Classical Gluonic Topic

Adverbs of Aspect

Keywords: verbs, aspect

Classical Gluonic doesn't have any grammaticalised tense or aspect, in order to make the language time symmetric. Most of the work of expressing the point or manner of unfolding in time of an action is done using expressions of time or adverbs, where context doesn't suffice. This article is about aspect, which is generally carried using adverbs, some of which have other functions, and others are fairly limited to the specific task of conveying aspect.

The following table list common adverbs of aspect. Unlike with grammatical mood, Gluonic tends to omit adverbs of aspect where clear from context and only use them to disambiguate or emphasise the meaning. The table gives the word that English grammarians usually employ to talk about the particular aspect indicated by the adverb, a literally meaning in other contexts, and some information about usage.

Adverbs of Aspect
Bourque Sanderson Meaning Aspect Usage
NYQ nyq already perfect Past events that are completed
MA-TUQ matuq now, then imperfect Ongoing action in the time talked about, also expresses progressive
TJÉ tjee always habitual Habitually undertaken action
JU-E jue still stative Indicates a general state rather than an action on its own, combining with matuq makes it emphatic/continuative
KLÉ klee just, exact inchoative, cessative Used for actions just beginning, but combined with nyq, used for actions just ending.
NE-NE nene near defective Averted or thwarted action
ÁM aam truly gnomic General truths
BA-NAQ matuq while, during durative Actions with a bounded, non-instantaneous duration

These function as normal adverbs, and may appear anywhere in a verb phrase an adverb might, but often come before the verb. Some can also function as prepositions and take a colour suffix to agree with their object.

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