of these
hales hol hamet: all four of these
The same word is used in Kankonian for "this" and "that". Personal pronouns may be used instead of "ham" to disambiguate meanings. For instance, to say "this boy" (when referring to yourself), you can say "is zash bein", while "that boy" would be "wan zash bein".
The determiners "hali" (every) and "hales" (all) are easily confusable, but "hali" is singular and "hales" is plural. "Hali" is used as a sort of distributive plural adjective, when you are talking about each one individually:
Hales ziyenes na is sapadzen is.
all problem-PL of 1s get_to-PST 1s
All of my problems got to me.
Hali ziyen bridretzen mui bridrizen is, khile in.
every problem nag_at-PST and nag_at-PST 1s each one
Every problem nagged at me, each in its own way.
The word "hal" means "each", but it also means "all" when you are using a mass noun rather than a count noun:
Sharon palaten hal telemis.
Sharon tap_on_the_shoulder-PST each student
Sharon tapped each student on the shoulder.
Hal shalut as bamosh.
all sugar PRS sweet
All sugar is sweet.
"Osales" ("not all" with a plual count noun) and "osal" ("not all" with a mass noun) work similarly:
Osales bepas as gudum.
not_all apple-PL PRS red
Not all apples are red.
Osal holak as kran.
not_all grass PRS green
Not all grass is green.
For "not every" (which modifies a singular count noun), say "osali":
Osali kelik as kaelein fremet.
not_every road PRS worth take
Not every road is worth taking.
For participial adjectives that end in "-ing" in English (like running), phrase them with "az" (that) and then a verb (run) with a present, past or future tense suffix: nenetzes az leyias (smiling lips).
For participial adjectives that end in "-ed" in English, use "az" and then a verb in the passive (-iz-) and a past tense suffix (-en): yeskales az pakohaizen (diced onions).
The constructions "easy to [verb]", "hard to [verb]" "important to [verb]", "impossible to [verb]", etc. are expressed by "ad" (for) followed by the gerund (infinitive) of the verb and then the adjective:
Esit na Dan as ad denit khetz.
name of Dan PRS for spell easy
Dan's name is easy to spell.
Khetekes na Niva as ad em stoern.
freckle-PL of Niva PRS for see difficult
Niva's freckles are hard to see.
If the verb in this construction takes a preposition (such as "fun to talk about"), place the connective before "ad" (for):
Stivet na ar as ash ad adist nekaktel.
shoulder-EXCPT of 2s PRS on for lean nice
Your shoulder is nice to lean on.
If the adjective in this construction is comparative, superlative, contrastive or sublative, place the word "re", "tri", "hi" or "shun" immediately before the adjective:
Vropes bupra as ad abam re nekaktel de kran mem.
grape-PL burgundy PRS for eat COMP nice than green 3p
Burgundy grapes are nicer to eat than green ones.
Sem hales daluyas, besemes as ad zrav tri khetz.
among all song-PL parody-PL PRS for write SUP easy
Of all songs, parodies are the easiest to write.
Bayet na kokti na ar as ad haues salishas, am poergoi na ar as ad haues hi salishas.
number of arcome to 2s PRS for know important but sign of 2s PRS for know CNTR important
Your arcome number is important to know, but your astrological sign is not as important to know.
For an equative (as) construction, place "et" (if there is a standard) after the adjective and before the standard:
Bepas as ad dartz khetz et bupizades.
apple-PL PRS for steal easy as pomegranate-PL
Apples are as easy to steal as pomegranates.
Or "yels" (if there is no standard) immediately before the adjective:
Bupizades as ad dartz khetz. Bepas as ad dartz yels khetz.
pomegranate-PL PRS for steal easy. apple-PL PRS for steal as easy
Pomegranates are easy to steal. Apples are as easy to steal.
Similarly, "os yels" can mean "not as/not so" in a clause after the standard-mentioning clause when the standard is not repeated:
Bupizades as ad dartz khetz. Dabuvores as ad dartz os yels khetz.
pomegranate-PL PRS for steal easy. safe-PL PRS for steal NEG as easy
Pomegranates are easy to steal. Safes are not so easy to steal.
The word "osh" indicates that you are applying the same adjective to a nominal that you applied to a previous nominal in the sentence:
Is akranen ash ye markam gudum mui trat osh.
1s take-PST on PREP-ADV coat red and hat OSH
I put on my red coat and hat. [The denotation here is that the hat, as well as the coat, is red.]
Yakh o envwetzas nephus kran o vazhares osh, yau Irlandikes os halas zwintz o kam Blahatz na Den Patrick.
if one wear-PRS shirt green or slacks OSH then Irish-PLURAL NEG will-PRESENT pinch one on day of Saint Patrick
If you are wearing a green shirt or slacks, the Irish will not pinch you on St. Patrick's Day.
If two nominals take the same adjective, but are mentioned in conjunction with a third nominal that does not take that adjective, do not use "osh". Simply repeat the adjective:
Trina anas *ine blan mui oimones blan mui khatal shalei.
Trina have-PRS hair brown and eye-PL brown and skin peach
Trina has brown hair and eyes and peach skin. [Brown hair, brown eyes, peach skin]
If more than two nominals all take the same adjective, rather than using "osh" Kankonian places "hal we" (all) after the last nominal, followed by the adjective:
Salipa anas *ine mui oimones mui khatal hal we blan.
Salipa have-PRS hair and eye-PL and skin all ADV brown
Salipa has brown hair, eyes and skin.
When you are using "ham" (this, that) to modify two different singular nominals, use "osh" to modify the second one. "Osh" should come before the nominal in this case, just as "ham" does:
Is yoyas em ar e lei hel ham talafa mui osh patsha.
1s would_love_to-PRS see 2s in here with that skirt and OSH halter_top
I'd love to see you in here with that skirt and halter top.
On the other hand, if one or both of the nominals take a descriptive adjective in addition to the determiner "ham", "osh" is not used (simply use "ham" twice):
Is yoyas em ar e lei hel ham talafa kab mui ham patsha.
1s would_love_to-PRS see 2s in here with that skirt short and that halter_top
I'd love to see you in here with that short skirt and halter top.
Is yoyas em ar e lei hel ham talafa kab mui ham patsha reri.
1s would_love_to-PRS see 2s in here with that skirt short and that halter_top sexy
I'd love to see you in here with that short skirt and sexy halter top.
To use a verbal phrase to modify a nominal (where we would use a many-hyphenated adjective in English), follow the nominal with "na" and the verbal phrase, putting the verb in its infinitive/gerund form and using "id" to connect it to any of the verb's direct objects:
Ham as gilis na abam id argas et houmans o wahazas sheiz we et houmans o wahazas.
this PRS thing of eat done_to many as EQC-how one be_able_to-PRS fast ADV as EQC-how one be_able_to-PRS
This is an eat-as-many-as-you-can-as-fast-as-you-can thing.
Ham khomar hazien ad yekazsand ayaspas na adat mer ye mui zhaki pai gilas na is.
that further make-PST to hectic life of run around PREP-ADV and crash into thing-PL of 1s
It further made hectic my run-around, crash-into-things life.
To use a whole sentence to modify a noun, place "na" after the noun then the embedded sentence, starting with the verb in gerund/infinitive form, then "dyu" and the subject, with "id" if there is a direct object:
Denit na ham tzehimez anas shad na adat dyu thothu parai totshafanfer.
orthography of that language have-PRS look of run by cat over keyboard
That language's orthography has a cat-ran-over-the-keyboard look.
Ham en iyes na patsh dyu piva id bein.
that PST story of dump by girl done_to boy
It was a girl-dumps-boy story.
A noun may be followed by a verb to make a compound adjective: oyeid (group) + abam (to eat) = oyeidabam (family, as in big enough for a whole family to eat). A compound adjective may also be made up entirely of verbs: euer (to move) + ali (to rest) + euer (to move) = eueralieuer (half-hearted). Rarely, a compound adjective may consist of a noun plus a connective: pumus (hand) + pal (behind) = pumuspal (hands-on). Two adjectives may also form a compound adjective: kran (green) + venit (good) = kranvenit (ripe for the picking).
Adverbs
Adverbs of manner are formed by putting "we" after an adjective: venit we (well), develu we
(unattractively).
Verbs such as "esin" cannot take -we. Instead, to express these adverbially, as in "The baskets were beautifully crafted", use the construction "hel weos az . . ." or "in a manner that . . .": "Veksas sweorzizen hel weos az esinen".
Adverbs inflect just like adjectives:
devim we: smoothly
re devim we: more smoothly
tri devim we: the most smoothly
hi devim we: less smoothly, not as smoothly
shun devim we: the least smoothly
A length of time can be used as an adverb when modifying an adjective measured by that time. For instance:
Keishi as hol drertes we ihoo*.
Keishi PRS four month-PL ADV pregnant
Keishi is four months pregnant.
Abbeven as zanfur spases we slebhumek!
library_book PRS eighteen week-PL AD overdue
The library book is eighteen weeks overdue!
Kahupha as blatkyu oiras we efeni.
book PRS twenty-five year-PL ADV out-of-date
The book is 25 years out of date.
"We" is added after "zapanram" (percent) when a percentage is of an adjective:
Is as 100 zapanram we pamba.
1s PRS 100 per-hundred ADV sure
I am 100 percent sure.
To make adverbs out of participial adjectives (the words ending in -ingly), add the word "im" (so as to) before the infinitive of the verb:
Mopiga feyimen im tzareimin ad wiri.
woman smirk-PST so_as_to incense to man
She smirked incensingly at him.
Adverbs of degree come before the adjectives they modify: "shayam venit", very good; "baphash tzmofuz", old enough.
The adverbs "lei" (here), "els" (there), "keiru" (anywhere), "keitzam" (somewhere), "keisi" (everywhere) and "keyokh" (nowhere) do not need a connective with the word to be:
Khepoilas as lei.
khepoila-PL PRS here
The khepoilas are here.
In other contexts they need a connective such as "er" (at), "ad" (towards) or "ab" (from) before them:
Is ailiss er lei.
1s live-PRS LOC here
I live here.
Rasasha draiken tupheles ad els.
Rasasha send-PST package-PL to there
Rasasha sent the packages there.
The adverbs "adhal" and "vikti" mean each. They can be placed before the number and nominal, or after:
Soweibas hwelen adhal sem pokhales.
watermelon-PL cost-PST each six pokhal-PL
Soweibas hwelen sem pokhales adhal.
watermelon-PL cost-PST six pokhal-PL each
The watermelons cost six pokhales each.
Use "adhal" when the only number is the number of rate:
Mos adiren Tenta Kafya morgenen skenas na welt pik adhal em shinas.
while visit-PST Tenta Kafya buy-PST bottle-PL of juice at_the_rate_of each three sina-PL
While visiting Tenta, Kafya bought bottles of juice at three sinas each.
And use "vikti" when the object whose rate is being calculated is also numbered:
Mos adiren Tenta Kafya morgenen kyu skenas na welt pik vikti em shinas.
while visit-PST Tenta Kafya buy-PST five bottle-PL of juice at_the_rate_of each three sina-PL
While visiting Tenta, Kafya bought five bottles of juice at three sinas each.
When expressing agreement, the words muye (so) or osmuye (neither) can be used to begin sentences. These words will be followed by the subject, and then a conjugated helping verb:
Muye is hoas.
so 1s do-PRS
So do I.
Osmuye is hoen.
neither 1s do-PST
Neither did I.
Osmuye wan hoos.
neither 3s do-FUT
Neither will she.
Muye Keshi trayas.
so Keshi have_to-PRS
So must Keshi.
Question Words
Here are the words that are considered question words in Kankonian: