Lojban grammar examples
"VERB" FORMS | |
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da dunda da dunda de |
HE GIVES. HE GIVES IT. |
da se dunda | IT IS A GIFT. |
da te dunda | HE IS A RECIPIENT. |
da ca dunda da pu dunda |
HE NOW GIVES. HE GAVE. |
da pu pu dunda da ba pu dunda |
HE HAD GIVEN. HE WILL HAVE GIVEN. |
da ca ca'o dunda | HE IS NOW GIVING. |
da pu ca'o dunda | HE HAS BEEN GIVING. |
Lojban grammar derives great flexibility and variety from manipulation of tense particles that do much of its work. As demonstrated here, it is the particles that determine whether a predicate—a term of extralinguistic reference, such as dunda and bajra—is to serve in a given statement as a noun, verb, adjective or adverb, as in more familiar grammars. Thus pu(before), ca (now) and ba (after) give the predicate dunda (to give) the function of a verb (upper left) and "conjugate" it through the future, present and past tense. Compound forms of these operators yield the compound tenses. For example, pu pu (before-before) indicates the pluperfect tense. In such combinations they not only duplicate all of the familiar grammatical forms but go far beyond to express relationships that can be only clumsily approximated in the natural languages, as is indicated by the translation of the compound operator ba zi ze'u at center left. The flexibility of the system is suggested further by the transformations of dunda (in this table give, giver, gift, generous, generously, generosity, and so on) in accord with its association with operators and connectives or its place in a multiple predicate. |
"ADVERB" FORMS | ||
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da ro roi dunda da so'e roi dunda |
HE ALWAYS GIVES. HE USUALLY GIVES. | |
da pu zi dunda da pu zu dunda |
HE RECENTLY GAVE. HE GAVE LONG AGO. | |
da vi dunda da va dunda |
HE GIVES HERE. HE GIVES THERE. | |
da bu'u ro de dunda | HE GIVES EVERYWHERE (IN ALL PLACES). | |
da ba zi ze'u vi dunda | SOON HE WILL BE GIVING HERE FOR A LONG TIME. |
NEGATIVES | ||
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da na ku dunda na ku da dunda |
HE DOESN'T GIVE. THERE ISN'T SO THAT ANYONE GIVES. |
"NOUN" FORMS | ||
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lo remna lo vi remna |
A HUMAN THIS MAN | |
lo ro remna lo so'e remna |
ALL MEN MOST MEN | |
no lo remna lo pa remna |
NONE OF THE MEN A MAN, ONE MAN | |
ro lo ci remna | ALL OF THE THREE MEN |
ABSTRACT "NOUNS" | ||
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lo nu dunda lo nu bajra |
THE GIVING THE RUN |
"ADJECTIVE" FORMS | ||
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lo laldo remna lo dunda remna |
AN OLD MAN A GIVING MAN | |
lo melbi verba zdani lo verba melbi zdani |
A PRETTY-CHILD HOME A CHILDISHLY PRETTY HOME | |
lo remna poi laldo lo remna poi na'o dunda |
A MAN WHO IS OLD A MAN WHO IS GENEROUS | |
lo remna poi dunda de lo remna poi dunda de di |
A MAN WHO GIVES IT A MAN WHO GIVES IT TO HIM | |
lo laldo remna poi pu dunda ci de lo ze vi bajra | THE OLD MAN WHO GAVE THREE OF THEM TO THESE SEVEN RUNNERS |
IDENTITIES | ||
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da du la djon da du lo remna |
HE IS JOHN. HE IS THE MAN. |
COMPOUND FORMS | ||
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da bajra gi'a cadzu da bajra gi'e cadzu |
HE RUNS OR WALKS. HE RUNS AND WALKS. | |
da a de bajra da e de bajra |
HE1 OR HE2 RUNS. HE1 AND HE2 RUNS | |
da bajra i ja de cadzu da bajra i je de cadzu |
HE1 RUNS OR HE2 WALKS. HE1 RUNS AND HE2 WALKS. | |
da bajra ki'u lo nu de cadzu da bajra tai lo nu de cadzu |
HE1 RUNS BECAUSE HE2 WALKS. HE1 RUNS LIKE HE2 WALKS. | |
ki'u lo nu da cadzu vau da bajra | BECAUSE HE2 WALKS, HE1 RUNS. | |
da bajra ca lo nu de cadzu da bajra ba lo nu de cadzu |
HE1 RUNS WHEN HE2 WALKS. HE1 RUNS AFTER HE2 WALKS. | |
ca lo nu de cadzu vau de bajra | WHEN HE2 WALKS HE1 RUNS. |
UNIVERSALS | ||
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ro bajra cu cadzu da bajra ca ro nu de cadzu |
ANYONE WHO RUNS WALKS. HE1 RUNS WHENEVER HE2 WALKS. |
ATTITUDINAL FORMS | ||
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le'o da bajra ue da bajra |
WHAT! HE RUNS? [ANGER] WELL! SO HE RUNS. [SURPRISE] | |
xu da bajra ma bajra |
DOES HE RUN? WHO RUNS? | |
je'u da bajra la'a da bajra |
YES; HE RUNS. HE PROBABLY RUNS. | |
ai mi bajra au mi bajra |
I'M GOING TO RUN. I WANT TO RUN. | |
e'i mi bajra | I MUST RUN. |