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Verbs

The verbal system of moder Figo language is based on the combined use of a participial form with an auxiliary or modal verb, in order to build the different verbal tenses or moods. Only the auxiliary and modal verbs have a proper conjugation, while every other verb is conjugated through its participial forms.

The verbal system displays the following features:

• tense: present, imperfect, past, pluperfect, future, anterior future, future in the past
• mood: indicative, subjunctive, conditional
• participle: active, passive
• diathesis: active, passive

There is, moreover, an additional extratemporal and extramodal form, known as resultative, built with a special resultative participle.

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 active participle, marked by the ending -jid. As much as the verbal root can be usually inferred from this form, this is not always possible. The verbal root usually has a CVCVC structure.

The verb agrees with the clause subject in person and expresses two numbers, singular and plural.

Participles

There are three participial forms, the active participle, the passive participle, and the resultative participle. Only the passive participle can be additionally used with an adjectival function, while the active and the resultative participle are used only in the verbal conjugation

The active participle and the passive participle have a present form and a past form, being the latter usually derived from the former. Past participle are thus formed in different ways:

• Most disyllabic verbal roots derive their past root from the present one through an introflexive process of vowel switching::

CV1CV2C → CV2CV1C

• A limited subgroup of disyllabic roots adds the prefix a-, as well as the vowel switching. By adding this prefix, irregularities may arise.

CV1CV2C → aCV2CV1C

In some dialectal forms, the prefix e- can be found in the past root of some verbs. This forms are regarded as obsolete in most dialects and in the standard language. It originates from the metaphonic effect on the original prefix, which has been restored to its original form since long by analogy.

• Multisyllabic verbal roots are usually 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.

CV3CV1CV2C → CV3CV2CV1C

CV1CV2CV3C → CV2CV1CV3C

CV3CV1CV2CV4C → CV3CV2CV1CV4C

• A significant part of multisyllabic and also disyllabic verbs derive their past root from the present one by adding the suffix -aɣ-.

CV3CV1CV2C → CV3CV1CV2Caɣ

• Monosyllabic verbal roots and the modal verbs are usually regarded as irregular and they can took on each one of the previous strategies.

The participle endings are:

• active participle: -jid (pl. -jidũ)
• passive participle: -ug (pl. -uɣĩ)
• resultative participle: -aža

The -jid ending often causes palatalization of the preceding consonants, being shortened to -id:

fin- + -jid → fiňid
to come

This ending may cause, when added to the root, several vowel irregularities. Thus, it is often difficult to recognize the past root from the citation form, and, consequently, in dictionaries the past form is always cited together with the present verbal root.

šwodiǧid (šeduǧid, šwodeɣ-)
to govern

Moreover, the suffix -aɣ always changes when the ending -jid is added:

-aɣ- + -jid → -eǧid

This vowel irregularites are due to the metaphony process, which causes the following effects on the vowels preceding the ending:

• a → e, ã → ẽ
• e → i, ẽ → ĩ
• o → u, õ → ũ
• wo → u, wõ → ũ

Questo fenomeno, tuttavia non è più attivo sui neologismi e sui prestiti più moderni. La desinenza -ug- del participio passato non ha alcun effetto sulla radice verbale e non provoca irregolarità. Entrambe le forme participiali si accordano sempre in numero con il soggetto della frase a cui sono legati. La desinenza -aža- del participio resultativo non ha alcun effetto sulla radice verbale e non provoca mutamenti particolari. Generalmente si aggiunge alla radice verbale alla forma passata, risultando per questo motivo spesso irregolare. Di per sé, manca di forme diverse di tempo ed è considerato sostanzialmente indeclinabile.

Example:

Rimp = gɛɣuɣ- → Rprf = guɣɛɣ-

In addition to vowels, the diphthongs -jɛ-, -ju- and -iw- can be switched:

Rimp = čiwgul- → Rprf = čugiwl-

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 vowels involved are those belonging to the original disyllabic root:

Rimp = hūɣāzuz- → Rprf = hūɣuzāz-

Rimp = ṡihiwšōr- → Rprf = ṡiwhižōr-

Rimp = xjɛcɛɣilig- → Rprf = xjɛtsiɣɛlig-

Some monosyllabic roots are not involved in the vowel switching process, being thus deemed as invariable roots without a perfective form (or without an imperfective form, in the very rare case when the base meaning is intrisically perfective).

A very limited amount of roots, mostly loanwords and some monosyllabic roots, derive their perfective roots by adding the suffix -ig.

A threefold temporal distinction is also made, among present, past, and future tenses. In the present tense there is no aspectual distinction, being this tense built only on the imperfective root.

There are three verbal moods and two non-finite forms:

• Moods: indicative, subjunctive, potential
• Non-finite: infinitive, participle

The citation form of verbs is the present imperfective infinitive, marked by the ending -iwgɛ, added to the imperfective root in its present form. From such form the imperfective root can be inferred and can be changed in its perfective equivalent.

All verbs are divided in two classes, depending on the outcome of the third singular person. In the first class (class I), the ending -jɛc/-́ɛc is used, with some possible irregularities, while in the second class (class II), a null ending is used, with a more regular outcome.

The following personal endings are then added to various aspectual and temporal forms. In this way, verbs show their agreement with the clause subject in person and number:

	class I	class II
1st sing.	-ū	-ū
2nd sing.	-ir	-ir
3rd sing.	-jɛc / -jɛc	-
1st dual	-iwhū	-iwhū
2nd dual	-iwhir	-iwhir
3rd dual	-iwcɛc	-iwh
1st plur.	-ü	-ü
2nd plur.	-ür	-ür
3rd plur.	-ünjɛc	-ün

In the 3^rd singular person, one of the endings displays two possible forms, -jɛc or -^jɛc. After some consonants this ending appears as -ɛc, and palatalizes the previous consonant, or it is added to an already palatalized consonant without further effects.

djumɛliwgɛ → djumɛʝɛc
to drink → he/she/it drinks

lilužiwgɛ → līlužɛc
to see → he/she/it sees

The different moods are formed by adding the following infixes to the verbal root, before the personal endings:

• indicative: Ø
• subjunctive: -iwň-
• potential: -jɛts- / -^jɛts-

The potential mood infix displays the same irregularities as the 3^rd singular person ending and it follows the same rules. All modal infixes merge with the 3^rd singular person ending:

• -iwň- + -jɛc = -iwňɛc
• -jɛts- + -jɛc = -jɛcɛc

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, be formed on both roots and add the past prefix. They can also add the modal infixes before their typical endings.

The non-finite endings are:

• infinitive: -iwgɛ
• passive participle: -juɣiw- / -^juɣiw-

The participle ending displays the same irregularities as the 3^rd singular person ending and it follows the same rules.

A distinction between an active diathesis and a passive diathesis is made. However, the passive diathesis distinguishes an extremely reduced amount of forms.