← All chapters

§5 Adjectives

Adjectives in Pine can be either bound attributive, in which case they appear before the noun they describe, for example hikva keggi ‘good day’ or predicative, in which case they function as the argument of a copula. Attributive and predicative adjectives differ markedly in that attributive adjectives are not declined if they stand before a noun, for example hikva keggi ‘good day’ or hikva keukvon ‘on a good day’, but they do decline like nouns when they stand attributively without a noun, such as hỉgvot ‘to a good one’. Both attributive and predicative adjectives can be marked for degrees of comparison, of which three main types exist: comparative adjectives, superlative adjectives and equative adjectives. Many attributive adjectives also have regularly derived adverbial forms.

Predicative adjectives in Pine are not in fact adjectives but verbs. For example, ‘it is good’ is ḥiggami, which is a monovalent adjectival verb in the third-person inanimate indicative autonomous present. Generally speaking, each attributive adjective has a corresponding predicative adjectival verb. There is a set number of attributive adjectival endings which have regular corresponding predicative verbal forms, for example all adjectives in -et have a corresponding predicative adjectival form in -eg-, such that tammet tỏ ‘a big rock’ becomes tammegami tỏ ‘the rock is big’. Predicative adjectives functioning as verbs also exist in various levels of comparison, for example ḥiggami ‘it is good’, ḥigguddami ‘it is better’ and ḥiskuddami ‘it is best’.

Because of their radically differing morphology, attributive and predicative forms of adjectives are described separately.

§5.1 Attributive Adjectives

Attributive adjectives are those which stand before a noun that they describe, for example:

In the attributive position, adjectives are unaffected by case or number if they describe a noun:

Attributive adjectives without an argument do however decline, which is also true of object and subject predicative adjectives:

§5.1.1 Degrees of Comparison of Attributive Adjectives

Although adjectives are not distinguished from nouns in how they decline for case and number, they can be declined for degrees of comparison, which only a handful of nouns can do. There are three such degrees – the comparative degree is a positive comparison between two or more things, such as tammet ⟫ tammekkut ‘bigger’. Based on the comparative form, an equative degree of comparison exists (mỉ-Ø-kkon/-kkůn), which is used when comparing two or more things which have the same degree, for example mỉtammekkon ‘equally as big’. Pine forms comparatives of inferiority by nittut, and the comparative (or in formal and poetic language, the equative without its prefix mỉ-) for example nittut tammekkut~tammekkon ‘less big’.

The superlative form tammet ⟫ tammillut ‘biggest’ indicates the highest degree of comparison, and the ultimate superlative gvaitammillut means ‘biggest of all, biggest possible’. Superlatives of inferiority are expressed through the construction niƛƛyt + sup, for example niƛƛyt tammillut ‘least big’. The adjective can also be found in its default non-comparative form, for example niƛƛyt tammet ‘least big’. As with the comparative however, this is not widely accepted and many will find this construction to be incorrect.

comparative

superlative

Adjectives declined for degrees of comparison can occur predicatively, in which case the corresponding ending is modified to make a predicative verb, for example tammekkuddami ‘it is bigger’ and tammilluddami ‘it is biggest’.

Comparatives are followed by va to introduced that to which something is being compared, for sample tammekkut va mi na-t de ‘bigger than this’, which has a negative form in vu, for example ủįa vu mi na-t ni tammekkuddat ‘it’s not bigger than that’. A locative construction can be used instead, with the compared item found in the elative, for example nannit tammekkut ‘bigger than it/her/him’ or ṇivvỉn kảḷḷeggyt ‘taller than me’

To emphasise comparatives, ỏ can be used to mean ‘even’, as in ỏ tammekkut ‘even bigger’, as well as vovun ‘much’, ihhủt~ehhủt ‘much’ or hykkůt~hůkkyt ‘much’, for example vovun ƛalloggut ‘much longer’.

§5.1.1.1 Comparative Adjectives

The comparative form of an adjective is made adding -ut (for opisthophonic and amphiphonic adjectives) or -yt (for prosthophonic adjectives) to the asematic plural of the adjective, deleting the word-final -i in the process. For example, tsikva ‘white’ has the asematic plural tsikvogi ‘white ones’, and the comparative is formed by deleting the -i and replacing it with -ut to give tsikvogut ‘whiter’. Similarly, tammet ‘big’ has the asematic plural tammekki ‘big ones’, and the comparative form tammekkut ‘bigger’. Comparative adjectives can also have an ultimative form, which is made by adding the prefix ỉ-/ỉts-/ỉṛṛ-, which makes the comparison much more emphatic, such that ỉtammekkut can be understood to mean ‘bigger than ever, much bigger, bigger than anything’, and likewise by using the same prefix but changing -ut/-yt to -on/-ůn, an equative comparative is formed. When the equative ending is combined with the prefix mỉ(n)-, a true equative meaning of ‘as Ø’ is found, but without the prefix, the equative is used in comparatives of inferiority: mỉtammekkon ‘as big’ but nittut tammekkon ‘less big’. Many speakers do not use the equative ending with comparatives of inferiority.

Comparative adjectives in -it/-ut/-yt are declined like bisyllabic consonantal nouns in -t, while terminative comparative adjectives in -en/-on/-ůn decline like bisyllabic consonantal nouns in -n but do not undergo diaphony or apophony. Comparative endings in -it/-ut/-yt become -idd-/-udd-/-ydd- in predicative verbs.

‘a bigger one’

Equative comparative forms in -on/-ůn become -onn-/-ůnn- in predicative forms.

‘as big’

Comparatives can also appear on non-local hyponomous passive forms, but only for the hyponomous indicative past singular, where the ending -i is inflected (-i ⟫ -igut, -igon). Such forms may form their equative using an independent adverb mỉnat instead of a prefix mỉ-.

§5.1.1.2 Superlative Adjectives

Superlative forms of adjectives are used to compare the degree of an adjective to everything else. The basic suffix of the superlative form is -lut/-lyt, but it can appear as -llut/-llyt or -ḷḷut/-ḷḷyt. Unlike the comparative -ut/-yt, the superlative appears front-rounded if the root contains only the front vowels <e i>. When added onto a vowel-final adjective, the word-final vowel changes polarity and becomes tense, such that tsikva ‘white’ becomes tsikvilyt ‘whitest’. Adjectives ending in -t or -n get -llut/-llyt, preceded by a tense vowel such that tammet ‘big’ becomes tammillut and ỉbbin ‘fat’ becomes ỉbbillyt, while adjectives in -l, -s, -ṡ, -ts, -k or -ḳ have -ḷḷut/-ḷḷyt. The table below summarises superlative forms of non-teleutophonic adjectives.

An ultimative form can be created by adding the prefix gvai-/gvaįį- or ỉ-/ỉts-/ỉṛṛ-, for example gvaitammillut or ỉtammillut, both meaning ‘biggest of all’, but the latter can also be a hyperemphatic superlative meaning ‘extremely large, exceedingly large’. Superlatives lack a mitigative form. As with comparatives, superlative endings can be added onto indicative past forms of the hyponomous in the singular non-local (-i ⟫ -ilut), for example ṃiḍḍutussilut ƛisƛa ‘the most popular song’.

Predicative forms of superlatives have -ludd-/-lydd-, as in tammilluddami ‘it is biggest’ while adverbial forms are in -losset/-lůsset.

The word okkủn can be found before superlative forms of adjectives and means ‘by far’, often in combination with the ultimative prefix gvai-, as in okkủn gvaitammillut ‘by far the biggest’.

§5.1.1.3 Equative Adjectives

Equative adjectives are found with mỉ-/mỉn- and endings in -on/-ůn rather than -ut/-yt of the comparative, and indicate that the things being compared have the same degree, for example mỉtammekkon tỏgi ‘equally as big rocks’ or mỉṃiḍḍutussigon ƛisƛogi ‘equally popular songs’. The predicative form of equative adjectives can also be used to indicate that something has a similar or equal degree to something else (which is found in the illative) for example toįįittit mỉtammekkonnami mi tey na ‘the egg is as big as a rock’.

§5.1.1.4 Degrees of Comparison of Nouns & Nominal Adverbs

A handful of nouns can be declined for degrees of comparison, as well as many postpositional adverbs (postpositions that either function as such or as adverbs) derived from nouns, or nominal adverbs. For example, the noun ƛikka ‘path, way, area’ can be declined in the comparative, ƛikkogut ‘further along the path’ and ƛikkilut ‘furthest along the path’. Such adjectives are often found in the comitative, for example gemỉnni ƛikkoguttit ‘I walked further down the path’, or may be found in the sematic especially in reference to time, such as kvoavvogummut ‘later in the summer’. The comitative plural is used to indicate a general movement along the location, for example nả ƛarkoguingit a ‘it is further along the shore’. Plural illative endings (-gủttut) can either have a more general or abstract meaning or be more poetic. For example, ƛikkoguttit is best understood as ‘further along the (physical) path’ while ƛikkogủttut can be understood to mean ‘further down the (metaphorical) path, later (in life)’

ƛikka

ƛarka

kigga

keggi

udnįu

hey

kvoavva

nanna

aṡkva

gatsṃa

tsitta

haįįa

§5.1.2 Types & Declensions of Attributive Adjectives

When attributive and bound to a noun, adjectives do not decline for case or number. However, if a head noun is not present, attributive adjectives do decline for case and number like a noun, and denotes an understood or unspecified noun. For example, tammet ṇuokku ‘big tree’ is a bound attributive adjective, but tammet without the noun is called a free attributive adjective and means ‘a big one’. Free attributive adjectives can be found with determiners, for example mi tammet a ‘the big one’. Bound and free attributive adjectives can be declined for degree comparison, and many have regularly derived adverbial forms. A large number of adjectives have teleutophonic declensions, while others decline exactly like nouns.

There are many endings common to groups of adjectives with specific or more general derivational meanings, each with a corresponding predicative form. Many adjectives have teleutophonic endings, while many decline according to non-teleutophonic nominal declension patterns. They are described here.

§5.1.2.1 Teleutophonic Adjective Declensions

Teleutophonic adjectives are those which contain an ending with a corresponding sematic form. Teleutophonic adjectives tend to have an ending with a specific meaning or function, for example -llit/-llut/-llyt which indicates origin or material.

§5.1.2.1.1 Adjectives in -llit/-llut/-llyt

Adjectives in -llit/-llut/-llyt denote a material or origin and are teleutophonic. They have sematic forms in -ƛen/-ƛon/-ƛůn and are declined like bisyllabic consonantal nouns in -l in sematic cases. Generally these adjective endings are found on sematic form of the noun without diaphony and with the deletion of any word-final consonant, or directly onto the stem for monosyllabic words. Adjectives of material rarely occur in comparative grades.

Both nationality derivatives and names of languages are formed with -llit, and they are not distinguished in the asematic. However, language names in -llit are treated as adjectives, while nationality derivatives in -llit are declined like trisyllabic nouns in -t. Therefore, engullit ‘English language, English person’ has both a comitative form in -ƛukkit (enguƛukkit ‘in English’) and in -llittut (engullittut ‘with/on an English person’). The endonymic Niṡkullit~Niṡƛit ‘Pine language’ is a hemiplural noun and the nationality derivative Niṡku(vu)llit is declined as a noun (sematic form in Niṡku(vu)llen). When the source word contains -landi/-ƛandi, as in Englandi ‘England’ or Duitsƛandi ‘Germany’, the -landi/-ƛandi is dropped for names of languages but may be kept for nationality derivatives, such that Duitsƛandi yields duittsullit ⟫ duittsuƛen ‘German language’ and duitsƛanttullit ⟫ duitsƛanttullen ‘German person’, although duittsullit ⟫ duittsullen also means ‘German person’.

Abstract forms are in -llehit/-llohut/-llůhyt, for example kiƛullohut ‘woodenness’ or Niṡkullehit 'Pineness'.

In the examples below, words marked with * indicate nominal declensions.

‘wooden’

‘local’

‘porous, rough’

§5.1.2.1.2 Adjectives in -ỉn/-ủn/-ỷn

Adjectives in -ỉn/-ủn/-ỷn denote an essential relation to the base word from which they are formed, often a more abstract possession of some characteristic. They have sematic forms in -enan/-onan/-ůnan and are declined like bisyllabic consonantal nouns in sematic cases. Generally these adjective endings are found on the asematic form of the noun, and the final vowel of the base word is usually contrapolar, and always geminated.

Abstract forms are in -enehit/-onohut/-ůnůhyt, for example ỉįenehit ‘power, powerfulness’.

‘powerful’

‘universal’

‘prohibitive’

§5.1.2.1.3 Adjectives in -kki/-kku/-kky

Adjectives in -kki/-kku/-kky are generally descriptive. They have sematic forms in -gėn/-ġon/-ġůn and are declined like bisyllabic consonantal nouns in sematic cases. Generally these adjective endings are found on the asematic form of the noun, and the final vowel of the base word is usually propolar. Consonant-final words can be deleted, or the ending added onto the consonant, in which case it appears as -ki/-ku/-ky, and the sematic form may retain the stop instead of -ġ-, for example in pitṡku ‘quiet’ which has the sematic form pitṡkon, not *pitṡġon. A number of such adjectives are not derived from other roots.

Abstract forms are in -ġehit/-ġohut/-ġůhyt, for example nenneġehit ‘friendliness’.

‘friendly’

‘half, halved’

‘disgusting’

§5.1.2.1.4 Adjectives in -ha

Adjectives in -ha indicate the possession of some quality or attribute indicated by the base word. Such adjectives often correspond to nouns in English. For example, from the word nįokvi ‘goal, target’ the adjective nįokvoha is formed, which has no direct equivalent in English, but can be translated into ‘goal, target’, as in nįokvoha keggi ‘the target day’. The same idea can also be expressed with a compound noun, for example nįokvekeggi ‘target day’. They have sematic forms in -hin/-hun/-hyn and are declined like bisyllabic consonantal nouns in sematic cases. Generally these adjective endings are found on the asematic form of the noun, and the final vowel of the base word is usually contrapolar and lax. Some diphthongs may become simple vowels, as in kįuobmu ‘bend in river’ and kįủbmeha ‘twisted, bendy’. Word-final consonants are deleted before -ha. Unlike most other teleutophonic adjectival endings, the asematic only has one form, but depending on the previous vowel, the sematic form will align with the quality of the previous vowel. The ending -ha is especially common in compound adjectives comprised of an adjective and a noun, such as ƛalla ‘long’ and hiṡki ‘hair’ become ƛallahiṡkoha ‘long-haired’.

Abstract forms are in -hhehit/-hhohut/-hhůhyt, for example ƛallahiṡkohhohut ‘long-hairedness’.

‘long-haired’

‘medicinal’

‘grainy, particle’

§5.1.2.1.5 Adjectives in -inget/-unget/-ynget

Adjectives in -inget/-unget/-ynget are primarily descriptive of appearance but also may be more evaluative, such as pillunget ‘mischievous’ from pilla ‘trick’, which does not describe appearance. They have sematic forms in -eknan/-oknan/-ůknan and are declined like bisyllabic consonantal nouns in sematic cases. Generally these adjective endings are found directly onto the related stem.

Abstract forms are in -eknehit/-oknohut/-ůknůhyt, for example nunnoknohut ‘angry-lookingness, threatening look’.

‘youthful’

‘gnarled’

‘wry’

§5.1.2.1.6 Adjectives in -eįįi/-oįįu

Adjectives in -eįįi/-oįįu denote the possession of quality or property, often an intensive quality, for example bireįįi ‘very cold intensely cold’. They have sematic forms in -ỉ/-ủ and are declined like apocoptic trisyllabic consonantal nouns in -ġ in sematic cases. Generally these adjective endings are found directly onto the related stem and are propolar to the ending of the base word. Note that the adjective ṃuoįįu ‘warm’ has an alternative predicative verbal form in ṃủį- instead of ṃuoį-. The inessive singular, inessive, illative, elative and comitative plural have short and long forms, with long forms more common in formal registers.

Adjectives in -eįįi/-oįįu also have a short asematic ending in -ei and -ui which is common in poetic registers.

Abstract forms are in -eįehit/-oįohut, for example bireįehit ‘bitter cold’.

‘wise’

‘freezing cold’

§5.1.2.1.7 Adjectives in -iġġami/-uġġami

Adjectives in -iġġami/-uġġami depict the lack of an attribute and function as abessive adjectives, often equivalent to English adjectives in -less. They have sematic forms in -iġin/-uġun and are declined like triconsonantal apocoptic nouns in -n in sematic cases. These adjective formants are added onto the asematic stem of the base word with diaphony.

Abstract forms are in -iġġehit/-uġġohut for example voaḥḥuġġohut ‘fearlessness’.

‘hopeless’

‘heartless’

‘joyless, sad’

§5.1.2.1.8 Adjectives in -ggit/-ggut/-ggyt

Adjectives in -ggit/-ggut/-ggyt carry a variety of meaning but are generally strongly descriptive or evaluative. They have sematic forms in -kkan and are declined like bisyllabic consonantal nouns in sematic cases. A large number of these descriptive adjectives lack a base word.

Abstract forms are in -ggehit/-ggohut/-ggůhyt, for example miggiggehit ‘correctness, alignment’.

‘eager’

‘small’

‘shy’

§5.1.2.1.9 Adjectives in -bbin/-bbun/-bbyn

Adjectives in -bbin/-bbun/-bbyn are generally descriptive or affective, and the majority are not clearly derived from any base word. They have sematic forms in -ppan and are declined like bisyllabic consonantal nouns in sematic cases. Adjectives in -bbin/-bbun/-bbyn are often based on sound symbolism and may be related to a base word, but usually this is not obvious or semantically relevant, for example ṇuggubbun ‘crazy’ which seems to be cognate with ṇukva ‘head’.

Abstract forms are in -bbehit/-bbohut/-bbůhyt, for example ỉbbehit ‘pudginess’.

‘fat’

‘fantastic’

‘nippy’

§5.1.2.1.10 Adjectives in -et/-ot/-ůt/-lat

Adjectives in -et/-ot/-ůt are some of the most common types of adjectives and the largest teleutophonic declension for adjectives, often descriptives of some quality indicated by the base word, though many are not derived from any base word. They have sematic forms in -ikka/-ukka/-ykka and are declined like bisyllabic consonantal nouns in sematic cases. A number of adjectives in -ot are derived from verbs and often denote a passive state. Predicative forms are in -eg-/-og-/-ůg- but older forms in -iḥ-/-uḥ-/-yḥ- can still be heard in eastern dialects.

A subset of adjectives in -ot have an ending in -lat but otherwise decline as regular -ot adjectives. Such adjectives are derived from laggi ‘like’ and denote similarity. They are usually formed on the basis of the asematic but this is not always true, for example naukvis ‘dog’ and naukvalat ‘dog-like’ but sakvin ‘man’ and sakvillat ‘human-like, man-like, manly’. Adjectives in -lat are more often found on the sematic stem of consonantal nouns in -s. Adjectives in -lat can also be derived from other adjectives, in which case the resulting form is often moderative, such as niṡkuvullit ‘Pine person, Pine’ and Niṡkuvullillat ‘Pine-ish, somewhat Pine, half-Pine’ or ṃiġta ‘heavy’ and ṃiġtalat ‘somewhat heavy, heavy-ish’.

Abstract forms are in -ehit/-ohut/-ůhyt/-lohut, for example daldehit ‘sunniness’.

Adjectives in -avut represent a subset of adjectives in -ot, and generally depict a quality specific to the nature of a person or thing, for example iggavut ‘good-natured, nice’, ṃairravůt ‘ridibund, who laughs a lot’ or nutṇavut ‘(someone who gets) easily angry, easily angered, short-tempered’. Such adjectives have a sematic form in either -avukka or -aukka, and likewise a predicative form in either -avog- or -aug-. Shorter forms are more common in colloquial registers. Adjectives in -avut may also be derived from abstract nouns in -ava.

‘big’

‘weak, bad’

‘soft’

‘good-natured’

‘acicular’

§5.1.2.1.11 Adjectives in -erit/-ulit/-ylit

Adjectives in -erit/-ulit/-ylit are often descriptives or similatives have sematic forms in -ir/-ul/-yl and predicative verbal forms in -ir-/-ul-/-yl-. Examples of such adjectives include minderit ‘girly, girlish’, antterit ‘giant’, otġulit ‘thick, chubby’, ihhįerit ‘gelatinous, jelly-like’ teṃṃylit ‘happy, chirpy, in a good mood’, ỉskulit ‘effeminate, feminine’, ůddůrylit ‘monstrous’ and ůtġylit ‘enormous’. Such adjectives are usually derived from nouns or verbs. The form -erit is often found on forms derived from nouns ending in a back vowel, while -ulit and -ylit are usually derived from nouns ending in back vowels (although -a very often leads to -erit). Likewise, there is a tendency to have -erit if the noun contains any lateral, while -ulit and -ylit seem to be preferred after trills. This is not always the case, especially in polysyllabic nouns.

Adjectives in -erit/-ulit/-ylit have apocoptic-like sematic forms (in that the last syllable is dropped) and the case endings are identical to apocoptic nouns in -r and -l respectively, but they undergo neither apophony nor diaphony.

Abstract forms are in -irehit/-ulohit/-ylůhyt, for example mindirehit ‘girliness’.

‘liquid’