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Sambahsa primer in English

Page history last edited by Mundialecter 7 years ago
Sambahsa primer in English

 

 

Sellgumt! Welcome to this new page dedicated to the learning of the basic rules of sambahsa.

 

Here are a series of short dialogues with translations in English which shall help you to discover, step by step, this original auxlang (some may say a "half-worldlang"...).

 

The seven first dialogues will be accompanied by phonetic transcriptions, as sambahsa does have some orthographical rules. This transcription will appear in the following dialogues only when we face difficult or unusual words, for the orthograph of sambahsa is fully regular.

 

Any constructive comments (especially from my friends of the "Auxlang" and "Worldlang" yahoo groups) are welcome!

 

Let's start!

 

Sambahsa uses the 26 letters of the Latin alphabet. Sambahsa’s orthographical and accentual system is quite elaborate; this is because it tries to respect the forms that loanwords have in the source languages, especially West-European languages where orthography plays a key role.

Nevertheless, those rules are entirely regular, and can be mastered through repetition. To ease the learning of those rules, a simpler phonetic transcription system, the Sambahsa Phonetic Transcription (SPT), is used. Words written in SPT are always between brackets [ ].  Be sure to fully understand the SPT before going further.

 

 

[a] = like “a” in “car”

[ä] = like “e” in “bed”, but often a bit longer

[b] = as in English

[c] = as “sh” in “shoe”

[d] = as in English

[e] = as in Italian or Spanish. Listen to it: http://tts.imtranslator.net/4Fxa

[ë] = as “e” in “the”

[f] = as in English

[g] = as “g” in “give”

[h] = as “h” in “hope”

[i] = as “i” in “bit”

[j] = as “si” in “vision”

[k] = as in English

[l] = as in English

[m] = as in English

[n] = as in English

[o] = as in English

[ö] = as “u” in “burn”, but slightly longer

[p] = as in English

[q] = the “ach-laut” of German or the “jota” of Spanish. It is written “kh” in the Sambahsa orthography. Listen to “khako” (“I’m not able to”: [qAko] :: http://tts.imtranslator.net/4Fxf

[r] = its pronunciation varies from region to region. Nevertheless, “rr” and “rh” have to be pronounced rolled, as in Spanish.

[s] = as “s” in “say”

[t] = as in English

[u] = as “oo” in “book”

[ü] = the “u” of French or the “ü” of German. According to various rules, it can be written with “u” or “y”. Listen to “styr” (steering wheel) :: http://tts.imtranslator.net/4Fxk

[v] = as in English

[w] = as in English

[x] = it is the “ich-laut” of German. Is written “sh” in the Sambahsa orthography. Listen to “ghianshiek” (rock, stone) :: http://tts.imtranslator.net/4Fxt

[y] = as “y” in “you”

[z] = as “z” in “zero”

[§] = as “th” in “thin”

 

Stressed vowels are written in bold fonts in polysyllabic words, and a [:] following a vowel indicates that this one has to be lengthened. Letters in italics can be left unpronounced.

 When two following words seem to be pronounced together, a "_" is used.

 

 

 

1- Quel gwehmt ?

 

Ph: Kel gwe:mt ?

 

Eng: Who's coming (lit. who comes ?) ?

 

2- Ego, is postalion!

 

Ph: Ego, is postalyon!

 

Eng: I, the postman!

 

3 - Gwehmte, ed dahte mi id brev!

 

Ph: Gwe:mtë, ed da:të mi id brev!

 

Eng: Come, and give me the letter!

 

4- Ya, Poti, en id brev.

 

Ph: Ya, Poti, en id brev.

 

Eng: Yes, sir, here is the letter.

 

5 - Volte yu un tasse coffie?

 

Ph: Volt_yu un tas kofi:?

 

Eng: Do you want a cup of coffee?

 

6 - Ho yaschi vin.

 

Ph: Ho yaci vin.

 

Eng: I've got (some) wine too.

 

7. Ya, schehncte mi plais un tasse.

 

Ph: Ya, ce:nktë mi pläs un tas.

 

Eng: Yes, pour me a cup please.

 

Notes: 1. Sambahsa distinguishes four genders: masculine, feminine, neutral and undetermined. Their distribution follows the true nature of the noun they refer to, as we do in English with "he, she, it". Here, "quel" is the interrogative (and relative) pronoun of the undetermined.

 

In sambahsa, the two letters "qu" count as a single letter and are pronounced like in Spanish.

 

"Gwehmt" is the indicative present form at the third person of the singular of the verb "gwehm"="to come". In English, we still add a "s" to "come" at the third person of the singular. In sambahsa, endings are added to all persons, so conjugated verbs can normally be used without a personal pronoun.

 

2. In sambahsa, pronouns have a three case declension (nominative, accusative and dative). In English, we still distinguish between the nominative and the oblique cases.

 

3. Like most continental languages, sambahsa uses a polite formula when adressing some people. As in French or Russian, the 2° person of the plural (yu) is used instead of the 2° of the singular (tu) in such situations. The ending of the 2° person of the plural is "te", it works for the imperative too.

 

The final "e" in sambahsa is pronounced as in French, that means it is pronounced only (as a "ë") when it is necessary, what may vary from speaker to speaker.

 

"mi" is the dative form of the personal pronoun "ego".

 

"id" is the neutral accusative (and nominative) form of the article. It can work as a personal pronoun too; this is an important feature of sambahsa.

 

A feature inherited from Indo-European is that for the neutral gender, all accusative and nominative forms are the same. (This works de facto for the undetermined gender too).

 

5. For the interrogative sentences, the personal pronouns are used, and they are put after the conjugated verb.

 

For the expression of quantities, the right way in sambahsa is to put the quantifier before the quantified matter, though the genitive might be possible (Here it would be then "un tasse os coffie").

 

6. As nearly all verbal forms bear an ending in sambahsa, there is no need to add a personal pronoun. The conjugated verb is enough.

 

There are only three irregular verbs in sambahsa: ses = to be, habe = to have and woide = to know (to have the knowledge of something, as "wissen" in German or "savoir" in French).

 

The present indicative conjugation of "habe" is: ho = I have; has = thou hast; hat = he, she, it has; habmos (hams) = we have; habte = ye have; habent (hant) = they have.

 

7. In sambahsa, you only have to learn the verbal stem (not the infinitive), and you can deduce the whole conjugation from it.

 

Here, the verbal stem is "schehnk" = "to pour, to offer" (an old germanic root). The final "k" or "g" of verbal stems turns to "c" when it is added an ending which begins with "t" or "s".

 

In sambahsa, "ai" is always pronounced as in French, or like a German "ä".

 

 

 

 

 

1- Excuset me, ste yu russian ?

 

Ph: Eksküzd me, ste yu rusyan?

 

Eng: Excuse me, are you Russian ?

 

2- No, som franceois.

 

Ph: No, som frantsëoys

 

Eng: No, I'm French.

 

3- Bet yu bahte sambahsa!

 

Ph: Bet yu ba:t samba:sa!
Eng: But you speak Sambahsa !

 

4- Ah! Ho inkapt nuper

 

Ph: A:! Ho inkapt nüpër

 

Eng: Ah! I have begun recently

 

5- Kamo meg tod bahsa.

 

Ph: Kamo meg tod ba:sa

 

Eng: I like this language a lot.

 

6 - Gnohte yu quer wehst id hospital ?

 

Ph: Nyo:t_yu ker we:st id hospital?

 

Eng: Do you know where the hospital is ?

 

7- Ne gnohm, bet her gwehmt mien brater; is gnoht.

 

Ph: Në nyo:m, bet her gwe:mt myen bratër; is nyo:t

 

Eng: I don't know, but here comes my brother; he knows.

 

8- Semper seid, id hospital ne est baygh dalg.

 

Ph: Sempër seyd, id hospital në est bayg dalg

 

Eng: Keep going straight, the hospital is not very far.

 

9- Dank, chao!

 

Ph: Dank, tcao!

 

Eng: Thanks, bye!

 

 

 

 

Notes: 1. "-te" is the normal ending for the 2° person of the plural; but, if it does not match with the accentuation of the verbal stem, it must be reduced to "t". Here, the verb is "excuse". A final "e" in sambahsa indicates that the preceding vowel will be stressed. So here, we have to use only "t", to keep the stress on the "u".

 

An important phonetic feature in sambahsa is that the letter "u" must be pronounced [ü] if one of the two following letters is a "e".

 

"Ses" (to be) is irregular. Its indicative present conjugation is: som = I am, es = thou art, est = he, she, it is, smos = we are, ste = ye are, sont = they are.

 

"Russian" is what pertains to the country called "Russia". About the ethny (ex: the language), one must say "rusk". The old name of the country is "Russ".

 

2. The word "franceois" illustrates the fact that, in sambahsa, some letters can be left unpronounced if it does not alter the understanding. "ce" must be pronounced [tsë], but, between two consonants, the "t" almost disappears. Likewise, "e" must be pronounced [ë] when it is not stressed or when it does not stand as the first letter of a word. Here, as it stands before a stressed vowel, the "o", it can be dropped, and therefore, "franceois" can be pronounced [fransoys].

 

3. "bah" can both mean "to speak" and "to say", though, in the latter meaning, it shall be replaced by "sayg".

 

4. Like in English or Spanish, the perfect tense is composed in sambahsa of the conjugated verb "habe" (to have) followed by the passive past participle of the verb.

 

5. "tod" is the singular nominative and accusative neutral form of the demonstrative adjective and pronoun.

 

6. "gn" is always pronounced [ny], like in French or Italian.

 

"wehs" corresponds to French "se trouver" or German "sich befinden". This root is still present in the English verbal forms "was" and "were".

 

7. "t" standing between two consonants can be left unpronounced, as in this example "gwehm(t) mien".

 

8. Don't forget to pronounce the "h" at the beginning of "hospital".

 

9. "ch" is pronounced like in English when it stands before a vowel, but like "k" before other consonants. Nevertheless, "sch" is always pronounced like "sh" in English.

 

 

 

 

1- Poitto io entre?

 

Ph: Poyto yo entrë?

 

Eng: Can I enter?

 

2- Ya, prehgo.

 

Ph: Ya, pre:go.

 

Eng: Yes, please do.

 

3- Poitto io dumes her?

 

Ph: Poyto yo düms her?

 

Eng: Can I smoke here?

 

4- No, yu ne poitte. Dumes her est forbohdt.

 

Ph: No, yu në poyt. Düms her est forbo:dt

 

Eng: No, you cannot. To smoke here is forbidden.

 

5- Sayang! Tant wehno dumes!

 

Ph: Sayang! Tant we:no düms!

 

Eng: What a pity! I feel so much like smoking!

 

6- Vedim, est vierdnic pro voster sieune!

 

Ph: Vedim, est vyerdnik pro vostër syön!

 

Eng: Come on now! it's harmful for your health!

 

 

Notes. 1. The verb "poitt" means "to have the right to". Other verbs are "ghehd" = "to be able to", "khak" = "not to be able to". "Magh" is a general verb for "can".

 

Like in English, "entre" does not need any preposition. Ex: "Io entre id kyal" = "I enter the room". Of course, sambahsa can use verbs with prepositions. "Poitto io gwahe in?" or "Poitto ihes in?" could have been other translations.

 

You may have notice that there are different endings for the present indicative singular 1st person. It is "-m" when the verb ends with a stressed vocalic sound (ex: "dah" = "to give"; "dahm" = "I give"), "-o" when the verb ends in a consonant and when it is compatible with the accentuation. Other verbs do not bear any ending and use the personal pronoun "io" [yo], a shortened form of "ego".

 

2. "Yes" is "ya" in sambahsa; but if you answer to a negative question, you shall use "si".

 

"prehgo" means roughly "I pray". cf. Italian "prego", French "je vous en prie".

 

3. In the combinations "es" and "et" at the end of words, the "e" is left unpronounced (except if the preceding sounds do not allow a confusion with the final letter; ex: "princes" is pronounced [printsës]).

 

The infinitive of verbal stems with roots in "eu" or "ei" is formed by reducing those diphtongs to the "zero-grade" ("u" and "i" respectively) and by adding "es".

 

4. In sambahsa, you cannot write three times side by side the same letter. That's why poitt + te turns to "poitte".

 

The endings of the past passive participle are "-t" or "-(e)n", with both the same meaning. To form this participle, some verbs (those never ending with an unstressed "e") undergo a vocalic mutation called "ablaut". "eh" turns to "oh", "eu" to "u" and "ei" to "i".

 

5. "Tant" is "so much" or "so many". "Ho dumen tanta cigarettes!" [Ho dümën tanta tsigarets] = "I've smoked so many cigarettes!".

 

6. The possessive pronoun for the 2° person of plural is "vies", but you can use a lengthened form "voster". The nominative of the personal pronoun is "yu", which turns to "vos" in the oblique cases.

 

Likewise, the forms for the 1st person of the plural are wey, nos and nies/noster.

 

"Sieune" comes from the adjective "saun" = "sound". In sambahsa, you can create nouns from adjectives of qualities by subjecting those adjectives to the ablaut and adding a final "e". There is an ablaut for verbal stems in "a" not ending with a "e", but this ablaut does not work for the past participle. "a" turns to "ie", "ay" to "iey" and "au" to "ieu".

 

 

 

1- Spehc ghi, Lisa!

 

Ph: Spe:k gi, Lisa!

 

Eng: Look at that, Lisa!

 

2- Kam un bell pack!

 

Ph: Kam un bel pak!

 

Eng: What a beautiful parcel!

 

3- Quod est in tod scattule?

 

Ph: Kwod est in tod skatül?

 

Eng: What is there in this box?

 

4- Un hadia. Ghehds vide id ob id papier.

 

Ph: Un hadya. Ge:dz vid id ob id papyer.

 

Eng: A present. You can tell it by the paper.

 

5- Un cadeau pro me?

 

Ph: Un kado: pro me?

 

Eng: A gift-wrapped parcel for me?

 

6- No, ne pro te, sontern pro me.

 

Ph: No, ne pro te, sontërn pro me.

 

Eng: No, not for you, but for me.

 

7- Ioschi dako oin ud tid do tid.

 

Ph: Yoci dako oyn ud tid do tid.

 

Eng: I also receive one from time to time.

 

8- Ud quel gwehmt id?

 

Ph: Ud kel gwe:mt id?

 

Eng: Who does it come from?

 

9- Ud mien prientin. Pro mien gnahdien.

 

Ph: Ud myen pryentin. Pro myen nya:dyen.

 

Eng: From my (she-)friend. For my birthday.

 

10- Ed quod est ?

 

Ph: Ed kwod est ?

 

Eng: And what is it?

 

11- Ne saygo tib to.

 

Ph: Në saygo tib to.

 

Eng: I am not telling you.

 

12- Es pior curieus

 

Ph: Es pyor kuryös

 

Eng: You're weird.

 

13- Ed tu ne es latif!

 

Ph: Ed tu në es latif!

 

Eng: And you are not kind!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Notes: 1. The imperative for the second person of singular ("thou") simply corresponds to the verbal stem; otherwise, it is allowed to add a "e" to it. Thus, we would get "spehce" which is pronounced "spe:ts". "c" is pronounced "ts" before e,i and y. On the contrary to the English verb, "spehc" is transitive and thus triggers off the accusative: "Lisa spehct id scattule" = "Lisa looks at the box". Sambahsa still uses a "thou", unlike English, but like many other languages (like French, Spanish, German, Russian). "Tu" (accusative: te, dative: tib; possessive: tien ) is used with friends and relatives, and young people. Otherwise, or when you are not sure, use "yu" as in English.

 

"ghi" has no definite meaning, it is like "then" in English, "donc" in French, "eens" in Netherlandic or "zhe" in Russian.

 

2. In other circumstances, "kam" means "like" or "how, in which way?".

 

3. The final "ule" [ül] of sambahsa words departs from the normal accentuational rules because it cannot be stressed. In sambahsa, a "small box" is "cutia".

 

4. "Ghehd" means "to be able to". It bears a final "s", which is the ending of the 2° person of the indicative singular.

 

"ob" means "because (of)".

 

5. In sambahsa, the triphtong "eau" is pronounced [o:].

 

6. "Sontern" means "but", and always comes after a negation.

 

7. "Yaschi" means "also, too" in sambahsa. Nevertheless, when this adverb is used after a pronoun, the "ya" disappears and "schi" is prefixed to this pronoun. Here, it is prefixed to "io" ("I"); here, "io" is prefered to "ego" because prefixing "schi" would be incompatible with the accentuation of "ego".

 

8. "ex" has a meaning of "extraction"; ex: "un botel ex glass" = "a bottle of glass", on the contrary of "ud".

 

9. Many feminine nouns can be formed by adding the suffix "-in".

 

10. Remember that in sambahsa, the personal pronoun can be omitted.

 

11. All words in this sentence could be put in any order, but the sentence would still mean the same thing.

 

12. In sambahsa, "eu" is always pronounced [ö].

 

 

Penkt lection

 

Some elements of grammar

 

 

In the preceding lessons, you have seen that pronouns are the keystones of sentences in sambahsa. In this language, pronouns are declined, that means that they follow the number and gender of the noun they refer to, and must show at the case they are (i.e., which function they occupy within the sentence). Don't worry, even English still has pronouns that display gender, number and case (ex: he vs. she; he vs. they; he vs. him). And the sambahsa system is very regular, so you will rapidly be able to use it without being always obliged to refer to the list below.

 

Sambahsa uses the same pronoun for the definite article "the" and the personal pronoun of the third person ("he, she, it, they"). Only the genitive case applies just for the article (as "of the" shall not be confused with "his"!); It often begins with an "i".

 

Sambahsa uses the same word for the interrogative and the relative pronoun, as it is sometimes the case in English (who, which...). It always begins with "qu".

 

The demonstrative pronoun of sambahsa begins nearly always with "t-".

 

 

Nominative singular: masculine: is/ qui (relative pronoun), quis (interrogative pronoun)/so

 

feminine: ia/qua/sa

 

neutral: id/quod/tod

 

undetermined: el/quel/tel

 

In sambahsa, the nominative and accusative forms for the neutral (and undertermined gender) are always the same.

 

Accusative singular: masculine: iom/quom/tom

 

feminine: iam/quam/tam

 

Dative singular: masculine and neutral: ei/quei/tei

 

feminine: ay/quay/tay

 

undetermined: al/qual/tal : In sambahsa, the dative and genitive forms of pronouns for the undertermined gender are the same.

 

Genitive singular: masculine and neutral: ios/quos/tos

 

feminine: ias/quas/tas

 

 

Nominative plural: masculine: ies/quoy/toy

 

feminine: ias/quas/tas

 

neutral: ia/qua/ta

 

undetermined: i/qui/ti

 

Accusative plural: masculine: iens/quens/tens

 

feminine: ians/quans/tans

 

Dative plural: masculine and neutral: ibs/quibs/tibs

 

feminine: iabs/quabs/tabs

 

undetermined: im/quim/tim

 

Genitive plural: masculine and neutral: iom/quom/tom

 

feminine: iam/quam/tam

 

There is a demonstrative pronoun for remote objects, consisting of c + is and its declined forms according to gender, number and case.

 

There is a general neutral pronoun "to", and its relative pronoun form is "quo", corresponding to the English "what" when used as a relative pronoun.

 

 

The possessive pronouns of the third person are, for the singular, "eys" (masculine), "ays" (feminine), "ids" (neutral) and "els" (undetermined); furthermore, the possessive reflexive pronoun (see below) is "sien". The possessive pronoun of the third person of the plural is "ir".

 

 

The reflexive pronoun can be theoretically used at all persons, but, in general, only appears at the third person of the singular: It is "se" (accusative) and "sib" (dative). Sambahsa has "swo" too, which corresponds to the English "self" (ex: "io" + "swo" = "ioswo" = "myself").

 

The personal pronouns of the 1° and 2° persons are as follows (nominative/accusative/dative/possessive pronouns):

 

1° person singular: ego ("io" is the shortened form)/me/mi/mien

 

2° person singular: tu/te/tib/tien

 

1° person plural: wey/nos/nos/nies (noster)

 

2° person plural: yu/vos/vos/vies (voster)

 

 

 

The present indicative conjugation in sambahsa:

 

In sambahsa, verbs do bear endings according to the person and the number, so preponed personal pronouns can generally be omitted.

 

1° person singular: If the verbal stem ends with a consonant, the ending is "o", if this "o" can be put just after the accentuated syllable. Examples: dako = I get; saygo = I say; kamo = I like; poitto = I have the right to. Verbs ending with a vocalic sound add "m". Example: gnoh "to know" + m = gnohm "I know".

 

2° person singular: Always "s". Ex: ghehd "to be able to" + s = ghehds "thou art able to".

 

3° person singular: Always "t". Ex: gnoh "to know" + t = gnoht "knows". To precise the meaning, the personal pronouns ought to be added.

 

1° person plural: "m(o)s" depending on the stress pattern of the verbal stem. Ex: poitt gives poittmos "we have the right to" and excuse gives excusems "we excuse"because of their different accentuational structures. Dah "to give" can both lead to dahmos and dahms "we give".

 

2° person plural (and its imperative). "t(e)" depending on the stress in the verbal stem. Ex: poitt + te = poitte (as the same letter cannot be written thrice in sambahsa), but excuse + t(e) = excuset in order to respect the accentuation that falls on the "u". The personal pronoun "yu" ought to be used to avoid confusion with the 3° person singular.

 

3° person plural: "(e)[nt]". The "-nt" is compulsory for verbal stems ending with a stressed vocalic sound (ex: dah gives danht) or, on the contrary, who cannot bear a single "e" at the end because of their accentuational structure (ex: desciffer "to decipher" gives desciffernt "they decipher"). For other verbs, the final "nt" is optional (but ought to be used if there is not subject to indicate person). Ex: i sayge(nt) = "they say".

 

 

 

1- Has tu nun finiht tien orbat?

 

Ph: Has tu nun fini:t tyen orbat?

 

Eng: Have you finished your work?

 

2- No, ma?

 

Ph: No, ma?

 

Eng: No, why?

 

3- Est ja quasi sept saat.

 

Ph: Est ja kwazi sept sa-at

 

Eng: It's already nearly seven o'clock

 

4- Sept saat, ne est lakin tem sert.

 

Ph: Sept sa-at, në est lakin tem sert

 

Eng: Seven o'clock, it's nevertheless not so late

 

5- Naiwo mejems pre sept saat trigim

 

Ph: Näwo mejëms pre sept sa-at tridjim

 

Eng: We never eat before half past seven.

 

6- Ya, bet hovesper est un bell film in id television.

 

Ph: Ya, bet hovespër est un bel film in id tëlëvizyon.

 

Eng: Yes, but this evening there is a beautiful film on the television.

 

7- Un franceois film?

 

Ph: Un frantsëoys film?

 

Eng: A French film?

 

8- No, un US film.

 

Ph: No, un U-es film.

 

Eng: No, a US film.

 

9- bet con subtitules.

 

Ph: bet kon subtitüls

 

Eng: but with subtitles.

 

10- Un schungjin weirfilm

 

Ph: Un cungjin weyrfilm

 

Eng: A magnificient war film

 

11- OK, me hasto.

 

Ph: Okey, më hasto.

 

Eng: OK, I I'm hurrying up.

 

12- OK! OK! Ma bahs tu nun Englisch?

 

Ph: Okey! Okey! Ma bâs-tu nun englic?

 

Eng: OK! OK! Why do you speak English now?

 

13- Bet, prient, est lakin un international bahsa!

 

Ph: Bet, pryent, est lakin un intërnatyonal ba:sa!

 

Eng: But, friend, it is nevertheless an international language!

 

14- Kad ne woidst id?

 

Ph: Kad në woydst id?

 

Eng: How come you don't know it ? (Lit. : "perhaps-that not knowest it ?")

 

 

Notes. 1. "Orbat" means exactly "labour" while "wehrg" is more general; it can have the sense of "functioning" too.

 

5. "Meje" means "to have a meal, sitting at a table", from "meja", "table for eating". "To eat" in general is "edd".

 

6. To indicate a determined period of time, "ho" can be prefixed. Ex: "honoct" = "tonight". But "today" is "hoyd".

 

9. As for English, Sambahsa adds an "s" to its nouns at the plural. If the "s" cannot be heard because of the final sounds of this noun, then an i is added to nouns of people and animals, or an a to nouns of things. If the stress pattern of the noun does not allow the addotion of a final vowel, then no ending is added (and the distinction between singular and plural is made only by the pronouns and the conjugated verbs).

 

10. Compounds are stressed like other words, with the exception that if the stress falls on a syllable that would not be stressed if this part of the compound were alone, then the stress must go back till the next accentuable syllable.

 

14. "Kad" (from Arabic) means "maybe that" in a single word. "Maybe" alone is "maghses". "Woid" (to know, to have the knowledge of something) is irregular for it uses the preterit endings in the present tense. Here, the ending for the second person singular is (i)st(a).

 

 

 

1. Sellamat potnia ed poti! Eiskwte yu oin kamer samt dwo licts au dwo kamers samt ein lict?

 

Ph: Selamat potnya ed poti! eyskut yu oyn kamër samt dwo likts ao dwo kamërs samt eyn likt?

 

Eng: Hello madam and sir! Do you want one room with two beds or two rooms with one bed?

 

2. Oin kamer samt dwo licts ed balnia.

 

Ph: Oyn kamër samt dwo likts ed balnya.

 

Eng: One room with two beds and bath.

 

3. Hams oin leur kamer ye id trit etage. Quantro eiskwte yu mane?

 

Ph: Hams oyn lör kamër ye id trit etadjë. Kwantro eyskut yu man?

 

Eng: We have one free room on the third floor. How long do you wish to stay?

 

4. Mansiems oin hevd tiel dien dwogim dwo mai. Qua cost id kamer?

 

Ph: Mansyems oyn hevd_tyel dyen dwodjim dwo mä. Kwa kost id kamër?

 

Eng: We'll stay one week till the 22nd of May. How much is the room?

 

5. Septgim euros pro dien.

 

Ph: Sepdjim öros pro dyen.

 

Eng: 70 € a day.

 

6. Sei, punor, yu eiskwte id midpension, id mikdar est penkgim euros pro dien ed pro person.

 

Ph: Sey, punor, yu eyskut id midpensyon, id mikdar est penkdjim öros pro dyen ed pro përson.

 

Eng: If, on the other hand, you want the half-board, the amount is 50 € a day per person.

 

7. Tamam pro id midpension. Qua sont ia saats iom eddmens?

 

Ph: Tamam pro id midpensyon. Kwa sont ya saats yom edmëns?

 

Eng: OK for the half-board. What are the hours of the meals?

 

8. Yu poitte eme snidan tiel dec saat.

 

Ph: Yu poyt em snidan tyel dek saat.

 

Eng: You can have breakfast till ten o'clock.

 

9. Pro id dinner, id service inkapt ye nevdem saat ed endt ye dwogim saat trigim.

 

Ph: Pro id dinër, id sërvits inkapt ye nevdëm saat ed endt ye dwodjim saat tridjim.

 

Eng: For the dinner, the service begins at 19 o'clock and ends at half past twenty.

 

 

Notes: 1. "Eiskw" is a widely used verb. Its first meaning is "to intend", but it can mean according to the context, "to want", "to wish", "to seek". Remember that "w" between two consonants is pronounced like a short "oo" and is never stressed.

 

"ein" is a distributive number. "Ta tri buks coste ein euro" = "Each of these three books costs one €".

 

3. "Quantro" means exactly "till when". It consists of "quan(do)", "when", and of the suffix "-tro" which indicates a direction. This suffix is still to be found in the English interrogative "whither?" = "quetro?" in sambahsa. The opposite suffix, corresponding to "from", is "-tos".

 

4. In sambahsa, the future can be formed by adding -ie-, followed by the present indicative endings; or by using the auxiliary sie- "will", with the infinitive or the verb.

 

In sambahsa, the date is indicated by putting dien ("day") before the number of the day. Dien oindem september = on the eleventh of september.

 

Before the verb cost, qua (the plural of "quod") can be used instead of quayt (how much or how many).

 

9. ye is a "meaningless" preposition. With a hyphen after an adjective, it serves to build adverbs. Blind-ye = "blindly".

 

 

Octim lection

 

1. En vies kamer, potnia ed poti.

 

Eng: Here is your room, Madam and Sir.

 

2. Ghyano fauran ia miechstavens ed vos deiko id panorama.

 

Ph: Gyano faoran ya myëkstavëns ed vos deyko id panorama.

 

Eng: I open immediately the metal shutters and I show you the panorama.

 

3. Oh! Quod un daumos! Spehc, makhboub, quod un splendid mar!

 

Ph: O:! Kwod un daomos! Spe:k, maqbu:b, kwod un splendid mar!

 

Eng: Oh! What a marvel! Look, darling, what a splendid sea!

 

4. Quayt bell! Druve-ye kam ep ia postcartes!

 

Eng: How beautiful! Really like on postcards!

 

5. Her, ep id terrasse, sont dwo chaiselongs, sei yu wehnte eme id sol...

 

Ph: Her, ep id teras, son_dwo tcäzëlongz, sey yu we:nt em id sol...

 

Eng: Here, on the terrace, are two deckchairs, if you feel like sunbathing...

 

6. Ed in id refrigerator, est semject khuld?

 

Eng: And, in the refrigerator, is there something cool?

 

7. Weidwos, Potnia, sont birs, fruit juces, ed est yaschi un botel champagne.

 

Ph: Weydwos, potnya, sont birs, frwit jütsës, ed est yaci un botel tcampanyë

 

Eng: Of course, Madam, there are beers, fruit juices, and there is also a bottle of champagne.

 

8. Sei yu tehrpte iam kamerbays, swehnte.

 

Eng: If you need the cleaning lady, ring.

 

9. Id kinkin est her ep id nocttable, nieb id telephone.

 

Eng: The bell is here on the bedside table, near the telephone.

 

(...)

 

10. In id balniakyal est un dusch, bet ne est vanna.

 

Eng: In the the bathroom there is a shower, but there is no bathtub.

 

11. Sont kiest katifes?

 

Eng. Are there clean bath towels?

 

12. Ep id lowter est un stahwrnt sapun.

 

Ph: Ep id loutër est un stahurnt sapun.

 

Eng: On the washbasin there is a bar of soap.

 

13. Ep ia crovats lyehge dwo blanquets, ed in id schkaf lyehge dwoschi wanghers.

 

Ph: Ep ia krovats lye:djë dwo blankëts, ed in id ckaf lye:djë dwoci wangërs.

 

Eng: On the beds lie two blankets, and in the cupboard lie two pillows.

 

Notes. 1. In sambahsa en "here is/here are" works like like a preposition. So it must be followed by the accusative.

 

2. In sambahsa, "au" is pronounced like in German or Spanish, a "a" followed by a very short "o".

 

"ch" is normally to be pronounced as in the English word "choose", but it turns to "k" when other consonants come after it. Ex: "Christ" = [krist].

 

3. Daumos, "wonder", comes from the verbal stem daum = "to wonder". In sambahsa "ou" is always pronounced like a long u: sound, while "kh" is a guttural sound, like a German "ach-laut" or a Spanish "jota".

 

4. The adverbial particle -ye can be used after substantives too. Here druve means "truth". This noun comes from druv, "true, authentic"; the substantive is formed simply by adding a "e", which makes the central "u" sounds like "ü".

 

5. em means "to take, to have" in a figurative sense, while ghend is physical.

 

7. A wonderful sentence containing many phonetic peculiarities of sambahsa.

 

Juces: "u" turns to "ü" because one of the two following letters is a "e". "c" is normally pronounced "k", but turns to "ts" before e, i and y.

 

botel: It is an exception to normal accentuation rules in sambahsa. The final "el" of sambahsa words is stressed if one of the two preceding letters is a "o". Other exampels: forel = "trout" or personel = "personnel".

 

champagne: "gn" is pronounced "ny-", as in French or Italian, when it is followed by a vowel or nothing.

 

12. Before a vowel, "w" is to be pronounced as in English. Otherwise, it is like a very short [u] or "oo" sound, and it is never stressed. "Stahwrnt" comes from the verb stah = "to stand".

 

13. Before "e", "y" and "i", "qu" must be pronounced like a single "k". Though a "e" before a final "t" or "s" is left unpronounced in sambahsa, there is an exception if the "s" or "t" would otherwise be confused with the preceding consonantic group, or when this preceding group is actually a "qu-".

 

Crovat and lict are synonyms.

 

 

Nevt lection.

 

1. Tehrbo antwehrde ad Fabrizio. Has tu papier?

 

Eng: I have to answer to Fabrizio. Have you paper?

 

2. En papier! Vols tu tint ed un kalem?

 

Eng: Here is paper! Do you want ink and a pen?

 

3. Dank! Ho quo tehrbo. Smad inkape!

 

Eng: Thanks! I have what I need. Let's begin!

 

4. "Sellamat, kyar prient!

 

Eng: "Hello, dear friend!

 

5. Sei leits wal, tun ioschi leito.

 

Eng: If you are well, then I am well too.

 

6. Ho daken ed lisen tien brev con maung plaisure.

 

Eng: I have received and read your letter with much pleasure.

 

7. Meg te danko ob tien dabronia dia me.

 

Eng: I thank you much for your kindness towards me.

 

8. Siemos arrive ad Genua dien dwogim penk jul saat nev aghyern.

 

Eng: We'll arrive at Genua on the 25th of July at 9 A.M.

 

9. Est samt joy od siemos revide vos ed spende plur diens con vos.

 

Eng: It is with joy that we'll see you back and spend several days with you.

 

10. Swasti Fabrizio, vanschmos sieune tib ed tienims nityims!

 

Eng: Everything good, Fabrizio, we wish health to thee and to thy close relatives.

 

11. -Paris, dien 19 Jul 2008".

 

Ph: Paris, dyen nevdem jul dwomil okt.

 

Eng: Paris, on the 19th of July 2008".

 

12. Dehm id brev in id vulbh, scribo id adresse, gleimo id postmark ed gwahm kyid postamt.

 

Eng: I put the letter into the envelope, I write the adress, I stick the stamp and go to the Post office.

 

 

Notes: 8. Here is the future tense. Sambahsa uses a special auxiliary sie-, with the endings of the present tense. The auxiliary is either put before the infintive, or used as a suffix with the verbal stem.

 

10. tienims nityims bear the declensional endings of the plur dative. Adjectives and substantives can optionally bear declensional endings if they are compatible with the accentuational rules of the word. Such endings are used in general for litterary purposes; thus this system is called "euphonic vocalisation". These endings will be listed in the following lesson.

 

11. Proper names do not necessarily follow the normal rules of Sambahsa. That's why "Paris" is stressed on the last syllable. "Genua" is the sambahsa version of Italian "Genova"; When "u" is followed by "a" or "o" in Sambahsa, it is considered like a "w" and is therefore left unstressed. Ex: "lingua".

 

 

 

Dect lection

 

Some elements of grammar

 

 

-The future is made in sambahsa thanks to the use of the auxiliary siem, sies, siet, siem(o)s, siete, sient ("will"). Like English, it can be put before the infinitive: siem bahe = "I will speak".

 

Or it can be suffixed to the verbal stem this way: You take the conjugated verb at the 2° person singular of present indicative, and you add ie + the endings of present indicative.

 

So: bahs = "thou speakest"; bahsies = "thou wilt speak".

 

Two verbs have irregular forms. "To be" is sessiem ("I will be") and "to have" is habsiem ("I will have").

 

As in English, there is in sambahsa a negative auxiliary verb for the future: niem, nies, niet, niem(o)s, niete, nient. Unlike siem, it can be only used before an infinitive, but not as a suffix.

 

- The "free endings" are the remnants of the former indo-european declension of adjectives and substantives. Nowadays, the use is no more compulsory (but very recommended for the adjectives alyo "another" and vasyo "all, every") and they intervene only to replace a preposition (at the dative or the genitive), or for euphonics, and only if they are compatible with the stress pattern of the word (that's why this system is called "euphonic vocalisation"). Those endings:

 

Nominative singular: masculine: o(s); feminine: a; neutral: o/um; undetermined animated: is

 

Vocative (exclamation): masculine singular: e

 

Accusative singular: masculine and neutral: o/um; feminine: u; undetermined animated: em

 

Dative singular for all genders: i

 

Genitive singular: masculine and neutral: (io)s; feminine: (ia)s; undetermined: (e)s

 

Nominative plural: masculine and undertermined animated: i; feminine: as; neutral: a

 

Accusative plural: masculine, feminine and undertermined animated: ens; neutral: a

 

Dative plural for all genders: ims

 

Genitive plural for all genders: en.

 

Numbers in sambahsa from one to ten are: oin, dwo, tri, quar, penk(we), six, sept(a), oct(o), nev, dec. The suffix "dem" corresponds to English "teen": oindem, dwodem... and so on.

 

Likewise, gim corresponds to "ty": dwogim, trigim... 100 is cent(om) and 1000 is mil.

 

Ordinal numbers are made thanks to -t, or -im, if the former is incompatible. So; "third" = trit; "fourth" = quart, but "seventh" is septim. The first of two (Old English: "former") is preter, and the second is alter (cf. Old English: "other") or dwoter. Otherwise, "first" is prest and "second" is dwot or second. "last" is senst, and "latter" is senter.

 

A multiplicative adjective can be made with the suffix -(en)s: "once" = oins, "twice"= dwis (irregular), "thrice"= tris. Otherwise, one can normally use the word "ker". Ex: dwo kers = "two times".

 

There is a distributive adjective in sambahsa, made by suffixing -(e)n. Irregular forms are ein (1); dwin/pair (2; cf "twin"), douzen (12) and tusent (1000).

 

It is used to countsubstantives too, which do not have a singular form. Ex: Mi ho kaupen trin bruks = "I've bought for myself three pairs of pants".

 

If the distributive is preceded by a number, then the following substantive is at the genitive. Ex: Un centen wolfen gwiviet in France = "A hundred of wolves would live in France".

 

Million and milliard (= US billion) only exist as distributives. When the distributive is followed by an other number, then the substantive is no more at the genitive.

 

Ex: Oino million octcent nevgim oino mil quarcent mensci (and not menscen !) habiteer in Vancouver in mil nevcent nevgim six = "1891400 people ("humans") lived in Vancouver in 1996".

 

 

Oindemt lection

 

1. Sellamat, som Susan West, ghehdo io habe un mulakat dien 17 juma?

 

Ph: Selamat, som Suzan West, ge:do yo hab un mulakat dyen sepdëm juma?

 

Eng: Hello, I'm Susan West, can I make an appointment on Friday the 17th?

 

2. Tamam, Potnia West. Ye id aghyern au posmiddien?

 

Eng: OK, Ms West. In the morning or in the afternoon?

 

3. Ye id posmiddien.

 

Eng: In the afternoon.

 

4. Ghehdte yu gwehme ye sixdem saat?

 

Eng: Can you come at 4 p.m.?

 

5. Est dohbro!

 

Eng: That's fine!

 

(...)

 

6. Ed quod est id probleme, Potnia West?

 

Eng: And what's the problem, Ms. West?

 

7. Mien regv me terrible-ye gvolt. Hatta khako sedde ghom.

 

Eng: I have a terrible backache. I can't even sit down.

 

8. Tamam. Emte ta khaps ielg quart hor. Mante in crovat tod hevd. Ed mae leifte gwaur jects!
Eng: OK. Take these pills every four hours. Stay in bed this week. And don't lift heavy things!

 

Notes. 1. The date in sambahsa is expressed by putting the word dien before the cardinal number.
5. Several translations are possible for the English word "good". Dohbro is "convenient", sell is blessed, well", khauris is pleasent and gohd is "succeeded".
7. Gvol means "to hurt". Ghom means "down"; its opposite is ub. As a substantive, (di)ghom means "earth, soil, ground".
8. Em is "to take" in a figurative sense, while ghend is physical. Mae (pronounced like "my") is a prohibitive particle ("don't"). The final "v" of verbs with a stem in eh, ei or eu turns to "f" before "t" or "s".
 
 
Dwodemt lection
 
1. Ryan: Spehc tod kaschaf, Sou Mi!
 
Eng: Ryan: Look at this headline, Soo Mi!
 
2. Sou Mi: Oh, Tant leuds divorce in ia Uniet Stats!
 
Eng: So many people get divorced in the US!
 
3. Est id sam in Korea?
 
Eng: Is it the same in Korea?
 
4. No, ne mayno. In Korea, sem ghams chwoynt, bet pleist couples mane com.
 
Eng: I don't think so. In Korea some marriages break up, but most couples stay together.
 
5. Ghame i leuds yun?
 
Eng: Do people get married young?
 
6. Ne druve-ye. Baygh pauk leuds ghame pre 20at.
 
Ph: Ne dryv-ye. Bayg paok lödz gam pre dwodjimat.
 
Eng: Not really. Very few people get married before the age of 20.
 
7. Hm. Swehde gwens orbate pos ghamus?
 
Eng: Hm. Do women usually work after they get married?
 
8. No. Maung gwens mane domi ed kaure de ir familias. Bet sems orbate.
 
Eng: No. A lot of women stay home and take care of their families. But some work.
 
Notes. 6: To express the age in sambahsa, you simply have to add the suffix "at" to the corresponding number.
7: The active past participle (ex: "having done") expresses the active past infinitive. When the verbal stem ends in a consonant and if the vowel before is stressed, you add us. Otherwise, you add -vs.
8. Here, the ending i of domi is a locative: "at the house". Other examples are ruri "on the countryside", urbi "downtown", koimi "at one's home", ghomi "on earth", waurni "in the sky"....
 
 
Tridemt lection
 
1. Has tu smautern id Info Programme in TV ghes vesper?
 
Eng: Did you watch the News Programe on TV last night?
 
2. No, ho gwahn id discotheque con mien swester. Hams habt gleus!
 
Ph: No, ho gwa:n id disko§ekë kon myen swestër. Hams habd glös!
 
Eng: No, I went to a disco with my sister. We had a great time!
 
3. Tughi has lipst alnos un wakya! Eet un interview con iom industrie minister!
 
Eng: Well, you missed quite an event! There was an interview with the industrie minister!
 
4. To ne swehnt kam semject special; in fact to swehnt druve-ye plictic!
 
Eng: That doesn't sound like anything special; in fact it sounds really boring!
 
5. Yaghi, is interviewer na-iskwit ei minister werds de eys involven in un verslyncompagnie.
 
Eng: Ah, well, the interviewer kept asking the minister questions about his involvement with a business company.
 
6. Ah, ho klun de to. Semject quod deilt con bakschisch.
 
Eng: Oh, I've heard about that. Something to do with bribes.
 
7. Ya, isghi minister refusit antwehrde ibs questions ed bihsit semper irater dia iom interviewer,
 
Eng: Yes, well the minister refused to answer the questions and was getting angrier and angrier with the interviewer,
 
8. hin is vistahsit ub ed abrierz ex id studio!
 
Eng: until in the end he got up and stormed out of the studio!
 
9. Oh! Io sure-ye habiem kamen vide to!
 
Eng: Oh, I sure would have liked to see that!
 
Notes: 1. Smauter means "to watch". Here is one of the passive past participle form of this verb: smautern. The other one is smautert. There is no difference of meaning between both formes; this feature already existed in Indo-European. All sambahsa verbs have two passive past participles forms: one in t (sometimes changed to s) and the other one in -(e)n.
2. Gwahn is the past passive participle of gwah-. The other form is gwaht. Habt is the (slightly) irregular past passive participle form of habe. The other one is haben.
3. Lipst is the past passive participle of leips ("to miss" f.e. a train, a bus). The other form is lipsen. Verbs in ei are subject to ablaut, i.e. vowel modification within their stem. This is a regular process in sambahsa. Eet is the imperfect form of the verb ses (to be). Only ses has an imperfect tense in sambahsa. It corresponds to the imperfect tense of romance languages, and can be roughly translated as was being in English. It conjugates this way: eem, ees, eet, eem(o)s, eete, eent. The ee is pronounced [eë].
5. In sambahsa, "to ask a question" is normally translated as "eiskw- werd" ("to ask a word"). We already seen the manyfold meanings that eiskw can have. According to the ablaut phenomenon, eiskw turns to iskw in the past tense. Verbs which display a different form in the past tense are not required to bear conjugational endings. Here, for ease of pronounciation, iskw is added the ending it , which is the conjugational ending for the 3° person singular of the preterit. Sambahsa verbs can be added prefixes to express nuances. Here, na expresses continuity. In this particular case, the hyphen is written because a + i would result in ai, pronounced [ä].
6. Klun is the past passive participle of kleu. The other form is klut. Thus, the ablaut of eu results in u.
7. Verbs with no modification of their stem in the past tense must bear the conjugational endings. So is the case of refusit, from refuse. Note the pronounciation of both forms: [rëfuzit] vs [rëfüz].
If it is phonetically compatible, a s can be added to verbs at the preterit tense. This tense was called, in old Indo-European, the "sigmatic aorist". In the example here, this "s" is added for ease of pronounciation. Bihsit "he became" from bih "to become".
8. Stahsit ub = "he stood up". The sambahsa verbal prefix vi- corresponds to the English adverb "finally". Rarz is "to rage". Through ablaut, a turns to ie, but only at the preterit, not for the past passive participle. Ab means as a verbal prefix away.
9. Habiem is the subjunctive form. The subjunctive conjugation is very easy in sambahsa: you simply have to put ie between the verbal stem and the conjugational endings. If the verbal stem already ends with ie, then this ie turns to ic-. Ex: unie "to unite" gives uniciem "I would unite".
 
 
Quardemt lection
Id mar est pleno med pisk/The sea is full of fish
 
1. Hey, Jack, kam leits tu?
 
Eng: Hi, Jack, how have you been?
 
2. Ne baygh wal.
 
Eng: Not very well.
 
3. Ma? Kwehct kam es duskheissend! Quod wakyit?
 
Ph: Ma? Kwe:kt kam es dusqeysënd! Kwod wakyit?
 
Eng: Why? Looks like you're feeling very down! What happened?
 
4. Neid.
 
Eng: Nothing.
 
5. Gwehm ghi! Kun un wir est tem duskheissend, sont daydey dwo raisons. Auter eis carriere leit in niterkleitu, au is hat un brohgen kerd. Dat preter wehrct, sollt ses alter...
 
Eng: Come on! For a man who's feeling so down, there are usually two reasons. Either his carrier is going downhill, or he has a broken heart. Since you're successful, it must be the other....
 
6. Hasghi trohft. Ho just rupt con Jane.
 
Eng: Well, you're right. I just broke up with Jane.
 
7. Oh, som maaf. Io mohn yu bo eete kwohrn pro mutu!
 
Eng: Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you two were made for each other.
 
8. Ah, tu khiecst gnohe. Som parat ad homologhe ed volo me tulges, bet ia sayct ia volt persehkwe sien carriere tan ia est dar yun.
 
Eng: Well, you never know. I'm ready for a commitment and want to settle down, bet she says she wants to pursue her career while she's still young.
 
9. Tughi ne maghs blame iam. Est semper difficil chuses inter familia ed carrier.
 
Eng: Well, you can't blame her. It's always difficult to choose between family and carreer.
 
10. Kad es prabh.
 
Eng: Maybe you're right.
 
11. Jack, ne gnohm quod tib sayge kay te console, bet meudh ub! Id mar est plen med pisk, ed trehfsies tien atmensokwi, tien perfect taraf!
 
Eng: Jack, I don't know what to say to comfort you; but cheer up! There's plenty of fish in the sea, and you'll find your soul mate, your perfect match!
 
12. Ya, bet est kaurd myehrse iam ye tod moment. Gnohs, eems com pon quasi penk yars. Est druve-ye kaurd...
 
Eng: Yeah, but it's hard to forget her at the moment. You know, we were together for almost five years. It's really hard....
 
Notes. 3. Remember, in sambahsa, "kh" is pronounced like a spanish "j", or like "ch" in the german interjection "ach!".
-(e)nd is the ending of the present active participle.
"To happen" is wakye. As this verb ends with an unstressed "e", it must bear the endings in the preterit (otherwise, there would be no way to guess it is at the preterit). The preterit ending of the 3° person singular is -it. (always unstressed).
5. brohgen is one of the two past passive participles of the verb brehg "to break". The one other is simply brohct. Through ablaut, brehg turns to brohg in the preterit and the past passive participle. English "break", "broke", "broken" uses the same mechanism, but, while this phenomenon in English is irregular and obliges to learn hundreds of verbal forms, in sambahsa, it is regular for the rule is simply eh = oh.
6. trohft is the past passive participle form of trehv, (to find, to meet). The other possible form is trohven. Under ablaut, eh turns to oh. The final v of verbs whose stem is in eh, ei or eu turns to f when followed by -s or -t.
Rumep is a verbal stem with a "nasal infix". Stems of this kind have an "e" as a last vowel, following or preceeding a n or a m. During the conjugation, when possible, this e disappears. Thus, rumep "to break up", is conjugated this way for the present indicative: rumpo, rumps, rumpt, rumpmos, rumpte, rumpe(nt). In the preterit and the past passive participle, the nasal infix (that is, the m or the n) disappears. We thus get, for the past passive participle of rumep, the following forms: rupt or rupen.
7. mohn and kwohrn follow the rules we've described above. Through ablaut, they derive respectively from mehn and kwehr.
8. khiekst is the second person form of the singular of the verb khak (cannot) in the preterit. In this tense, verbs with a stem in a turn to ie. Because teulg is a verbal stem which can reduce itself to a "zero-grade"  tulg, its infinitive is thus tulges
9. Likewise, the infinitive of cheus is chuses

 

Penkdemt lection

Sem elements os conjugation

 

Some verbs include a “nasal infix”; such verbal stems are those with an unstressed “e” as last vowel, between two other consonants, with one of them being m or n. Thus, in the present tense, this unstressed “e” disappears during the conjugation if it is phonetically possible, as well as s or ss if those ones preceed this unstressed “e”.

Examples: suppressem [supresëm] (to suppress) = suppremo (I suppress)

                  Confuned [konfünëd] (to confuse) = confundo [konfundo] (I confuse).

The preterit endings are as follows:

Person / Tense

 

preterit

1° singular

 

-im

2° singular

  

-(i)st(a)

3° singular

  

-it

1° plural

 

-am

2° plural

  

-at

3° plural

 

-eer. If the verb ends with a stressed vowel sound, then « -r » is enough

 

Those endings are optional if the verbal stem used for the preterit is different from the one used for the present tense :

 

The preterit verbal stem is predicted this way:

 1°) If the verbal stem ends with an unstressed –e: Nothing changes

 2°) If the verbal stem contains a “nasal infix”, the latter disappears with the unstressed “e”, and the stem can furthermore be subjected to the “Von Wahl rules” (see below).

 3°) The verbal stem has the following inner (stressed) vowels: eh, eu, ei(h), a, ay, au: They respectively turn to oh, u, i(h), a, iey, ieu. This phenomenon is called ablaut.

 4°) Other verbs can undergo a version of the Von Wahl rules if they end with certain consonants: d turns to s;  dd & tt to ss;  rt, rr & rg to rs; lg to ls and ct to x.

 5°) Other verbs ending with a stressed vowel sound must put a “s” (this tense is sometimes referred to as the “sigmatic aorist”) between their stem and preterit endings beginning with a vowel. Other verbs can add this “s” too if it does not alter their accentuation.

 6°) Verbs whose stem does not undergo any mutation for the preterit must always add the conjugational endings.

 

The active present participle is made by adding –(e)nd to the verbal stem. The active past participle (“having done”) is made by adding –us or –vs, and can be used as an active past infinitive.

 

 

The passive participle is made by adding –t or –(e)n to the verbal stem with the use of ablaut except for stems in a, au or ay. For other stems which add –t, the Von Wahl rules are used instead of this –t. Stems with nasal infix lose this infix for the passive participle. Ex: confuned (to confuse) = confus or confuden (confused)

The –t past participle forms of verbs without ablaut and ending with –uv or –ov are respectively –ut and –ot. Otherwise, this –v turns to –w. Ex: resolv = resolwt; emov = emot

 

 

Likewise, the formation of the infinitive depends on the verbal stem. Verbal stems ending with an unstressed e do not change. Stems with nasal infix add –es and lose their unstressed e. Verbs in ei or eu undergo ablaut and add a final –es. Other verbs add a final e, or nothing if it is incompatible with their accentuation.

Infinitives can be used like a noun after any preposition (except that they are not preceded by a determinant).

 

 

Remember that most verbs trigger first the accusative and secondly the dative, the exceptions being the verbs which need “positional anchors” (ex: arrive ad = “to arrive at”) and verbs that can introduce an indirect speech. Then, the person object of the narration is at the dative.

Ex: Is mi antwehrdt (od is wois neid de to) = “He answers to me (that he knew nothing about this).

 

Sixdemt lection

Quer est mien bikini ? 

(Where is my bikini ?)

 

In id garden, Juan ed Marsilio stahnt prokwem id barbecue.

Eng: In the garden, Juan ed Marsilio are standing near the barbecue.

 

1-Juan : Ed ia pieg arrivet id niebst dien ed sprehct me an ia poittiet linkwes sien dentbeurst in mien dom !

(Eng): And the girl arrives the next day and asks me if she could leave her toothbrush in my house !

 

2-Marsilio: Ajaban ! To maynt ia volt un serieuser relation. 

(Eng): How beautiful ! That means she wants a more serious relationship !  

 

3- J: Ajaban ? Est un tragedia ! Ne volo piegs in mien dom unte meis quem dwo diens !

(Eng): Beautiful ? It's a tragedy ! I don't want girls in my house for more than two days !

 

4- M: Bet, tun, tu sieycst ay no ?

(Eng): But, so, you told her no ?

 

5- J: Weidwos.

(Eng): Of course

 

Cixi, ir chinese prientin, arrivet

(Eng:) Cixi, their chinese friend, arrives

 

6- Cixi: Sellamat pwarns !

(Eng): Hello boys !

 

7- J: Sellamat bella ! War mae te dehm ep id grille ed mae te praeddo !

(Eng:) Hello beautiful ! Watch out I don't put you on the gril and eat you up !

 

8- C: Scha! Habte yu vis mien bikini top ?

(Eng:) Shush ! Have yu seen my bikini top ?

 

9- J: Quis, ego ?

(Eng:) Who, me ?

 

10- M: No, no, ho naiwo viden id.... si, quando tu vehs id !

(Eng): No, no, I've never seen it.... well, yes, when you wear it !

 

11- C: Ed tod jec' stehlbend ter quod ne kwehc' kam ghiul, quod est tod ?

(Eng): And that thing sticking out over there which doesn't seem like coal, what is that ?

 

12- J: Tod ? Quel gnoht ?

(Eng): This ? Who knows ?

 

13- C: Tang id ub! Tang id ub !

(Eng): Pick it up ! Pick it up !

 

14- Oh Div ! Habte yu nudt mien bikini pro id barbecue ?

(Phonetic): O: div ! Habd_yu nud myen bikini pro id barbëkü: ?

(Eng:) Oh my God ! Have you been using my bikini for the barbecue ?

 

15- Vahm vos nices !

(Eng): I'm gonna kill you !

 

16- M: Tehrps ghabe od wey hieb neid quosmed daghe id barbecue !

(Eng): You have to understand that we didn't have anything to ignite the barbecue with !

 

Notes: 1. sprehg means "to talk to someone", "to ask someone". Thus, it triggers the accusative of the person. an is "if" when it introduces an interrogative clause. An equivalent is kweter = "whether". Linkwes is the infinitive of linekw. 

4: sayg (to say) turns to sieyg in the preterit. The ending for the 2) person singular of the preterit is (i)st(a).

8 & 10: Here, both forms of past participles of the verb vid are used: vis and viden.

14: nudt is one of the past participle of the verb neud, the other one being nuden [nüdën]

15: nices is the infinitive of the verb neic, [nitsës].

 

Senst lection

Last Lesson

 

1) Yu habte nastudyet nuntro, ed yu habte kafi raisons kay ses satisfact de id naken resultat

Eng: You have keep on studying until now, and you have enough reasons to be satisfied about the attained result.

 

2) Weidwos, yu khacte sayge quanto yu eiskwte, bet yu ghehdte ja tekhnasse.

Eng: Of course, you cannot say everything you wish, but you can already help yourself.

 

3) In-kap, anghen hat semper id pondos os lises au aure alyo bahsa

Eng: At the beginning, one gets the impression of reading or hearing another language

 

4) To est ghaw; mae bayte kwehre oik errors, nimen goilsiet vos !

Eng: This is wrong; don't be afraid to make errors, no-one will make fun of you !

 

5) Sambahsa, kam ceter linguas, hat difficultats, bet est sammel staun-ye riche ed interessant

Eng: Sambahsa, like all the other languages, has its difficulties, but it is at the same time astonishingly rich and interesting.

 

6) Itak, naleitte perodh kwehrnd-ye regular-ye tarjems in sambahsa.

Eng: That's why, keep on going forward by doing regularly translations into sambahsa.

 

7) Dank ob vies attention, ed vos vanschmos nassib ed success !

Eng: Thanks for your attention, and we wish you luck and success !

 

Notes. 1) kay is a word very often used in Sambahsa. Always before a verb, it means "(in order) to", "for", and can be followed by an infinitive. As an interrogative pronoun, it means "for which purpose ? "

2) khak is the opposite of ghehd = "to be able to". Quant, "all", can be used without any relative pronoun when it bears the optional declined endings. Eiskw has a very general meaning in Sambahsa: "to intend" "to try to", "to wish, desire"...

3) Lises is the infinitive of leis "to read". Anghen means "person", "someone" and can be used as a personal pronoun. The same applies to ject = "thing". Alyo means "another" and ought to be declined (like vasyo = "all the"). "The other" is alter. 

4) Mae [may] is a prohibitive particular, especially used at the imperative instead of ne.

5) Ceter means "all of the other", and sammel "at the same time".

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