Sesotho deficient verbs
Encyclopedia
In the Sesotho language
, the deficient verbs are a special subset of Sesotho verbs
that require a subordinate or complementary verb to complete their action, and which are used to form many tenses and to impart certain shades of meaning to the predicate
. These verbs form part of multi-verbal conjugations comprising a string of verbs (each with its own subjectival concord) and verbal auxiliaries.
Deficient verbs, being "deficient", are never used alone. Many of them are irregular in form and have irregular inflexions. Many of these verbs seem radical in nature, while others (especially those with complex implications) are obviously derived from certain extant normal verbs (but are used with slightly different meanings). What distinguishes the deficient usage of these normal verbs is the fact that they are followed by another verb and affect its meaning (and only the main verb may carry an objectival concord).
(The bullets • are used here to join the parts of single words which would have been written separately in the current disjunctive orthography)
Apart from the verbal complex, researchers of Bantu languages
have noted that when the main verb is followed by its (first) direct object then this structure creates a "verb phrase" (or "prosodic phrase"), which may be treated as one phonological unit or domain by some grammatical processes. For example, many languages with unbounded tonal shift or spread laws (unlike Sesotho's bounded spread — see Sesotho tonology
) may often shift or spread a high tone underlying in the verbal complex all the way to the final, penult, or antepenultimate syllable of the following word, but only if that word is the verb's object. One Sesotho tonal law that's mildly sensitive to the verb phrase is the finality restriction (FR), which is not applied if the verb is immediately followed by the object.
The structure created by deficient verbs followed by a normal verb is unique in a few ways:
By examining the mood and tense of the main verb, deficient verbs may be classified into six groups according to the type of complement they govern. It is clear that most groups are followed by participial or subjunctive moods, which are precisely the moods often used when forming sequences of verbs or subordinate clauses using non-deficient verbs.
Within the groups, the verbs tend to have similar forms, but often vastly differing conjugation possibilities and behaviours. Some of the verbs are only used in a handful of tenses and moods; some verbs indicate negation by negating the deficient verb itself, some by negating the main verb, and some may do either (or even both at the same time).
Within Groups IV to VI, there is no set number of members and different speakers and communities may differ in the verbs they regularly use. Basically, a verb may become deficient if it used in certain consecutive constructions with a slightly modified meaning that disappears when the verb is used alone. Since the modified meaning does not make any sense when the verb is used alone, the deficient use is marked by having the complement follow the verb directly and with no pause (thus creating a multi-verbal phrase).
In the example sentences under the following sections, the entire verb sequence is bold while the complement verb to the deficient verbs is bold and underlined.
Sesotho language
The Sotho language, also known as Sesotho, Southern Sotho, or Southern Sesotho, is a Bantu language spoken primarily in South Africa, where it is one of the 11 official languages, and in Lesotho, where it is the national language...
, the deficient verbs are a special subset of Sesotho verbs
Sesotho verbs
Sesotho verbs are words in the language which signify the action or state of a substantive, and are brought into agreement with it using the subjectival concord...
that require a subordinate or complementary verb to complete their action, and which are used to form many tenses and to impart certain shades of meaning to the predicate
Predicate (grammar)
There are two competing notions of the predicate in theories of grammar. Traditional grammar tends to view a predicate as one of two main parts of a sentence, the other being the subject, which the predicate modifies. The other understanding of predicates is inspired from work in predicate calculus...
. These verbs form part of multi-verbal conjugations comprising a string of verbs (each with its own subjectival concord) and verbal auxiliaries.
Deficient verbs, being "deficient", are never used alone. Many of them are irregular in form and have irregular inflexions. Many of these verbs seem radical in nature, while others (especially those with complex implications) are obviously derived from certain extant normal verbs (but are used with slightly different meanings). What distinguishes the deficient usage of these normal verbs is the fact that they are followed by another verb and affect its meaning (and only the main verb may carry an objectival concord).
Multi-verbal syntax
Deficient verbs are used to alter the meaning of complementary normal verbs, which have to follow the deficient verb(s) in word order. The following diagram represents the general shape of a typical multi-verbal conjugation ("In vain I edit them all"):
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(The bullets • are used here to join the parts of single words which would have been written separately in the current disjunctive orthography)
Apart from the verbal complex, researchers of Bantu languages
Bantu languages
The Bantu languages constitute a traditional sub-branch of the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 250 Bantu languages by the criterion of mutual intelligibility, though the distinction between language and dialect is often unclear, and Ethnologue counts 535 languages...
have noted that when the main verb is followed by its (first) direct object then this structure creates a "verb phrase" (or "prosodic phrase"), which may be treated as one phonological unit or domain by some grammatical processes. For example, many languages with unbounded tonal shift or spread laws (unlike Sesotho's bounded spread — see Sesotho tonology
Sesotho tonology
Like almost all other Niger–Congo languages, Sesotho is a tonal language, spoken with two basic tones, high and low . The Sesotho grammatical tone system is rather complex and uses a large number of "sandhi" rules.However, the Sesotho system is by no means the most complicated, nor even one of...
) may often shift or spread a high tone underlying in the verbal complex all the way to the final, penult, or antepenultimate syllable of the following word, but only if that word is the verb's object. One Sesotho tonal law that's mildly sensitive to the verb phrase is the finality restriction (FR), which is not applied if the verb is immediately followed by the object.
The structure created by deficient verbs followed by a normal verb is unique in a few ways:
- Deficient verbs must have a complementary (main) verb, and this main verb must follow the deficient verbs, with no intervening words and no variation in word order. This is one of the very few instances in the Sesotho language when word order is absolutely immutable. If one wishes to emphasise the main verb's object then it needs to be placed before the very first deficient verb in the sequence, not just before the main verb.
- There may be no pauses in speech between the deficient verbs and the main verb, contrary to how other words are treated. The entire sequence is pronounced as one whole unit, and may not be broken up.
Classification
Even though many other Bantu languages have some deficient verbs, the system used in the Sotho–Tswana languages is unusually intricate and specialized, with a rather large number of verbs that may be used deficiently. Although the deficient verbs themselves may usually be used in various moods and tenses, the main verb is limited to only a limited number of moods and tenses, and it is the job of the deficient verb to reflect any changes in these parameters (if it supports them). If multiple deficient verbs are used then each verb affects the mood of the following.By examining the mood and tense of the main verb, deficient verbs may be classified into six groups according to the type of complement they govern. It is clear that most groups are followed by participial or subjunctive moods, which are precisely the moods often used when forming sequences of verbs or subordinate clauses using non-deficient verbs.
| Group | Type of complement |
|---|---|
| I | Full participial |
| II | Past subjunctive |
| III | Perfect subjunctive |
| IV | Full sequence |
| V | Present and/or perfect participial |
| VI | Infinitive |
Within the groups, the verbs tend to have similar forms, but often vastly differing conjugation possibilities and behaviours. Some of the verbs are only used in a handful of tenses and moods; some verbs indicate negation by negating the deficient verb itself, some by negating the main verb, and some may do either (or even both at the same time).
Within Groups IV to VI, there is no set number of members and different speakers and communities may differ in the verbs they regularly use. Basically, a verb may become deficient if it used in certain consecutive constructions with a slightly modified meaning that disappears when the verb is used alone. Since the modified meaning does not make any sense when the verb is used alone, the deficient use is marked by having the complement follow the verb directly and with no pause (thus creating a multi-verbal phrase).
- ; either "They went and they returned" when there is a slight pause between the two verbs and the final vowel of (went) is low toned (due to the Finality Restriction; see Sesotho tonologySesotho tonologyLike almost all other Niger–Congo languages, Sesotho is a tonal language, spoken with two basic tones, high and low . The Sesotho grammatical tone system is rather complex and uses a large number of "sandhi" rules.However, the Sesotho system is by no means the most complicated, nor even one of...
); or "They did come back" when there is no pause between the two verbs and the final vowel of (a Group II deficient verb indicating definite past tense) is high toned.
In the example sentences under the following sections, the entire verb sequence is bold while the complement verb to the deficient verbs is bold and underlined.
- Group I contains a small number of essential verbs, without some of which it would be impossible to form certain meanings in Sesotho. In form they seem to be contracted perfects, ending with the vowel /e/ instead of the usual /ɑ/. Each verb only has one form (the three forms of are treated separately) with no change in tense or mood, but the complement may assume a variety of participial tenses. These deficient verbs may be compounded to form certain tenses, and they may be contracted as well.
- exclusive
- past continuous
- :
- subjunctive
- future
- potential
comes from , the perfect of (remain behind), and this form is often used in the Northern Sotho languages for the same purpose as the Sesotho form.
Examples:- (contracted ) The share price is now improving (exclusive, with present participial complement)
- The whale was diving (past continuous, with present participial complement)
- The ice melts and the water then flows (subjunctive, with present participial complement)
- They will have written the programme (future, with perfect participial complement; note that the object is emphasised by placing it first)
- Y'all would/might not have won the prize (potential, with negative present participial complement; the Sesotho potential mood has a definitely conditional feel to it)
- (contracted ) We were already blowing the bellows (past exclusive; two Group I verbs with present participial complement)
- Group II contains three verbs. Two of these look like normal verbs ending with , while the other is obviously the perfect of the verb (go). These verbs behave very differently from each other, but are united by the fact that they take only a past subjunctive complement.
- past
- emphatic
- preventive
forms the bi-verbal past tense. Basically, using a verb with this deficient verb is an alternative to using the perfect form of a verb, but the use of the deficient verb definitely has a more "completed" (definite past) — though not perfect — feel to it. With stative verbs the perfect form actually gives a present-perfect stative tense, and this differs from the use of this deficient verb as it gives a completed past tense meaning.- / We found iron ore
- I am seated (present-perfect stative), I did sit, sometime in the past
This may be compounded with most Group I verbs (except the simple subjunctive ) to form perfect, past exclusive, past potential, and past future ("will have done") tenses. The Group I verb appears first, with following pronounced with participial sub-mood tones.- You could have seen her yesterday (potential past)
is used in two tenses — remote past indicative , and present potential — and is connected with the simple verbal auxiliary infix used to form the potential mood. The remote past form is highly irregular and is basically an alternative to the deficient verb (indeed, the negative of the forms is constructed with this verb); the present potential emphasises the use of the simple infix . As with the simple infix, the first person singular subjectival concord becomes a syllabic /ŋ̩/ (written and attached to the following ) by dissimilation.- I once saw you by the lake
- I did not see/have never seen you by the lake (emphatic)
- The disease may indeed spread
An alternative to is to compound with . This construction is very frequently contracted.- Have you ever flown an aircraft? (contracted )
is only found in the positive present potential (it has no negative) with a meaning of "lest" or "or else", used in a type of consecutive construction. The verb is obviously connected with the normal verb meaning "come", but used deficiently with a modified meaning.- Switch off the electricity or else it may kill you
- Group III contains a small number of verbs, all with irregular forms ending in the vowel /e/. Four of the verbs signify habitual actions, with very minor semantic differences between them, another is occasional in the positive but habitual in the negative (it also forms the negative of which has no negative of its own), and yet another simply the serves the same function as Group II . Note that, apart from a rare consecutive past habitual construction, the only time the perfect subjunctive mood may be used is after these deficient verbs. To form past, future, and potential tenses the Group I , , and are used by most of these verbs to form tri-verbal forms.
- habitual
- (even do habitually)
- emphatic habitual
- definite past
- habitual
- occasional
Examples:- I am wont to sleep in the early morning
- She usually even does their work for them
- Lions occasionally hunt elephants
- Group IV verbs are rather special in that they may be used in a variety of tense forms, but the form of the deficient verb influences the form of the complement. No one verb may be used in all these configurations and the verbs differ in their uses. Most of them have non-deficient counterparts and end with the normal , but some conjugate slightly irregularly.
Forms of Group IV complements Complement form Used after Present participial - Present indicative
- Future indicative
- Infinitive
- Perfect indicative
Indicative Perfect indicative Present-future subjunctive - Future indicative
- Present-future subjunctive
- Imperative
- Perfect indicative
Past subjunctive - Potential
- Past subjunctive
- Negative subjunctive
- Negative imperative
- Perfect indicative
(The table below gives the normal verbs' meanings, if any, in brackets)
- do moreover/eventually
- do indeed
- do notwithstanding
- do continually
- do again (return to)
- do further (augment)
- really do (end)
- do immediately (arrive)
- do soon/quickly (hasten)
- do again (repeat)
- certainly will do
- do opportunely
Examples:- They certainly speak nonsense today (indicative after perfect)
- I will at least buy a house (present-future subjunctive after future indicative)
- They can keep on teaching/still teach themselves geography (past subjunctive after potential)
- The lecturer immediately gives them the answers (present participial after present indicative)
- We will definitely be happy to defeat them (present-future subjunctive after future indicative)
- Group V contains several normal looking verbs with regular inflexions, most of which have non-deficient uses. Several tense forms exist for the deficient verbs, while the complement is usually present participial though some of the verbs may also have a perfect participial complement.
- do almost/nearly (want)
- do repeatedly/perpetually (spend time)
- do continually (sit)
- do through the night (lie down)
- do finally (finish completely)
- do eventually/later (remain behind)
- do necessarily (annoy/provoke)
- do soon afterwards (depart)
- do meanwhile (emerge)
- do in vain
- do early/in the morning (awake)
- befall unexpectedly (be startled)
Example:- The tornado nearly killed us
- He constantly bothers us with his insignificant problems
- They were wide awake the whole night
- We had to call her so she would fix it (this deficient verb is always followed by a reason for the action)
- He waters the plants first thing in the morning
- Group VI contains a number of verbs used with an infinitive complement and which give certain shades of meaning. The infinitive complement is basically a direct noun object (infinitives and imperatives are not verbal moods), and indeed many other verbs may be used this way but are not considered deficient as their meanings do not change slightly when they are.
- do merely (suffice)
- do frequently (increase/multiply)
- be on the point of doing (like/desire)
- do necessarily (be bound)
- do necessarily (suit/fit)
Examples:- It frequently snows in Lesotho in the Winter
- He is on the verge of dying
- You have to tell me what the frequency is