Preverb marking: Difference between revisions

'''Preverb marking''' is a set of experimental {{tp|[[nasin (meta)|nasin]]}}s, which explicitly separate the [[preverb]] of a sentence from the [[predicate]], often with the use of {{tp|[[nimi sin]]}}. The words '''{{tp|tani}}''', '''{{tp|nija}}''' and '''{{tp|jata}}''' are established options for a preverb-marking particle. Using them allows unambiguous usage of all [[content word]]s as preverbs, acting as descriptors for a mainthe state or process described in the main predicate.

The syntax of each of the preverb-marking methods is identical when a sentence has a single preverb. The methods diverge when multiple preverbs are involved, with {{tp|ja}} requiring the particle to be repeated, whereas {{tp|ta}} can mark multiple preverbs at once. The word{{tp|ni}} and {{tp|ja}} methods allows for [[modifiers|modification]] of the preverb, which is not possible with {{tp|ta}} except for negation with {{tp|[[ala]]}}. The {{tp|ta}} method and the {{tp|ni}} method work different semantically, and {{tp|ja}} has undefined semantics.

The use of '''{{tp|ni}}''' as a preverb marker was developed by {{tok|jan Tepo}} in May 2021.<ref>{{cite Discord|url=https://discord.com/channels/301377942062366741/375591429608570881/839587472216162364|channel=sona-musi|server=ma pona pi toki pona|author=jan Tepo|username=tbodt|access-date=2024-03-12|quote=what if ni. mi wile ni moku. huh I kinda like this (...) actually I like this a lot because it's like you just elided the colon. i'm pretty sure A li preverb B e C generally means A li preverb ni: A li B e C, but the subject is shared so you want to elide it}}</ref>

A statement like "{{tp|mi utala ni toki e ijo}}" is interpreted as an abbreviation of "{{tp|mi utala ni: mi toki e ijo}}."<ref>{{cite Discord|url=https://discord.com/channels/301377942062366741/1134994249021136916/1135073218496053378|channel=toki-suli|server=ma pona pi toki pona|author=jan Tepo|username=tbodt|access-date=2024-02-03|quote=nasin mi: mi utala ni toki e ni. → mi utala ni: mi toki e ni. ≈ mi toki e ni. ni li utala. jan mute li nasin ni tawa tomo pali. → jan mute li nasin ni: ona li tomo pali. li wawa tan ni: nimi open ale li kama sona lon nasin sama}}</ref>

jan Tepo later learned that the word "co" in Lojban works exactly like this, semantically and syntactically, and suggested loaning it as '''{{tp|so}}''' as a synonym for this usage of {{tp|ni}}.

'''{{tp|ja}}''' was coined in July 2021 by a group of people, most notably {{tok|wuwojiti Haev}}, {{tok|[[jan Pensa]]}} and {{tok|jan Kita}}.<ref>{{cite Discord|url=https://discord.com/channels/301377942062366741/870019569866145812/870019571317342238|channel=sona-mus|thread=nimisin for marking preverbs|server=ma pona pi toki pona|access-date=2024-02-03}}</ref> It was made to allow experimental preverbs to be used without ambiguity.

'''{{tp|ta}}''' was developed by [[User:Lassc|the keyring system]] in 2023 with inspiration from jan Tepo's {{tp|nija}} andjan Tepo's {{tp|jani}} in 2023. The keyring system intended it as an alternative to {{tp|ja}} without the need to repeat the particle for multiple preverbs, and with more clearly defined semantics to allow any word to be used as a preverb.<ref>{{cite Discord|url=https://discord.com/channels/301377942062366741/340307145373253642/1066926383747575829|channel=pali-musi|server=ma pona pi toki pona|author=kupikoni|username=kupikoni#3673|access-date=2024-02-03|quote=i knew about ja when making ta, but I had complaints about how poorly defined the semantics of content word to pv meaning were and i disliked the idea of repeating the particle for every pv}}</ref>