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Verbs

The verbal system of Læntixu language displays the following features:

• tense:
  • simple tenses: present
  • compound tenses: present continuous, past, past continuous, pluperfect, future, anterior future
• mood:
  • definite moods: indicative, subjunctive, conditional
  • indefinite moods: infinitive, active participle, passive participle
• diathesis: active, passive

Only in the indicative mood verbs can express all tenses. In other moods only a part of the tenses are expressed.

The citation form of verbs is the present infinitive, marked by the ending -æm‘. From such form the present verbal root can be inferred and can be changed in every other verbal form.

Each verb has two roots, the present root (R_pres) and the past root (R_past). The base form is the present root, while the past root is usually derived fromt he present one. Based on the different derivation processes, verbs are divided in two classes: strong verbs and weak verbs:

• Strong verbs, mostly with a CVCVC- structure, derive their past root from the present one through an introflexive process of vowel switching:

CV1CV2C → CV2CV1C

Example:

Rpres = toθir- → Rpast = tiθor-

This process usually gives rise to irregular root forms.

Rpres = ʎiloɸ- → Rpast = loʎiɸ-

In disyllabic verbal root, all vowels are involved in the switching process.

However, multisyllabic verbal roots can be formed through morphological derivation by adding prefixes or suffixes or both of them. These morphological affixes are usually not involved in the switching process. The vowel involved are those belonging to the original disyllabic root:

Rpres = roʎiloɸ- → Rpast = roloʎiɸ-

Rpres = menosɛx- → Rpast = monesɛx-

Rpres = hæcæžɛbowr- → Rpast = hæcɛgæbowr-

• Weak verbs, displaying any possible syllabic structure, derive their past root from the present one by adding the suffix -ix:

CV1CV2C → CV1CV2Cix

Example:

Rpres = ulixox- → Rpast = ulixoxix-

This process usually does not give rise to irregular root forms.

• Monosyllabic verbal roots are usually regarded as weak verbs. There are, however, an extremely few monosyllabic strong verbs, which lack a distinct past root.

In simple tenses the following personal endings are added to the verbal root. In this way, verbs show their agreement with the clause subject in person and number:

1st sing.	-of
2nd sing.	-æh
3rd sing.
1st plur.	-onof
2nd plur.	-onæh
3rd plur.

The second and the third person share the same ending in both numbers. Thus the subject pronouns is usually expressed in the second person, to avoid ambiguity. The third person pronoun is, conversely, usually not expressed and left implied:

æpjixu kinusæh
you sing

(æstu) kinusæh
he/she sings

Compound tenses are usually formed through an auxiliary verb (tòram, to have, or kiɣam, to come) with the forms of the participles or the infinitive. The different moods are formed by adding the following infixes to the verbal root, before the personal endings:

• indicative: Ø
• subjunctive: -in-
• conditional: -as-

The non-finite verbal forms are meant as nominal/adjectival forms of the same verbs. They do not add the personal endings, but they are declined as nouns or adjectives with the nominal declension endings.

As verbal forms can, however, take the augment. They can also add the modal infixes before their typical endings.

The non-finite endings are:

• infinitive: -am
• agentive participle: -íðə
• passive participle: -uɣi

The infinitival form is meant as a 2^nd class noun.