Adyghe_verbs
In Adyghe, like all Northwest Caucasian languages, the verb is the most inflected part of speech. Verbs are typically head final and are conjugated for tense, person, number, etc. Some of Circassian verbs can be morphologically simple, some of them consist only of one morpheme, like: кӏо "go", штэ "take". However, generally, Circassian verbs are characterized as structurally and semantically difficult entities. Morphological structure of a Circassian verb includes affixes (prefixes, suffixes) which are specific to the language. Verbal affixes express meaning of subject, direct or indirect object, adverbial, singular or plural form, negative form, mood, direction, mutuality, compatibility and reflexivity, which, as a result, creates a complex verb, that consists of many morphemes and semantically expresses a sentence. For example: уакъыдэсэгъэгущыӏэжьы "I am forcing you to talk to them again" consists of the following morphemes: у-а-къы-дэ-сэ-гъэ-гущыӏэ-жьы, with the following meanings: "you (у) with them (а) from there (къы) together (дэ) I (сэ) am forcing (гъэ) to speak (гущыӏэн) again (жьы)".
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Adyghe verbs have several forms to express different tenses, here are some of them:
| Tense | Suffix | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Present | ~∅ | макӏо /maːkʷʼa/ | (s)he is going; (s)he goes |
| Simple past | ~агъэ /~aːʁa/ | кӏуагъэ /kʷʼaːʁa/ | (s)he went |
| Discontinuous past | ~гъагъ /~ʁaːʁ/ | кӏогъагъ /kʷʼaʁaːʁ/ | (s)he went (but not there anymore) |
| Pluperfect | ~гъагъ /~ʁaːʁ/ | кӏогъагъ /kʷʼaʁaːʁ/ | (s)he had gone" |
| Categorical Future | ~н /~n/ | кӏон /kʷʼan/ | (s)he will go |
| Factual Future | ~щт /~ɕt/ | кӏощт /kʷʼaɕt/ | (s)he will go |
| Imperfect | ~щтыгъ | кӏощтыгъ /kʷʼaɕtəʁ/ | (s)he was going; (s)he used to go |
| Conditional perfect | ~щтыгъ | кӏощтыгъ /kʷʼaɕtəʁ/ | (s)he would have gone |
| Future perfect | ~гъэщт /~ʁaɕt/ | кӏуагъэщт /kʷʼaːʁaɕt/ | (s)he will have gone |
| Recent past | ~гъакӏ /~ʁaːt͡ʃʼ/ | кӏогъакӏ /kʷʼaʁaːt͡ʃʼ/ | (s)he just (recently) went |
| Present Perfect | ~гъах /~ʁaːχ/ | кӏогъах /kʷʼaʁaːx/ | (s)he already went |
Simple past
The verbs in simple past tense are formed by adding -aгъ /-aːʁ/. In intransitive verbs it indicates that the action took place, but with no indication as to the duration, instant nor completeness of the action. In transitive verbs it conveys more specific information with regards to completeness of the action, and therefore they indicate some certainty as to the outcome of the action.
Examples :
- кӏо /kʷʼa/ go → кӏуагъ /kʷʼaːʁ/ (s)he went
- къакӏу /qaːkʷʼ/ come → къэкӏуагъ /qakʷʼaːʁ/ (s)he came
- шхэ /ʃxa/ eat! → шхагъ /ʃxaːʁ/ (s)he ate
- ӏо /ʔʷa/ say → ыӏуагъ /jəʔʷaːʁ/ (s)he said
- еплъ /japɬ/ look at → еплъыгъ /japɬəʁ/ (s)he looked at
- шхы /ʃxə/ eat it → ышхыгъ /jəʃxəʁ/ (s)he ate it
| Plurality | Person | Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | First-person | сыкӏуагъ, седжагъ | səkʷʼaːʁ, sajd͡ʒaːʁ | I went, I [have] read |
| Second-person | укӏуагъ, уеджагъ | wkʷʼaːʁ, wajd͡ʒaːʁ | You went, You [have] read | |
| Third-person | кӏуагъ, еджагъ | kʷʼaːʁ, jad͡ʒaːʁ | He went, He [has] read | |
| Plural | First-person | тыкӏуагъ, теджагъ | təkʷʼaːʁ, tajd͡ʒaːʁ | We went, We [have] read |
| Second-person | шъукӏуагъ, шъуеджагъ | ʃʷkʷʼaːʁ, ʃʷajd͡ʒaːʁ | You (pl.) went, You [have] read | |
| Third-person | кӏуагъэх, еджагъэх | kʷʼaːʁax, jad͡ʒaːʁax | They went, They [have] read | |
Сэ
Сэ
sa
I
шхынхэр
шхын-хэ-р
ʃxənxar
foods.ABS
къэсхьыгъэх
къэ-с-хьы-гъэ-х
qasħəʁax
I brought them
Сэ шхынхэр къэсхьыгъэх
Сэ шхын-хэ-р къэ-с-хьы-гъэ-х
sa ʃxənxar qasħəʁax
I foods.ABS {I brought them}
"I brought the foods (and they might still be here)."
Кӏалэр
Кӏалэ-р
t͡ʃʼaːɮar
the boy.ABS
тиунэ
ти-унэ
təjwəna
our house
къэкӏуагъ
къэ-кӏу-агъ
qakʷʼaːʁ
(s)he came
Кӏалэр тиунэ къэкӏуагъ
Кӏалэ-р ти-унэ къэ-кӏу-агъ
t͡ʃʼaːɮar təjwəna qakʷʼaːʁ
{the boy.ABS} {our house} {(s)he came}
"The boy came to our house (and he might still be here)."
Pluperfect / Discontinuous past
The tense ~гъагъ /~ʁaːʁ/ can be used for both past perfect (pluperfect) and discontinuous past:
- Past perfect: It indicates that the action took place formerly at some certain time, putting emphasis only on the fact that the action took place (not the duration)
- Past perfect 2: It expresses the idea that one action occurred before another action or event in the past.
- Discontinuous past: It carries an implication that the result of the event described no longer holds. This tense expresses the following meanings: remote past, anti resultative (‘cancelled’ result), experiential and irrealis conditional.[1]
Examples :
- кӏо /kʷʼa/ go → кӏогъагъ /kʷʼaʁaːʁ/ (s)he had gone
- къакӏу /qaːkʷʼ/ come → къэкӏогъагъ /qakʷʼaʁaːʁ/ (s)he had come
- шхэ /ʃxa/ eat! → шхэгъагъ /maʃxaʁaːʁ/ (s)he had eaten
- ӏо /ʔʷa/ say → ыӏогъагъ /jəʔʷaʁaːʁ/ (s)he had said
- еплъ /japɬ/ look at → еплъыгъагъ /japɬəʁaːʁ/ (s)he had looked
- шхы /ʃxə/ eat it → ышхыгъагъ /jəʃxəʁaːʁ/ (s)he had eaten
| Plurality | Person | Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | First-person | сыкӏогъагъ, седжэгъагъ | səkʷʼaʁaːʁ, sajd͡ʒaʁaːʁ | I had gone (then), I had read (then) |
| Second-person | укӏогъагъ, уеджэгъагъ | wkʷʼaʁaːʁ, wajd͡ʒaʁaːʁ | You had gone (then), You had read (then) | |
| Third-person | кӏогъагъ, еджэгъагъ | kʷʼaʁaːʁ, jad͡ʒaʁaːʁ | He had gone (then), He had read (then) | |
| Plural | First-person | тыкӏогъагъ, теджэгъагъ | təkʷʼaʁaːʁ, tajd͡ʒaʁaːʁ | We had gone (then), We had read (then) |
| Second-person | шъукӏогъагъ, шъуеджэгъагъ | ʃʷkʷʼaʁaːʁ, ʃʷajd͡ʒaʁaːʁ | You (pl.) had gone (then), You (pl.) had read (then) | |
| Third-person | кӏогъагъэх, еджэгъагъэх | kʷʼaʁaːʁax, jad͡ʒaʁaːʁax | They had gone (then), They had read (then) | |
Сэ
Сэ
sa
I
шхынхэр
шхын-хэ-р
ʃxənxar
foods.ABS
къэсхьыгъагъэх
къэ-с-хьы-гъагъэ-х
qasħəʁaːʁax
I had brought them (then)
Сэ шхынхэр къэсхьыгъагъэх
Сэ шхын-хэ-р къэ-с-хьы-гъагъэ-х
sa ʃxənxar qasħəʁaːʁax
I foods.ABS {I had brought them (then)}
"I had brought the foods."
Кӏалэр
Кӏалэ-р
t͡ʃʼaːɮar
the boy.ABS
тиунэ
ти-унэ
təjwəna
our house
къэкӏогъагъ
къэ-кӏу-эгъагъ
qakʷʼaʁaːʁ
(s)he had come
Кӏалэр тиунэ къэкӏогъагъ
Кӏалэ-р ти-унэ къэ-кӏу-эгъагъ
t͡ʃʼaːɮar təjwəna qakʷʼaʁaːʁ
{the boy.ABS} {our house} {(s)he had come}
"The boy had come to our house (and he might have left)."
Present tense
The present tense in Adyghe has no additional suffixes, but in dynamic verbs, the pronoun prefix's vowels change form ы to э or е, for instance, сышхыгъ "I ate" becomes сэшхы "I eat" (сы → сэ), ылъэгъугъ "(s)he saw" becomes елъэгъу "(s)he sees" (ы → е).
Examples :
- кӏо /kʷʼa/ go → макӏо /makʷʼa/ (s)he goes
- къакӏу /qaːkʷʼ/ come → къакӏо /qakʷʼa/ (s)he comes
- шхэ /ʃxa/ eat! → машхэ /maʃxaʁ/ (s)he eats
- ӏо /ʔʷa/ say → еӏо /jəʔʷa/ (s)he says
- еплъ /japɬ/ look at → еплъы /japɬə/ (s)he looks at
- шхы /ʃxə/ eat it → ешхы /jəʃxə/ (s)he eats it
| Plurality | Person | Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | First-person | сэкӏо, седжэ | sakʷʼa, sajd͡ʒa | I go, I read |
| Second-person | окӏо, уеджэ | wakʷʼa, wajd͡ʒa | You go, You read | |
| Third-person | макӏо, еджэ | maːkʷʼa, jad͡ʒa | He goes, He reads | |
| Plural | First-person | тэкӏо, теджэ | takʷʼa, tajd͡ʒa | We go, We read |
| Second-person | шъокӏо, шъуеджэ | ʃʷakʷʼa, ʃʷajd͡ʒa | You (pl.) go, You read | |
| Third-person | макӏох, еджэх | maːkʷʼax, jad͡ʒax | They go, They read | |
Сиунэ
siwna
my house
сыщэшхэ
səɕaʃxa
I eat in
Сиунэ сыщэшхэ
siwna səɕaʃxa
{my house} {I eat in}
"I eat in my house"
мые
məja
an apple
сэщэфы
saɕafə
I am buying
мые сэщэфы
məja saɕafə
{an apple} {I am buying}
"I am buying an apple"
Future tense
The future tense is normally indicated by the suffix ~(э)щт /~(a)ɕt/ (close to future simple). This tense usually expresses some certainty.
Examples :
- макӏо /maːkʷʼa/ (s)he is going → кӏощт /kʷʼaɕt/ (s)he will go
- къакӏо /qaːkʷʼa/ (s)he is coming → къэкӏощт /qakʷʼaɕt/ (s)he will come
- машхэ /maːʃxa/ (s)he is eating → шхэщт /ʃxaɕt/ (s)he will eat
- еӏо /jaʔʷa/ (s)he says → ыӏощт /jəʔʷaɕt/ (s)he will say
- еплъы /jajapɬə/ (s)he looks at → еплъыщт /japɬəɕt/ (s)he will look at
- ешхы /jaʃxə/ (s)he eats it → ышхыщт /jəʃxəaɕt/ (s)he will eat it
| Plurality | Person | Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | First-person | сыкӏощт, седжэщт | səkʷʼaɕt, sajd͡ʒaɕt | I will go, I will read |
| Second-person | укӏощт, уеджэщт | wkʷʼaɕt, wajd͡ʒaɕt | You will go, You will read | |
| Third-person | кӏощт, еджэщт | kʷʼaɕt, jad͡ʒaɕt | He will go, He will read | |
| Plural | First-person | тыкӏощт, теджэщт | təkʷʼaɕt, tajd͡ʒaɕt | We will go, We will read |
| Second-person | шъукӏощт, шъуеджэщт | ʃʷkʷʼaɕt, ʃʷajd͡ʒaɕt | You (pl.) will go, You will read | |
| Third-person | кӏощтых, еджэщтых | kʷʼaɕtəx, jad͡ʒaɕtəx | They will go, They will read |
Сиунэ
siwna
my house
сыщышхэщт
səɕəʃxaɕt
I will eat in
Сиунэ сыщышхэщт
siwna səɕəʃxaɕt
{my house} {I will eat in}
"I will eat in my house"
мые
məja
an apple
сщэфыщт
sɕafəɕt
I will buy
мые сщэфыщт
məja sɕafəɕt
{an apple} {I will buy}
"I will buy an apple"
Imperfect tense
The imperfect tense is formed with the additional suffix ~щтыгъ /~ɕtəʁ/ to the verb. It can have meanings similar to the English "was walking" or "used to walk".
Examples :
- кӏо /kʷʼa/ go → кӏощтыгъ /makʷʼaɕtəʁ/ (s)he was going.
- къакӏу /qaːkʷʼ/ come → къэкӏощтыгъ /qakʷʼaɕtəʁ/ (s)he was coming .
- шхэ /ʃxa/ eat! → шхэщтыгъ /maʃxaɕtəʁ/ (s)he was eating.
- ӏо /ʔʷa/ say → ыӏощтыгъ /jəʔʷaɕtəʁ/ (s)he was saying.
- еплъ /japɬ/ look at → еплъыщтыгъ /japɬəɕtəʁ/ (s)he was looking at.
- шхы /ʃxə/ eat it → ышхыщтыгъ /jəʃxəɕtəʁ/ (s)he was eating it.
| Plurality | Person | Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | First-person | сыкӏощтыгъ, седжэщтыгъ | səkʷʼaɕtəʁ, sajd͡ʒaɕtəʁ | I was going, I was reading |
| Second-person | укӏощтыгъ, уеджэщтыгъ | wkʷʼaɕtəʁ, wajd͡ʒaɕtəʁ | You were going, You were reading | |
| Third-person | кӏощтыгъ, еджэщтыгъ | kʷʼaɕtəʁ, jad͡ʒaɕtəʁ | (S)he was going, (S)he was reading | |
| Plural | First-person | тыкӏощтыгъ, теджэщтыгъ | təkʷʼaɕtəʁ, tajd͡ʒaɕtəʁ | We were going, We were reading |
| Second-person | шъукӏощтыгъ, шъуеджэщтыгъ | ʃʷkʷʼaɕtəʁ, ʃʷajd͡ʒaɕtəʁ | You (pl.) were going, You (pl.) were reading | |
| Third-person | кӏощтыгъэх, еджэщтыгъэх | kʷʼaɕtəʁax, jad͡ʒaɕtəʁax | They were going, They were reading |
еджапӏэм
еджапӏэ-м
jad͡ʒaːpʼam
school.ERG
сыкӏощтыгъ,
сы-кӏо-щтыгъ,
səkʷʼaɕtəʁ
I was going
ау
ау
aːw
but
къызещхым
къызещхым
qəzajɕxəm
when it started to rain
къэзгъэзэжьыгъ
къэ-з-гъэзэ-жь-ыгъ
qazʁazaʑəʁ
I returned
еджапӏэм сыкӏощтыгъ, ау къызещхым къэзгъэзэжьыгъ
еджапӏэ-м сы-кӏо-щтыгъ, ау къызещхым къэ-з-гъэзэ-жь-ыгъ
jad͡ʒaːpʼam səkʷʼaɕtəʁ aːw qəzajɕxəm qazʁazaʑəʁ
school.ERG {I was going} but {when it started to rain} {I returned}
"I was going to school, but when it started raining I returned"
This suffix can also be used to express an action that someone used to do in the past.
сэ
сэ
sa
I
тутын
тутын
təwtən
cigarette
сешъощтыгъэ
с-ешъо-щтыгъэ
sajʃʷaɕtəʁa
I used to smoke
сэ тутын сешъощтыгъэ
сэ тутын с-ешъо-щтыгъэ
sa təwtən sajʃʷaɕtəʁa
I cigarette {I used to smoke}
"I used to smoke cigarrete."
Conditional perfect
The Conditional perfect is indicated by the suffix ~щтыгъ /ɕtəʁ/ as well.
Examples :
- кӏо /kʷʼa/ go → кӏощтыгъ /makʷʼaɕtəʁ/ (s)he would have gone.
- къакӏу /qaːkʷʼ/ come → къэкӏощтыгъ /qakʷʼaɕtəʁ/ (s)he would have come
- шхэ /ʃxa/ eat! → шхэщтыгъ /maʃxaɕtəʁ/ (s)he would have eaten.
- ӏо /ʔʷa/ say → ыӏощтыгъ /jəʔʷaɕtəʁ/ (s)he would have said.
- еплъ /japɬ/ look at → еплъыщтыгъ /japɬəɕtəʁ/ (s)he would have looked at
- шхы /ʃxə/ eat it → ышхыщтыгъ /jəʃxəɕtəʁ/ (s)he would have eaten it.
| Plurality | Person | Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | First-person | сыкӏощтыгъ, седжэщтыгъ | səkʷʼaɕtəʁ, sajd͡ʒaɕtəʁ | I would have gone, I would have read |
| Second-person | укӏощтыгъ, уеджэщтыгъ | wkʷʼaɕtəʁ, wajd͡ʒaɕtəʁ | You would have gone, You would have read | |
| Third-person | кӏощтыгъ, еджэщтыгъ | kʷʼaɕtəʁ, jad͡ʒaɕtəʁ | (S)he would have gone, (S)he would have read | |
| Plural | First-person | тыкӏощтыгъ, теджэщтыгъ | təkʷʼaɕtəʁ, tajd͡ʒaɕtəʁ | We would have gone, We would have read |
| Second-person | шъукӏощтыгъ, шъуеджэщтыгъ | ʃʷkʷʼaɕtəʁ, ʃʷajd͡ʒaɕtəʁ | You (pl.) would have gone, You would have read | |
| Third-person | кӏощтыгъэх, еджэщтыгъэх | kʷʼaɕtəʁax, jad͡ʒaɕtəʁax | They would have gone, They would have read |
экзамен
экзамен
[akzaːmen
exam
зэрэтиӏэ
зэрэ-ти-ӏэ
zaratəjʔa
that we have
сышӏэгъагъэмэ
сы-шӏэ-гъагъэ-мэ
səʃʼaʁaːʁna
if I knew
сфеджэщтыгъ
с-ф-еджэ-щтыгъ
sfajd͡ʒaɕtəʁ]
I would have studied for it
экзамен зэрэтиӏэ сышӏэгъагъэмэ сфеджэщтыгъ
экзамен зэрэ-ти-ӏэ сы-шӏэ-гъагъэ-мэ с-ф-еджэ-щтыгъ
[akzaːmen zaratəjʔa səʃʼaʁaːʁna sfajd͡ʒaɕtəʁ]
exam {that we have} {if I knew} {I would have studied for it}
"If I knew we had an exam I would have studied for it."
а
а
[aː
that
пшъашъэр
пшъашъэ-р
pʂaːʂar
girl.ABS
къэзгъотышъущтыгъ
къэ-с-гъоты-шъу-щтыгъ
qazʁʷatəʃʷɕtəʁ
I could have found it
тичылэдэсгъагъэмэ
ти-чылэдэс-гъагъэ-мэ
təjt͡ʃəɮadasʁaːʁami]
if (s)he was our villager
а пшъашъэр къэзгъотышъущтыгъ тичылэдэсгъагъэмэ
а пшъашъэ-р къэ-с-гъоты-шъу-щтыгъ ти-чылэдэс-гъагъэ-мэ
[aː pʂaːʂar qazʁʷatəʃʷɕtəʁ təjt͡ʃəɮadasʁaːʁami]
that girl.ABS {I could have found it} {if (s)he was our villager}
"I could have found that girl if she was our villager."
Future perfect
The future perfect tense is indicated by adding the suffix ~гъэщт or ~гъагъэщт. This tense indicates action that will be finished or expected to be finished at a certain time in the future.
Examples :
- кӏо /kʷʼa/ go → кӏогъэщт /makʷʼaʁaɕt/ (s)he will have gone.
- къакӏу /qaːkʷʼ/ come → къэкӏогъэщт /qakʷʼaʁaɕt/ (s)he will have come.
- шӏы /ʃʼə/ do it → ышӏыгъагъэщт /ət͡ʃʼəʁaːʁaɕt/ (s)he will have done it.
- ӏо /ʔʷa/ say → ыӏогъэщт /jəʔʷaʁaɕt/ (s)he will have said it.
- еплъ /japɬ/ look at → еплъыгъэщт /japɬəʁaɕt/ (s)he will have looked at.
- шхы /ʃxə/ eat it → ышхыгъэщт /jəʃxəʁaɕt/ (s)he will have eaten it.
| Plurality | Person | Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | First-person | сыкӏогъэщт, седжэгъэщт | sɘkʷʼaʁaɕt, sajd͡ʒaʁaɕt | I will have gone, I will have read |
| Second-person | укӏогъэщт, уеджэгъэщт | wkʷʼaʁaɕt, wajd͡ʒaʁaɕt | You will have gone, You will have read | |
| Third-person | кӏогъэщт, еджэгъэщт | kʷʼaʁaɕt, jad͡ʒaʁaɕt | (S)he will have gone, (S)he will have read | |
| Plural | First-person | тыкӏогъэщт, теджэгъэщт | tɘkʷʼaʁaɕt, tajd͡ʒaʁaɕt | We will have gone, We will have read |
| Second-person | шъукӏогъэщт, шъуеджэгъэщт | ʃʷkʷʼaʁaɕt, ʃʷajd͡ʒaʁaɕt | You (pl.) will have gone, You will have read | |
| Third-person | кӏощтыгъэх, еджэгъэщтэх | kʷʼaɕtəʁax, jad͡ʒaʁaɕtax | They will have gone, They will have read |
сэ
сэ
[sa
I
тхылъым
тхылъы-м
txəɬəm
book.ERG
седжэгъэщт
с-еджэ-гъэщт
sajd͡ʒaʁaɕt
I will have read it
неущы
неущы
najɕə]
tomorrow
сэ тхылъым седжэгъэщт неущы
сэ тхылъы-м с-еджэ-гъэщт неущы
[sa txəɬəm sajd͡ʒaʁaɕt najɕə]
I book.ERG {I will have read it} tomorrow
"I will have read the book by tomorrow".
чэщым
чэщы-м
[t͡ʃaɕəm
night.ERG
кӏалэр
кӏалэ-р
t͡ʃʼaːɮar
boy.ABS
сиунэ
си-унэ
səjwəna
my house
къэкӏуагъэщт
къэкӏу-агъэщт
qakʷaːʁaɕt]
(s)he will have came
чэщым кӏалэр сиунэ къэкӏуагъэщт
чэщы-м кӏалэ-р си-унэ къэкӏу-агъэщт
[t͡ʃaɕəm t͡ʃʼaːɮar səjwəna qakʷaːʁaɕt]
night.ERG boy.ABS {my house} {(s)he will have came}
"the boy will have came to my house by night".
In Circassian the verb being transitive or intransitive is of major importance in accounting for the contrast between the two cases ergative and absolutive. The division into transitive and intransitive verbs is an important distinction because each group functions a bit differently in some grammatical aspects of the language. Each group for example has its own arrangement of prefixes and conjunctions. Circassian is an ergative–absolutive language, which means it is a language in which the subject of intransitive verbs, behave like the object of transitive verbs. This is unlike nominative–accusative languages, such as English and most other European languages, where the subject of an intransitive verb (e.g. "She" in the sentence "She walks.") behaves grammatically like the agent of a transitive verb (e.g. "She" in the sentence "She finds it.")
Intransitive verbs in Circassian are verbs that have a subject in the absolutive case. The common definition of an intransitive verb is a verb that does not allow an object, and we see this in Indo-European, Turkic and other languages. This is problematic in the Circassian languages, because in Circassian, there is a number of verbs with transitive semantics but morphological features and syntactic behavior according to the intransitive pattern. Thus in Circassian, intransitive verbs can either have or not have objects.
Examples of intransitive verbs that have no objects:
- кӏон "to go"
- чъэн "to run"
- шхэн "to eat"
- гущыӏн "to talk"
- тхэн "to write"
- быбын "to fly"
- чъыен "to sleep"
- лӏэн "to die"
- пкӏэн "to jump"
- хъонэн "to curse"
- хъун "to happen"
- стын "to burn up"
- сымэджэн "to get sick"
- лъэӏон "to prey; to beg"
- тхъэжьын "to be happy"
Examples of intransitive verbs that have indirect objects:
- ебэун "to kiss"
- еплъын "to look at"
- елъэӏун "to beg to"
- еджэн "to read"
- есын "to swim"
- еон "to hit"
- ешъутырын "to kick"
- еӏункӏын "to push"
- ецэкъэн "to bite"
- еупчӏын "to ask"
- ешъон "to drink"
- ежэн "to wait"
- дэгущыӏэн "to speak with"
- ехъонын "to curse someone"
Transitive verbs in Circassian are verbs that have a subject in the ergative case. Unlike intransitive verbs, transitive verbs always need to have an object. Most transitive verbs have one object, but there are some that have two objects or several.
Examples of transitive verbs with a direct object:
- укӏын "to kill"
- шхын "to eat it"
- ӏыгъэн "to hold"
- дзын "to throw"
- лъэгъун "to see"
- хьын "to carry"
- шӏэн "to know"
- шӏын "to do"
- шӏыжьын "to fix"
- гъэшхэн "to feed"
- щэн "to lead someone"
- тхьалэн "to strangle"
- гурыӏон "to understand"
- убытын "to catch; to hug"
- штэн "to lift; to take"
- екъутэн "to break"
Examples of transitive verbs with two objects:
- ӏон "to say"
- ӏотэн "to tell"
- щэн "to sell"
- етын "to give to"
- тедзэн "to throw at"
- егъэлъэгъун "to show it to"
The absolutive case in Adyghe serves to mark the noun that its state changes by the verb (i.e. created, altered, moved or ended), for instance, in the English sentence "The man is dying", the man's state is changing (ending) by dying, so the man will get the absolutive case mark in Adyghe.
An example with an object will be "The man is stabbing its victim", here the man's state is changing because he is moving (likely his hands) to stab, so in this case the word man will get the absolutive case mark, the verb "stab" does not indicate what happens to the victim (getting hurt; getting killed; etc.), it just expresses the attacker's movement of assault.
Another example will be "The boy said the comforting sentence to the girl", here the sentence's state is changing (created) by being uttered by the boy and coming to existence, so sentence will get the absolutive case mark, it is important to notice that the boy's state is not changing, the verb "said" does not express how the boy uttered the sentence (moving lips or tongue; shouting; etc.).
In intransitive verbs the subject gets the absolutive case indicating that the subject is changing its state.
In transitive verbs the subject gets the ergative case indicating that the subject causes change to the direct object's state which gets the absolutive case.
| Transitivity | Subject | Object |
|---|---|---|
| Intransitive | Absolutive (-r) | Oblique(-m) |
| Transitive | Ergative (-m) | Absolutive (-r) |
For example, both the intransitive verb егъуин /jaʁʷəjən/ and the transitive verb дзын /d͡zən/ mean "to throw".
- егъуин expresses the motion the thrower (subject) does to throw something, without indicating what is being thrown, so the thrower (subject) gets the absolutive case.
- дзын expresses the movement of the object that was thrown (motion in air), without indicating the target, so the thing that is being throws (object) gets the absolutive case.
Кӏалэр лӏым егъуи Кӏалэр лӏы-м егъуи [t͡ʃʼaːɮar ɬʼəm jaʁʷəjə] boy (abs.) man (obl.) (s)he is throwing "The boy is pelting at the man."
Кӏалэм мыжъор едзы Кӏалэ-м мыжъо-р едзы [t͡ʃʼaːɮam məʒʷa jad͡ʒə] boy (erg.) rock (abs.) (s)he throwing it "The boy is throwing the rock."
Another example is еон /jawan/ "to hit" and укӏын /wət͡ʃʼən/ "to kill".
- еон describes the movement of the hitter (subject) and there is no indication of what happens to the target (object), so the subjects gets the absolutive case because it is the one that changes (by moving).
- укӏын describes a person dying (object) by getting killed and there is no indication of how the killer does it, so the object gets the absolutive case because it is the one that changes (by ending).
Кӏалэр лӏым ео Кӏалэр лӏы-м ео [t͡ʃʼaːɮar ɬʼəm jawa] boy (abs.) man (obl.) (s)he is hitting "The boy is hitting the man."
Кӏалэм лӏыр еукӏы Кӏалэ-м лӏы-р еукӏы [t͡ʃʼaːɮam ɬʼər jawt͡ʃʼə] boy (erg.) man (abs.) (s)he is killing "The boy is killing the man."
Dynamic verbs express (process of) actions that are taking place while steady-state verbs express the condition and the state of the subject. For example, in Adyghe, there are two verbs for "standing", one is a dynamic verb and the other is a steady-state verb:
- steady-state: The verb щыт /ɕət/ expresses someone in a standing state.
- dynamic: The verb къэтэджын /qatad͡ʒən/ expresses the process of someone moving its body to stand up from a sitting state or a lying state.
Examples of dynamic verbs:
- ар макӏо - "(s)he is going".
- ар мэчъые - "(s)he is sleeping".
- ар еджэ - "(s)he is reading it".
- ащ еукӏы - "(s)he is killing it".
- ащ елъэгъу - "(s)he sees it".
- ащ еӏо - "(s)he says it".
Examples of steady state verbs:
- ар щыс - "(s)he is sitting".
- ар тет- "(s)he is standing on".
- ар цӏыф - "(s)he is a person".
- ар щыӏ - "(s)he exists".
- ар илъ - "(s)he is lying inside".
- ар фай - "(s)he wants".
- ащ иӏ - "(s)he has".
- ащ икӏас - "(s)he likes".
| Subject pronouns |
Affixes | Examples | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cyrillic | IPA | |||
| Singular | 1st person | сы~ | /sə~/ | сыщыс /səɕəs/ – I am sitting. |
| 2st person | у~ | /wə~/ | ущыс /wəɕəs/ – you are sitting. | |
| 3rd person | - | - | щыс /ɕəs/ – (s)he is sitting. | |
| Plural | 1st person | ты~ | /tə~/ | тыщыс /təɕəs/ – we are sitting. |
| 2nd person | шъу~ | /ʃʷə~/ | шъущыс /ʃʷəɕəs/ – you are sitting. | |
| 3rd person | ~ых | /~əx/ | щысых /ɕəsəx/ – they are sitting. | |
Кӏалэр чъыгым ӏулъ Кӏалэ-р чъыгы-м ӏу-лъ [t͡ʃʼaːɮar t͡ʂəɣəm ʔʷəɬ] boy (abs.) tree (erg.) (s)he is laying near "The boy is laying near the tree."
Кӏалэр пхъэнтӏэкӏум тес Кӏалэ-р пхъэнтӏэкӏу-м те-с [t͡ʃʼaːɮar pχantʼakʷʼəm tajs] boy (abs.) chair (erg.) (s)he is sitting on "The boy is sitting on the chair."
Кӏалэр унэм ис Кӏалэ-р унэ-м и-с [t͡ʃʼaːɮar wənam jəs] boy (abs.) house (erg.) (s)he is sitting inside "The boy is sitting inside the house."
Verb valency is the number of arguments controlled by a verbal predicate. Verbs in Adyghe can be monovalent (e.g. I am sitting), bivalent (e.g. I am hitting an enemy), trivalent (e.g. I am giving a book to a friend), possibly also quadrivalent (e.g. I am telling the news to someone with my friend).
For example, the verb макӏо /maːkʷʼa/ "(s)he is going" has one argument, the verb ео /jawa/ "(s)he is hitting it" has two arguments, the verb реӏо /rajʔʷa/ "(s)he is saying it to him/her" has three arguments.
Monovalent verbs
Monovalent verbs can only be intransitive having one argument, an absolutive subject with no objects.
| Monovalent | Subject | Direct object | Indirect object |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intransitive | Absolutive (-r) | - | - |
| Transitive | - | - | - |
Examples :
- кӏалэр макӏо /t͡ʃʼaːɮar maːkʷʼa/ the boy is going.
- кӏалэр мачъэ /t͡ʃʼaːɮar maːt͡ʂa/ the boy is running.
- кӏалэр машхэ /t͡ʃʼaːɮar maːʃxa/ the boy is eating.
- кӏалэр маплъэ /t͡ʃʼaːɮar maːpɬa/ the boy is looking.
- кӏалэр мэгущыӏэ /t͡ʃʼaːɮar maɡʷəɕaːʔa/ the boy is speaking.
- кӏалэр малӏэ /t͡ʃʼaːɮar maːɬʼa/ the boy is dying.
| Subject pronouns |
Affixes | Examples | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cyrillic | IPA | |||
| Singular | 1st person | сэ~ | /sa~/ | сэкӏо /sakʷʼa/ - I am going |
| 2nd person | о~ | /wa~/ | окӏо /wakʷʼa/ - you are going | |
| 3rd person | ма~ | /maː~/ | макӏо /maːkʷʼa/ - (s)he is going | |
| Plural | 1st person | тэ~ | /ta~/ | тэкӏо /takʷʼa/ - we are going |
| 2nd person | шъо~ | /ʃʷa~/ | шъокӏо /ʃʷakʷʼa/ - you are going | |
| 3rd person | ма~ and ~эх | /maː~/ and /~ax/ | макӏох /maːkʷʼax/ - they are going | |
Томэр машхэ тиунэкӏэ Том-эр машхэ ти-унэ-кӏэ [tomar maːʃxa tiwnat͡ʃʼa] Tom (abs.) he is eating house (ins.) "Tom is eating in our house"
кӏалэр тиунэ къакӏо кӏалэ-эр ти-унэ къа-кӏо [t͡ʃʼaːɮar tiwna qaːkʷʼa] the boy (abs.) our house (s)he is coming "The boy is coming to our house"
пшъашъэр маплъэ тиунэ пакӏэ пшъашъэ-эр маплъэ ти-унэ пакӏэ [pʂaːʂar maːpɬa tiwna paːt͡ʃʼa] the girl (abs.) (s)he is looking our house direction "The girl is looking at our house's direction"
Bivalent verbs
Bivalent verbs in Adyghe can be either intransitive or transitive.
| Bivalent | Subject | Direct object | Indirect object |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intransitive | Absolutive (-r) | - | Oblique (-m) |
| Transitive | Ergative (-m) | Absolutive (-r) | - |
Intransitive bivalent verbs
In a sentence with an intransitive bivalent verb :
- The subject is in the absolutive case.
- The indirect object is in the oblique case.
This indicates that the subject is changing by doing the verb.
Examples :
- кӏалэр егупшысэ /t͡ʃʼaːɮar jaɡʷəpʃəsa/ the boy is thinking of.
- кӏалэр ео /t͡ʃʼaːɮar jawa/ the boy is playing a.
- кӏалэр еджэ /t͡ʃʼaːɮar jad͡ʒa/ the boy is reading a.
- кӏалэр еплъы /t͡ʃʼaːɮar maːpɬa/ the boy is looking at.
- кӏалэр еупчӏы /t͡ʃʼaːɮar jawt͡ʂʼə/ the boy is asking a.
- кӏалэр елӏыкӏы /t͡ʃʼaːɮar jaɬʼət͡ʃʼə/ the boy is dying of.
- кӏалэр ебэу /t͡ʃʼaːɮar jabawə/ the boy is kissing a.
Кӏалэр пщынэ ео Кӏалэ-р пщынэ ео [t͡ʃʼaːɮar pɕəna jawa] boy (abs.) accordion (s)he playing a "The boy is playing an accordion"
лӏыр узым ылӏыкӏыгъ лӏы-р узы-м ылӏыкӏы-гъ [ɬʼər wəzəm əɬʼət͡ʃʼəʁ] the old man (abs.) disease (obl.) (s)he died of "the old man is dying from the disease"
The conjugation of the intransitive bivalent verb еплъын /japɬən/ "to look at":
сэ о усэплъы сэ о у-сэ-плъы [sa wa wəsapɬə] I you I am looking at you "I am looking at you."
кӏалэр сэ къысао кӏалэ-р сэ къы-са-о [t͡ʃʼaːɮar sa qəsaːwa] the boy (abs.) I (s)he is hitting me "The boy is hitting me."
Transitive bivalent verbs
In a sentence with a transitive bivalent verbs:
- The subject is in ergative case.
- The direct object is in absolutive case.
This indicates that the subject causes change to the object.
Examples :
- кӏалэм елъэгъу /t͡ʃʼaːɮam jaɬaʁʷə/ the boy is seeing a.
- кӏалэм ешхы /t͡ʃʼaːɮam jaʃxə/ the boy is eating it.
- кӏалэм егъакӏо /t͡ʃʼaːɮam jaʁaːkʷʼa/ the boy is making someone go.
- кӏалэм екъутэ /t͡ʃʼaːɮam jaqʷəta/ the boy is destroying the.
- кӏалэм еукӏы /t͡ʃʼaːɮam jawt͡ʃʼə/ the boy is killing a.
- кӏалэм едзы /t͡ʃʼaːɮam jad͡zə/ the boy is throwing a.
Томэм ешхы мые Том-эм ешхы мые [tomam jaʃxə məja] Tom (erg.) (s)he is eating a apple "Tom is eating an apple"
Иусыфым кӏалэр тучаным егъакӏо Иусыф-ым кӏалэр тучан-ым егъакӏо [jəwsəfəm t͡ʃʼaːɮar tut͡ʃaːnəm jaʁaːkʷʼa] Joseph (erg.) the boy (abs.) shop (erg.) (s)he is making him go "Joseph is making the boy go to the shop"
In transitive verbs the left prefix pronoun is the object while the right prefix pronoun is the subject, for example in осэгъакӏо "I am making you go", the left prefix pronoun о "you" is the object while the right prefix pronoun сэ "I" is the subject.
The conjugation of the transitive bivalent verb ылъэгъун /əɬaʁʷən/ "to see it":
о сэ сыкъэбэлъэгъу о сэ сы-къэ-бэ-лъэгъу [wa sa səqabaɬaʁʷə] you I you are seeing me "You are seeing me."
кӏалэм сэ сеупчӏы упчӏэкӏэ кӏалэ-м сэ с-е-упчӏы упчӏэ-кӏэ [t͡ʃʼaːɮam sa sajwpt͡ʂʼə wəpt͡ʂʼat͡ʃʼa] boy (erg.) I I am asking him/her using a question (ins.) "I am asking the boy a question."
Trivalent verbs
Trivalent verbs require three arguments : a subject, a direct object and an indirect object:
- The subject is in ergative case.
- The direct object is in absolutive case.
- The indirect object is in oblique case.
Most trivalent verbs in Adyghe are created by adding the causative prefix (гъэ~) to bivalent verbs. The causative prefix increases the valency of the verb by one and forms a transitive, thus bivalent verbs become trivalent. Intransitive bivalent verbs that become trivalent have different conjunction than transitive bivalent verbs that become trivalent, thus we end up with two types of trivalent verbs.
To form a trivalent verb one must take a bivalent verb (either intransitive or transitive), add the causative prefix -гъэ /-ʁa/ and the subject's pronoun prefix to the right.
Examples of intransitive verbs:
- ео /jawa/ "(s)he is hitting him/it" → ебэгъао /jabaʁaːwa/ "You are making him hit him/it".
- уеджэ /wajd͡ʒa/ "you are reading it" → уесэгъаджэ /wajsaʁaːd͡ʒa/ "I am making you read it".
- усэплъы /wsapɬə/ "I am looking at you" → усэзэгъэплъы /wsazaʁapɬə/ "I am making myself look at you".
- укъысэупчӏы /wqəsawt͡ʂʼə/ "you are asking me" → укъысегъэупчӏы /wqəsajʁawt͡ʂʼə/ "(s)he is making you ask me".
Examples of transitive verbs:
- едзы /jad͡zə/ "(s)he is throwing him/it" → ебэгъэдзы /jabaʁad͡zə/ "You are making him throw him/it".
- ошхы /waʃxə/ "you are eating it" → осэгъэшхы /wasaʁaʃxə/ "I am making you eat it".
- осэлъэгъу /wasaɬaʁʷə/ "I am seeing you" → осэзэгъэлъэгъу /wasazaʁaɬaʁʷə/ "I am making myself see you".
- сэбэукӏы /sabawt͡ʃʼə/ "you are killing me" → сэуегъэукӏы /sawajʁawt͡ʃʼə/ "(s)he is making you kill me".
| Trivalent | Subject | Direct object | Indirect object |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transitive with intransitive root | Ergative (-m) | Absolutive (-r) | Oblique (-m) |
| Transitive | Ergative (-m) | Absolutive (-r) | Oblique (-m) |
Intransitive verbs to trivalent
These verbs are formed by adding the causative prefix to intransitive bivalent verbs, increasing their valency and making them transitive.
Examples :
- кӏалэм регъаджэ /t͡ʃʼaːɮam rajʁaːd͡ʒa/ the boy is making him read it.
- кӏалэм регъэплъы /t͡ʃʼaːɮam rajʁapɬə/ the boy is making him watch it.
- кӏалэм регъэджыджэхы /t͡ʃʼaːɮam rajʁad͡ʒəd͡ʒaxə/ the boy is making him roll down it.
унэм уесэгъэплъы унэ-м у-е-сэ-гъэ-плъы [wənam wajsaʁapɬə] house (erg.) I am making you look at it "I am making you look at the house." "I (subject) am making you (direct object) look at the house (indirect object)."
кӏалэм пшъэшъэр фылымым регъэплъы кӏалэ-м пшъэшъэ-р фылым-ым ре-гъэ-плъы [t͡ʃʼaːɮam pʂaːʂar fələməm rajʁapɬə] boy (erg.) girl (abs.) film (obl.) (s)he is making him watch it "The boy is making the girl watch the film." "The boy (subject) is making the girl (direct object) watch the film (indirect object)."
кӏэлэегъаджэм кӏалэр арегъаджэ тхылъыхэмэ кӏэлэегъадж-эм кӏалэ-р а-ре-гъа-джэ тхылъы-хэ-мэ [t͡ʃʼaɮajaʁaːd͡ʒar t͡ʃʼaːɮar aːrajʁaːd͡ʒa txəɬəxama] teacher (erg.) boy (abs.) (s)he is making him read them books (obl.) "The teacher is making the boy read the books." "The teacher (subject) is making the boy (direct object) read the books (indirect object)."
The conjugation of the trivalent verb with an intransitive origin:
- The first prefix indicates the direct object (absolutive).
- The second prefix indicates the indirect object (oblique).
- The third prefix indicates the subject (ergative).
- indirect object (me)
- indirect object (you)
- indirect object (him)
- indirect object (us)
- indirect object (you plural)
- indirect object (them)
Transitive verbs to trivalent
These verbs can be formed by adding the causative prefix to transitive bivalent verbs. There are some exceptional transitive verbs that are trivalent by default without any increasing valency prefixes such as етын "to give".
Examples :
- кӏалэм реӏо /t͡ʃʼaːɮam rajʔʷa/ the boy is saying it to him.
- кӏалэм реты /t͡ʃʼaːɮam rajʔʷa/ the boy is giving it to him.
- кӏалэм редзы /t͡ʃʼaːɮam rajd͡zə/ the boy is signing it on something.
- кӏалэм къыӏепхъуатэ /t͡ʃʼaːɮam qəʔajpχʷaːta/ the boy snatches it from him.
- уесэубытэ /wajsawbəta/ "I am holding you forcefully in it".
- уесэӏуатэ /wajsaʔʷaːta/ "I snitching you to him".
- уесэты /wajsatə/ "I am giving you to him".
- уесэгъэлъэгъу /wesaʁaɬaʁʷə/ "I am making him see you".
унэр къыосэгъэлъэгъу унэ-р къыо-сэ-гъэ-лъэгъу [wənar qəwasaʁaɬaʁʷə] house (abs.) I am showing it to you "I am showing the house to you.." "I am (subject) making you (direct object) see the house (indirect object)."
кӏалэм фылымыр пшъэшъэм регъэлъэгъу кӏалэ-м фылым-ыр пшъэшъэ-м ре-гъэ-плъы [t͡ʃʼaːɮam pʂaːʂar fələməm rajʁaɬaʁʷə] boy (erg.) film (abs.) girl (obl.) (s)he is showing it to him "The boy is showing the film to the girl." "The boy (subject) is making the girl (direct object) see the film (indirect object)."
кӏалэм шхыныр пшъашъэм реты кӏалэ-м шхыны-р пшъашъэ-м реты [t͡ʃʼaːɮam ʃxənər pʂaːʂam rajtə] boy (erg.) food (abs.) girl (obl.) (s)he is giving it to him/her "The boy is giving the food to the girl." "The boy (subject) is giving the girl (direct object) the food (indirect object)."
The conjugation of the trivalent verb with a transitive origin:
- The first prefix indicates the indirect object (oblique).
- The second prefix indicates the direct object (absolutive).
- The third prefix indicates the subject (ergative).
- direct object (me)
- direct object (you)
- direct object (him)
- direct object (us)
- direct object (you plural)
- direct object (them)
Adyghe infinitives are created by suffixing -н to verbs. For example:
- кӏон "to go".
- чъыен "to sleep".
- гущыӏэн "to talk".
Along with roots, verbs already inflected can be conjugated, such as with person:
- ошхэ /waʃxa/ "you are eating" → ушхэн /wəʃxan/ "(for) you (to) eat"
Also, due to the interchangeability of nouns and verbs, infinitives can be constructed from nouns, resulting in verbs that describe the state of being the suffixed word.
- фабэ "hot" → фэбэн "to be hot".
- чэщы "night" → чэщын "to be night".
- дахэ "pretty" → дэхэн "to be pretty".
пшъашъэр дэхэн фай [pʂaːʂar daxan faːj] the girl (abs.) to be pretty must/have to "the girl must be pretty" "the girl has to be pretty" тиунэ укъихьан фэшӏыкӏэ укӏэлэн фай [tiwna wqiħan faʃʼət͡ʃʼa wt͡ʃʼalan faːj] our house (to) you come in for him (ins.) you (to) be boy must/have to "to come inside our house, you have to be a boy" "to come inside our house, you must be a boy"
- For the future tense, the suffix ~нэу is added.
сэ къыосӏонэу сыфай [sa qəwasʔʷanəw səfaːj] i I (to) tell you I want "I want to tell you" цIыфым шъушхэнэу къышъуиӏуагъ [t͡sʼafəm ʃʷəʃxanəw qəʃʷiʔʷaːʁ] the person (erg.) you (plural) (to) eat (adv.) he told you (plural) "the person told you, to eat (plural)"
In Circassian, morphology is the most important part of the grammar. A Circassian word, besides that it has its own lexical meaning, sometimes, by the set of morphemes it is built of and by their aggregate grammatical meanings, can reproduce a sentence. For example, a verb by its set of morphemes can express subject's and object's person, place, time, manner of action, negative, and other types of grammatical categories. Negative form
Prefixes
In Adyghe, most verbal prefixes either express direction (on, under, etc.) or valency increasing (for, with, etc.).
Negative form
In Circassian, negative form of a word can be expressed with two different morphemes, each being suited for different situations.
Negative form can be expressed with the infix ~мы~. For example:
- кӏо "go" → умыкӏу "don't go".
- шхы "go" → умышх "don't eat".
- шъучъый "sleep (pl.)" → шъумычъый "don't sleep (pl.)".
Negative form can also be expressed with the suffix ~эп, which usually goes after the suffixes of time-tenses. For example:
- кӏуагъ "(s)he went" → кӏуагъэп "(s)he didn't go".
- машхэ "(s)he is eating" → машхэрэп "(s)he is not eating".
- еджэщт "(s)he will read" → еджэщтэп "(s)he will not read".
Causative
The suffix гъэ~ designates causation. It expresses the idea of enforcement or allowance. It can also be described as making the object do something. for example:
- фабэ "hot" → егъэфабэ "(s)he heats it".
- чъыӏэ "cold" → егъэучъыӏы "(s)he colds it".
- макӏо "(s)he is going" → егъакӏо "(s)he is making him go; (s)he sends him".
- еджэ "(s)he studies; (s)he reads" → регъаджэ "(s)he teaches; (s)he makes him read".
Examples:
- кӏалэм ишы тучаным егъакӏо - "the boy sends his brother to the shop".
- пшъашъэм итхылъ сэ сыригъэджагъ - "the girl allowed me to read her book".
Comitative
The prefix д~ designates action performed with somebody else, or stay/sojourn with somebody.
- чӏэс "(s)he is sitting under" → дэчӏэс "(s)he is sitting under with him".
- макӏо "(s)he is going" → дакӏо "(s)he is going with him".
- еплъы "(s)he is looking at it" → деплъы "(s)he is looking at it with him".
Examples:
- кӏалэр пшъашъэм дэгущыӏэ - "the boy talking with the girl".
- кӏэлэцӏыкӏухэр зэдэджэгух - "the kids are playing together".
- сэрэ сишырэ тучанэм тызэдакӏо - "me and my brother are going to the shop together".
Benefactive
The prefix ф~ designates action performed to please somebody, for somebody's sake or in somebody's interests.
- чӏэс "(s)he is sitting under" → фэчӏэс "(s)he is sitting under for him".
- макӏо "(s)he is going" → факӏо "(s)he is going for him".
- еплъы "(s)he is looking at it" → феплъы "(s)he is looking at it for him".
Examples:
- кӏалэр пшъашъэм факӏо тучаным - "the boy is going to the shop for the girl".
- кӏалэм псы лӏым фехьы - "the boy is bringing water to the man".
- къэсфэщэф зыгорэ сешъонэу - "buy for me something to drink".
Malefactive
The prefix шӏу~ designates action done against somebody's interest or will. The prefix also strongly indicates taking something away from someone by doing the action or taking a certain opportunity away from somebody else by doing the action.
- ехьы "(s)he is carrying it" → шӏуехьы "(s)he is taking it away from him".
- етыгъу "(s)he is stealing it" → шӏуетыгъу "(s)he is stealing it from him".
- ештэ "(s)he is taking it" → шӏуештэ "(s)he is taking it away from him".
- ешхы "(s)he is eating" → шӏуешхы "(s)he is consuming his food or property or resources".
Examples:
- сичӏыгу къэсшӏуахьыгъ - "they took my land away from me".
- мощ итхьэматэ шӏосыукӏыщт - "I will take his leader's life away from him".
- сянэ симашинэ къэсшӏодищыгъ - "my mother took my car out (against my interest)".
- кӏалэм шӏуешхы пшъашъэм ишхын - "the boy is eating the girl's food (against her will)".
Suffixes
Frequentative
The verbal suffix ~жь (~ʑ) designates recurrence/repetition of action.
- ехьы "(s)he is carrying it" → ехьыжьы "(s)he is taking it again".
- етыгъу "(s)he is stealing it" → етыгъужьы "(s)he is stealing it again".
- ештэ "(s)he is taking it" → ештэжьы "(s)he is taking it again".
- ешхы "(s)he is eating" → ешхыжьы "(s)he is eating again".
Examples:
- лӏым иӏофы ешӏыжьы - "the old man is doing his job again".
- хым сыкӏожьынэу сыфай - "I want to return to the sea".
- кӏалэр фылымым еплъыжьы - "the boy re-watches the movie".
This verbal suffix can also be used to designates continuum, meaning, an action that was paused in the past and is being continued.
Examples:
- лӏым иӏофы ешӏыжьы - "the old man continues his work".
- кӏалэр фылымым еплъыжьыгъ - "the boy finished watching the movie".
- экзамыным сыфеджэжьыгъ - "I finished studying for the exam".
Duration
The verbal suffix ~эу (~aw) designates action that takes place during other actions.
- ехьы "(s)he is carrying it" → ехьэу "while (s)he is taking it".
- етыгъу "(s)he is stealing it" → етыгъоу "while (s)he is stealing it".
- ештэ "(s)he is taking it" → ештэу "while (s)he is taking it".
- ешхы "(s)he is eating" → ешхэу "while (s)he is eating".
Examples:
- сянэ тиунэ ытхьэкӏэу унэм сыкъихьэжьыгъ - "I came home while my mother was washing the house".
- сыкӏоу сылъэгъугъ кӏалэр - "while I was going, I saw the boy".
- шхын щыӏэу къычӏэкӏыгъ - "it turned out that there was food".
Capability
The verbal suffix ~шъу (~ʃʷə) designates the ability to perform the indicated action.
- ехьы "(s)he is carrying it" → ехьышъу "(s)he is capable of carries it".
- етыгъу "(s)he is stealing it" → етыгъушъу "(s)he is capable of stealing it".
- ештэ "(s)he is taking it" → ештэшъу "(s)he is capable of taking it".
- ешхы "(s)he is eating" → ешхышъу "(s)he is capable of eating".
Examples:
- лӏыжъыр мэчъэшъу - "the old man is capable of running".
- экзамыным сыфеджэшъу - "I can study for the exam".
- фылымым сеплъышъугъэп - "I could not watch the movie".
Manner
The verbal suffix ~акӏэ (~aːt͡ʃʼa) expresses the manner in which the verb was done. It turns the verb into a noun.
- ехьы "(s)he is carrying it" → ехьакӏэ "the manner in which (s)he carries it".
- макӏо "(s)he is going" → кӏуакӏэ "the manner in which (s)he is going".
- ештэ "(s)he is taking it" → ештакӏэ "the manner in which (s)he is talking it".
- ешхы "(s)he is eating" → ешхакӏэ "the manner in which (s)he is eating".
Examples:
- пшъашъэм икӏуакӏэ дахэ - "the manner in which the girl goes is beautiful".
- кӏалэм иеджакӏэ дэгъоп - "the manner in which the boy studies is not good".
- унэм ишӏыкӏэ тэрэзыр - "the right way to build the house".
A similar expression can be expressed by adding the prefix зэрэ~ /zara~/ and a noun case to the verb, but this behaves differently than the previous one.
- ехьы "(s)he is carrying it" → зэрихьрэ "the way (s)he carries it".
- макӏо "(s)he is going" → зэрэкӏорэ "the way (s)he is going".
- ештэ "(s)he is taking it" → зэриштэрэ "the way (s)he is talking it".
- ешхы "(s)he is eating" → зэришхырэ "the way(s)he is eating".
Examples:
- пшъашъэр зэракӏорэр дахэ - "the way the girl goes is beautiful".
- кӏалэр зэреджэрэр дэгъоп - "the way the boy studies is not good".
- унэр тэрэзкӏэ зэрашӏырэр - "the right way to build the house".
The imperative mood of the second person singular has no additional affixes:
- штэ /ʃta/ "take"
- кӏо /kʷʼa/ "go"
- тхы /txə/ "write"
- шхэ /ʃxa/ "eat"
When addressing to several people, The prefix шъу- /ʃʷə-/ is added:
- шъушт /ʃʷəʃt/ "take (said to plural)"
- шъукӏу /ʃʷəkʷʼ/ "go (said to plural)"
- шъутх /ʃʷətx/ "write (said to plural)"
- шъушх /ʃʷəʃx/ "eat (said to plural)"
In Adyghe, the positional prefixes are expressing being in different positions and places and can also express the direction of the verb. Here is the positional conjugation of some dynamic verbs, showing how the prefix changes the indicated direction of the verb:
| Position | Prefix | Example | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Looking | Throwing | ||
| Body position/Pose | щы~ [ɕə~] | щеплъэ [ɕajpɬa] "(s)he is looking at that place" | щедзы [ɕajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing at that place" |
| On | те~ [taj~] | теплъэ [ɕajpɬa] "(s)he is looking on" | тедзэ [ɕajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing at" |
| Under | чӏэ~ [ʈ͡ʂʼa~] | чӏаплъэ [ʈ͡ʂʼaːpɬa] "(s)he is looking under" | чӏедзэ [ʈ͡ʂʼajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing under" |
| Through/Within some mass | хэ~ [xa~] | хаплъэ [xaːpɬa] "(s)he is looking through" | хедзэ [xajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing through" |
| Within some area | дэ~ [da~] | даплъэ [daːpɬa] "(s)he is looking at some area" | дедзэ [dajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing at some area" |
| Inside an object | даплъэ [daːpɬa] "(s)he is looking inside an object" | дедзэ [dajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing inside an object" | |
| Around | ӏу~ [ʔʷə~] | ӏуаплъэ [ʔʷaːpɬa] "(s)he is looking around" | ӏуедзэ [ʔʷajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing around" |
| Inside | и~ [jə~] | еплъэ [japɬa] "(s)he is looking inside" | редзэ [rajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing inside" |
| Hanged/Attached | пы~ [pə~] | пэплъэ [papɬa] "(s)he is searching by looking" | педзэ [pajd͡za] "(s)he is hanging by throwing" |
| Behind | къо~ [qʷa~] | къуаплъэ [qʷaːpɬa] "(s)he is looking behind" | къуедзэ [qʷajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing behind" |
| Aside | го~ [ɡʷa~] | гуаплъэ [ɡʷaːpɬa] "(s)he is looking aside" | гуедзэ [ɡʷajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing aside" |
| In front of | пэӏу~ [paʔʷə~] | пэӏуаплъэ [paʔʷaːpɬa] "(s)he is looking in front of" | пэӏуедзэ [paʔʷajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing in front of" |
| Backwards | зэкӏ~ [zat͡ʃʼ~] | зэкӏаплъэ [zat͡ʃʼaːpɬa] "(s)he is looking backwards" | зэкӏедзэ [zat͡ʃʼajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing backwards" |
| Inside within | кӏоцӏы~ [kʷʼat͡sʼə~] | кӏоцӏаплъэ [kʷʼat͡sʼaːpɬa] "(s)he is looking within inside" | кӏоцӏедзэ [kʷʼat͡sʼajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing within inside" |
| Near | кӏэлъыры~ [ּ֫t͡ʃʼaɬərə~] | кӏэлъырыплъэ [t͡ʃʼaɬərəpɬa] "(s)he is looking near" | кӏэлъыредзы [t͡ʃʼaɬərajd͡zə] "(s)he is throwing near" |
| Toward | лъы~ [ɬə~] | лъэплъэ [ɬapɬa] "(s)he is looking toward" | лъедзы [ɬajd͡zə] "(s)he is throwing toward" |
| Pass | блэ~ [bɮa~] | блэплъы [bɮapɬə] "(s)he is looking pass" | бледзэ [bɮajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing pass" |
| Toward the head | шъхьары~ [ʂħaːrə~] | шъхьарыплъы [ʂħapapɬə] "(s)he is looking at the head" | шъхьаредзы [ʂħapajd͡zə] "(s)he is throwing at the head" |
| Over | шъхьадэ~ [ʂħaːda~] | шъхьэдэплъы [ʂħadapɬə] "(s)he is looking pass over" | шъхьэдедзы [ʂħadajd͡zə] "(s)he is throwing pass over" |
| Over and beyond | шъхьапыры~ [ʂħaːpərə~] | шъхьапырыплъы [ʂħaːpərəpɬə] "(s)he is looking beyond" | шъхьапыредзы [ʂħaːpərajd͡zə] "(s)he is throwing beyond" |
| Directly at | жэхэ~ [ʒaxa~] | жэхаплъэ [ʒaxaːpɬa] "(s)he is glaring at one's face" | жэхедзэ [ʒaxajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing at one's face" |
| Mouth | жэдэ~ [ʒada~] | жэдаплъэ [ʒadaːpɬa] "(s)he is looking at a mouth" | жэдедзэ [ʒadajd͡za] "(s)he is throwing at a mouth" |
кӏалэм шхынхэр ӏанэм телъхьэх кӏалэ-м шхын-хэ-р ӏанэ-м те-лъхьэ-х [t͡ʃʼaːɮam ʃxənxar ʔaːnam tajɬħax] boy (erg.) foods (abs.) table (erg.) (s)he puts them on "The boy is putting the foods on the table."
мы гущыӏэм къэлэмкӏэ гуатх мы гущыӏ-эм къэлэм-кӏэ гуа-тх [mə ɡʷəɕəʔam qalamt͡ʃʼa ɡʷaːtx] this word (erg.) using a pencil (ins.) write aside "Write aside this word with a pencil."
Here is the positional conjugation of some steady-state verbs, showing how the root changes the indicated position:
| prefix | stands | sits | lies | |
| Body position/Pose | щы~ (ɕə~) | щыт (ɕət) | щыс (ɕəs) | щылъ (ɕəɬ) |
| On | те~ (taj~) | тет (tat) | тес (tas) | телъ (taɬ) |
| Under | чӏэ~ (ʈ͡ʂʼa~) | чӏэт (ʈ͡ʂʼat) | чӏэс (ʈ͡ʂʼas) | чӏэлъ (ʈ͡ʂʼaɬ) |
| Among | хэ~ (xa~) | хэт (xat) | хэс (xas) | хэлъ (xaɬ) |
| Within some mass | ||||
| Within some area | дэ~ (da~) | дэт (dat) | дэс (das) | дэлъ (daɬ) |
| Inside an object | ||||
| Around | ӏу~ (ʔʷə~) | ӏут (ʔʷət) | ӏyc (ʔʷəs) | ӏулъ (ʔʷəɬ) |
| Inside | и~ (jə~) | ит (jət) | иc (jəs) | илъ (jəɬ) |
| Hanged | пы~ (pə~) | пыт (pət) | пыc (pəs) | пылъ (pəɬ) |
| Attached | ||||
| Behind | къо~ (qʷa~) | къот (qʷat) | къоc (qʷas) | къолъ (qʷaɬ) |
| Aside | го~ (ɡʷa~) | гот (ɡʷat) | гоc (ɡʷas) | голъ (ɡʷaɬ) |
| Inside within | кӏоцӏы~ (kʷʼat͡sʼə~) | кӏоцӏыт (kʷʼat͡sʼət) | кӏоцӏыc (kʷʼat͡sʼəs) | кӏоцӏылъ (kʷʼat͡sʼəɬ) |
шхыныр ӏанэм телъ шхын-ыр ӏанэ-м те-лъ [ʃxənər ʔaːnam tajɬ] food (abs.) table (erg.) laying on "The food is on the table."
кӏалэхэр тучаным ӏутых кӏалэ-хэ-р тучан-ым ӏут-ых [t͡ʃʼaːɮaxar tut͡ʃaːnəm ʔʷətəx] boys (abs.) shop (erg.) standing around "The boys are standing near the shop."
In Adyghe verbs indicate the direction they are directed at. They can indicate the direction from different points of view by adding the fitting prefixes or changing the right vowels.
Towards and off
In Adyghe, the positional conjugation prefixes in the transitive verbs are indicating the direction of the verb. According to the verb's vowels, it can be described if the verb is done toward the indicated direction or off it. Usually high vowels (е /aj/ or э /a/) designates that the verb is done towards the indicated direction while low vowels (ы /ə/) designates that the verb is done off the indicated direction. For example:
- The word пкӏэн /pt͡ʃʼan/ "to jump" :
| Position | Towards | Away | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning | Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning | |
| On | тепкӏэн | tajpt͡ʃʼan | to jump on something | тепкӏын | tajpt͡ʃʼən | to jump off from somewhere |
| Among | хэпкӏэн | xapt͡ʃʼan | to jump into some mass | хэпкӏын | xapt͡ʃʼən | to jump off from some mass |
| Inside | ипкӏэн | jəpt͡ʃʼan | to jump inside something | ипкӏын | jəpt͡ʃʼən | to jump outside something |
о унашъхьэм нэс укъычӏыпкӏышъущтэп о унашъхьэ-м нэс у-къы-чӏы-пкӏы-шъу-щт-эп [wa wənaːʂħam nas wqət͡ʂʼəpt͡ʃʼəʃʷəɕtap] you house roof (erg.) until you can't jump from the bottom to here "You can't jump up to the roof."
ӏанэм укъытемыпкӏагъэу сыкъытегъэпкӏыжь ӏанэ-м у-къы-те-мы-пкӏ-агъ-эу сы-къы-те-гъэ-пкӏы-жь [ʔaːnam wqətajməpt͡ʃʼaːʁaw səqətajʁapt͡ʃʼəʑ] table (erg.) before you jump on it Let me jump down from it "Before you jump on the table, let me jump off it."
- The word дзын /d͡zən/ "to throw" :
| Position | Towards | Away | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning | Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning | |
| On | тедзэн | tajd͡zan | to throw an object on something | тэдзын | tajt͡ʃʼən | to throw an object off somewhere |
| Among | хэдзэн | xad͡zan | to throw an object into some mass | хэдзын | xad͡zən | to throw an object off from some mass to remove an object/participant from a group |
| Inside | идзэн | jəd͡zan | to throw inside | идзын | jəd͡zən | to throw outside |
унашъхьэм пхъэхэр къытесэдзых унашъхьэ-м пхъэ-хэ-р къы-те-сэ-дзы-х [wənaːʂħam pχaxar qətajsad͡zax] house roof (erg.) woods (abs.) I am throwing them off it "I am throwing the woods off the house roof."
мыӏэрысэхэр шхыныхэмэ къахэдз мыӏэрысэ-хэ-р шхыны-хэ-мэ къ-а-хэ-дз [məʔarəsaxar ʃxənəxama qaːxad͡z] the apples (erg.) the foods (erg.) remove it from them "Remove the apples from the foods."
- The word плъэн /pɬan/ "to look at" :
| Position | Towards | Away | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning | Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning | |
| On | теплъэн | tajpt͡ʃʼan | to look on something | теплъын | tajpt͡ʃʼən | to look off something |
| Among | хэплъэн | xapt͡ʃʼan | to look into some mass | хэплъын | xapɬən | to look from some mass to look through something |
| Inside | иплъэн | jəpt͡ʃʼan | to look inside | иплъын | jəpt͡ʃʼən | to look outside |
сэ апчым сыкъыхэплъы сэ апч-ым сы-къы-хэ-плъы [sa aːpt͡ʃəm səqəxapɬə] I glass (erg.) I am looking through it "I am looking through the glass."
кӏалэр уцыхэмэ къахэплъы кӏалэ-р уцы-хэ-мэ къ-а-хэ-плъы [t͡ʃʼaːɮar wət͡səxama qaːxapɬə] boy (abs.) the grasses (erg.) (s)he is looking from behind them "The boy is looking from behind the grasses ."
- The word тӏэрэн /tʼaran/ "to drop" :
| Position | Towards | Away | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning | Cyrillic | IPA | Meaning | |
| On | тетӏэрэн | tajtʼaran | to drop on something | тетӏэрын | tajtʼarən | to drop off from on something |
| Among | хэтӏэрэн | xatʼaran | to drop into an area with some mass | хэтӏэрын | xatʼarən | to drop out from an area with some mass to be dropped from an organization |
| Inside | итӏэрэн | jətʼaran | to drop inside something | итӏэрын | jətʼarən | to drop outside something |
мыжъоу итӏэрагъхэр матэм къигъэтӏэржьых мыжъо-у и-тӏэр-агъ-хэ-р матэ-м къ-и-гъэ-тӏэр-жьы-х [məʒʷaw jətʼaraːʁxar maːtam qəjʁatʼarʑəx] rock (adv.) the things that were dropped inside it (abs.) basket (erg.) drop them out from it "Dispose the rocks that were dropped inside the basket."
ӏэгуаор унашъхьэм тегъэтӏэрэн ӏо къытемытӏэржьэу ӏэгуао-р унашъхьэ-м те-гъэ-тӏэрэ-н ӏо къы-те-мы-тӏэр-жь-эу [ʔaɡʷaːwar wnaːʂħam tajʁatʼaran ʔʷa qətaimətʼarʑaw] ball (abs.) roof (erg.) to drop it on something try without having it dropped off from something "Try dropping the ball on the roof, without having it fall off of it."
Cislocative prefix
The Cislocative prefix (marked as къы~ /q~/) is a type of verbal deixis that designates orientation towards the deictic center (origo), in the simplest case towards the speaker. In Adyghe, verbs by default are andative (Indicating motion away from something) while verbs that have къы~ are venitive (Indicating motion to or toward a thing).
For example:
- макӏо /maːkʷ'a/ (s)he goes → къакӏо /qaːkʷ'a/ (s)he comes
- мачъэ /maːt͡ʂa/ (s)he runs (there) → къачъэ /qaːt͡ʂa/ (s)he runs (here)
- маплъэ /maːpɬa/ (s)he looks (there) → къаплъэ /qaːpɬa/ (s)he looks (here)
- ехьэ /jaħa/ (s)he goes in → къехьэ /qajħa/ (s)he comes in
- ехьы /jaħə/ (s)he takes to → къехьы /qajħə/ (s)he brings
- нэсы /nasən/ (s)he reaches → къэсы /qasə/ (s)he arrives
мэшӏокор къэсыгъ мэшӏоко-р къэ-сы-гъ [maʃʷʼakʷar qasəʁ] train (abs.) it arrived "The train arrived"
модэ сыкӏони моу сыкъэплъыщт модэ сы-кӏо-н-и моу сы-къэ-плъы-щт [mawda wəda maw səqapɬəɕt] there I will go and here I will look here "I will go there and will look here"
When speaking to someone, the prefix къэ~ /qa~/ can be used to indicate that the verb is directed at him, for example :
- сэкӏо /sakʷ'a/ "I go" → сыкъакӏо /səqaːkʷ'a/ "I come"
- сэчъэ /sat͡ʂa/ "I run" → сыкъачъэ /səqaːt͡ʂa/ "I run toward you"
- сэплъэ /sapɬa/ "I look" → сыкъаплъэ /səqaːpɬa/ "I look toward you"
- техьэ /tajħa/ "we enter" → тыкъехьэ /təqajħa/ "we enter" (in case the listener is inside the house)
- тынэсы /tənasən/ "we reach" → тыкъэсы /təqasə/ "we arrive"
уиунэ тыкъакӏо уиунэ ты-къа-кӏо [wəjwəna təqaːkʷʼa] your house we are coming "we are coming to your house"
мыжъор уадэжькӏэ къэcдзыщт мыжъор уа-дэжь-кӏэ къэ-c-дзы-щт [məʒʷar waːdaʑt͡ʃʼa qasd͡zəɕt] rock (abs.) your direction (ins.) I will throw it "I will throw the rock towards you."
In intransitive verbs, it can also be used to exchange the subject and the object in a sentence, for example :
- сыфэд /səfad/ "I am like him" → къысфэд /qəsfad/ "(s)he like me"
- сыдакӏо /sədaːkʷʼa/ "I am going with him" → къыздакӏо /qəzdaːkʷʼa/ "(s)he is coming with me"
- сыфэлажьэ /sfaɮaːʑa/ "I am working for him" → къысфэлажьэ /qəsfaɮaːʑa/ "(s)he is working for me"
- удашхэ /wədaːʃxa/ "you are eating with him" → къыбдашхэ /qəbdaːʃxa/ "(s)he is eating with you"
- сыфэлажьэ /sfaɮaːʑa/ "I am working for him" → къысфэлажьэ /qəsfaɮaːʑa/ "(s)he is working for me"
- усэплъы /wsapɬə/ "I am looking at you" → укъысэплъы /wəqəsapɬə/ "you are looking at me"
- уеплъы /wajpɬə/ "you are looking at him" → къыоплъы /qəwapɬə/ "(s)he is looking at you"
тэ кӏалэм тыдакӏо шъо пшъашъэр къышъудакӏо тэ кӏалэ-м ты-да-кӏо шъо пшъашъэ-р къы-шъу-да-кӏо [ta t͡ʃʼaːɮam tədaːkʷʼa ʃʷa pʂaːʂar qəʃʷdaːkʷʼa] we boy (erg.) we are going with you (plural) girl (abs.) (s)he is coming with you (plural) "We are going with the boy, the girl is coming with you (plural)."
сэ ащ сыфэда ар сэ къысфэда? сэ ащ сы-фэд-а ар сэ къы-с-фэд-а [sa aːɕ səfadaː aːr sa qəsfadaː] I (s)he (erg.) am I like him? (s)he (abs.) I is (s)he like me? "Am I like him or is he like me?"
кӏалэр пшъашъэм еплъа е кӏалэм пшъашъэр къеплъа? кӏалэ-р пшъашъэ-м еплъ-а е кӏалэ-м пшъашъэ-р къ-еплъ-а? [t͡ʃʼaːɮar pʂaːʂam japɬaː ja t͡ʃʼaːɮam pʂaːʂar qajpɬaː] boy (abs.) girl (erg.) is (s)he looking at it? or boy (erg.) girl (abs.) is (s)he looking at it? "Is the boy looking at the girl or is the girl looking at the boy?"