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Grammar

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on January 12, 2006 at 1:38:39 pm
 

Toward a Global Grammar

 

ELEMENTS OF THE SENTENCE

 

Basic Syntax

Sentences include a subject, which performs the action, and a verb, which describes the action. Sentences can also include direct and indirect objects. The basic sentence structure, like English, is subject-verb-object (SVO). So to say “I eat rice,” you would say:

Mi makan rice. (I eat rice.)

 

In Creolian, unlike in standard English, verb and noun forms never change. So for example, you don’t have to change a verb depending on the person (like in English, I am, you are, he is, etc.) or the tense. Nouns do not change depending on their grammatical position (such as I killed him, but he killed me) or number (so nouns do not become plural by adding an “s” at the end). In this sense, Creolian is known as an “analytical language.” In addition, there are no feminine and masculine nouns, as exist in many European languages.

 

Asking Questions

Word order is not changed in questions. In other words, a question would be “you do what?” Rather than “what do you do?” in English.

In addition, certain ideas, such as interrogation, can be expressed by placing ending tags at the end of a sentence. For example, you can put “ma” at the end to make a sentence into a question, “la” to show that it is emphatic (i.e. that you are stating something strongly) “ne” to make the sentence quizzical or suggestive (in English, you might add “don’t you?” at the end in this case), and “ba” to make it into a command. This is common in Asian languages, and once you get used to it, it is a very convenient device.

 

Asking Yes/No Questions

Place the particle “ma” (from Mandarin) at the end of the sentence.

Ti go, ma? (Do you go?)

Ti yao go no yao go? (Do you want to go?)

Dem bi no bi teacher? (Is he a teacher?)

 

Asking Information (Wh-) Questions

There is no syntax inversion. The position of wh-words is not changed within the sentence.

Mi go xule (I go to school) - - > Ti go Wasdi? (Where do you go?)

Dem makan rice - - > Wasyaq makan rice?

 

Expressing Emphasis

A particle can be placed at the end of a sentence to mark emphasis.

Mi go, la!

 

Expressing Suggestion

Similarly, a particle can be used to mark suggestion.

We go swim, ne?

 

Direct and Indirect Objects

In Creolian, the objects should come after the verb. No marker is necessary for a direct object. However, an indirect object should be marked with a preposition, “fi.”

Mi tel story fi dem. (I told a story to him)

 

Prepositions

Prepositional phrases, which describe things about an action, such as when it took place or using what, are preceded by prepositions (words like to, from, in, at, behind, etc.). Prepositional phrases can be placed either before the subject of the sentence, or after the verb, depending on the sentence. This is the same as in English.

 

Expressing the Time/Location of Action

The preposition “fi” can be used to indicate a time or location of an action. You don’t need to worry about different prepositions, like “at” and “in” and “on” in English.

Mi go xule fi Lunjadia (I go school on Monday)

Mi live fi Tokyo. (I live in Tokyo)

 

Expressing Direction

The preposition “sa” means “to,” so to say “I am going to school” you would say:

Mi go sa xule. (I go to school)

 

MODIFYING THE VERB

 

Many ideas, such as past and future, can be expressed in Creolian by modifying the verb, or by combining verbs together. First, there are a number of particles that can be placed before a verb to change the meaning. For example, to make a negative statement, you add “no” before the verb.

Mi no go (I will not go)

 

Serial Verbs

Verbs can be concatenated to indicate various ideas.

Dem no wen yao go makan rice. (She didn’t want to go eat rice.)

 

Expressing a Completed Action

To express a past action, which is already completed, you can place the word “wen” before the verb. This is called the anterior tense.

Mi wen makan. (I ate)

 

Irreal mode

I go watch game.

 

Nonpunctual aspect

I stay study history.

 

Expressing Capability

Mi bole go swim.

 

Expressing Degrees of Certainty

 

Expressing Future Possibility

In English, the common usage is “he will probably come.”

I might go swim.

 

Expressing Necessity

Mi jao go swim.

 

Expressing Lack of Necessity

Mi bole no go swim. (I don't have to go swim.)

 

Expressing Advisability

 

Expressing Prohibition

Mi no bole go swim. (I can't go swim.)

 

Expressing Naturalness, Expectation or Appropriateness

In English, we might say, “He should go.”

 

Expressing a Definite Plan

 

Expressing Repeated Action in the Past

In English, we would say "I used to go there."

 

MODIFYING THE SUBJECT AND OBJECTS

 

Modification

Modifiers (adjective/adverb type words) are placed before the head word. The rule for order is deictic + relative clause + genitive + adjective + head word.

 

Expressing Posession

Possession is marked by adding a particle, “da,” after the possessor and before the possessee. The particle can also be used to relate nouns to one another. For example, you might say:

John da xule (John’s school)

Dem steal mi da mani (He stole my money)

Boy da student (The students who are boys)

 

Relative Clauses

There are two ways to handle relative clauses. The first is following Chinese, the second basically English.

(1) Place the particle “da” (from the Mandarin “de,” also used for possession) immediately before the head. In addition, repeat the subject after the head, for clarity. For example;

Bad rice eat da man, he get sick.

(2) Use a single relative pronoun for all cases, at the beginning of the clause. To make things clear, the subject should be repeated after a relative clause.

The man that eat bad rice, he get sick.

 

Expressions of Quanity

 

Conjunctions

The word for “and” is “na”.

Mi na Tom go xule fi Lunjadia. (Tom and I went to school on Monday)

 

Expressing Absence

Negative concord is used.

Mi no laik nobody.

 

TOPIC PROMINENCE AND THE PASSIVE VOICE

 

Expressing the Passive Voice

Left displacement can be used.

Dem abwat, mi hit. (he was hit by me)

2. Having a particle to show passive voice is a possibility, such as “kena” from Malay.

Auto kena break by dem.

 

EXPRESSING RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN IDEAS

 

Connecting Sentences

Sentences can be connected using conjunctions. For example.

Mi bi American na dem bi French.

Mi bi American kexi dem bi French.

 

Expressing Condition

Place “sapos” before first clause.

Sapos tomorrow weather good, mi go park. (If he weather is good tomorrow, I’ll go to the park.)

 

RELATIONSHIPS IN TIME

 

Expressing Simultaneity

Mi while eat, mi read book.

 

Discussing an Action

Eating is fun.

 

Expressing Becoming

In English, we have a suffix –ize that signifies a transformation. For example, international becomes internationalize.

 

Expressing Repetition

In English, the prefix re- can signify a repetition of an action.

 

Expressing Experience

This is used to express something that you have done, or perhaps haven’t done.

Mi haja go Tokyo. (I’ve been to Tokyo before)

 

Expressing Lack of Experience

Mi no haja go Tokyo.(I’ve never been to Tokyo)

 

Expressing Ordinal Numbers

Add the prefix dai- to the number.

Dem bi dai-do son. (He is the second son)

 

Expressing Natural Phenomena

There should be a subject plus a verb. For example: Rain is falling, wind is blowing; air is cold.

Barix fall. (It’s raining)

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