Blog Post · NEW CONCEPT - multiple objects
NEW CONCEPT - multiple objects ^
Posted On Wednesday 28 September 2011 by Murray Colpman (Muzer)
We have finally come up with a solution for words with multiple objects. These include English words such as "give" (I give you the cat), "grant" (I grant you a wish), "introduce" (I introduce the cat to you), and "tell" (I tell you the requirements). There are even ones with three objects, such as "trade" (I trade my cat and your pasta with you).
In Timlan, the concept we've come up with is that you can have a "stack" of objects. As with any good processor architecture, it's the least significant object you see first ;)
To push an object onto the stack, you use the "puc" semi-verboid*. This semi-verboid is special in that it takes no prefixes, and that the subject must be another clause (possibly another puc clause).
For purposes of backwards-compatibility, and because we see no reason to change it, in any instance in which using "to" as a preposition would make equal sense to using two objects, either form can be used.
Now, for some examples!
I give him the pasta (multiple object form):
puc ti pieselem hat~s ei
As with all languages I know of, the order of importance is essentially decided by how much the objects are directly affected - the object that is most directly affected by the verb (in this case the pasta, because it is physically being given to the person, who is not having an action applied to him) becomes the main object, and the person becomes the secondary object.
I trade my apple and her orange with her: (we don't yet have a word for "trade")
puc ti puc tiami ohk /!trade!/eht eiami tok ei
We will soon start to redo the database, describing accurately how many objects each verb takes and what exactly each one means.
(Please note that this is a serious job, and we are all VERY busy, so don't expect much progress on this front any time soon)
*we've also come up with some new terminology.
verboid = any word that can be used as a verb
nounoid = any word that can be used as a noun
semi-verboid = any word that can be used in some situations as a verb
semi-nounoid = any word that can be used in some situations as a noun