Re: yet another romance conlang

Nik Taylor <fortytwo@...> wrote:

> Padraic Brown wrote:
> > I'm not surprised.  I hear (and use) VSO in Spanish with some
> > (moderate) frequency.
>
> From what I understand, it is almost obligatory with "heavy" subjects
I'll note down my sentences and then tell you. :)
But that's true, that heavy subjects don't stand first; you
either shift them after the verb, or split them, the head
first, and then you resume like this:

        Los pasajeros llegaron a Madrid, los del vuelo de Nueva York.

(especially true when you don't plan the sentence beforehand and
find yourself with a lot of info to convey in the subject).

But some verbs are commonly VSO too; off the top of my head I recall
motion ones like _llegar_, _venir_, _irse_, etc. (when the subject
is not emphasized); _estar_ when it means 'to be present' (as in
_Estuvimos todos_ 'We were all [present at a place]'). And when an
adverb has to be emphasized which doesn't sound well at the front
of the sentence, you use VSO too, with the adverb right after the
verb:

        Neutral tone: _Hoy comimos bien._ 'We ate well today.'
        Emphasized:   _Comimos BIEN hoy._ 'We ate WELL today.'


--Pablo Flores
  http://www.geocities.com/pablo-david/index.html
  http://www.geocities.com/pablo-david/draseleq.html