jeff_l
(Jeff_L)
#1
9.6 Preverbs 587
c. kada t-aqqlma
Past 3FeSgS-sit.Reslt
'She was sitting.'
d. a-\hm n-aqqal t-a-nfus-t
Fut-/Centrif lPlS-go.back.Shlmpf Fe-Sg-story-FeSg
as kaela-\kaey-\dar-as ass-astasn-arr
Instr Past-\2MaSgO-\Instr-3Sg Caus-ask.PerfP-lSgS
'We will return to a matter that I asked you about previously.'
Under negation, and in dubitative contexts (such as polar interrogatives),
kaela is often translatable as 'ever' in the experiential perfect sense, covering
the time span up to the present (637). For negatives see §9.6.4, below.
(637) kaela t-akke-d baemasko
Past 2S-go.to.Reslt-2SgS Bamako
'Have you-Sg ever gone to Bamako?'
When kaela is followed by a Resit or LoImpfP verb, the verb undergoes
the ablaut modifications elsewhere typical of definite relative clauses (§3.5.3),
at least in K-d. Thus Resit -azjar- for -vzjvr- 'go out, exit' is shortened to
-azjaer- in kaela azjaer-aen 'they-Ma have gone out'. I did not notice this in
other dialects, but I did not become aware of the K-d pattern until the end of
my fieldwork and did not specifically check other dialects on this point.
For kaela in participial clauses see §8.5.6.3.
9.6.2 Negative (war)
The clause-internal Neg particle weer is used in any aspect-mood combination,
though it requires adjustments in the form of the following verb stem. It is
heard as [war] directly before {a u i} by Short-V Harmony (46), and as [waer]
before any other V or C. For some T-ka speakers, the r is dropped in
conversational style when followed by a clitic beginning t, as in waeAtaen i-ha
haeraet 'there is nothing in them'.
In the perfective, light C-final PerfP verb stems with /as/ in the second
syllable undergo PerfN ablaut after waer, replacing the /ae/ by e (§7.2.2.3), due
to ablaut formative 6-pelf (638.a). For heavy stems, the PerfN and the PerfP
(used in positive constructions) are homophonous (638.b), since the e-pclf
formative has no audible manifestation (638.b).
(638) a. war assen-aev
Neg know.PerfN-lSgS
Ί don't know.'
