Re: "To slurp" in latin, is there such a thing?
From: | Henrik Theiling <theiling@...> |
Date: | Wednesday, January 28, 2009, 13:48 |
Hi!
taliesin the storyteller writes:
>...
> BonusTranslationExercise:
> <verb> ergo sum, I <verb> therefore I am
>
> I'd really like to see what languages that lack a verb for "to
> be" does with it...
>...
Usually, 'to exist'. E.g. in Korean 'chonjae' (Chinese loan, in
Modern Mandarin: 'cun1 zai4', IIRC):
naneun ssaenggakhanda. koro naneun chonjaehanda.
I.NOM think.verb_endindg. therefore I.NOM exist.verb_ending
Mandarin uses its locative copula 'zai4': 'to be (at a certain
place)':
wo3 si1 gu4 wo3 zai4
I think therefore I am_(locally)
Hmm, I forgot what Finnish uses. Mr. Vertical, the Finnish please!
Even in English (and Latin...), it's almost rape to use 'to be'
intransitively. It makes the whole sentence somewhat semantically
undefined. It's not when the inventors of that word had in mind!
**Henrik
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