Re: Number and noun terminology questions

--- Trebor Jung <treborjung@...> wrote:
> Merhaba!
>
> Padraic wrote:
>
> "I guess if you're going to involve gramatical
> number, you could add singular, plural, dual,
> paral to that list. If you want to get into
> mathematical number, you can add rational,
> irrational, imaginary, etc.
>
> What about 'multiples'?
Sure, why not!

> And what do 'paral' and 'multal' mean?
If you recall from the left/right threads, there
was talk about various kinds of duals. The paral
is a kind of dual, and is simply a pair. Like
pairs of shoon or hosen. While two random shoes
or mismatched socks are simply two shoes or
socks.

Multal? Beats me. Probably some subset of plural,
in the way paral is a subset of dual. Perhaps a
bunch of things acting as discreet individuals
rather than as a plural unitary body?

> "Agent."
>
> And is there such a thing as patient nouns?
Sure. "Teacher" etc. This isn't the same kind of
agency you get in verbs. An agent noun is simply
an expression of who does the thing described: a
teacher is the person that does teaching. In IE
languages, they often show up with -r endings.
They are nouns, however, and can experience the
usual agent/patient , nominative/accusative that
other nouns can.

Agent (curiously enough, itself is not an agent
noun, but rather a participle!) means "doing" and
that describes very nicely what these nouns are
up to.

Padraic.


=====
kâsu ñomklyu tsrasi&#347;&#347;i &#347;äk kälymentwam!
    -- Punyavantajâtaka

--

Ill Bethisad --
<http://www.geocities.com/elemtilas/ill_bethisad>


Come visit The World! --
<http://www.geocities.com/hawessos/>







.

Replies