la Langua da Sorcerìa

 

 

 

INTRODUCTION

Pronunciation

Numbers

Titles

Greetings & phrases of courtesy

TELLING TIME

GIVING THE DATE

WEATHER

Nouns

Adjectives

Partitive Articles

Subject Pronouns and Verb Basics

SUBJECT PRONOUNS & VERB AGREEMENT

REGULAR –AR VERB CONJUGATION: PRESENT & PRETERITE

Present Tense

Preterit Tense

REGULAR –ER VERB CONJUGATION: PRESENT & PRETERITE

Present Tense

Preterit Tense

REGULAR –IR VERB CONJUGATION: PRESENT & PRETERITE

Present Tense

Preterit Tense

REGULAR IMPERFECT VERB FORMS

Imperfect -ar/-er Verbs

Imperfect –ir Verbs

REGULAR FUTURE VERB FORMS

REGULAR CONDITIONAL VERB FORMS

AUXILARY VERBS

Estir

Avir

SPECIAL VERB SPELLING CHANGES

Manĝar

INTERMEDIATE VERB GRAMMAR

SPECIAL VERB EXPRESSIONS

Expressions With Avir

Expressions With Estir

Venir de + Verb

Alir + Verb

Savir + Verb

COMPOUND VERB TENSES

Present Participles

Past Participles

Present Progressive

Present Perfect

Pluperfect

Future Perfect

Conditional Perfect

Alternative Imperfect

PRIMARY IRREGULAR VERBS

Facer

Alir

Puvir

Vulir

Vir

IRREGULAR VERB FAMILIES

Simple –ir Verbs

-dir Verbs

-venir/-tenir Verbs

-prendir Verbs

-andir/-endir Verbs

-natir Verbs

-batir/-metir Verbs

INTERMEDIATE GRAMMATICAL DEVICES

CONJUNCTIONS.

NEGATION

INTERROGATIVE WORDS & SENTENCES

ADVANCED VERB GRAMMAR

REGULAR SUBJUNCTIVE VERB TENSES

Regular Present Subjunctive

Regular Imperfect Subjunctive

IRREGULAR PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE VERBS

Estir = to be

Avir = to have

Alir = to go

Vir = to see

Simple –ir Present Subjunctive Verbs

Other Irregular Present Subjunctive Verbs

IRREGULAR IMPERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE TENSES

REMINDER (see “SPECIAL VERB SPELLING CHANGES”)

COMPOUND SUBJUNCTIVE TENSE FORMATION

Subjunctive Progressive

Subjunctive Perfect

Subjunctive Pluperfect

DEALING WITH MULTIPLE VERBS

OPTIONAL OMISSION OF SUBJECT PRONOUNS

VERBS RARELY USED IN THE PRETERIT TENSE

ADVERBS

REGULAR ADVERB FORMATION

IRREGULAR ADVERBS

POSSESSION

POSSESSIVES WITH DE

POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS

EMPHATIC POSSESSION

OBJECT PRONOUNS

DIRECT OBJECT PRONOUNS

INDIRECT OBJECT PRONOUNS

REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS & VERBS

PREPOSITIONS, CONTRACTIONS, & EMPHATIC PRONOUNS

Prepositions

Contractions

Emphatic Pronouns

EXPRESSION: INDIRECT OBJECT PRONOUN + PLATIR

OTHER GRAMMATICAL DEVICES

HUEN & AY.

Huen

Ay

IMPERATIVE VERBS

COMPARATIVE WORDS

DEMONSTRATIVE WORDS

Demonstrative Adjectives

Demonstrative Pronouns

RELATIVE PRONOUNS

USING PRESENT & PAST PARTICIPLES AS ADJECTIVES

PERFORMER WORDS

PASSIVE VOICE

SUPERLATIVE WORDS

Regular Superlatives

Irregular Superlative

 

 

INTRODUCTION

The American Warlock series is an epic fantasy I am constantly developing in my mind and plan to write out sometime in the next few years.  One very interesting aspect of this story is Brujeric, the language of witchcraft.   There are two varieties: Classical (Romangic) and Modern (Franco-Spanish).

 

In 900 BC, the last survivors of the doomed island of Atlantis arrived on European shores and settled in what is now Greece.  Many of them melded with the local culture to develop a distinct Olympian society.  With the advent of the classical age of Hellenic civilization, the Atlanteans and Olympians blended almost seamlessly with the people of Hellas.  In most classes taught by the great philosophers and in most armies that fought in the Peloppenesian War, there were always some participants of Atlantean descent.

 

This peaceful coexistence lasted until the time of Augustan Rome, when increased experimentation with their supernatural capabilities wrought persecution on the Hellenized Atlanteans.  Thus began a widespread migration that dispersed the Atlanteans throughout the Roman Empire, the largest number of them settling ultimately in Gaul and Hispania.

 

As the years passed, the Atlanteans learned to practice their paranormal craft in secret.  No longer outwardly distinct, they were assimilated over time into Roman culture and citizenry.  By 120 AD, the magi, as they were then called by the few Romans who did witness their supernatural feats, were flourishing in Hadrianic Rome.  Simultaneously, the altered form of Latin they had developed as cryptography for use when uttering incantations became standardized and aquired a certain magical quality in its own right.  That is to say that it was almost the very medium by which their spells and enchantments functioned, and even a mortal who gained sufficient mastery of the language could successfully practice their craft, albeit in slightly limited form.  The new language, Romangic, retains this quality and function to this day.

In 350 BC, the magus Marcus Stephanus Brujeres  had a vision of what he called the magna patria magorum, a mythical homeland for all Romans of Atlantean descent.  Guided by his dreams, he gathered a huge number of magically-endowed followers and led them on an 8-month trek to a dimensional portal deep within the Pyrennees Mountains.  Thus the Romanized magi arrived in the land that they named “Brujerland.”

 

Marcus Stephanus Brujeres was promptly crowned King of Brujerland, and the magi henceforth referred to themselves as Brujeric.  Unfortunately, however, Stephanus proved a better visionary than ruler.  In 500 AD, as the Roman Empire continued to disintegrate in the mortal world, revolution broke out in Brujerland due to Stephanus’ inexpxerienced management.  The leader of the rebels died in battle, but his right-hand-man Esporancho won the heart of the people and claimed the Brujeric throne.  Thus began the Stuarduz dynasty.

 

As time went on and Brujerland met the challenges of internal discord and, eventually, the secession of several southern provinces, a distinct Gallo-Iberian dialect was becoming prominent as the spoken and written language of many Brujerics.  As the decades passed, this dialect became more refined and evolved into a language called Francastilàn (Franco-Castilian).  In 1352 AD, in the midst of the civil war that eventually led to the split of the Brujeric nation into the separate states of Sorcerland and Oscurland, the first major literary work in this language, Les Cròniçes de Merlindo (The Chronicles of Merlin), was published.  This accelerated the spread of Francastilàn as the language of choice for conversational, literary, legal, and all other purposes with the exception of spell-casting.

 

Finally, in 1402 AD, King Esporancho II of Sorcerland named Francastilàn as the official Brujeric language in Sorcerland.  As the newly sovereign Oscurland spread by conquest, its ruling class was forced to assimilate the new language as well, and the Oscuric king Cranduzo II made Franco-Castilian the official language of his kingdom in 1433.  In modern times, Francastilàn is more often called Françespaño (Franco-Spanish).  Additionally, these two terms and "Brujèriçe" are now interchangeable in naming the language of Brujerland.  Romangic remains the language used in spells and incantations.

 

Modern Brujeric is a Romance language after the fashion of such languages as French, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish.  It essentially resembles a blend of modern Spanish and modern French, though a few unique emergent attributes appear.

 

Pronunciation

 

a                      “ah” as in English “all”
ai, ài                 “i” as in English “bike”
au, àu               “ou” as in English “shout”
b                      as in English
c                      before ‘e’ or ‘i,’ “s” as in English “cent”; before consonants or other    vowels, “k” as in English “cap”
ç                      opposite of normal ‘c’
ch                     as in English “chalk”
d                      as in English
e                      as in English  “bed”
ei, èi                 ‘a’ as in English “ate”
f                       as in English
g                      before ‘e’ or ‘i,’ “j” as in English “justice”; before consonants or other vowels, “g” as in English “go”
ĝ                      opposite of normal ‘g’
h                      silent
i                       “ee” as in English “feet,” often pronounced as ‘y’ (as a consonant) when followed by a vowel (unless accented)
j                       “h” as in English “hot”
k                      as in English
l                       as in English
m                     as in English
n                      as in English
ñ                      “ny”; liña = “LEEN-ya”
o                      as in English “host”
p                      as in English
qu                    before ‘e’ or ‘i,’ “k” as in English “kill”; before anything else “kw,” as in English “quit”
r                       as in English
rr                      rolled ‘r’
s                       “s” as in English “save”
t                       “t” as in English “talk”
u                      “oo” as in English “boot,” often pronounced as a ‘w’ when followed by a      vowel (unless accented)
v                      as in English
w                     as in English
x                      as in English
y                      “ee” as a vowel; as a consonant, “y” as in English “yet”
z                       “z” as in English “zebra”

 

The syllable of a word that receives the most enunciation and emphasis is the stressed syllable.  For example, the stressed syllable in the English word “elephant” is the first syllable, but it’s the last syllable that is stressed in the English word “giraffe.”  In Brujeric words that end in a vowel or ‘n’ or ‘s,” stress is on the next-to-last syllable.  In Brujeric words that end in other consonants, stress is on the last syllable.  If a word in Brujeric does not follow this pattern, the stressed syllable is indicated with an accent mark (`).

 

Two special characters in the Brujeric alphabet are ‘ç’ and ‘ĝ.’  The curl at the bottom of the ‘ç’ is called a cedilla, and the carrot-top at the top of the ‘ĝ’ is called a circumflex.  These letters serve a unique purpose.  As in most if not all Romance languages, a normal ‘c’ and a normal ‘g’ have two different sounds in Brujeric.  Before an ‘e’ or ‘i,’ ‘c’ is pronounced like an ‘s’ (as in the English word “receive”) and a ‘g’ is pronounced like a ‘j’ (as in the English word “regime”).  Before any other vowel or a consonant, ‘c’ is pronounced like a ‘k’ (as in the English word “cake) and ‘g’ is pronounced like the ‘g’ that initiates the English word “go.”  A cedilla or circumflex gives its respective letter a sound opposite to that which it would normally have based on this rule.

 

To illustrate this, below are all possible combinations of ‘c,’ ‘g,’ ‘ç,’ or ‘ĝ’ and a vowel with rough English pronunciations:

ca = kah                      ça = sah
co = koh                      ço = soh
cu = koo                      çu = soo
ce = say                       çe = kay
ci = see                        çi = kee 

ga = gah                      ĝa = jah
go = goh                      ĝo = joh
gu = goo                      ĝu = joo
ge = jay                       ĝe = gay
gi = jee                         ĝi = gee (as in “geek”)

 

In most Romance languages, whenever an 'i' or 'u' is followed by a vowel, it tends to glide into the next vowel and form a diphthong, or pair of letters that have a unique sound.  This occurs because it is more natural and fluid to pronounce, for example, 'ia' and 'ua' as 'yah' and 'wah' than to try to keep each vowel distinct and say 'ee-ah' and 'oo-ah.'  Try to say the latter two pronunciations with any speed or fluency at all, and you can see how easy it is to end up with 'yah' and 'wah.'  There are cases, however, where a distinction between the vowels is made, and in Brujeric, these cases will be indicated by an accent mark (`) over the first vowel. Also, keep in mind that when these diphthongs form, they are counted as one syllable when determining location of stress. 

Using capital letters to identify stressed syllables, examine the following examples:

 

Timotio = tee-MOH-tyo                       Timotìo = tee-moh-TEE-oh
continua = con-TEEN-wah                    continùa = cohn-tee-NOO-ah

 

Numbers

 

Here are Brujeric numbers, both cardinal and ordinal.  Cardinal numbers are such numbers as "one, two, three," and ordinal numbers are such words as "first, second, third."

Numeral                       Cardinal                                               Ordinal

1                                  une                                                       premiro
2                                  du                                                        secundo
3                                  tre                                                        trezimo
4                                  cuatre                                                   cuarto
5                                  cinque                                                  quindo
6                                  sic                                                        sìçimo
7                                  sepe                                                     sèpimo
8                                  octo                                                     octifo
9                                  nufe                                                      nufeno
10                                dez                                                       dèsimo
11                                unze                                                     unzemo
12                                duze                                                     duzemo
13                                treze                                                     trezemo
14                                cuatorze                                               cuatorzemo
15                                cuinze                                                   cuinzemo
16                                sieze                                                     siezemo
17                                dezisepte                                              decoseptemo
18                                deziocto                                               dezioctemo
19                                dezinufe                                                dezinufemo
20                                vinte                                                     vintemo
21                                vintiuno                                                vintipremiro
22                                vintidù                                                  vintisecundo
23                                vintitrè                                                  vintitrezimo
24                                vinticuatre                                             vinticuarto
25                                vinticinque                                            vinticuinto
26                                vintisic                                                  vintisìquimo
27                                vintisepe                                               vintisèpimo
28                                vintiocto                                               vintioctifo
29                                vintinufe                                                vintinufeno
30                                trinte                                                     trintemo
40                                cuarante                                               cuarantemo
50                                cincuante                                              cincuantemo
60                                sescante                                               sescantemo
70                                septante                                                septantemo
80                                octante                                                 octantemo
90                                nofante                                                 nofantemo
100                              cente                                                    centemo
1,000                           mile                                                      milemo
1,000,000                    milione                                                 milionemo
1,000,000,000             miliarte                                                 miliartemo

 

Numbers after 30 follow the same pattern seen in the 20s. 
 

Example: 36 = trintesic. 

 

Large numbers are stated by placing a smaller cardinal number in front of the larger number and adding an 's' to the end if the smaller number is not 1.

 

Examples:
501 = cinque centes une
2,000 = du miles
3,567 = tre miles cinque centes sescante sepe 

 

Titles

 

Mesiñor = Mister
Medama = Misses
Siñoreta = Miss
Dono = Sir (Brujeric knights, or chevaleros)
Dona = Lady
Vustra Nobletà = Your Highness; Your Majesty (literally “Your Nobleness”)
Vustro Ĝudicio = Your Honor (literally “Your Judiciousness”)

 

Greetings & phrases of courtesy 

 

Bono ĝurno = Hello; Good day
Bono matino = Good morning
Bona tarde = Good afternoon
Bona sira = Good evening
Come va? = How are you?
Va ben, graças.  Ey por tu/vose/Vuz/Vuzes?* = I’m fine, thanks.  And you?
Va come ci, come là. = So, so.
Va mal. = I’m not well.
Al revir = Good-bye.
Per favoro. = Please.
Escùseme. = Excuse me.
Graças. = Thank you.
Bocupas graças. = Thank you very much.
De nulo. = You’re welcome. 

 

*There are four forms of the subject pronoun "you" in Brujeric.  The informal tù would be used in casual conversation or in conversation with friends or family members.  The formal Vuzo (for a male) or Vuza (for a female) would be used in conversation with people one does not know very well or to whom one is subordinate.  The plural of tù is vusotes, and the plural of Vuzo/Vuza is Vuzes.  The expression Ey per tu/vose/Vuz/Vuze? uses the emphatic form of these pronouns.

 

TELLING TIME

 

Telling time is quite simple in Brujeric.  With the exception of one o’clock, any hour can be stated by saying Son (number) hueres. (Hueres is the word for “hours.)  If it is one o’clock, simply drop the ‘n’ at the end of son and the ‘s’ at the end of hueres to make the entire sentence singular.

 

Examples:
Est une huere. = It’s one o’clock.
Son du hueres. = It’s two o’clock
Son sic hueres. = It’s six o’clock. 

 

To state a time between the hour, simply say Est/Son (hour) heure(s) ey (number of minutes past).

 

Examples:
Est une huere ey cinque. = It’s 1:05. 
Son tre hueres ey dez. = It’s 1:10.
Son sepe hueres ey vinte. = It’s 7:20.

 

However, once the half-hour is past, the upcoming hour should be stated.  The sentence becomes Est (Son) (upcoming hour) huere(s) mones (number of minutes until the upcoming hour).  Mones means “minus.”

 

Examples:
Est une huere mones vinte. = It’s 12:40.
Son cinque hueres mones dez. = It’s 4:50.
Son nufe hueres mones vinticinque. = It’s 8:35.

 

There are a few special names for certain hours and hour segments.  “Noon” is mediĝurno, “midnight” is medinuita, a half-hour is called medì, and a quarter-hour is called quarto.

 

Examples:
Est une huere ey quarto. = It’s 1:15.
Est mediĝurno ey vinticinque. It’s 12:25 (in the afternoon.)
Est medinuita mones quarto. = It’s 11:15 (at night).

 

Finally, the following phrases can be added to the time to be more specific.

de matino = in the morning; AM
de tarde = in the afternoon; PM
de sira = in the evening
de nuita = at night 

 

Examples:

Est une huere de matino. = It’s one o’clock in the morning. / It’s 1:00 AM.
Son sepe hueres ey dez de sira. = It’s 7:10 in the evening. 

 

GIVING THE DATE

 

The days of the week in Brujeric are:

lunedi = Monday
martedi = Tuesday
merçedi = Wednesday
juvedi = Thursday
vienedi = Friday
sàbedi = Saturday
domanco = Sunday 

 

The months of the year in Brujeric are:

ĝaniero = January
febriero = February
março = March
àpril = April
may = May
ĝunio = June
ĝulio = July
agusto = August
septimbre = September
octubre = October
novimbre = November
decimbre = December

 

To state the date, say Est (day of the week), el (number) de (month), (year).  If the month begins with a vowel, abbreviate de to d’.  For example:

 

Est martedi, el vintisic d’octubre, 2004. = It’s Tuesday, October 26, 2004.
Demàn serà merçedi, el vintisepe d’octubre, 2004. = Tomorow will be Wednesday, October 27, 2004.
La Navetà est el vinticinque decimbre. = Christmas is December 25.

 

WEATHER

 

Stating the weather is quite simple in Brujeric.  Simply say Face (It makes) followed by one of the following words or phrases:

 

dul sole = sun
vento = wind
nuaĝos = clouds
calore = heat
frido = cold
una tempestà = a storm 

 

Examples:
Face dul sole. = It’s sunny.
Face vento. = It’s windy.
Face nuaĝos. = It’s cloudy.
Face calore. = It’s hot.
Face frido. = It’s cold.
Face una tempestà. = It’s stormy.

There are two special cases.  If it is raining, simply use the ilo form of the verb pluvir (to rain).  If it is snowing, simply use the ilo form of the verb nieĝar (to snow).  For example:

Pluvi. = It’s raining.
Nieĝa = It’s snowing.

 

Nouns

 

There are two types, or genders, of nouns in Brujeric: masculine and feminine.  Most masculine nouns end in 'o' and most feminine nouns end in 'a.'

 

Nouns identifying types of people can change grammatical gender according to the actual gender of the person.

 

There is also a somewhat smaller class of nouns, most of which are actually adjectives used as substantives, that do not change to reflect gender but do require an 's' to reflect number.  These nouns end in either a consonant or 'e.'

 

The last example is actually the adjective "triomfante" (triumphant) used as a substantive.  This usage turns an adjective into a noun denoting that or those which can be described by that adjective.  An example of this device in English is "The faithful live happy lives."  Here, the adjective "faithful" is used as a noun meaning "faithful people" or "those who are faithful."

 

Adjectives

 

Adjectives modify nouns.  The most important adjectives are the articles el, la, les, un, una, and unes.

 

Un, una, and unes are equivalent to English "a," "an," or "some."  The three forms are masculine, feminine, and plural, respectively.  "Unes" is used for plural nouns regardless of gender.  Un becomes un’ in front of a noun that starts with a vowel.

 

El, la, and les are all equivalent to English "the."  The three forms are masculine, feminine, and plural, respectively.  Les is used for plural nouns regardless of gender.  La becomes l’ in front of a noun that starts with a vowel.

 

The definite articles are also used in a way that they are not used in English.  They are used to refer to the item that they modify in general.  When in English we say, for instance, “I like elves,” there is an implied “in general” built into that sentence.  Brujeric uses the definite article to make that same implication.  The translation of this sentence would be Mi platin les lutinos.

 

Almost all other adjectives change in number and gender in agreement with the nouns they modify.  Notice also that almost all adjectives come after the noun they modify.

 

Adjectives concerning quality, size, age, or beauty, however, come before the noun they modify.  These adjectives are listed below in the masculine singular form (as any adjective or noun is listed for reference):

 bono = good                                        malo = bad
grando = big, large                               petito = little, small
nuvo = new                                          ancieno = old, former
ĝuveno = young                                   vielo = old, aged
belo = handsome, beautiful                 afruzo = ugly

 

If an adjective modifies a group of nouns whose genders vary, the masculine form is used. 

There is also a class of adjectives (and nouns) that do not change according to gender but do require the addition of an ‘es’ if they’re plural.  For example:

 

simpàtiçe = nice
Ilo est un çiano simpàtiçe. = He is a nice dog.
Elas son chatas simpàtiçes. = They are nice (female) cats. 

 

There are a few words in Brujeric that end in an accented ‘o’ (ò) or accented 'a' (à).  These words become plural by the removal of the accent and the addition of ‘z.’  For example, the plural of cadò (“gift”) is cadoz (“gifts”), and the plural of actività is activitaz.

 

Partitive Articles

 

Partitive articles are used when referring to a portion of a total or supply.  It can be translated as “some” in English, but has a slightly different use than unes.  Partitive articles are often used when ordering or offering food at restaurants, grocery stores, bakeries, butcher shops, or delicatessens.  Partitive articles will always be used with singular nouns.  The two partitive articles are:

 

del = some; a piece of (masc.)
dal = some; a piece of (fem.) 

 

Examples:
Vuo del gatò. = I want some cake. / I want a piece of cake.
Tù mi donaràs del poma? = You will give me some of the apple? / You will give me a piece of the apple?
Nusotes avemos del polo. = We have chicken. / We have some chicken.

 

If the noun being refered to is plural, a simple unes or no article at all is used.

Yo leĝo unes livros. = I read some books.
Yo leĝo livros. = I read books.

 

Subject Pronouns and Verb Basics 

 

SUBJECT PRONOUNS & VERB AGREEMENT

 

Like any Romance language, Brujeric is an inflective language when it comes to verbs, meaning that the ending of a verb changes according to the subject of the sentence.  Finding the proper verb form based on the subject is called conjugation.  There are six forms in almost all verb tenses, identified by the subject pronouns below:

 

yo = I
tù = you (informal, singular)
ilo = he
ela = she
ce = it
Vuzo = you (formal, singular, masculine)
Vuza = you (formal, singular, feminine)
nusotes = we
vusotes = you (informal plural)
ilos = they (masculine)
elas = they (feminine)
Vuzes = you (formal, plural)
ci = they (used as a plural of “it”)
une = one 

 

The pronouns ilo, ela, Vuzo, Vuza, and une share a common verb form, and their plural forms also share a different common verb form.  If the subject is a group with constituents whose genders vary, the masculine form ilos is used regardless of the number of feminine entities.

 

Une means “one” in the sense of “everyone” or “people in general.”  In English, “you” or “they/them” are often used in this way.

 

If a noun and not a pronoun is the subject, the verb form is determined by the pronoun that would be used as a substitute for that noun.

 

All Brujeric verbs have a basic, stand-alone form called an infinitive.  The infinitive is translated as “to + verb” and always has one of three endings: -ar, -er, or –ir.  The conjugation pattern for each group is called first, second, and third conjugation, respectively.

 

The preterit tense is the simple past tense equivalent to the English tense characterized most often by the addition of “-ed” to the verb.

 

REGULAR –AR VERB CONJUGATION: PRESENT & PRETERIT

 

Present Tense

 

The six present-tense forms of a first-conjugation verb are formed by mentally removing the –ar at the end and adding the following inflections according to the subject. 

yo = -o                                                 nusotes = -amos
tù = -as                                                vusotes = -az
ilo, ela, Vuzo, Vuza = -a                       ilos, elas, Vuzes = -an

 

For example, here is the verb arivar (to arrive) conjugated in all six forms of the present tense.  For spatial efficiency, the pronoun ilo will be used from here on to represent the ilo/ela/Vuzo/Vuza group and ilos for the ilos/elas/Vuzes group.

 

Preterit Tense

 

The six preterit-tense forms of a first-conjugation verb are formed by mentally removing the –ar at the end and adding the following inflections according to the subject.

 yo = -è                                                 nusotes = -ume
tù = -aste                                              vusotes = -ute
ilo, ela, Vuzo, Vuza = -ù                      ilos, elas, Vuzes = -aron

 

For example, here again is the verb arivar (to arrive) conjugated in all six forms of the preterit tense. 

 

REGULAR –ER VERB CONJUGATION: PRESENT & PRETERITE

 

Present Tense

 

The six present-tense forms of a second-conjugation verb are formed by mentally removing the –er at the end and adding the following inflections according to the subject.

yo = -o                                                 nusotes = -emos
tù = -es                                                vusotes = -ez
ilo, ela, Vuzo, Vuza = -e                       ilos, elas, Vuzes = -en

 

For example, here is the verb viver (to live) conjugated in all six forms of the present tense. 

 

Preterit Tense

 

The six preterite-tense forms of a first-conjugation verb are formed by mentally removing the –er at the end and adding the following inflections according to the subject.

yo = -ì                                                  nusotes = -ume
tù = -este                                              vusotes = -ute
ilo = -ù                                                 ilos = -eron

 

For example, here again is the verb viver (to live) conjugated in all six forms of the preterite tense. 

 

REGULAR –IR VERB CONJUGATION: PRESENT & PRETERITE

 

Present Tense

 

The six present-tense forms of a third-conjugation verb are formed by mentally removing the –ir at the end and adding the following inflections according to the subject.   

yo = -o                                                 nusotes = -isemos

tù = -is                                                 vusotes = -isez

ilo = -i                                                  ilos = -isen

 

For example, here is the verb envielir (to age) conjugated in all six forms of the present tense. 

 

Preterit Tense

 

The six preterite-tense forms of a third-conjugation verb are formed by mentally removing the –ir at the end and adding the following inflections according to the subject.

yo = -ì                                                  nusotes = -ume
tù = -iste                                               vusotes = -ute
ilo = -ù                                                 ilos = -iron

 

For example, here again is the verb envielir (to age) conjugated in all six forms of the preterite tense.

 

REGULAR IMPERFECT VERB FORMS

 

The imperfect tense has two equivalents in English: “used to + verb” and “was + present participle.”  For example, the sentences “I was speaking” and “I used to speak” would both be stated in Brujeric using the imperfect tenses.

 

Imperfect -ar Verbs

 

For –ar verbs, the imperfect endings are as follows:

yo = -abo                                             nusotes = -abamos
tù = -abas                                             vusotes = -abaz
ilo = -aba                                             ilos = -aban

 

For example, here is the verb parlar (to speak) conjugated in all six imperfect forms.

 

Imperfect -er Verbs

 

For –er verbs, the imperfect endings are as follows:

yo = -ebo                                             nusotes = -ebamos
tù = -ebas                                             vusotes = -ebaz
ilo = -eba                                             ilos = -eban

 

For example, here is the verb viver (to live) conjugated in all six imperfect forms.

 

Imperfect –ir Verbs

 

For –ir verbs, the imperfect endings are as follows: 

yo = -ibo                                            nusotes = -ibamos
tù = -ibas                                            vusotes = -ibaz
ilo = -iba                                             ilos = -iban

 

For example, here again is the verb envielir (to age) conjugated in all six imperfect forms.

 

REGULAR FUTURE VERB FORMS

 

The Brujeric future tense is equivalent to the “will + verb” construction in English.  The future tense, along with the conditional tense, is unique in that the infinitive ending is not removed when conjugating a verb.

 

Regardless of infinitive ending, the six future tense forms are made by adding the following endings to the infinitive.

yo = -è                                                 nusotes = -emos
tù = -às                                                vusotes = -ez
ilo = -à                                                 ilos = -àn

For example, here again is the verb viver (to live) conjugated in all six forms of the future tense. 

 

REGULAR CONDITIONAL VERB FORMS

 

The Brujeric conditional tense is equivalent to the “would + verb” construction in English.  The conditional tense, along with the future tense, is unique in that the infinitive ending is not removed when conjugating a verb.

Regardless of infinitive ending, the six conditional tense forms are made by adding the following endings to the infinitive.

yo = -ìo                                                nusotes = -ìame
tù = -ìas                                                vusotes = -ìaz
ilo = -ìa                                                ilos = -ìan

 

For example, here again is the verb viver (to live) conjugated in all six forms of the conditional tense.

 

Remember that the verb form used with ilo (he) is also used with ela (she), Vuzo (you: formal, masculine), and Vuza (you: formal, feminine), and that the verb form used with ilos is also used with elas (they: feminine) and Vuzes (you: formal, plural).

 

AUXILARY VERBS

 

Most Brujeric verbs follow the aforementioned patterns, but there are also irregular verbs.  Chief among them are the two auxiliary verbs estir (to be) and avir (to have)

 

Estir

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Tense:                      

Future Tense:

Conditional Tense:

 

Avir

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Tense:

Future Tense:

Conditional Tense:

 

SPECIAL VERB SPELLING CHANGES

 

In all tenses and forms, it may be necessary to adjust the spelling of verbs with a “c,” “ç,” “g,” or “ĝ” immediately preceding the infinitive ending as needed to preserve proper pronunciation.  For example, here is the verb alongar (to elongate) conjugated in all six forms of the preterite tense.          

 

The yo form requires a change from ‘g’ to ‘ĝ’ to preserve the hard ‘g’ sound of English “go” where the ‘g’ would otherwise be pronounced like a ‘j’ as in English “gentle.”

 

The reverse is also true of verbs with a ‘ĝ’ preceding the infinitive ending.  For example, here is the verb manĝar (to eat) conjugated in all six forms of the present tense.

 

Manĝar

 

In this case, the yo form requires a change from “ĝ” to “g” to preserve the soft ‘j’ sound of English “gentle” where the ‘ĝ’ would otherwise be pronounced like as in English “go.”

It is necessary to adjust spelling in verbs with a ‘c’ or ‘ç’ immediately preceding the infinitive ending in a similar fashion to preserve whichever sound is present in the infinitive (Either a soft ‘s’ sound as in English “cent” or a hard ‘k’ sound as in English “cake”).  For example, here is the verb mançer (to be missed) conjugated in all six forms of the preterite tense.

 

Since the inflections of the imperfect tense all begin with an ‘e’ and do not change according to infinitive ending, if a spelling change is necessary, it is necessary in all six forms. 

 

Since the future and conditional tenses call for the addition of inflections to the infinitive without subtracting the –ar, -er, or –ir ending, no spelling change will ever be necessary in these tenses.

INTERMEDIATE VERB GRAMMAR

 

SPECIAL VERB EXPRESSIONS

 

Some verbs have special uses in expressions in Brujeric.

 

Expressions With Avir

 

There are some expressions that use the verb equivalent to the English verb “to have” where English uses “to be.”  The primary examples are:

avir (number) anos = to be (number) years old
avir fame = to be hungry (literally “to have hunger”)
avir sof = to be thirsty (literally “to have thirst”)
avir calore = to be hot (literally “to have heat”)
avir frido = to be cold (literally “to have coldness”)
avir puero = to be afraid (literally “to have fear”)

 

Examples:
Ilo a sic anos. = He is six years old.
Yo avo sof. = I am thirsty.
Tù as calore. = You are hot.
Nusotes avemos puero. = We are afraid.

 

Expressions With Estir

 

The subject pronoun ce (“it”) contracts with est.  Ci (plural of ce) does not contract with son.

C’est = It’s
Ci son = They’re

 NOTE: These expressions should only be used with inanimate nouns. 

 

Venir de + Verb

 

The construction “venir de + verb” is used to say “to have just + verb” or “I’ve just finished + verb” 

 

Examples:

Yo viengo de chantar. = I’ve just sung. / I’ve just finished singing.
Vusotes venibaz d’arivar. = You’d just arrived. / You’d just finished arriving.

 

Alir + Verb

 

The construction “alir  + verb” is used to say “to be going to.”

 

Examples:
Tù vas parlar à tes parentos. = You’re going to talk to your parents.
Ilo va alir al cìnemo. = He’s going to go to the movie theater. 

 

Savir + Verb

 

The construction “savir  + verb” is used to say “to know how to.” 

 

Examples:

Nusotes savemos escriver. = We know how to write.
Yo savo parlar el Brujèriçe. = I know how to speak Brujeric.

 

COMPOUND VERB TENSES

 

Compound verb tenses are formed by combining a form of either estir or avir with the proper participle to create a distinct tense.  There are two types of participles: present and past.

 

Present Participles

 

Present participles in English end in “-ing.”  In Brujeric, they are formed by removing the infinitive ending and adding one of the following endings: “-ante” to –ar verbs, “-ente” to –er verbs, and “-inte” to –ir verbs.  Some examples of past participles are: parlante (speaking), vivente (living), and envielinte (aging).  The present participle of avir is avante, and the present participle of estir is estante.

 

Past Participles

 

Most past participles in English end in “-ed,” but there are many irregular past participles such as “drunk,” “sunk,” “hidden,” or “written.”  In Brujeric, past participles are formed by removing the infinitive ending and adding one of the following endings: “-ato” to –ar verbs, “-eto” to –er verbs, and “-ito” to –ir verbs.  Some examples of past participles are: parlato (spoken), viveto (lived), and envielito (aged).  The past participle of avir is u, and the past participle of estir is seto.

 

Present Progressive

 

The present progressive is a tense that uses the present tense form of estir and the present participle to indicate that one is in the process of an action.  For example, here is the verb chantar (to sing) conjugated in all six forms of the present progressive.

 

The simple present tense can be used either for a simple present action or a progressive action, but this tense is more specific.

 

Present Perfect

 

The present perfect is a tense that uses a present tense form of avir and the past participle to indicate the recent completion of a past action.  For example, here again is the verb chantar (to sing) conjugated in all six forms of the present perfect.

 

 

Pluperfect

 

The pluperfect, or past perfect, is a tense that uses an imperfect form of avir and the past participle to indicate completion of a past action relative to a reference point in the past.  For example, here again is the verb chantar (to sing) in all six forms of the pluperfect. 

 

Future Perfect

 

The future perfect perfect, or anterior future, is a tense that uses a future form of avir and the past participle to indicate that an action will be complete.  For example, here again is the verb chantar (to sing) in all six forms of the future perfect. 

 

Conditional Perfect

 

The conditional perfect is a tense that uses a conditional form of avir and the past participle to indicate that an action would be complete were it not for something else.  For example, here again is the verb chantar (to sing) in all six forms of the pluperfect. 

 

Alternative Imperfect

 

The alternative imperfect is a tense that uses an imperfect form of estir and the present participle to indicate that one was in the process of an action.  For example, here is the verb chantar (to sing) conjugated in all six forms of the present progressive. 

 

The standard imperfect tense can be used either for “was + present participle” or “used to + verb,” but this tense is more specific.

 

PRIMARY IRREGULAR VERBS

 

Besides estir and avir, there are five other very common irregular verbs in Brujeric: facer (to do, to make), puvir (to be able to), vulir (to want), alir (to go), vir (to see), dicer (to say, to tell)

 

Facer

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Future Tense:

Conditional Tense:

Present Participle: faciente
Past Participle: fato

 

Alir

Present Tense:

Future Tense:

Conditional Tense:       

Present Participle: aliente
Past Participle: ito

 

Puvir

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Tense:                      

Future Tense:

Conditional Tense:       

Present Participle: puvante
Past Participle: puto

 

Vulir

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Tense:                      

Future Tense:

Conditional Tense:       

Present Participle: vulante
Past Participle: vulto

 

Vir

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Tense:                      

Future Tense:

Conditional Tense:       

Present Participle: veyante
Past Participle: visto

 

Dicer

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Tense:                      

Future Tense:

Conditional Tense:       

Present Participle: diciente
Past Participle: dito

 

IRREGULAR VERB FAMILIES

 

In Brujeric, there are groups of verbs that are all irregular but also conjugated with common patterns based on common endings beyond the –ar, -er, or –ir infinitive ending. 

With the exception of simple –ir verbs, the imperfect form of all verbs (regular and irregular) can be found by taking the stem (verb minus inflection) of the nusotes form and adding the standard inflections.  Furthermore, the stem of a verb in the future and conditional tenses is always the same, and the inflections never change.

For this reason, with the exception of simple –ir verbs, only the present and preterite tenses are given of the sample verb in each irregular verb family, followed by the imperfect and future/conditional stems, the present and past participles, and more examples of verbs conjugated like the sample.

 

Simple –ir Verbs

This small group of –ir verbs are conjugated irregularly in the present and imperfect tenses.  For example, here is the verb dormir (to sleep) conjugated in these tenses.  Notice the absence of the “is” in the nusotes and vusotes forms of the present and in all forms of the imperfect.

 

Besides the present and imperfect tenses, simple –ir verbs are conjugated regularly.

 

Present Tense:

Imperfect Tense:

 

More simple-ir verbs include sortir (to go out), partir (to leave), and departir (to depart) 

 

-facer Verbs

facer (to do; to make)

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Stem: fac-
Future/Conditional Stem: far-
Present Participle: faciente
Past Participle: fato

 

Common verbs conjugated like facer: extrafacer (to overdo, to do extra) and contrafacer (to counterfeit).

 

-dicer Verbs

dicer (to say; to tell)

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Stem: dic-
Future/Conditional Stem: dir-
Present Participle: diciente
Past Participle: dito

 

Common verbs conjugated like dicer: contradicer (to contradict), bendicer (to bless), maldicer (to curse)

 

-vir Verbs

vir (to see)

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Stem: vey-
Future/Conditional Stem: virr-
Present Participle: veyante
Past Participle: visto

 

Common verbs conjugated like vir: previr (to foresee), revir (to see again)

 

-cevir Verbs

recevir (to receive)

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Stem: recev-
Future/Conditional Stem: recevr-
Present Participle: recevente
Past Participle: receto

 

Common verbs conjugated like recevir: concevir (to conceive) and percevir (to perceive)

 

 -venir/-tenir Verbs

venir (to come)

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Stem: ven-
Future/Conditional Stem: vendr-
Present Participle: venante
Past Participle: vento

 

Verbs conjugated like venir include revenir (to come back), devenir (to become), intervenir (to intervene), tenir (to hold), obtenir (to obtain), mantenir (to maintain), and sustenir (to sustain) 

-prendir Verbs

prendir (to take)

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Stem: pren-
Future/Conditional Stem : prendr-
Present Participle: prenante
Past Participle: priso

 

Verbs conjugated like prendir include comprendir (to understand) and aprendir (to learn)

 

-andir/-endir Verbs

crandir (to dread; to fear)

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Stem: crañ-
Future/Conditional Stem : crandr-
Present Participle: crañante
Past Participle: cranto

 

Verbs conjugated like crandir include etendir (to turn off) and pendir (to paint)

 

-natir Verbs

natir (to be born)

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Stem: nas-
Future/Conditional Stem : natr-
Present Participle: nasante
Past Participle: nato

 

Verbs conjugated like natir include conatir (to know) and reconatir (to recognize)

 

-batir/-metir Verbs

metir (to put)

Present Tense:

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Stem: met-
Future/Conditional Stem : metr-
Present Participle: metante
Past Participle: miso

 

Verbs conjugated like metir include batir (to beat), combatir (to fight), prometir (to promise), permetir (to permit), and cometir (to commit

 

-escriver Verbs

escriver (to write)

Preterite Tense:

Imperfect Stem: escriv-

Future/Conditional Stem : escrivr-

Present Participle: escrivante

Past Participle: escrito

 

Verbs conjugated like escriver include descriver (to describe) and enscriver (to inscribe).

 

INTERMEDIATE GRAMMATICAL DEVICES

CONJUNCTIONS

Simply put, conjunctions join multiple subjects, objects, phrases, or even sentences together.  The most common Brujeric conjunctions are:

 

ey = and
u = or
maz = but
encore = yet; still
tanbèn = too; also
noplù = either; neither

 

NEGATION

 

In Brujeric, any sentence can be made negative by adding no before the verb.  For example:

 

Charlo chantarà demàn. = Charles will sing tomorrow.
Charlo no chantarà demàn. = Charles won’t sing tomorrow.

 

However, if the negation is emphasized by such words as jamaz (never), nizuno (nobody; no one), or nulo (nothing), these words come after the verb.  The verb ends up between no and one of these words. 

 

Yo no fecì nulo. = I didn’t do anything. / I did nothing.
Ilo no vendrà jamaz. = He won’t ever come. / He will never come.
Alfredo no parlarìa à nisuno. = Alfred wouldn’t speak to anyone. / Alfred would speak to no one.

 

Nisuno can also be used as an adjective meaning “neither” or “no” as in Nizuna fila parlù. (“Neither girl spoke.”)

 

If the verb following no begins with a vowel, it is abbreviated to n’.  For example:

 

Yo n’avo un livro. = I don’t have a book. / I have no book.
Las filas n’an ses robas. = The girls don’t have their dresses.

 

The words tanbèn and noplù always come after the verb.

 

Examples:

 

Ela est parlante, ey yo soi parlante tanbèn. = She is speaking, and I am speaking too.
Ilo no chanta, ey nusotes no chantamos noplù. = He doesn’t sing, and we don’t sing either.

 

The word aicono (any; no) is used as a negative adjective.  For example:

 

Gregorio ey Ĝorĝo no donan aiconos cadòs. = Gregory and George don’t give any gifts. / Gregory and George give no gifts.
El filo de Felipo n’a aicona amante. = Phillip’s son doesn’t have a girlfriend. / Phillips son has no girlfriend.

 

The construction ne…ni is equivalent to “neither…nor” in English.  For example.

 

Yo no vuo ne quilo livro ni quelo livro. = I want neither this book nor that book. / I don’t want either this book or that book.

 

If the construction links two subjects to a common verb, the verb will be conjugated according to the last subject mentioned.  Also, the no is omitted in such a case.

 

Ne yo ni tù savis. = Neither you nor I know.
Ne nusotes ni elas vendràn. = Neither we nor they will come.

 

Also, if the word following ne begins with ‘e’ or ‘he,’ the ne is abbreviated to n’.  The ni is likewise abbreviated if followed by a word beginning with ‘i’ or ‘hi.’

 

Ilo n’ama ne Laurença n’Isabela. = He loves neither Lauren nor Isabella. / He doesn’t love either Lauren or Isabella.
Ne yo ni tù n’ilo vue alir. = Neither I nor you nor he wants to go.

 

INTERROGATIVE WORDS & SENTENCES

 

Interrogative words are words that are used to ask questions.  There are eight interrogative words in Brujeric plus one special answer word.

 

qui = who (singular)
quin = who (plural)
què = what
cuande = when
duve = where
por-què = why
perquè = because
come = how?              
combeno = how much (“how many” in plural)

 

When using these words to form a question, it is also important to remember inversion.  In any question, the subject and the verb are always inverted, or switched.

 

Examples:
Cuande començaremos nusotes? = When will we begin?
Combenos livros as tù? = How many books do you have?
Por-què arivas tù tarde? = Why do you arrive late?

Què, cuande, duve, and come all lose the final ‘e’ to be replaced by an apostrophe if the word following it begins with a vowel. 

 

Examples:
Qu’est ilo faciente? = What’s he doing?
Duv’est ta çiana? = Where is your (female) dog?
Cuand’arivaste çi? = When did you arrive here?
Com’espiras venir çi? = How do you hope to come here?

ADVANCED VERB GRAMMAR

 

REGULAR SUBJUNCTIVE VERB TENSES

 

So far, all verb tenses displayed have been indicative mood tenses.  The subjunctive mood is a smaller set of verb tenses (with only two simple tenses and three compound tenses, as opposed to five simple tenses and five compound tenses in the indicative mood) used in dependent clauses (usually initiated by the word “that” in English and que in Brujeric) to express an idea that lacks certainty or truth.  It is used to express desire, fear, speculation, doubt, need, etc.

 

For example:
 

Ilo est un amìo. (He is a friend.)

 

This sentence is in the indicative mood because the statement is held to be true.

 

Yo espiro que ilo sue un amìo.  (I hope that he is a friend.)

 

This sentence is in the subjunctive mood because the statement expresses a wish for something to be true.

 

More examples (the verb is bold):

Indicative:

Ela chantaba ales enfantos.  (She was singing to the children.)

 Subjunctive:
Dutabo que ela chantase ales enfantos. I doubted that she was singing to the children. 

Indicative:
Charlo ne en la França. = Charles is born in France.

 Subjunctive:
Pietro vulè que Charlo nuse en Italia. = Peter wanted Charles to be born in Italy.

 

There are two simple subjunctive tenses: present and imperfect.

 

The present subjunctive is used when the dependent clause, if isolated into its own sentence, would use a verb in the present or future tense.

 

For example:
 

Espiro que ela parle à sa matra. = I hope that she speaks to her mother. / I hope that she will speak to her mother.

 

The imperfect subjunctive is used when the dependent clause, if isolated into its own sentence, would use a verb in the preterit, imperfect, or conditional tense.  However, the latter usage can only be used if the independent clause (part of the sentence that uses the indicative mood and usually comes before “that”) is in the preterit, imperfect, or conditional tense.

 

For example:

 

Espiro que ela parlase a sa matra. = I hope that she spoke to her mother. / I hope that she was speaking to her mother. / I hope that she used to speak to her mother.

Espirebo que ela parlase a sa matra. = I hoped that she would speak to her mother. / I was hoping that she would speak to her mother.

 

A subjunctive tense often follows the word si (if), as well.  A common construction uses a clause beginning with si and using a subjunctive tense followed by another clause that uses the conditional or future tense.  For example:

 

Si manges tes pomas, seràs forte. = If you eat your apples, you will be strong.
Si achetases el chevalo, no avrìas besoño de promenar. = If you would buy the horse, you wouldn’t need to walk.
Si Ĝohàn l’amase, ilo donarìa tuto por ela. = If John loved her, he would give everything for her.

 

Regular Present Subjunctive

 

The stem used for the present subjunctive of all regular verbs and most irregular verbs can be found by finding the yo form of the present tense and removing the last three letters.  The following inflections are then added.

 

-ar Verb:

yo = -i                          nusotes = -emos
tù = -es                        vusotes = -ez
ilo = -e                         ilos = -en

 

For example, here is the verb achetar (to buy) conjugated in all six forms of the present subjunctive:

 

-er Verb:

yo = -a                         nusotes = -imos
tù = -is                         vusotes = -iz
ilo = -i                          ilos = -in

 

For example, here is the verb viver (to live) conjugated in all six forms of the present subjunctive:  

 

-ir Verb

yo = -e                         nusotes = -amos
tù = -as                        vusotes = -az
ilo = -a                         ilos = an 

 

For example, here is the verb chosir (to choose) conjugated in all six forms of the present subjunctive:

 

Regular Imperfect Subjunctive

 

The stem used for the present subjunctive of a regular verb and most irregular verbs can be found by finding the ilos form of the preterit tense and removing the last three letters (-ron).  The following inflections are then added.

 

yo = -so                        nusotes = -seme
tù = -ses                       vusotes = -sez
ilo = -se                        ilos = -sen

 

For example, here is the verb legir (to read) conjugated in all six forms of the imperfect subjunctive:  

 

 

IRREGULAR PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE VERBS

 

The following verbs have irregular stems and/or inflections in the present subjunctive.

 

Estir = to be

Avir = to have

 Alir = to go

 

Vir = to see

 

Simple –ir Present Subjunctive Verbs

 

The present subjunctive inflections of simple –ir verbs are somewhat different from the normal –ir verb present subjunctive inflections.

yo = -ie                         nusotes = -iamos
tù = -ias                        vusotes = -iaz
ilo = -ia                         ilos = -ian

 

Other Irregular Present Subjunctive Verbs

 

The irregular present subjunctive stems of the following verbs and verb families are also irregular and take the above inflections as well.

 

puvir
Stem: puis-

vulir
Stem: vuil-

Simple –ir Verbs
Stem: present tense nusotes form minus “emos” (i.e. dormis-)

-andir & -endir Verbs
Stem: present tense ilos form minus “en” (e.g. crañ-)

-prendir Verbs
Stem: present tense ilos form minus “en” (e.g. pren-)

-venir & -tenir Verbs
Stem: present tense yo form minus “o” (e.g. vieng-)
-dicer Verbs
Stem: present tense yo form minus “o” (e.g. dig-)

-facer Verbs
Stem: present tense yo form minus “o” (e.g. fag-)

-vir Verbs
Stem: present tense yo form minus “ìo” plus “y” (e.g. viy-)

-cevir Verbs
Stem: present tense ilos form minus “en” (e.g. reciv--)

-natir Verbs
Stem: present tense yo form minus “o” (e.g. naz-)
-batir & -metir Verbs
Stem: present tense yo form minus “o” (e.g. mez-)

 

However, in the case of –andir and –endir verbs, the inflections for the nusotes and vusotes forms of the present subjunctive drop the inicial ‘i’ to become ‘-amos’ and ‘-az.’

 

IRREGULAR IMPERFECT SUBJUNCTIVE TENSES

 

The following verb families use irregular stems in the imperfect subjunctive.

 

 -batir & -metir Verbs
Stem: past participle minus “so” (e.g. mi-)

-prendir Verbs
Stem: past participle minus “so” (e.g. pri-)

-venir & -tenir Verbs
Stem: preterite tense ilo form minus “su” (e.g. vin-)

-dicer Verbs
Stem: past participle minus “to” (e.g. di-)

-facer Verbs
Stem: preterite tense ilo form minus “su” (e.g. fi-)

-vir Verbs
Stem: preterite tense ilo form (e.g. vu-)

-cevir Verbs
Stem: past participle minus “to” (e.g. rece-)
-natir Verbs
Stem: preterite tense ilos form (e.g. nu)

-andir & -endir Verbs
Stem: preterite tense nusotes form minus “ume” plus “i” (e.g. crañi-)

 -escriver Verbs
Stem: past participle minus “to” (e.g. escri-)

 

REMINDER (see “SPECIAL VERB SPELLING CHANGES”)

 

Remember to adjust the spelling of verbs with a ‘c,’ ‘ç,’ ‘g,’ or ‘ĝ’ immediately preceding the infinitive ending as needed to preserve proper pronunciation in the present subjunctive.  For example:

 

facer

Stem: regular (yo form minus ‘o’ = “fag-”)

 

The yo, nusotes, and vusotes forms require a change from “g” to “ĝ”to preserve the hard ‘g’ sound of English “go” where the ‘g’ would otherwise be pronounced like a ‘j’ as in English “gentle.”

The reverse is also true of verbs with a ‘ĝ’ preceding the infinitive ending.  For example:

 

manĝar

 

In this case, all six forms require a change from ‘ĝ’ to ‘g’ to preserve the soft ‘j’ sound of English “gentle” where the ‘ĝ’ would otherwise be pronounced like as in English “go.”

It is necessary to adjust spelling in verbs with a ‘c’ or ‘ç’ immediately preceding the infinitive ending in a similar fashion to preserve whichever sound is present in the infinitive (Either a soft ‘s’ sound as in English “cent” or a hard ‘k’ sound as in English “cake”).

 

COMPOUND SUBJUNCTIVE TENSE FORMATION

 

There are three compound subjunctive tenses that work similarly to the compound indicative tenses of present progressive, present perfect, and pluperfect or conditional perfect.  They are the subjunctive progressive, subjunctive perfect, and subjunctive pluperfect.

 

Subjunctive Progressive

 

The subjunctive progressive uses the present subjunctive tense of estir and the present participle of the verb being used.  For example:

 

Ilo credi que nusotes siamos promenante. = He believes that we are walking. /He believes that we will be walking.
Ilos vuen que vusotes siaz travajente. = They want us to be working.

 

Subjunctive Perfect

 

The subjunctive perfect uses the present subjunctive tense of avir and the past participle of the verb being used.  For example:

 

Ela cranzi que su fratro ava partito. = She fears that her brother has left. / She fears that her brother will have left.

Tù espiras que les femas avan vento. = You hope that the women have come. / You hope that the women will have come.

 

Subjunctive Pluperfect

 

The subjunctive pluperfect uses the imperfect subjunctive tense of avir and the past participle of the verb being used.  For example:

 

Pietro dutaba que sua suora avese parlato. = Peter doubted that his sister had spoken. / Peter doubted that his sister would have  spoken.
Ĝohana disu que su amante avese fato tuto. = Jean said that her boyfriend had done everything. / Jean said that her boyfriend would have done everything.

 

NOTE: It is common but optional to invert, or switch, the subject and verb in a subjunctive clause much like in a question.  For example, the following two versions of the same sentence are equally correct.

 

Ilo vue que ela vienga çi. = He wants her to come here.
Ilo vue que vienga ela çi. = He wants her to come here.

 

DEALING WITH MULTIPLE VERBS

 

If a sentence uses two or more verbs, only the main, or helping, verb is conjugated.  All subsequent verbs remain in the infinitive.  For example:

Yo puo chantar. = I can sing.
Elas vuleban venir. = They wanted to come.

This also works for an alternative to using the subjunctive to express a desire or need for someone or something to do something.  For example:

With the Subjunctive:

Nusotes vulemos que tù partisas. = We want you to leave.

With a Main Verb and Infinitive:

Nusotes te vulemos partir. = We want you to leave.

 

OPTIONAL OMISSION OF SUBJECT PRONOUNS

 

Because of the highly inflective nature of Brujeric verb, every verb form reflects its subject.  This is true to the point that the subject can easily be deduced from the verb, making its actual inclusion in the sentence optional.  For example, both of the following versions of each sentence are equally correct.

Tù pues facerlo. = You can do it.
Pues facerlo. = You can do it.
Nusotes vulemos alir. = We want to go.
Vulemos alir. = We want to go.

 

VERBS RARELY USED IN THE PRETERIT TENSE

 

The main characteristic of the preterit tense that distinguishes it from the imperfect is the fact that it denotes an instantaneous action done in the past.  There are a number of verbs that describe actions, most if not all being actions of the mind or being, that are never truly instantaneous actions.  Therefore, these verbs are hardly ever conjugated in the preterit.  They are instead conjugated in the imperfect, even when the English equivalent would use the preterit.  Some such verbs are:

 

estir = to be
avir = to have
creder = to believe
pensar = to think
savir = to know, be aware of (facts, statistics, how to)
conatir = to know; to be familiar with (people, places)
puvir = to be able to; can
vulir = to want

 

ADVERBS 

 

REGULAR ADVERB FORMATION

 

Adverbs, which modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs, are formed by finding the feminine singular form of the root adjective and adding “mente” to the end.  For example:

veloço = fast; quick; rapid        à        veloçamente = quickly; rapidly

lento = slow                             à        lentamente = slowly

simpatiçe = nice                       à        simpatiçemente = nicely

 

Notice the loss of accent in simpatiçemente.  This occurs because the addition of two syllables (mente) to simpàtiçe makes it impractical to retain the original accent placement.  In an adverb, the stress must always fall on the first syllable of the –mente suffix (in other words, the second-to-last syllable of the entire word).  When forming adjverbs, this occurs with all root adjectives that have irregular accents.

 

Examples:

 

Ilo curù veloçamente à lon. = He ran quickly away.
Ela me trataba simpatiçemente. = She was treating me nicely.

 

IRREGULAR ADVERBS

 

There are however some irregular adverbs.  The most common ones are:

ben = well                                mal = poorly; bad

multe = very                            pà = not

 

Examples:

Ilo parla el Brujèriçe multe ben. = He speaks Brujeric very well.
Ela escrive mal. = She writes poorly.

 

NOTE: Pà is an optional word of negation used predominantly for emphasis.  For example:

 

Tù as puero! = You’re afraid!
Yo n’avo pà puero! = I am NOT afraid! 

 

Adverbs can be placed between the conjugated verb and infinitive or after both verbs in a multi-verb sentence.  For example:

 

Tù savis escriver ben. = You know how to write well.
Tù savis ben escriver. = You know how to write well.

 

POSSESSION 

 

POSSESSIVES WITH DE

 

Possessive is quite simple in Brujeric.  If the possessor is a noun, place it after the object of possession preceded by de.  For example:

C’est el livro de Marco. = It’s Mark’s book.
Yo avo el cadò de Laurenço. = I have Laurence’s gift.
L'espea d'Arturo s’apela Escàlibor. = Arthur’s sword is named Excalibur.

 

POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS

 

Any possessor can be replaced in a sentence by the appropriate pronoun.  The possessive pronouns are:

mo = my (masc. sing.)                                      nustro = our (masc. sing.)
ma = my (fem. sing.)                                         nustra = our (fem. sing.)
mes = my (plural)                                             nustres = our (plural)
to = your (masc. sing.)                                      vustro = your (masc. sing.)
ta = your (fem. sing.)                                        vustra = your (fem. sing.)
tes = your (plural)                                             vustres = your (plural)
su = his/her                                                       lor = their
sua = his/her/your                                             lora = their
sues = his/her                                                   len = their
Su = your (masc. sing.)                                     Lor = your (masc. pl.)
Sua = your (fem. sing.)                                     Lora = your (fem. pl.)
Sues = your (plural)                                          Len = your (plural plural)
sue = one’s (singular)                                       sues = one’s (plural)

 

Sue means “one’s” in the sense of “everyone’s” or “people’s in general.”  In English, “you” or “they/them” are often used in this way.  The pronouns Su, Sua, Sues and Lor/Lora/Len are the possessive counterparts to the subject pronouns Vuzo/Vuza and Vuzes, respectively.

 

Examples:
Yo credo qu’ilo porta ma costuma. = I think he is wearing my suit.
Tù as vulto sua roba. = You have stolen her dress.
Nustres amìos an vintisic anos. = Our friends are twenty-six years old.
Ilo dejù que sua roba ere bela. = He said that her dress was beautiful.
Vuza ama bocupo Su espuso, Medama Fortavila. = You love your husband very much, Mrs. Fortavila.
Les enfantos truvaron lor çiano. = The children found their dog.

 

EMPHATIC POSSESSION

 

As in English, Brujeric uses a different set of possessive pronouns usually for emphasis.  These pronouns are:

mìo = mine (masc. sing.)                       nosto = ours (masc. sing.)

mìa = mine (fem. sing.)                         nosta = ours (fem. sing.)

mis = mine (plural)                                nostes = ours (plural)

tìo = yours (masc. sing.)                       vosto = yours (masc. sing.)

tìa = yours (fem. sing.)                         vosta = yours (fem. sing.)

tis = yours (plural)                                vostes = yours (plural)

sìo = his/hers (masc. sing.)                    luro = theirs (masc. sing.)

sìa = his/hers (fem. sing.)                      lura = theirs (fem. sing.)

sis = his/hers (plural)                             lures = theirs (plural)

Sìo = yours (masc. sing.)                       Luro = yours (masc. sing.)

Sìa = yours (fem. sing.)                         Lura = yours (fem. sing.)

Sis = yours (plural)                               Lures = yours (plural)

 

The pronouns Sìo, Sìa, Sis and Luro/Lura/Lures are the emphatic possessive counterparts to the subject pronouns Vuzo/Vuza and Vuzes, respectively.  Emphatic possessive pronouns will almost always be preceded by an agreeing definite article.

 

Examples:

El livro que yo soi leginte est el tìo. = The book that I am reading is yours.
L'espea que tienis est la mìa. = The sword that you hold is mine.
Nusotes utilisaremos nustro stilo u el luro? We will use our pencil or theirs?
El luro. = Theirs.

 

To emphasize possession using a noun instead of a pronoun, simply use de.

 

Examples:
Quilo libro est de Francizo. = This book is Francis’.
Est el cadò de Beatriça? = Is the gift Beatrice’s

 

 OBJECT PRONOUNS

 

DIRECT OBJECT PRONOUNS

 

Direct object pronouns are used to indicate what a verb directly acts upon.  The Brujeric direct object pronouns are:

me = me                                     nuse = us
te = you (inf. sing.)                    vuse = you (inf. pl.)
lo = him; it (masc.)                    los = them (masc.)
la = her; it (fem.)                       las = them (fem.)
Lo = you (masc. form. sing.)     Los = you (masc. form. pl.)
La = you (fem. form. sing.)       Las = you (fem. form. pl.)
lu = one

 

Lu means “one” in the sense of “everyone” or “people in general.”  In English, “you” or “they/them” are often used in this way.  The pronouns Lo, La, and Los/Las are the direct object counterparts to the subject pronouns Vuzo, Vuza, and Vuzes, respectively.

 

Although object nouns always come after the verb that acts on them, object pronouns always precede the verb that acts on them.  For example:

 

Miçel face Michela enrugir. = Michael makes Michelle blush.

 

If one replaces Michela with the proper pronoun (la), the sentence becomes:

 

Miçel la face enrugir. = Michael makes her blush.

 

If one replaces both nouns with the proper pronouns, the sentence becomes:

 

Ilo la face enrugir. = He makes her blush.

 

If the verb following the object begins with a vowel, most direct object pronouns are abbreviated.  Me becomes m’, te becomes t’, lo, la, and lu all become l’, nuse becomes nus’, and vuse becomes vus’.  Los and las do not change.  For example:

 

Yo t’avo. = I have you.
Ilo nus’aidù à truvar les çianos. = He helped us to find the dogs.

 

INDIRECT OBJECT PRONOUNS

 

Indirect object pronouns are used to indicate the indirect recipient of an action.  A sentence may have both a direct and indirect object.  For example:

 

Peter gave his mother flowers.

 

In this English sentence, the verb is “gave,” “mother” is the indirect object, and “flowers” is the direct object.  The difference between a direct and indirect object can best be demonstrated is that in this example, “flowers” is the direct object because the flowers are what Peter actually gave.  Peter did not give away his mother to someone.  This sentence could easily be rewritten using the preposition “to” as “Peter gave flowers to his mother.”  If in doubt, mentally rewrite the sentence so that a preposition falls between the objects.  Any noun or pronoun that would come after the “to” in such a sentence is an indirect object.

 

The Brujeric indirect object pronouns are:

mi = me                                     nute = us
ti = you (inf. sing.)                    vute = you (inf. pl.)
lui = him; it (masc.)                  les = them (mas.)
lea = her; it (fem.)                     les = them (fem.)
Lui = you (masc. form. sing.)    Les = you (masc. form. pl.)
Lea = you (fem. form. sing.)      Les = you (fem. form. pl.)
le = one

 

Le means “one” in the sense of “everyone” or “people in general.”  In English, “you” or “they/them” are often used in this way.  The pronouns Lui, Lea, and Les are the indirect object counterparts to the subject pronouns Vuzo, Vuza, and Vuzes, respectively.

 

Consider the following sentence:

 

Tomaso donù el cadò à sua suora. = Thomas gave the gift to his sister.

 

In this sentence, the cadò is the direct object and Thomas’ suora is the indirect object.  If one replaces the indirect object with the proper pronoun.  Since object pronouns always come before the verb, the sentence becomes:

 

Tomaso lea donù el cadò. = Thomas gave the gift to her. / Thomas gave her the gift.

 

If a sentence uses both a direct and indirect object pronoun, the latter should always precede the former.  For example:

 

Tomaso lea lo donù. = Thomas gave it to her. / Thomas gave her it.
Ma matra mi lo donarà. = My mother will give it to me. / My mother will give me it.

 

Preceding a word that begins with a vowel or 'h,' mi, ti, nute, and vute contract with that word and become m', t', nut', and vut' respectively.  For example:

 

Yo t'avo dato flores. = I have given you flowers. / I have given flowers to you.

Ela nut'avrìa dito tuto, maz no escutabamos. = She would have told us everything, but we weren't listening.

 

REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS & VERBS

 

Reflexive pronouns are special object pronouns that are used when the object is the same as the subject of a sentence.  If the action reflects back on the subject, a reflexive pronoun is used.  The reflexive pronouns are:

me = myself                                                      nose = ourselves
te = yourself                                                     vose = yourselves
so = himself                                                      sen = themselves (masc.)
sa = herself                                                       sen = themselves (fem.)
So = yourself (masc. form. sing.)                       Sen = yourselves (masc. form. pl.)
Sa = yourself (fem. form. sing.)                         Sen = yourselves (fem. form. pl.)
se = oneself

 

The pronouns So, Sa, and Sen are the reflexive counterparts to the subject pronouns Vuzo, Vuza, and Vuzes, respectively.

 

Verbs that use reflexive pronouns have se attached to the infinitive and are often verbs used to describe one’s daily or nightly routine, such as rasarse (to shave), habilarse, (to get dressed), dishabilarse (to get undressed), revielarse (to wake up), endormirse (to fall asleep).  Here are some examples of sentences that use reflexive verbs and pronouns.

 

Mo fratro ey yo nose revielamos. = My brother and I wake up.
Mo amìo se raseba. = My friend was shaving. / My friend used to shave.

 

If the reflexive action is done only to a part of the self, the reflexive pronoun acts much like an indirect object and the part acts much like a direct object.  For example:

 

Ela sa brosa les dentes. = She brushes her teeth.
Vuzo So brosa les chevuezos. = You brush your hair.

 

Most reflexive pronouns that come before a word beginning with a vowel or an ‘h’ are contracted with that word.  Me becomes m’, te becomes t’, nose becomes nos’, vose becomes vos’, and so, sa, and se all become s’. 

 

For example:

Merlinda s’habila à sepe hueres. = Merlina gets dressed at seven o’clock.
Tù t’endormiste. = You fell asleep.

 

PREPOSITIONS, CONTRACTIONS, & EMPHATIC PRONOUNS 

 

Prepositions

 

Prepositions are useful in all languages, including Brujeric.  Some key Brujeric prepositions are:

à = at; to
de = of; from
en = in
por = for
per = by
vec = with
sanze = without
horze = out
danze = in
horze de = out of
danze de = into
dehorze = outside
dedanze = inside
dehorze de = outside of
dedanze de = inside
lon = far
prè = close; near
supre = about

 

All of these prepositions except prè drop the final ‘e’ (if there is one) if followed by ‘h’ or a vowel.

 

Two of these prepositions, à and en, have rather specific usage rules with regards to travel.  In English, one would say “I am going to France.”  But a Brujeric uses en in this case, saying Yo soi aliente en França.  En is also used in the more familiar sense of actually being in a place, as in Mantenante, yo soi en França (Now, I’m in France), with the exception of cities.  When referring to cities, the preposition à is used whether one is on his or her way to the city or already in the city.  More examples:

 

Yo voi alir en Angliterra. = I want to go to England.
Yo soi en Angliterra. = I am in England.
Nusotes fuome à Roma. = We went to Rome.
Nusotes somes à Roma. = We are in Rome. 

 

Contractions

 

In addition, the prepositions à, de, en, and supre form a contraction when followed by a definite article.  An example of a contraction in English is when “do  not” becomes “don’t.”  The following contractions occur in Brujeric:

à + el = al
à + la = ala
à + les = ales
de + el = del
de + la = da (if followed by a consonant besides ‘h’); dal (if followed by a vowel or ‘h’)
de + les = des
en + el = nel
en + la = nela
en + les = nes
 supre + el = sul
supre + la = sula
supre + les = sules

 

Examples:

Yo irè al cìnemo. = I will go to the movie theater.
Mi plati el coloro dal auta. = I like the color of the car.
Vuzo est donante les cadòs ales enfantos. = You are giving the gifts to the children.

 

Emphatic Pronouns

 

A preposition may also be followed by a pronoun.  There are a special set of pronouns, called emphatic pronouns, that are used to replace a noun that follows a preposition.  They are:

mì = me                                   nuste = us
tu = you                                   vuste = you
ezo = him                                 ezos = them (masc.) (personal)
eza = her                                  ezas = them (fem.) (personal)
lo = it (masc.)                           los = them (masc.) (inanimate)
la = it (fem.)                             las = them (fem.) (inanimate)
Vuze = you (form. sing.)           Vuces = you (form. pl.)

 

Examples:

Ĝosef irìa al cìnemo vec Victoria. = Joseph would go to the movie theater with Victoria.
Yo vuo alir sanze Vuze. = I want to go without you.
Tù empruntaràs la costuma à mì. = You will lend the suit to me.

 

If the object that does not follow a preposition (in the above example, la costuma) is replaced by a pronoun (most likely, a direct object pronoun), then the “preposition + emphatic pronoun” phrase must be replaced by an indirect object pronoun.  For example, the third sentence of the above selection of examples could be rewritten as Tù mi la empruntaràs.

 

Fernando no ti ame à tu.  Ilo mi ame à mì. = Fernando doesn’t love you.  He loves me.
No vuo venir vec vuste.  Vuo venir vec ezo. = I don’t want to come with you.  I want to come with him.

 

If the verb in a sentence such as the one above is used reflexively, use the following emphatic pronouns.

 mì-memo = myself (masc.)                       nuste-memos = ourselves (masc.)
mì-mema = myself (fem.)                          nuste-memas = ourselves (fem.)
ti-memo = yourself (masc. inf.)                 vuste-memos = ourselves (masc. inf.)
ti-mema = yourself (fem. inf.)                   vuste-memas = ourselves (fem. inf.)
so-memo = himself                                    sen-memos = themselves (masc.) (personal)
sa-mema = herself                                      sen-memas = themselves (fem.) (personal)
se-memo = itself (masc.)                            sen-memos = themselves (masc.) (inanimate)
se-mema = itself (fem.)                              sen-memas = themselves (fem.) (inanimate)
Se-meme = yourself (form. sing.)              Sen-memes = yourselves (form. pl.)

 

Examples:

Yo no ti revielè.  Tù ti revielaste à ti-memo. = I didn’t wake you up.  You woke yourself up.

Ilo so devi levar à se-memo. = He must raise himself up.
La domestiçe no les habilarà.  Elas sen habilaràn à sen-memas. = The servant will not dress them.  They will dress themselves. 

 

There are some Brujeric verbs that require a preposition (most commonly à) while the English equivalents do not.  These verbs would also take an indirect object pronoun if any pronouns were used.  Some such verbs are:

apelar = to call
telefonar = to call via telephone
dicer = to tell
obedir = to obey
disobedir = to disobey

 

For example:
Yo apelarè à ma matra. = I will call my mother.
Ti digo la vertà. = I tell you the truth.

 

Emphatic pronouns can also be used in combination with C’est or Ci son to announce identity!  For example:

 

C’est mì. = It’s me.
C’esi tù! = It’s you!
Ci son nuste. = It’s us.

 

Emphatic pronouns can also be used with tanbèn and noplù.  For example:

 

Mì tanbèn! = Me too!
Nuste noplù. = Nor us.

 

In the latter case, ti is the indirect object and la vertà is the direct object.  The reason these verbs require a preposition is often because there is an implied direct object (that may or may not take a different preposition) that is rarely stated but always understood.  In this sentence, however, it is stated.  Another example would be Ma suora parla à nustro patro de ses problemas, in which the patro is the indirect object and the problemas is the direct object.

 

If a sentence uses multiple verbs, one being in the infinitive, as well as one or more object pronouns, there are three options: 1) if the verb begins in a vowel and the pronoun is not an indirect object pronoun, use the proper abbreviation and place the pronoun in front of the infinitive, 2) attach the pronoun to the end of the infinitive, or 3) place the pronoun before the conjugated verb.  Indirect object and reflexive pronouns should still come before direct object pronouns regardless.

Yo voi escriverla. = I am going to write it.
Yo la voi escriver. = I am going to write it.
Yo voi l’escriver. = I am going to write it.
Ilo vue descuvrerlo. = He wants to discover it.
Ilo lo vue descuvrer. = He wants to discover it.
Vusotes no nute vulez donarlo. = You don’t want to give it to us.
Vusotes no nute lo vulez donar. = You don’t want to give it to us.
Ela pue rasersa les ĝambas. = She can shave her legs.
Ela sa pue raser les ĝambas. = She can shave her legs.
Ela va s’apelar Franciza. = She is going to call herself Frances.
Ela sa va apelar Franciza. = She is going to call herself Frances.

 

EXPRESSION: INDIRECT OBJECT PRONOUN + PLATIR

 

Brujeric uses a construction using an indirect object pronoun and a proper form of the verb platir (to please) to express a like for something.  For example:

 

Mi plati quilo livro. = I like this book. (literally, “This book pleases me.”)
Ti plactin las pomas? = Do you like apples? I like this book. (literally, “Do apples please you?”)

 

 NOTE: In any case in English when the present participle is used as a noun (called a gerund), the infinitive is used in its place in Brujeric.  Also, platir follows the conjugation pattern of natir and its compounds.

 

Nute plati naĝar. = We like swimming. / We like to swim.
Ti plati escriver. = You like writing. / You like to write.

 

OTHER GRAMMATICAL DEVICES

 

HUEN & AY

 

Huen

 

Huen is a useful pronoun that essentially replaces any prepositional phrase using de..  If the object following any of these prepositions is or could be replaced by any of the inanimate emphatic pronouns (lo, la, los, las), using huen is required.  Otherwise, it’s optional.  For example:

 

No parlaremos jamaz de lo. = We will not speak of it. ß grammatically incorrect
No huen parlaremos. = We will not speak of it. ß grammatically correct
Nusotes parlamos d’ezo. = We speak of him. ß grammatically correct
Nusotes huen parlamos. = We speak of him. ß grammatically correct 

 

Ay

 

Ay is another useful pronoun that essentially replaces any prepositional phrase using à, en, horze de, danze de, dehorze de, or dedanze de.

If the object following the preposition is or could be replaced by any of the inanimate emphatic pronouns (lo, la, los, las) and/or if the preposition à is followed by a pronoun, using ay is required.  Otherwise, it’s optional.  For example:

 

Què faces tù en la biblioteca? = What are you doing in the library? ß grammatically correct
Què faces tù en la? = What are you doing in there? ß grammatically incorrect
Qu’ay faces tù? = What are you doing in there? ß grammatically correct
Vusotes ete al cìnemo. = You are at the movie theater.
Vusotes ay ete. = You are there.

 

IMPERATIVE VERBS

Verbs used in the imperative tense are used to make requests or give commands.  The imperative form of any verb is equivalent to the proper form of the present subjunctive.  The nusotes form of the imperative is equivalent to the English phrase “Let’s + verb!”

 

Examples:
Manges tes vegetales. = Eat your vegetables.
Telefone al sacerdoto. = Call the priest. (this command is given to someone politely called “Vuzo” or “Vuza”)
Voyamos! = Let’s go!
Chantemos! = Let’s sing!

 

If any object pronoun(s) is(are) follow an imperative verb that ends with a vowel, the pronoun(s) attach themselves to the end of the verb with an accent mark added to the verb to preserve the location of its stressed syllable.  If the imperative verb ends in a consonant, however, hyphens are inserted between the verb and object or reflexive pronoun(s) If both a direct and indirect object or reflexive pronoun are used, the indirect object or reflexive pronoun always comes first. 

 

Per favoro chàntela! = Please sing it! (request issued to Vuzo/Vuza)
Per favoro fàigalo. = Please do it. (request issued to Vuzo/Vuza)
Digas-mi la vertà. = Tell me the truth. (command issued to tù)
Donen-los à les enfantos. = Give them to the children. (command issued to Vuzes)
Parlemos-lui! = Let’s talk to him!
Dones-mi-lo. = Give me it!

 

COMPARATIVE WORDS 

 

In order to compare different entities, Brujeric uses the following words and phrases.

bocupo = much (“many” if plural)
puezo = little (“few” if plural)
plu = more; most
plu…que = more…than
plu…de = most…in
mones = less; least
mones…que = less…than
mones…de = least…in
tan = so
parielo = such
tando = so much (“so many” if plural)
autando = as much (“as many” if plural)
autando…si = as much…as
tel…si = as…as

 

Examples:

Yo avo bocupas pomas. = I have many apples.
Tù es puezo fatigato. = You are a little tired.
Yo vuo plu! = I want more!
Vusotes manĝute plu bananas que les sinĝos. = You ate more bananas than the monkeys.
Yo soi el plu inteligente sorciero de Brujeriterra! = I’m the most intelligent warlock in Brujerland.
Tù devis parlar mones. = You should talk less.
Les sinĝos son mones inteligentes que les homes. = Monkeys are less intelligent than men.
Ilos an les mones fortes sorcieras de Brujeriterra. = They have the weakest witches in Brujerland.
Laurença est tan bela. = Lauren is so beautiful.
Ela est una pariela sorcera. = She is such a witch.
Tù chantas tandas cançones! = You sing so many songs!
Si no escrise autando, ta mana sentirìa ben. = If you didn’t write so much, your hand would feel well.
Ilo manĝa autandos uofos qu’ela. = He eats as many eggs as she. 

 

Note that most of these words change to agree with the gender and number of the nouns they modify just like normal adjectives. (see “ADJECTIVES”)

 

DEMONSTRATIVE WORDS

 

Demonstrative Adjectives

 

Demonstrative adjectives point to a certain thing, often amidst other similar items, and often identify location with respect to the speaker.  There are four main demonstrative adjectives that Brujeric shares with English plus one special demonstrative adjective.  They are:

 

quilo = this
quilos = these
quelo = that
quelos = those
donte = of which; whose; from which; from whom

 

For example:
Quila roba est bela. = This dress is beautiful.
Quilos chatos son folos. = These cats are crazy.
Quelo çiano chasa les chatos. = That dog chases cats.
Quelas femas son espusadas. = Those women are married.
El livro donte parlo est vielo. = The book of which I speak is old. / The book I speak of is old.

Note that all of these words change to agree with the gender and number of the nouns they modify just like normal adjectives.

 

Demonstrative Pronouns

 

Demonstrative pronouns replace nouns and identify to which item among several is being referred.  The demonstrative pronouns are:

Loquel?/Laquela? = Which one?
Lesqueles? = Which ones?
celo-ci = this one (masc.)
cela-ci = this one (fem.)
celo-là = that one (masc.)
cela-là = that one (fem.)
celes-ci = these ones
celes-là = those ones 

 

For example:
Yo vuo la espea. = I want the sword.
Laquela? = Which one?
Cela-là. = That one.
No vuo celo-ci? = You don’t want this one?

 

RELATIVE PRONOUNS

 

Relative pronouns start a phrase that describes an item in another part of the sentence.  Examples in English are “that” and “which.”  The Brujeric relative pronouns are:

qui = that; who
que = that; whom
lo qui = what; who (that which; it which; he who) (subj.) (masc.)
la qui = what; who (that which; it which; she who) (subj.) (fem.)
lo que = what; who (that which; it which; he whom) (obj.) (masc.)
la que = what; who (that which; it which; she whom) (obj.) (fem.)
donte = of which; of whom; whose; from which; from whom
lo donte = that of which; it of which; that from which; it from which; he from whom; he whose (masc.)
la donte = that of which; it of which; that from which; it from which; he from whom; she whose (fem.)
les dontes = those of which; them of which; those from which; them from which 

 

Qui is used if the item or person it refers to is the subject of the main sentence.  Que is used if the item or person it refers to is the object of the main sentence.  For example:

 

El home qui feçù quilo serà punito. = The man who did this will be punished.
La fila que yo amo est marvieluza. = The girl that I love is wonderful.

 

In the first sentence, the subject of the sentence is what is described by the phrase made up of qui and the two words following it.  In the second sentence, the object is what is described by the phrase made up of que and the two words following it.  In other words, the man that is the topic of the phrase is also the doer of the action in the rest of the sentence (serà punito), whereas the girl that is the subject of est marvieluzo is the object of yo amo.  In the first entence, the noun is the subject in both parts of the sentence.  In the latter, this is not true.  The noun is the subject of one part and the object of another.  Que should always denote usage as an object and qui should always denote usage as a subject.

 

To put it another way, if the word that would follow qui or que is a verb or object pronoun, use qui.  If the word that would follow qui or que is a noun or pronoun, use que.

 

Lo qui, la qui, lo que, la que are used in a similar fashion.  For example:

Lo qui mi face felice est voyaĝar. = What makes me happy is traveling.
La qui m’enuya est la mùsica forte. = What annoys me is loud music.
Lo que yo detesto tuĝur mi viene. = What I hate always comes to me.
La que yo truvè est una espea. = What I found is a sword.

 

In the first two sentences, the subjects are what is replaced by the phrase made up of lo qui or la qui and the two or three words following it.  In the last two sentences, the object is what is replaced by the phrase made up of lo que or la que and the two or three words following it.  In other words, the man that is the topic of the phrase is also the doer of the action in the rest of the sentence (serà punito), whereas the girl that is the subject of est marvieluza is the object of yo amo.  In the first sentence, the noun is the subject in both parts of the sentence.  In the latter, this is not true.  The noun is the subject of one part and the object of another.  Lo/la que should always denote usage as an object and lo/la qui should always denote usage as a subject.

 

To put it another way, if the word that would follow lo/la qui or lo/la que is a verb or object pronoun, use lo/la qui.  If the word that would follow qui or que is a subject noun or pronoun, use lo/la que.

 

Example uses of donte:

El livro donte yo parlo est vielo. = The book of which I speak is old. / The book that I speak of is old.
La persona donte quela letra viene est juveno. = The person from whom this letter comes is young. / The person that this letter comes from is young.
El garçoño donte el çiano est curiente s’apela Alfredo. = The boy whose dog is running is named Alfred.

 

Example uses of lo donte/la donte.

Lo donte yo parlo est un evenemento seriuzo. = That of which I speak is a serious event. / What I speak of is a serious event.
La donte yo soi amoruzo s’apela Isabela. = She of whom I am enamored is named Isabella. / The one I am enamored of is named Isabella.

 

USING PRESENT & PAST PARTICIPLES AS ADJECTIVES

 

In such English phrases as “the blowing wind,” the present participle of “blow” is used as an adjective to describe “wind.”  In such English phrases as “the spoken word,” the past participle of “speak” is used as an adjective to describe “word.”

 

To use a participle as an adjective, just treat it like one.  Remember to add an 's' as needed for plural participial adjectives.

 

Examples:

la fema parlante = the talking woman
les femas cheritas = the cherished women
les sorcieros combatintes = the fighting warlocks
el moto escrito = the written word

 

PERFORMER WORDS

 

In English, the suffix ‘er’ is often added to a verb to denote one who does the action of the verb, as in “worker,” “speaker,” and “reader.”  There is a group of equivalent suffixes in Brujeric that is added to the verb stem.  The suffixes are:

-utor (masc. sing.)                    -utores (masc. pl.)
-uzor (fem. sing.)                      -uzores (fem. pl.)

 

Examples:

parlutor = male speaker
escrivuzor = female writer
achetutores = male buyers
travailuzores = female workers

 

PASSIVE VOICE

 

In English, the passive voice essentially makes the object of a sentence play the role of the subject.  Instead of saying “Somebody bought it,” we may say “It was bought.”  In Brujeric, the passive voice is created by treating the verb as if it were reflexive.

 

Examples:

Active Voice:

Une l’apela Ana. = One calls her Anne. / They (people in general) call her Anne. / You (people in general) call her Anne.

Passive Voice: Ela s’apela Ana. = She is called Anne.

 

NOTE: This passive-voice use of the verb apelar is used most often to state one’s name.  Mi apelo Gregorio literally means “I call myself Gregory” or “I am called Gregory,” but it is used in the sense of “My name is Gregory.”

 

Active Voice:

En Brujeriterra, une parla el Brujèriçe. = In Brujerland, one speaks Brujeric. / In Brujerland, they (people in general) speak Brujeric. / In Brujerland, you (people in general) speak Brujeric.

Passive Voice:

En Brujeriterra, el Brujèriçe so parla. = In Brujerland, Brujeric is spoken.

 

Also, it is common when using verbs in this way to invert the subject and verb much like in a question.  For example, it would be equally proper to rephrase the above sentence as En Brujeriterra, so parla el Brujèriçe.

 

SUPERLATIVE WORDS

 

Regular Superlatives

 

The superlative form of an adjective is equivalent to the English phrase “most + adjective” or an adjective with the suffix ‘est’ added to it.  For a Brujeric superlative, simply remove the final vowel and add the suffix –ìzemo.  Don’t forget to change the ending of the resulting word according to gender and number.

 

Examples:

belo = handsome; beautiful       à        belìzemo = most handsome; most beautiful
grando = large; big                   à        grandìzemo = largest, biggest
veloço = fast; quick; rapid        à        velocìzemo = fastest; quickest; most rapid (notice the small spelling change to preserve pronunciation) 

 

Irregular Superlatives

 

A few key adjectives have irregular superlatives forms or slightly different definitions in the regular superlative form.

bono = good    à        mielor = best (bonìzemo = great)
malo = bad      à        pilor = worst 
grando = big; great     à        máximo  

 

© 2005 Gregory H. Bontrager