Re: aspects of process

well , its not that easy.
there are many confusing synonyms in the area of aspects of process,
because linguists havent found all-accepted standard-terms yet,
and the continuative is likely synonymously to the progressive,
alas the stem "continuation" has the disturbing connotation
"resumption" which can lead to misunderstandings.
thats why i use "progressive".
however the "inceptive" is not the "inchoative",
they are different aspects.
its not easy to decribe the inceptive in english because
we seem to have no such meaning, and thats why people tend to confuse
it with the inchoative.
the inceptive means something like "to enter a static state".
and i think only examples can make it clear:
humans have 3 common body-positions: to sit,to stay,to lie.
these are static states, because no action is going on while a person,
sits, stays, or lies.
when you compound them with the inceptive marker, then you create
dynamic state verbs, with the meaning "get into this static state":
sit down, stand up, lie down.
rick harrison gives other good examples in his essay "verb aspect":
to know(=the static state to know something) + inceptive marker -> to learn(=get
into the static state of knowledge)
to have(=the static state to have something) + inceptive marker  -> to acquire,to get
to be + inceptive marker -> to become, to turn

a wonderful aspect is the inceptive, harrison furthermore writes:
"Many of the most frequently used verbs in English are merely inceptive variants of
other common verbs. "
"Having an affix to mark the purely inceptive aspect3 would enable a language to
derive many common verbs from a small number of roots. "
to shrink vocabulary with aspects like the inceptive is not only very elegant and
logical, it can additionaly create new terms using this "grid-construction".

so far,
c.s.





>> A process has three stages: inchoative (before the beginning),
>> continuative
>> (while it is going on), perfective (after its completion).
>>
>> It also has three special points: the initiative (beginning), the
>> terminative
>> stopping point), the completitive (natural end point).
>> A process that stops *after* its natural end has a fourth stage: the
>> superfective.
JB> Hmmm.  Yivríndil distinguishes four phases of an action, which I've been
JB> calling the inchoative, progressive, cessative, and perfect.  They're
JB> defined as follows:

JB> Inchoative - the moment or breif space of time when the action begins
JB> Progressive - the span of time when the action is ongoing
JB> Cessative - the moment or brief space of time when the actions stops
JB> Perfect - the span of time after an action has stopped

JB> Are these names acceptable?  Based on what you've written I'd call these
JB> initiative, continuative, terminative, and perfective, but I'm loathe to
JB> change the terms.  Besides, I called the inchoative the "inceptive" for a
JB> long time, which I actually like better.

JB> Jesse S. Bangs     Pelíran
JB> jaspax @juno.com
JB> "There is enough light for those that desire only to see, and enough
JB> darkness for those of a contrary disposition."  --Blaise Pascal


"rurmlor entflöt, fluppseveri trimel akre wopel larf."
- alte redensart