Common Lexeme

majt

Keywords: games, childhood, play

Pronunciation (IPA): majt 
Part of Speech: term noun verb 
Class: pali 
Forms: majt, majtys 
Glosses: toy, doll, game, play, trivial, little, model 

Description:

The term 'majt' is an Old Common word for 'toy', which retains this meaning in the modern language. The core meaning is children's toys, but can easily extend to toys for adults.

Noun:

As a noun, 'majt' refers to a toy, which can include expansively specific toys like dolls, and some games that are focused on some kind of object or kit, especially is if associated with children. It can also be extended to models, and even in a somewhat trivialising sense to more abstract things like scientific models, but the sense is usually concrete, and in fact in Old Common it belonged to the concrete gender.

While the focus is on toys for children, 'majt' can refer to toys for adults, with a somewhat trivialising tone, including very adult things like sex toys ('naz olus majt').

Verb:

As a verb, 'majt' is an intransitive pali verb meaning to play (with toys), and is usually applied to children. A thing played with can be added using the preposition 'ceo'.

Modifier:

The modifier form 'majtys' refers to its object as a toy, either literally or in a trivialising way. 'Majtys' is a common modifier to use to trivialise or demean something.  In that sense it can also have the sense of 'little', in which case it can actually have a warm or positive connotation, as in 'ny majtys paluh', a 'toy dog', meaning a dog bred to be very small, like a Chihuahua. One word for 'doll' is 'na majtys atuin', a 'toy person'.

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