Naal: Verbs
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Summary of Naal verb morphology
This public article was written by [Deactivated User], and last updated on 13 Mar 2021, 04:14.
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1. Naal: Nouns
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2. Naal: Verbs
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3. Naal: Voice
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This article is a work in progress! Check back later in case any changes have occurred.
This article is a work in progress! Check back later in case any changes have occurred.
Naal verbs do not decline for person or number. Verbs are head-final, with all grammatical qualifiers being strictly affixed to the end of the verb (This does not apply to affixes or incorporated morphemes that change the inherent meaning of the root).
Verbs in Naal are foremost classified by their perfectivity. Perfectivity is an inalienable aspect of the verb, rather than an aspect that can be modified. This is comparable to the situation in the Russian language, where verbs will have a pair with the same meaning, expressing that one is perfective or imperfective.
Compare, for example, Russian говори́ть (imperfective) to сказа́ть (perfective) where the former means more along the lines of 'to speak, talk' and the later means more 'to say, tell'.
As Perfectivity is not an obliquely marked quality, it must be learned with each verb to be put into use correctly. A perfective verb cannot be made imperfective, and likewise an imperfective verb cannot be made perfective.
Naal has only two true tenses: Past and Non-Past.
The exact function of these tenses is dependent upon the perfectivity of the root verb, with the tenses doing nothing more than expressing temporal remoteness to the speaker.
How the past tense is formed is dependent upon the animacy of the agent.
Animate
In the case of an animate agent, the root of the verb is raised. In the event that the root of the verb is unable to be further raised, as in the case of an already high vowel (/i(:)/ or /u(:)/), the first syllable of the root is reduplicated and lowered.
| Present | Past |
|---|---|
| a | e |
| e | i |
| o | u |
| i | e(C)i |
| u | o(C)u |
be' he opens > bi' he opened
du he piles/stacks > todu he piled/stacked
Inanimate
In the case of an inanimate agent, forming the past tense simply involves attaching the suffix -(y)i'a
be'yi'a it opened
duyi'a it piled/stacked
Naal expresses more specific aspects of its time through aspect, which is dependent upon the perfectivity of the verb.
Perfective Aspects
Perfect
The perfect aspect is expressed through the bare past tense of the perfective verb. It corresponds to the typical perfect tense of most Indo-European languages, such as the simple past of English or the passé composé of French.
Present
The present aspect is the simple present form of the perfective verb. It corresponds more or less to the simple present of English.
Past Habitual
Expresses repeated, regular engagement in the activity of the verb at a past time. Formed from the progressive root of the perfective verb.
Obligative
Equivalent to the English verb 'must'. Formed from the Modal root of the perfective verb.
Imperfective Aspects
Imperfect
Demonstrates an event in the past that was ongoing as opposed to instantaneous. Formed from the past of the imperfective verb.
Progressive
An event that is currently ongoing. Formed from the present tense of the imperfective verb.
Habitual
Expresses regular engagement in the activity expressed by the verb. Formed from the habitual root of the imperfective verb.
Normative
Equivalent to the English verb 'should'. Formed from the Modal root of the imperfective verb.
Forming the appropriate root is dependent upon the animacy of the agent.
Animate
Past
| Present | Past |
|---|---|
| a | e |
| e | i |
| o | u |
| i | e(C)i |
| u | o(C)u |
be' he opens > bi' he opened
du he piles/stacks > todu he piled/stacked
Long verbs act the same as the short verbs but result in a long verb.
Habitual
| Present | Habitual |
|---|---|
| a | a'a |
| aa | a |
| e | ya |
| ee | ia |
| o | wa |
| oo | ua |
| i | yi |
| ii | ie |
| u | wo |
| uu | uo |
be' he opens > bya' he opens (habitually)
du he piles/stacks > dwo he piles (habitually)
Modal
| Present | Modal |
|---|---|
| a | aCa |
| aa | aCaa |
| e | eCe |
| ee | eCee |
| o | oCo |
| oo | oCo |
| i | iCi |
| ii | iCii |
| u | uCu |
| uu | uCuu |
be' he opens > paba' he should open
du he piles/stacks > tudu he should pile
Inanimate
Past
Add suffix: -i'a
ba'yi'a
Habitual
Add suffix: -he
ba'he
Modal
Same as Animate
paba'
Secondary aspects are not inherent parts of the verbal root, and can be added or removed as necessary. They come in the form of suffixes attached to the base root before the mood suffix.
-mal-: Durative aspect - indefinite span of time, non-locomotive uninterrupted continuum
-pa-: Inceptive aspect - event or action begins to take place
-li-: Hiatitive aspect - expresses the indefinite cessation of an action or event with an intent to restart later
-in-: Conclusive aspect - indicates the planned end of an action or event
-sa-: Semelfactive aspect - implies the current act or event as one in a series
-co-: Semeliterative aspect - single repetition of an action or event
-ğu-: Conative aspect - implies an attempted action
Naal has six moods: Indicative, Imperative, Conditional, Tentitive, Optative, and Cohortive.
Indicative
The indicative mood is the unmarked form of the verb. The indicative expresses factual, non-hypothetical statements by the speaker.
Imperative
Expresses direct commands by the speaker. It is marked by adding the suffix -saa
Conditional
Expresses action that is dependent upon some external factor. Roughly corresponds to the English verbs would, may, and can. It is formed with the suffix -(a)t
Tentitive
Expresses action that,in the opinion of the speaker, is considered likely. Roughly corresponds to the English verbs might and could, and the adverb probably. Formed with the suffix -qa
Optative
Expresses wish or desire. Is also used to express the future tense. Formed with the suffix -ida.
Cohortative-Jussive
Expresses plea, insistence, and imploring, acts as a more polite form of the imperative. Formed with the suffix -(a)n.
The Negative sub-mood is a quality that can be attached to all of the core moods, expressed through a second set of suffixes.
| Positive | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| Indicative | -ra | |
| Imperative | -saa | -na |
| Conditional | -(a)t | -śu |
| Tentitive | -qa | -xuu |
| Optative | -ida | -ud |
| Coh-Jus | -(a)n | -sun |
Verbal nouns are formed from the nominalization of the bare root of one of the animate verb forms. The verbal noun classes are Supine, Gerund, and Past Participle.
Supine
The Supine is formed from the nominalization of the past root with the prefix mu-.
kuu go, come > mukii to go/come, for coming/going
The Supine is used to indicates purpose in action, as well as to qualify adjectives and adverbs. It is also used as the infinitive form of the verb.
Gerund
The Gerund is formed from the nominalization of the present tense root with the suffix -(w)u.
kuu > kuuwu going, coming
The Gerund is the true noun form of the verb, referring to the act of carrying out the verb.
Past Participle
Formed from adding the suffix -(a)k or -u to the past root, forming an adjective.
kuu > kiik or kiyu (gone)
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