Re: Tense and aspect

In a message dated 9/15/01 2:29:07 AM, jonathan.jones@NTLWORLD.COM writes:

<< I didn't know how to modify this to say "walked through". After
rejecting declension of the object, I was ready to just use an adverb
when it occurred to me: could it be said that "walked-through",
"walked-into", "walked-out of", etc. are spatial aspects? In other
words, an equivalent group to "walk", "will walk", "has walked", etc.?
Do any natlangs/conlangs treat them similarly? >>

    First of all, I notice that you have your settings so that replies come
to you individually, and not to the list.  You might want to change that,
though I should hardly be the one to say so, since I really don't know how to
change those settings.  :)
    I'd think that the best way to do this would be to do something like
German, where you can have any verb that has a detachable prefix.  Like (I
don't know if this is a good example), "antragen", which means "to put on",
where as "tragen" means "to wear".  So, in a sentence, you'd say "Ich trage
meine Kleider an", vs. "Ich trage ein T-Shirt".  Taking this idea, you could
make it so that you could literally create any kind of verb you want by
adding an spatial prefix/preposition to the front of the verb.  Or an infix
or something.  Here's a made-up example:

mesa="to go"
mipesa="to enter" ("ip"="in/inside")
mosesa="to go/pass through" ("os"="through")
magesa="to exit" ("ag"="out")

    Anyway, in this way you can have any kind of verb you want and not have
to worry about how they'd decline, whether or not there has to be an object
(or two), how they'd work adjectivevally, etc.

-David

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