3 This is one of several conlanguages [][@:Rinna] is working on for an
4 eventual Dark Dungeons X (BECMI D&D retroclone) setting.
6 Some useful (HTML-and-JS) tools for working with Midêkʰ words may be
8 ](https://ekiru.github.io/conlang-tools/midekh/){title="Midêkʰ tools"}
10 rinna uses the token "TKTK" to mark places where more stuff is needed
13 a minimal map of the world in question is below for a bit of context.
14 it is also necessary to know that all or most sentient creatures in the
15 setting are anthropomorphic animals, but that the corresponding
16 ordinary animals also exist but are considered non-sentient.
18 ![map of an as-yet unnamed world, with three contents and a few
19 islands](https://lyssa-rpg-docs.neocities.org/media/blorb-world-map-minimal.png){width=600}
21 Rinna has the following goals for Midêkʰ:
23 * it will serve as a proto-language for a number of languages spoken
24 along the west coast and within the temperate interior (mostly the
25 30°-45° zone) of the southeastern continent, possibly plus some
26 further-flung offshoots.
27 * fae wants to build it around a system of biliteral or triliteral
28 consonantal roots (as in Afro-Asiatic languages such as Tamazight,
29 Egyptian, Amharic, Hebrew, Akkadian, etc.)
30 * fae is inclined to include few vowel qualities, but with some
31 additional complication such as pitch accent, vowel length, or
32 extensive use of diphthongs that may develop into a more extensive
33 vowel system in daughter languages.
34 * it should not be too difficult to pronounce for the native US
35 English and Rioplatense Spanish speakers likely to play in the
36 setting, particularly since the most likely places for faese games
37 to start out will have this language prominent.
38 but some such difficulties can be resolved in daughter languages via
40 * the proto-language and descendant languages will mostly but perhaps
41 not exclusively be used for names (of people/places/texts/etc.)
45 To help with approachability for English/Spanish speakers, [][@:Rinna]
46 opted to draw inspiration from
47 [Wikipedia's account of Proto-Indo-European phonology](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proto-Indo-European_phonology#Vowels){title="Wikipedia on reconstructed PIE phonology"}.
51 | | labial | coronal | p.velar | velar | l.velar | glottal |
52 |-----------|:------:|:-------:|:-------:|:-----:|:-------:|:-------:|
53 | nasal | m | n | | ŋ | | |
54 | voiceless | p | t | kʲ | k | kʷ | |
55 | voiced | b | d | gʲ | g | gʷ | |
56 | aspirated | pʰ | tʰ | kʲʰ | kʰ | kʷʰ | |
57 | fricative | f | s | | | | h |
58 | liquid | | r l | | | | |
61 The language featured three series of stops: voiceless, voiced, and
62 aspirated (voicing was not phonemic in aspirated consonants).
63 Each of these series included a labial stop, a coronal (dental or
64 alveolar) stop, and three variants of a velar stop: a plain variant, a
65 palatalized variant, and a labialized variant.
67 There were three fricatives: a (bi)labial fricative, a coronal
68 fricative, and a glottal fricative.
70 There were three nasal stops: labial, coronal, and velar.
71 There were two coronal approximants: rhotic and lateral.
72 Both the nasals and the approximants could be used as syllable nuclei.
74 There were three vowels: `*e` (mid front), `*o` (mid back), and `*i`
76 Each vowel could be pronounced long or short, which was phonemic.
77 Long vowels are transcribed with a macron.
79 One syllable in each multisyllabic word was emphasized, likely with a
80 raised pitch (marked with an acute accent on the vowel).
81 Long vowels of accented syllables are marked with a circumflex for
84 A syllable begins with a consonant followed by either a vowel, a nasal,
85 or an approximant as a nucleus.
86 A syllable with a short vowel can additionally have a final consonant.
90 Most content words are derived from a "root" (TKTK) consisting of two
91 to four (but usually three) consonants, which are combined with a
92 particular template (TKTK) of surrounding and intervening sounds
93 (mostly vowels) to form a particular word.
94 Roots will be represented with their consonants separated by hyphens,
95 for example: `m-d-kʰ` (which is the root for language).
96 Templates can include any vowel but only certain consonants: nasal
97 stops (n m ŋ), the coronal and glottal fricatives (s h), and the
98 voiceless coronal stop (t).
102 Unlike nouns and verbs, adjective are not derived from using a
103 combination of root and template, with the exception of the active and
104 passive participles of verbs.
105 Some adjectives are fixed words, but most are the result of affixation
108 Adjectives are marked for number, gender, and case to match the noun
113 Nouns are marked for number (singular and plural) and case using a
114 prefix for case and a suffix for number.
115 Each noun also has a gender: either masculine, feminine, or neuter.
117 The cases present in the language were:
119 * Nominative: used for the subject of the verb.
120 * Accusative: used for the object of transitive verbs.
121 * Vocative: used for a party directly addressed by the speaker.
122 * Dative: used for the recipient or beneficiary of an action.
123 * Prepositional: used for the complement of most prepositions, although
124 some prepositions require or allow other cases.
128 Verbs are inflected for tense, aspect, mood, person, and number.
129 Person is first, second, and third.
130 Number is either singular or plural.
132 There are two tenses, which reflect the time at which the action
135 * Non-past: used for events happening now, in the future, in the
136 immediate past, or at an uncertain time.
137 * Past: used for events that started in the past, but not the immediate
140 There are three aspects, although the continuous and habitual are only
141 distinguished in the indicative mood:
143 * Continuous: used to describe an ongoing process.
144 * Habitual: used to describe a recurring or cyclical activity.
145 * Perfective: used to describe an action as a single unit.
147 There are three moods:
149 * Indicative: used for statements of facts.
150 * Optative: used for wishes and hopes, conditional events, and some
152 * Subjunctive: used for hypothetical events, future events, and more
155 Issues such as questions and the active or passive voice are marked
156 elsewhere in a sentence.
158 There are three special forms of each verb:
160 * The verbal noun, which functions as a noun and can represent the act
161 of the verb occuring or a object related to the activity described by
163 The gender of a verbal noun is determined by the verb's conjugation
164 group, but they receive affixes for number and case normally.
165 * The active participle, which functions as an adjective or adverb and
166 indicates that the modified word is related to the subject of the
168 * The passive participle, which functions as an adjective or adverb and
169 indicates that the modified word is related to the verb's object.
171 Both participles receive the normal affixes for number, gender, and
176 Numerals attach to and modify nouns, but unlike adjectives are not
177 inflected for agreement.
178 For this reason they must immediately follow the modified noun.
180 The numerals are arranged rather regularly on a vigesimal basis:
182 * Numbers one to twenty have their own words, although the words for
183 11 through 19 are likely related to a combination of "b-t-r"
184 (measurement, leg) and the first nine numbers.
185 * Multiples of twenty are expressed as, for example, "fesso dōdekʷ"
186 ('40', literally 'twenty in-two').
187 * Numbers between two multiplies of twenty are expressed by
188 constructions such as "dekʷkokŋ" ('22', 'two-and twenty').
189 * Similar units exist for 400 "síkʲo" (20 times 20), and 8000 "dóho",
190 (20 times 20 times 20).
191 Multiples are formed just as with multiples of twenty.
192 400s follow 20s and 8000s follow 400s, with the connecting "kokŋ"
193 ('and') always attaching to the unit rather than the multiple, as for
194 example: "tʰonkokŋ fessokokŋ dōtʰon síkʲokokŋ dōdekʷ dóho" ('8863',
195 literally '3-and 20-and in-3 400-and in-2 8000').
197 The larger units are sometimes used more vaguely, with "síkʲo" 400
198 having a meaning akin to 'many', and "dóho" 8000 being used to refer to
199 'everything' or 'more than can be counted'.
201 Ordinal numbers can be formed by using the prepositionalclitic "dō-"
202 ('of') at the start of the number: "dōhekʷkokŋ fesso" for 21st.
204 Here are the numbers one-to-twenty:
222 * "bētdelr" seventeen
227 And the units for larger numbers:
232 ## Derivational morphology
234 The derivational morphology of Midêkʰ is based around the combination
235 of a root with a template to form a stem (TKTK).
236 These stems are further modified by infection to arrive at final word
239 This section and the following one on inflectional morphology will
240 represent roots using their consonants separated by hyphens: e.g.
241 m-d-kʰ, p-ŋ-r, h-s-t.
242 Groups of roots sharing only certain components will be represented
243 with a question mark `?` for any unspecified consonants: p-?-r would
244 include p-ŋ-r, p-k-r, p-s-r, etc.
245 Templates will be written with their surrounding and intervening sounds
246 and with the position of each root consonant represented by a plus
247 sign, for example: `+i+ē+`.
248 Groups of templates sharing certain components will be represented
249 using a question mark for any unspecified template positions: for
250 example, `?+i+?+?` represents all noun templates (which all place a
251 short /i/ between the first two consonants).
253 This section and the following will primarily use the root `m-d-kʰ` as
254 an example to express how roots are combined with templates to form
257 ### Derivation of noun stems
259 All noun templates place /i/ between the first two consonants of the
260 root, other than the verbal noun patterns which place /ī/ there, a long
262 These are summarized below, with more details below:
264 | pattern | description | m-d-kʰ | gender | english gloss |
265 |---------|--------------|----------|--------|--------------------------|
266 | +i++é | abstraction | midkʰé | f | linguistics/all language |
267 | +i+ê+ | prototype | midêkʰ | varies | the Midêkʰ language |
268 | so+í+i+ | place | somídikʰ | n | TKTK |
269 | mi+í++o | instrument | mimídkʰo | n | pen, stylus |
270 | +i+és+e | emphasis | midéskʰe | m/f | conversation/command |
271 | hê+i+o+ | personal | hêmidokʰ | m/f | orator, author, sage |
272 | hi+i++í | diminutive | himidkʰí | f | word |
273 | ŋô+i++o | derogative | ŋômidkʰo | m | nonsense, pleading |
275 * The noun of abstraction represents the abstract category of the root,
276 both the set of all of the things (or at least a particular type of
277 thing) encompassed by the root, the idealized concept of the root,
278 and sometimes the academic, artistic, or other sort of field related
280 The noun of abstraction is not normally used in the plural, but this
281 may have occasionally happened in poetic language to refer to many or
282 all things belonging to the category.
283 * The prototype noun represents the prototypical object related to a
285 For some roots, the prototype refers to a specific thing (as "Midêkʰ"
286 for the language) as a proper noun, in which case it cannot be used
287 in the plural and it has feminine gender.
288 In other cases, it refers to a typical type of object related to the
289 root (e.g. p-s-ŋ 'liquid' has the prototype pisêŋ 'water'), in which
290 case the noun may be used in the plural and has neuter gender if it
291 refers to a mindless animal and masculine gender otherwise.
292 * Nouns of place refer to a place associated with the root.
293 * Nouns of instrument refer to a tool used in performing actions
294 associated with the root.
295 * Nouns of emphasis refer to a repetition or intense form of an action
297 They are usually masculine, but in some cases a root gives rise to
298 two nouns of emphasis with identical form but with one masculine and
300 When this occurs, typically the feminine noun relates to intense
301 action and the masculine noun relates to repeated action.
302 * The personal noun refers to a type of person associated with the
304 The noun is gendered according to the individual being referred to.
305 When not referring to a particular individual of known gender, the
306 word is typically masculine except when the meaning of the word was
307 strongly associated with women.
308 * Diminutives refer to something small or dear related to the root.
309 * Derogative nouns refer to something disapproved of related to the
311 * There are also several "common noun" patterns which can give rise to
312 various nouns associated with the root without specific semantic
313 implications from the pattern.
314 Each root only is used with a subset of the common noun patterns.
315 Some patterns for common nouns (with the resulting noun's gender in
316 brackets) include "+í+o+" (f), "to+i+í+" (n), "te+i++ó" (m),
317 "no+i+é+" (f), "si+í+e+" (m).
318 * Finally there are verbal noun patterns that are treated below.
320 ### Derivation of verb stems
322 Verbs are similarly formed by combining a semantic root with one of
324 Unlike nouns, the patterns for verbs are grouped into several "forms",
325 each form consisting of several patterns for different uses of a verb.
326 The application of the patterns of a form to a given root are
327 considered different variations of the same verb.
329 Verb forms will be distinguished using a number (e.g. 1st form, 2nd
331 Each form has patterns for the non-past tense stem, the past tense
332 stem, the verbal noun, the active participle, and the passive
334 The verb stems must then be inflected for aspect, mood, aspect, number,
335 and person to be used.
337 The patterns for each verb form are indicated in the following table,
338 with information about typical semantics and other properties of the
339 forms described after the table.
341 | Form | non-past | past | verbal noun | active part. | passive part. |
342 |------|----------|----------|-------------|--------------|---------------|
343 | 1st | +é++i | +e+í+ | +ī++é | +ó++o | +o+ó+ |
344 | 2nd | +én+i+ | +e++ín | +î++en | +ó++on | +o+nó+ |
345 | 3rd | hō+e++ó | hō+é+o+o | he+ī+é+ | +ó+ohi+ | he+o++ó |
346 | 4th | +é++it | te+é+i+ | +ī++ís | +ó+si+o | +o+is+ó |
347 | 5th | fe+é+e+ | fí+e+ē+ | fi+ī++í | fo+ó++o | fo+o+ó+ |
348 | 6th | +ém+e+ | +em+ē+é | +ī+mó+ | mo+o+ó+ | mo+ó++o |
350 * The 1st form refers to the action seen as most directly connected
351 with the meaning of the root.
352 They may be either transitive or intransitive depending on the
353 meaning of the verb, although ditransitive 1st form verbs are rare.
354 The verbal noun is of neuter gender.
355 * The 2nd form typically has a meaning related to some action with a
356 lasting effect or impact, although in some cases it is instead an
357 emphatic or more intense version of the root's 1st-form verb.
358 They may be either transitive or intransitive.
359 The verbal noun is of neuter gender.
360 * The 3rd form often functions as a causative, representing a
361 ditransitive form of a transitive 1st or 2nd form verb, or a
362 transitive form of an intransitive 1st or 2nd form verb.
363 When the 3rd form is a causative, it usually serves as causative for
364 both the 1st and 2nd form, not just one of them.
365 Even when not causative in meaning, the 3rd form is always transitive
367 The verbal noun is of masculine gender.
368 The active participle of ditransitive 3rd form verbs often relates to
369 either or both of the agent and patient of the action, with the
370 passive participle relating solely to the recipient or benefactor.
371 * The 4th form often refers to a reciprocal or repeated action related
373 4th form verbs interact atypically with the case system: when they
374 have reciprocal meaning, all parties typically take the nominative
375 case, although for emphasis a single participant can be treated as
376 the subject while a preposition is used to identify other
378 if the verb can ever have reciprocal meaning, it never takes an
380 even when the particular verb cannot have reciprocal meaning, any
381 patient of the described action must be marked for the dative case.
382 The verbal noun is of feminine gender.
383 The active and passive participles are generally used to refer to
384 different aspects of the subject(s), often but not always using the
385 active participle for a more agentive aspect of the action.
386 * The 5th form often has a meaning related to either capability of
387 performing some action or the acquisition or possession of a
388 non-physical quality (capability of action perhaps being considered a
389 non-physical quality);
390 in some cases the verb may be used for both meanings.
391 5th form verbs are only transitive when used to indicate capability.
392 The verbal noun is of masculine gender.
393 The passive participle of 5th form verbs is usually used as a sort of
394 negative: it indicates that something does not have the quality or
395 cannot perform the action.
396 * The 6th form often has a meaning related to either resulting from an
397 action or having or gaining some physical quality, such as colour or
399 As with the 5th form, many of these verbs may be used for both meanings.
400 6th form verbs are never transitive.
401 The verbal noun is of neuter gender.
402 The active participle of 6th form verbs, similar to the passive
403 participle of 5th form verbs, usually serves as a negative: it
404 indicates that something does not result from the action or does not
407 ### Derivation of adjectives
409 As noted above, adjectives are not derived via the combination of a
410 root and pattern (other than the participles of verbs).
411 Instead most of them arise from affixation of existing words.
413 Some of these derivational affixes are listed below:
415 * The prefix "lo-" forms the "relational" adjective from a noun, which
416 indicates that the modified noun is in some fashion related to the
418 * The prefix "tr-" negates an adjective.
419 * The suffixes "-kor" and "-kel" produce comparative forms of an
420 adjective, with "-kor" indicating more and "-kel" less.
424 ## Inflectional morphology
426 ### Noun and adjective inflection
428 Nouns receive a prefix for case and a suffix for number.
429 Each gender uses a separate set of case prefixes.
430 Adjectives use the same set of number suffixes, and they use the same
431 case markers as neuter nouns when modifying a neuter noun.
432 Adjectives modifying masculine or feminine nouns use slightly different
433 case markers from those used by the noun.
435 Here are the case prefixes:
437 | case | m.noun | m.adj. | f.noun | f.adj. | neuter |
438 |---------------|--------|--------|--------|--------|--------|
439 | nominative | - | - | gr- | gi- | pl- |
440 | accusative | de- | de- | ge- | ke- | po- |
441 | vocative | tʰo- | to- | kʰo- | ko- | pl- |
442 | dative | te- | ti- | gn- | go- | bo- |
443 | prepositional | dē- | dē- | kī- | kī- | pō- |
445 And the number suffixes, which differ depending on whether the stem
446 ends in a vowel or a consonant:
448 | number | after vowel | after consonant |
449 |----------|-------------|-----------------|
450 | singular | -k | - |
451 | plural | -hi | -i |
455 Verb stems produced by derivation are inflected for aspect, mood,
457 One affix marks aspect and mood, a prefix marks person, and a suffix
458 marks number, with aspect-mood applied before person and number (such
459 that an aspect-mood prefix follows the person prefix and an aspect-mood
460 suffix precedes the number prefix).
461 The verb agrees in person and number with the syntactic subject (the
462 noun or pronoun in the nominative case).
464 The indicative mood uses a prefix for aspect-mood in the continuous
465 aspect, a suffix in the habitual aspect, and the plain stem in the
467 The indicative habitual suffix is identical to the continuous prefix.
468 In contrast, the optative and subjunctive moods uniformly use suffixes
469 for aspect-mood and do not distinguish the continuous and habitual
471 All of these aspect-mood aspects are indicated in the table below (with
472 the hyphen marking where the stem is attached):
474 | mood | continuous | habitual | perfective |
475 |-------------|------------|----------|------------|
476 | indicative | bi- | -bi | - |
477 | optative | -r | -r | -n |
478 | subjunctive | -l | -l | -m |
480 The number suffixes for verbs differ depending on whether they follow a
481 vowel or a consonant, and are listed in the table below:
483 | number | after vowel | after consonant |
484 |----------|-------------|-----------------|
485 | singular | -g | - |
486 | plural | -hē | -ē |
488 The person suffixes are invariant and are listed in the table below:
496 As an example, here are a few inflections of the 2nd-form non-past
497 stem "méndikʰ" (write):
499 * biméndikʰē: they are writing (indicative non-past continuous
501 * tmbiméndikʰ: you(sg.) are writing (indicative non-past continuous
503 * kʰoméndikʰē: we write (indicative non-past perfective 1st-person plural)
507 As a summary of word order concerns:
509 * Adjectives usually follow the noun but may be placed elsewhere as
510 they can be correlated with the right noun due to agreement.
511 Demonstratives must immediately precede and numerals must immediately
512 follow the noun when present.
513 * Relative clauses follow the noun.
515 * Typically subject-verb-object, but it may vary.
516 * The question particle begins the sentence
517 * Questions do not alter sentence order
518 * Conditional sentences typically places the condition before the
520 * Comparisons are of the form adjective-marker-standard (i.e. the
521 adjective being compared, an analogue to "than", then the standard
522 against which the comparison is being made)
526 Prepositions are placed before a noun or noun phrase to express various
527 relationships or to confer semantic roles on their objects.
529 Each preposition consists of a word ending in a consonant (often
531 Most prepositions also have a clitic form which is formed by dropping
532 the final consonant and lenghtening the preceding vowel and which can
533 be prefixed to its object.
534 Cliticized prepositions can be used with objects other than noun
535 phrases for various purposes.
537 Here are some of the prepositions in Midêkʰ with their meanings and
540 * dol/dō-: PREP in, within; DAT
541 * fin/fī-: as; measuring
542 * petʰ/pē-: PREP in (time), during (DAT with the same meaning but the
543 additional indication that the events were located entirely in the
545 * sen/sē-: of, belonging to
549 Conjunctions are used to connect words, phrases, or clauses in various
552 As with prepositions, conjunctions often have a clitic form.
553 Unlike prepositions, clitic conjunctions are suffixes and are not
556 The conjunctions of Midêkʰ include:
558 * koko/-kokŋ: and, also
560 ## Semantics and Pragmatics
570 Rinna's first example text will be what would translate to the English text below, but first fae needs a lottt of words and probably some more syntax to figure out.
572 > In the thirteenth year of Cat-King General-of-Horses, a heron-fighter appeared who called herself Sent-by-Dawn. She said that General-of-Horses stole from the sacrifices and offended the gods. Sent-by-Dawn gathered a great army of the people and overthrew the evil king. The people clamored for her to rule them, and she declined, but for three days they surrounded her tent and clamored for her to rule them. After three days without peace or slumber, Sent-by-Dawn emerged from her tent and again the people clamored for her to rule them. Finally she took up the crown, and led the sacrifices and stole nothing from the gods. That was how the first year of Heron-Queen Sent-by-Dawn began.
578 Lists here are sorted using roughly the collation order of English.
579 Accented and long vowels are in the same position as the
580 unaccented/short analogues.
582 Aspirated consonants follow the non-aspirated analog.
583 For the velar consonants, the plain version comes first, followed by
584 the palatized, and finally the labialized.
588 * b-t-r: length, measurement, (leg)
589 * d-r-gʷ: fire, light, sun
590 * gʲ-l-p: transfer, commerce
593 * p-s-ŋ: liquid/water
601 Format: stem (root, if any): part of speech. gloss (notes).
603 Parts of speech: **n**oun (**m**asculine, **f**eminine, **n**euter,
604 **v**arying by referent), **v**erb (**t**ransitive, **i**ntransitive,
605 **d**itransitive, **4**th form), **adj**ective, **num**eral,
606 **prep**osition, **conjunction**.
608 Verbs are listed with the present stem separated from the past stem by
609 a slash, but collated according the present stem.
611 * bémter/bemtēré (b-t-r): vi. to be long, to have a measurement (the
612 measurement is indicated using the preposition fin), to lengthen
613 * béntir/betrín (b-t-r): vi. to measure, especially to measure a
614 distance by walking it carefully (the thing measured is indicated
615 using the preposition dol and the dative case)
616 * bēptefr: num. fifteen
617 * bētdelr: num. seventeen
618 * bētetŕ: num. fourteen
619 * betdor: num. twelve
620 * bētgʲr: num. sixteen
621 * bétri/betír (b-t-r): vi. to walk
622 * betrikʷ: num. eleven
623 * bétrit/tebétir (b-t-r): vi. to pace back and forth, to patrol
624 * bitésre (b-t-r): nm. notch, marking (as the markings on a ruler)
625 * bitêr (b-t-r): nm. leg; pace (a unit of length)
626 * bītmór (b-t-r): nn. a measurement.
627 * bitré (b-t-r): nf.sg. measurement, distance, length
628 * bītré (b-t-r): nn. a step
629 * bîtren (b-t-r): nn. an act of measuring
630 * bītrís (b-t-r): nf. a pacing, a round of a patrol path
631 * botisró (b-t-r): adj. pacing, patrolling (emphasizing the repetition
633 * botnór (b-t-r): adj. measured
634 * bótohir (b-t-r): adj. measuring with a ruler or other instrument
635 (this carries an implication of both precision and small absolute
637 * botór (b-t-r): adj. walked through
638 * bótro (b-t-r): adj. walking
639 * bótron (b-t-r): adj. measuring
640 * bótsir (b-t-r): adj. pacing, patrolling (emphasizing the repetition
642 * botʰren: num. thirteen
643 * bmgʲér: num. nineteen
644 * botr: num. eighteen
647 * démregʷ/demrēgʷé (d-r-gʷ): vi. to be or become hot (generally not as
648 an intrinsic trait, for that see the 1st form verb "dérgʷi/derígʷ")
649 * dénrigʷ/dergʷín (d-r-gʷ): vi/vt. to burn, to heat intensely (the
650 object, if present, is something that is being burned or heated using
651 the fire, not merely the fuel)
652 * dérgʷi/derígʷ (d-r-gʷ): v. to shine or give off heat (intr.); to
653 shine on or heat up (trans.)
654 * dérgʷit/tedérigʷ (d-r-gʷ): v4. to dawn, to come into power or one's
656 * dirêgʷ (d-r-gʷ): nf. the sun
657 * dirésgʷe (d-r-gʷ): nm. intense or large fire (especially if
658 accidental or natural)
659 * dirgʷé (d-r-gʷ): nf. fire (the element), light
660 * dīrgʷé (d-r-gʷ): nn. a fire, a light, act of shining or heating
661 * dîrgʷen (d-r-gʷ): nn. act of burning, intense heat
662 * dīrgʷís (d-r-gʷ): nf. dawn; period of greatest power and influence in
663 one's life, one's prime; dawn goddess
664 * dīrmógʷ (d-r-gʷ): nn. heat, warmth (generally from an external
666 * dírogʷ (d-r-gʷ): nm. hot thing (especially a rock)
668 * dol: prep. in, within (takes prepositional case); through (takes
670 * dórgʷo (d-r-gʷ): adj. shining, giving off heat
671 * dórgʷon (d-r-gʷ): adj. burning (of the flame itself), extremely hot
672 (of a fire or other heat source)
673 * dorisgʷó (d-r-gʷ): adj. in one's prime, dawning (used metaphorically
674 of things other than the sun or the dawn goddess)
675 * dornógʷ (d-r-gʷ): adj. burned (receiving burns or damage from the
676 fire, not merely being used as fuel), extremely hot (from external
678 * dorógʷ (d-r-gʷ): adj. lit, warm, heated
679 * dórohigʷ (d-r-gʷ): adj. burning dangerously, dangerous
680 * dórsigʷ (d-r-gʷ): adj. dawning (only used of the sun or the dawn
682 * febéter/fíbetēr (b-t-r): vi. to be clearly defined or bounded (rarely
683 used transitively to mean the subject is defined or has its
684 boundaries defined by the object)
685 * fedéregʷ/fíderēgʷ (d-r-gʷ): vi. to be magically or spiritually
686 powerful; to be dangerous
687 * fegʲélep/fígʲelēp (gʲ-l-p): vi. to be generous
688 * feréher/fírehēr (r-h-r): vi. to be content, to feel safe
689 * femédekʰ/fímedēkʰ (m-d-kʰ): vi. to be or become sapient, to be
691 * fepékʲʰet/fípekʲʰēt (p-kʲʰ-t): vi. to be or become willful (in the
692 sense of directing your own actions)
693 * fepéseŋ/fípesēŋ (p-s-ŋ): vi. to be variable or flexible, to change
694 * feséleh/físelēh (s-l-h): vi. to be or become free (unconstrained)
696 * fibītrí (b-t-r): nm. a definition or act of defining, a boundary or
697 act of specifying boundaries
698 * fidīrgʷí (d-r-gʷ): nm. danger, great magical or spiritual power
699 * figʲīlpí (gʲ-l-p): nm. generosity
700 * fimīdkʰí (m-d-kʰ): nm. sapience
701 * fin: prep. as; measuring (used with the verb bémter/bemtēré to
702 indicate the measurement of the subject of the verb)
703 * fipīkʲʰtí (p-kʲʰ-t): nm. self-direction or will
704 * fipīsŋí (p-s-ŋ): nm. mutability, variability, change
705 * firīhrí (r-h-r): nm. contentment, feeling of safety (the concrete
706 feeling in the moment; for the feeling in the abstract or as a
707 general trait see "rihré")
708 * fisīlhí (s-l-h): nm. freedom from constraint
709 * fobótro (b-t-r): adj. clearly defined, bounded, finite in extent
710 * fobotór (b-t-r): adj. indefinable, unbounded, infinite
711 * fodórgʷo (d-r-gʷ): adj. dangerous, magically or spiritually powerful
712 * fodorógʷ (d-r-gʷ): adj. not dangeorus, weak of soul or power
713 * fogʲolóp (gʲ-l-p): adj. ungenerous, covetous
714 * fogʲólpo (gʲ-l-p): adj. generous
715 * fomódkʰo (m-d-kʰ): adj. sapient, capable of language
716 * fomodókʰ (m-d-kʰ): adj. non-sapient, incapable of language, mindless
717 * fopokʲʰót (p-kʲʰ-t): adj. passive, controlled by others
718 * fopókʲʰto (p-kʲʰ-t): adj. willful, self-directed
719 * fopósŋo (p-s-ŋ): adj. variable, flexible, changing
720 * foposóŋ (p-s-ŋ): adj. static, rigid, unmoving
721 * forohór (r-h-r): adj. discontent, feeling unsafe
722 * foróhro (r-h-r): adj. content, feeling safe
723 * fosólho (s-l-h): adj. free from constraint
724 * fosolóh (s-l-h): adj. constrained, not free (the specifics of
725 application to people varied a lot in different places)
726 * gʲélpi/gʲelíp (gʲ-l-p): vd. to give
727 * gʲélpit/tegʲélip (gʲ-l-p): v4. to trade, to exchange, to swap
728 * gʲémlep/gʲemlēpé (gʲ-l-p): vi. to be valuable, to have value
729 * gʲénlip/gʲelpín (gʲ-l-p): vd. to take
730 * gʲilêp (gʲ-l-p): nm. gift
731 * gʲiléspe (gʲ-l-p): nm. transaction
732 * gʲīlmóp (gʲ-l-p): nn. property of being valuable
733 * gʲílop (gʲ-l-p): nm. commercial relationship
734 * gʲilpé (gʲ-l-p): nf. exchange, commerce
735 * gʲīlpé (gʲ-l-p): nn. act of giving, sale
736 * gʲîlpen (gʲ-l-p): nn. act of taking
737 * gʲīlpís (gʲ-l-p): nf. act of exchanging or swapping
738 * gʲolispó (gʲ-l-p): adj. exchanged, swapped, traded (the thing that is
740 * gʲolnóp (gʲ-l-p): adj. taken, stolen
741 * gʲólohip (gʲ-l-p): adj. selling
742 * gʲolóp (gʲ-l-p): adj. given as a gift
743 * gʲólpo (gʲ-l-p): adj. giving
744 * gʲólpon (gʲ-l-p): adj. taking
745 * gʲólsip (gʲ-l-p): adj. trading, exchanging, swapping; commercially
747 * hebītér (b-t-r): nm.ean act of measuring with a ruler or other
748 instrument, a measurement taken with a ruler or other instrument
749 (this carries an implication of both precision and small absolute
751 * hêbitor (b-t-r): nv. walker, runner (specifically referring to a
752 person who travels a long distance on foot)
753 * hebotró (b-t-r): adj. measured with a ruler or other instrument (this
754 carries an implication of both precision and small absolute
756 * hedīrégʷ (d-r-gʷ): nm. act of starting a fire
757 * hêdirogʷ (d-r-gʷ): nv. priest, shaman
759 * hedorgʷó (d-r-gʷ): adj. having been burned intentionally or maliciously
761 * hegʲīlép (gʲ-l-p): nm. act of selling or buying
762 * hêgʲilop (gʲ-l-p): nv. merchant (one who buys and sells goods)
763 * hegʲolpó (gʲ-l-p): adj. sold
765 * hemīdékʰ (m-d-kʰ): nm. dictation, decree, declaration
766 * hêmidokʰ (m-d-kʰ): nv. orator, author, sage
767 * hemodkʰó (m-d-kʰ): adj. being dictated to, subservient,
769 * hepīkʲʰét (p-kʲʰ-t): nm. act of moving something else, impetus
770 * hêpikʲʰot (p-kʲʰ-t): nv. horse-person, runner
771 * hepīséŋ (p-s-ŋ): nm. pouring, a pour, a cupful
772 * hêpisoŋ (p-s-ŋ): nv. cupbearer
773 * hepokʲʰtó (p-kʲʰ-t): adj. being moved
774 * heposŋó (p-s-ŋ): adj. being poured into, filled
775 * herīhér (r-h-r): nm. act that makes someone feel safe or content, act
777 * hêrihor (r-h-r): nv. cat-person
778 * herohró (r-h-r): adj. cared for, feeling safe or content due to the
780 * hesīléh (s-l-h): nm. a throw
781 * hêsiloh (s-l-h): nv. a bird-person, a person who flies
782 * hesolhó (s-l-h): adj. being thrown-at
784 * hibitrí (b-t-r): nf. toe; digit (a unit of length)
785 * hidirgʷí (d-r-gʷ): nf. ember
786 * higʲilpí (gʲ-l-p): nf. purchase
787 * himidkʰí (m-d-kʰ): nf. word
788 * hipikʲʰtí (p-kʲʰ-t): nf. shake
789 * hipisŋí (p-s-ŋ): nf. pond, lake
790 * hirihrí (r-h-r): nf. pet animal (sometimes used for harmless non-pet
792 * hisilhí (s-l-h): nf. feather
793 * hōbetró/hōbétoro (b-t-r): vt. to measure with a ruler or other
794 instrument (this carries an implication of both precision and small
796 * hōdergʷó/hōdérogʷo (d-r-gʷ): vd. to ignite, to set alight or aflame,
797 to cause to illuminate or burn something else (the direct object is
798 the heat or light source; the indirect object the thing burned,
799 heated, or illuminated; either may be omitted)
800 * hōgʲelpó/hōgʲélopo (gʲ-l-p): vd. to sell, to buy (often but not
801 always with the passive particle for buying)
802 * hōmedkʰó/hōmédokʰo (m-d-kʰ): vt/vd. to dictate, to cause to say or
804 * hōpekʲʰtó/hōpékʲʰoto (p-kʲʰ-t): vt. to put into motion, to cause to
806 * hōpesŋó/hōpésoŋo (p-s-ŋ): vt/vd. to pour (trans.); to pour onto/into
808 * hōrehró/hōréhoro (r-h-r): vt. to cause to feel content or safe, to
810 * hōselhó/hōséloho (s-l-h): v. to throw (trans.), to throw at
813 * -kokŋ/koko: conj. and, also
814 * médkʰi/medíkʰ (m-d-kʰ): vi/vt. speak, say, utter
815 * médkʰit/temédikʰ (m-d-kʰ): v4. to converse or correspond
816 * mémdekʰ/memdēkʰé (m-d-kʰ): vi. to be noisy, to make noise
817 * méndikʰ/medkʰín (m-d-kʰ): vi/vt. write
818 * mibítro (b-t-r): nn. yardstick, ruler
819 * midêkʰ (m-d-kʰ): nf.sg. the Midêkʰ language
820 * midéskʰe (m-d-kʰ): nf. command, order
821 * midéskʰe (m-d-kʰ): nm. conversation, dialogue (this can refer to a
822 spoken conversation or a written dialogue)
823 * midírgʷo (d-r-gʷ): nn. torch, candle, artificial light or fire
824 * midkʰé (m-d-kʰ): nf.sg. linguistics, language in general
825 * mīdkʰé (m-d-kʰ): nn. utterance, speech, act of speaking
826 * mîdkʰen (m-d-kʰ): nn. text, act of writing
827 * mīdkʰís (m-d-kʰ): nf. act of conversing or corresponding (in the
828 singular it normally refers to one utterance or letter and its
829 response; in the plural it can refer to an entire conversation or the
830 entire correspondence between two or more people)
831 * mīdmókʰ (m-d-kʰ): nn. noise, sound
832 * mídokʰ (m-d-kʰ): nf. book, scroll
833 * migʲílpo (gʲ-l-p): nn. money, coin
834 * mimídkʰo (m-d-kʰ): nn. pen, stylus, other writing instrument
835 * mipíkʲʰto (p-kʲʰ-t): nn. speed
836 * mipísŋo (p-s-ŋ): nn. canal
837 * miríhro (r-h-r): nn. throat, esp. the larynx
838 * misílho (s-l-h): nn. wing
839 * mobotór (b-t-r): adj. short
840 * mobótro (b-t-r): adj. long
841 * módkʰo (m-d-kʰ): adj. speaking, vocal
842 * módkʰon (m-d-kʰ): adj. literate, writing
843 * modiskʰó (m-d-kʰ): adj. comprehending, listening
844 * modnókʰ (m-d-kʰ): adj. written, textual, literary
845 * módohikʰ (m-d-kʰ): adj. dictating, imperious, acting indirectly
846 * modókʰ (m-d-kʰ): adj. spoken, verbal, oral
847 * modórgʷo (d-r-gʷ): adj. hot, warm, heated (by some external source)
848 * modorógʷ (d-r-gʷ): adj. cold, cool (with a connotation of not having
849 been heated or having lost its heat)
850 * módsikʰo (m-d-kʰ): adj. communicating, expressive
851 * mogʲolóp (gʲ-l-p): adj. worthless, cheap
852 * mogʲólpo (gʲ-l-p): adj. valuable, expensive
853 * momódkʰo (m-d-kʰ): adj. noisy, loud
854 * momodókʰ (m-d-kʰ): adj. quiet, noiseless, silent
855 * mopokʲʰót (p-kʲʰ-t): adj. stationary, immobile
856 * mopókʲʰto (p-kʲʰ-t): adj. mobile
857 * mopósŋo (p-s-ŋ): adj. melted, liquid, wet
858 * moposóŋ (p-s-ŋ): adj. dry
859 * morohór (r-h-r): adj. restless, not docile, agitated (of animals)
860 * moróhro (r-h-r): adj. calm, docile (of animals)
861 * mosólho (s-l-h): adj. in the air, floating
862 * mosolóh (s-l-h): adj. not in the air, not flying, heavier than air
864 * nobitér (b-t-r): nf. long journey on foot
865 * nodirégʷ (d-r-gʷ): nf. fuel for fire, firewood, kindling
866 * nomidékʰ (m-d-kʰ): nf. message, letter
867 * nopikʲʰét (p-kʲʰ-t): nf. jump
868 * nôpisŋo (p-s-ŋ): nm. urine
869 * ŋôbitro (b-t-r): nm. heel, sole of foot
870 * ŋôdirgʷo (d-r-gʷ): nm. ash, follower-on
871 * ŋôgʲilpo (gʲ-l-p): nm. theft
872 * ŋômidkʰo (m-d-kʰ): nm. nonsense, pathetic request
873 * ŋôpikʲʰto (p-kʲʰ-t): nm. coward
874 * ŋôrihro (r-h-r): nm. overly dependent and helpless person
875 * ŋôsilho (s-l-h): nm. bad omen
877 * pékʲʰti/pekʲʰít (p-kʲʰ-t): vi. to move one's self
878 * pékʲʰtit/tepékʲʰit (p-kʲʰ-t): v4. to dance
879 * pémkʲʰet/pemkʲʰēté (p-kʲʰ-t): vi. to be mobile
880 * pémseŋ/pemsēŋé (p-s-ŋ): vi. to become liquid, to melt, to be or
882 * pénkʲʰit/pekʲʰtín (p-kʲʰ-t): vi. to run
883 * pénsiŋ/pesŋín (p-s-ŋ): vi/vt. pool (intr.); cover in liquid, flood,
885 * pésŋi/pesíŋ (p-s-ŋ): vi. flow
886 * pésŋit/tepésiŋ (p-s-ŋ): v4. to rise and fall over time (as tides or
887 water level in a lake or river)
888 * pikʲʰéste (p-kʲʰ-t): nm. oscillation, vibration
889 * pikʲʰéste (p-kʲʰ-t): nf. sudden or short movement
890 * pikʲʰêt (p-kʲʰ-t): nn. horse
891 * pīkʲʰmót (p-kʲʰ-t): vi. mobility
892 * pikʲʰté (p-kʲʰ-t): nf.sg. motion, movement
893 * pīkʲʰté (p-kʲʰ-t): nn. a movement, a motion
894 * pîkʲʰten (p-kʲʰ-t): nn. an act of running, a running pace
895 * pīkʲʰtís (p-kʲʰ-t): nf. a dance, a dance step
896 * pisêŋ (p-s-ŋ): nm. water
897 * pisésŋe (p-s-ŋ): nm. flood
898 * pīsmóŋ (p-s-ŋ): nn. melting
899 * pisŋé (p-s-ŋ): nf.sg. liquids (the state of matter, and the science
901 * pīsŋé (p-s-ŋ): nn. act of flowing
902 * pîsŋen (p-s-ŋ): nn. pool, puddle, act of pooling
903 * pīsŋís (p-s-ŋ): nf. tide, change in level (especially of a fluid)
904 * pokʲʰistó (p-kʲʰ-t): adj. dancing (especially following a lead or an
906 * pókʲʰohit (p-kʲʰ-t): adj. causing things to move, impactful
907 * pokʲʰót (p-kʲʰ-t): adj. moving (due to external forces)
908 * pokʲʰnót (p-kʲʰ-t): adj. running (typically used of animals)
909 * pókʲʰsit (p-kʲʰ-t): adj. dancing (especially when leading or
911 * pókʲʰto (p-kʲʰ-t): adj. moving (on its own), mobile
912 * pókʲʰton (p-kʲʰ-t): adj. running (typically used of people)
913 * pósŋo (p-s-ŋ): adj. flowing, fluid
914 * pósŋon (p-s-ŋ): adj. pooling, overflowing, stagnant
915 * posnóŋ (p-s-ŋ): adj. submerged, flooded, overflowed
916 * pósohiŋ (p-s-ŋ): adj. pouring (the one pouring a fluid), being
918 * posóŋ (p-s-ŋ): adj. watered (as e.g. plants, soil), irrigated
919 * réhri/rehír (r-h-r): vi. to purr, to make other noises expressing
921 * réhrit/teréhir (r-h-r); v4. to mutually care for each other, to love
922 (emphasizing action taken to care for one another)
923 * rémher/remhēré (r-h-r): vi. to be calm, to be docile (especially used
925 * rénhir/rehrín (r-h-r): vi. to roar
926 * rihêr (r-h-r): nm. purr
927 * rihésre (r-h-r): nm. affectionate sounds made between lovers
928 * rīhmór (r-h-r): nn. calmness, docility (especially in animals)
929 * ríhor (r-h-r): nm. contentment noises, particularly from animals or
931 * rihré (r-h-r): nf. contentment, feeling of safety (primarily used to
932 discuss it in the abstract, or to describe a person's general
933 demeanor; for in-the-moment experiences of this feeling, see
935 * rīhré (r-h-r): nn. act of purring
936 * rîhren (r-h-r): nn. act of roaring, roar
937 * rīhrís (r-h-r): nf. love relationship (especially between young
939 * rohisró (r-h-r): adj. loved (emphasizing lover(s) taking care of you)
940 * rohnór (r-h-r): adj. making threatening noises (only used with
942 * rohór (r-h-r): adj. making noises of contentment
943 * róhohir (r-h-r): adj. caretaking, making others to feel safe
944 * róhro (r-h-r): adj. purring
945 * róhron (r-h-r): adj. roaring
946 * róhsir (r-h-r): adj. loving (with an emphasis on action taken to make
947 lover(s) feel safe and content)
948 * sélhi/selíh (s-l-h): vi. to fly
949 * sélhit/tesélih (s-l-h): v4. to overfly (the place or thing flown over
950 takes the dative case); (rarely) to fly high or ascend
951 * sémleh/semlēhé (s-l-h): vi. to be in the air, to float in the air
952 * sen: prep. of, belonging to
953 * sénlih/selhín (s-l-h): v. to fly downward rapidly, to swoop (intr.);
954 to swoop down on (trans.)
956 * silêh (s-l-h): nn. mindless bird, flying animal
957 * siléshe (s-l-h): nm. a flight, journey by flight
958 * siléshe (s-l-h): nf. a flying ascent
959 * silhé (s-l-h): nf.sg. flight, the art of flying
960 * sīlhé (s-l-h): nn. act of flying, flap of wings
961 * sîlhen (s-l-h): nn. a flying descent, a swoop
962 * sīlhís (s-l-h): nf. an act of overflying
963 * sīlmóh (s-l-h): nn. the state of being in the air or floating
964 * síloh (s-l-h): nv. bat-person, a mammalian person who flies
965 * simídekʰ (m-d-kʰ): nm. language, script
966 * sipíkʲʰet (p-kʲʰ-t): nm. acceleration
967 * sipíseŋ (p-s-ŋ): nm. mouthful (esp. of liquids)
968 * sisíleh (s-l-h): nm. wingspan
969 * sobítir (b-t-r): nn. a far away place
970 * sodírigʷ (d-r-gʷ): nn. hearth, firepit
971 * sogʲílip (gʲ-l-p): nn. market
972 * sólho (s-l-h): adj. flying, flapping
973 * sólhon (s-l-h): adj. swooping, flying downward
974 * solishó (s-l-h): adj. flying high
975 * solnóh (s-l-h): adj. swooped down upon
976 * solóh (s-l-h): adj. flying, wind-borne
977 * sólohih (s-l-h): adj. throwing, being thrown, moving through the air
978 * sólsih (s-l-h): adj. overflying something
979 * somídikʰ (m-d-kʰ): nn. TKTK (some sort of language place)
980 * sopíkʲʰit (p-kʲʰ-t): nn. path
981 * sopísiŋ (p-s-ŋ): nn. body of water or other liquid, esp. an ocean
982 * soríhir (r-h-r): nn. place of safety, home (in the sense of place
983 where one feels secure)
984 * sosílih (s-l-h): nn. high up place to perch on
985 * petʰ: prep. during, in (in the sense of a time period) (the dative
986 case indicates that the events described took place exclusively in
987 the time period, while the prepositional case does not specify
988 whether they extend outside of this time in either direction).
989 * tedirgʷó (d-r-gʷ): nm. burn
990 * tepisŋó (p-s-ŋ): nm. blood
991 * terihró (r-h-r): nm. whimpers, pleading noises
992 * tobitír (b-t-r): nn. foot, paw; foot (a unit of length)
993 * togʲilíp (gʲ-l-p): nn. price
994 * tōmidíkʰ (m-d-kʰ): nn. sentence
995 * tōpisíŋ (p-s-ŋ): nn. cup, waterskin, jug
996 * torihír (r-h-r): nn. mindless cat
997 * tosilíh (s-l-h): nn. mindless bat, flying mindless mammal