basic_sentences.tex

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\section{Basic Sentences}
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\subsection*{Vocabulary}
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\begin{supertabular}{p{2,5cm}|ll}
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\index{\textit{jan}}
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\textbf{\dots jan} && \textit{adjective}: human, somebody's, personal, of people \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{\dots jan} && \textit{adverb}: human, somebody's, personal, of people \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{jan} && \textit{noun}: person, people, human, being, somebody, anybody \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{jan (e \dots)} && \textit{verb transitive}: to personify, to humanize, to personalize \\ % no-dictionary
 && \\ % no-dictionary
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\index{\textit{li}} 
\textbf{\dots li \dots} && \textit{separator}: It separates the subject phrase, except `mi' and `sina', from the predicate phrase. \\ && Don't use `li' before or after an other separator. \\ % no-dictionary
 && \\ % no-dictionary
%
\index{\textit{mi}} 
\textbf{mi} && \textit{personal pronoun}: I, we  \\ 
\textbf{\dots mi} && \textit{possessive pronoun}: my, our \\  
\textbf{\dots e mi} && \textit{reflexive pronoun}: myself, ourselves  \\ 
 && \\ % no-dictionary
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\index{\textit{moku}} 
\textbf{\dots moku} && \textit{adjective}: eating \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{\dots moku} && \textit{adverb}: eating \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{moku} && \textit{noun}: food, meal \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{moku (e \dots)} && \textit{verb transitive}: to eat, to drink, to swallow, to ingest, to consume \\ % no-dictionary
 && \\ % no-dictionary
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\index{\textit{ona}}
\textbf{ona} && \textit{personal pronoun}: she, he, it, they \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{\dots ona} && \textit{possessive pronoun}: her, his, its, theirs \\  % no-dictionary
\textbf{\dots e ona} && \textit{reflexive pronoun}: himself, herself, itself, themselves \\  
 && \\ % no-dictionary
%  
\index{\textit{pona}}
\textbf{\dots pona} && \textit{adjective}: good, simple, positive, nice, correct, right \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{\dots pona} && \textit{adverb}: good, simple, positive, nice, correct, right \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{pona} && \textit{noun}: goodness, simplicity, positivity \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{pona (e \dots)} && \textit{verb transitive}: to improve, to fix, to repair, to make good \\ % no-dictionary
 && \\ % no-dictionary
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\index{\textit{sina}}
\textbf{sina} && \textit{personal pronoun}: you \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{\dots sina} && \textit{possessive pronoun}: yours \\  % no-dictionary
\textbf{\dots e sina} && \textit{reflexive pronoun}: yourself, yourselves \\  
 && \\ % no-dictionary
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\index{\textit{suno}}
\textbf{\dots suno} && \textit{adjective}: sunny, bright \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{\dots suno} && \textit{adverb}: sunny, bright \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{suno} && \textit{noun}: sun, light, brightness, light source \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{suno (e \dots)} && \textit{verb transitive}: to light, to illumine, to shine \\ % no-dictionary
 && \\ % no-dictionary
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\index{\textit{suli}}
\textbf{\dots suli} && \textit{adjective}: big, tall, long, adult, important \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{\dots suli} && \textit{adverb}: big, tall, long, adult, important \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{suli} && \textit{noun}: bigness, size \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{suli (e \dots)} && \textit{verb transitive}: to enlarge, to lengthen \\ % no-dictionary
 && \\ % no-dictionary
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\index{\textit{telo}}
\textbf{\dots telo} && \textit{adjective}: wet, moist, damp, humid, sticky, sweaty, slobbery, dewy, drizzly \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{\dots telo} && \textit{adverb}: wet, moist, damp, humid, sticky, sweaty, slobbery, dewy, drizzly \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{telo} && \textit{noun}: water, liquid, juice, sauce \\ % no-dictionary
\textbf{telo (e \dots)} && \textit{verb transitive}: to water, to wash, to put water to, to melt, to liquify \\ % no-dictionary
 && \\ % no-dictionary
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\index{apostrophe}
\textbf{'} && \textit{unofficial}: An apostrophe can identify a predicate that does not contain a verb.  \\ % no-dictionary
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\end{supertabular} \\
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\newpage
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\subsection*{The Ambiguity of Toki Pona}
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\index{ambiguity}
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\index{\textit{suli}}
Do you see how several of the words in the vocabulary have multiple meanings? 
For example, \textit{suli} can mean either `long', `tall', `big', `important' or `the size'. 
By now, you might be wondering, `What's going on? How can one word mean so many different things?' 

Welcome to the world of Toki Pona! The truth is that lots of words are like this in Toki Pona. 
Because the language has such a small vocabulary and is so basic, the ambiguity is inevitable. 
However, this vagueness is not necessarily a bad thing. Because of the vagueness, a speaker of Toki Pona is forced to focus on the very basic, unaltered essence of things, rather than focusing on many minute details. 

\index{singular}
\index{plural}
Another way that Toki Pona is ambiguous is that it does not specify whether a word is singular or plural. 
For example, \textit{jan} can mean either `person' or `people'. 
If you've decided that Toki Pona is too arbitrary and that not having plurals is simply the final straw, don't be so hasty. 
Toki Pona is not the only language that doesn't specify whether a noun is plural or not. 
Japanese, for example, does the same thing. 

\index{Tense}
Toki Pona has no tenses. 
The verbs don't change. 
If it's absolutely necessary, there are ways of saying that something happened in the past, present, or future. 

As you can see in the vocabulary list, most words take on multiple word types or parts of speech. 
The words remain unchanged, so the word type is derived from its position in the sentence. 
In this lesson, we will deal with nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives and a special separator. 

\index{noun}
\index{adjective}
\index{verb}
A noun is a word for a person, place or thing. 
An adjective is a word that describes a noun. 
A verb specifies an action. 

\index{pronoun}
\index{pronoun!personal}
\index{pronoun!possessive}
Pronouns are proxies for different types of words. 
They are used in the same place as the word to be represented and have the same grammatical characteristics.
Pronouns are not words of content, but they denote persons or things by referring to the context. 
Personal pronouns (I, you, it, \dots) represent nouns. 
Possessive pronouns (my, your, its, \dots) represent adjectives. 
In the next few lessons we will learn more about other types of pronouns. 

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\subsection*{The Personal Pronouns \textit{mi} or \textit{sina} as Subject}
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\index{subject}
\index{sentence!declarative}
\index{nested subordinate clauses}
\index{comma}
\index{\textit{mi!personal pronoun}}
\index{\textit{sina!personal pronoun}}
\index{\textit{pona}}
\index{\textit{moku}}
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With the personal pronoun \textit{mi} or the personal pronoun \textit{sina} followed by a verb, a simple sentence in Toki Pona is already complete. 
A declarative sentence ends with a full stop. 
Toki Pona has no nested subordinate clauses and hardly any commas. 

\begin{supertabular}{p{5,5cm}|ll}
mi moku. && I eat. \\
sina pona. && You fix. \\
\end{supertabular} 

\index{subject phrase}
In these sentences the personal pronouns \textit{mi} and \textit{sina} are in each case the subject phrase. 
In Toki Pona, a subject phrase is always at the beginning of the sentence. 
In these examples, the subject phrases consist of only one subject (\textit{mi} or \textit{sina}).

The subject is the carrier of the action, process or state. 
It is the most important addition to the verb in a sentence. 
A complete sentence always contains a subject. 
In English you can ask for the subject of a sentence with `who' or `what'.

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\subsection*{Verbs as Predicates}
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\index{predicate phrase}
\index{predicate}
\index{predicate!not a verb}
\index{sentence!statement}
\index{verb}
\index{verb vs. predicate}
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The verbs \textit{moku} and \textit{pona} form the predicate phrase in the previous two examples. 
The predicate is a core element in a sentence and forms the statement of the sentence. 
No statement sentence is possible without a predicate.

In most languages, a predicate is formed by a verb, but this is not mandatory in all languages. 
As we'll soon see, in Toki Pona the predicate is not necessarily formed by a verb. 
The difference between a verb and a predicate is that a verb is a word type and a predicate is a grammatical function. 
A predicate and its objects (if it has any) form a predicate phrase.
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\subsection*{Nouns or Adjectives as Predicates}
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\index{apostrophe}
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\index{predicate adjectiv}
\index{predicate noun}
\index{adjective!predicate}
\index{noun!predicate}
\index{to be}
\index{be}
\index{slot}
\index{\textit{mi!personal pronoun}}
\index{\textit{sina!personal pronoun}}
\index{\textit{pona}}
\index{\textit{moku}}
\index{no-copula language}
\index{copula}
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One of the first principles you'll need to learn about Toki Pona is that there is no form of the static verb `to be' like there is in English. 
That's why the verb slot can be empty and \textit{mi} or \textit{sina} can be followed by a noun or adjective. 
In these lessons, the term `slot' is used to indicate a valid position of a word type in a sentence.

Other languages also allow ordinary sentences to be formed without a verb appearing in them. 
Examples are Russian and Arabic. 
These languages are called no-copula languages.

A copula is a word that connects the subject and predicate (`copulates').
If a `normal' verb is the predicate, one does not need an additional copula.
It occurs only if a noun, pronoun or adjective is the predicate.
In English the verb `to be' serves as the copula. 
No-copula languages, like Toki Pona, do not require a copula.

A noun then functions as a predicate noun or an adjective serves as predicate adjective.
But this noun or adjective does not become a verb. 
An empty verb slot cannot, however, form a predicate phrase on its own. 
A noun or adjective must follow. 
That is, the sentence can't just end with \textit{mi} or \textit{sina}.

In no-copula languages, the word form usually indicates whether the predicate is a verb, noun or adjective. 
This is not possible in Toki Pona. 
In these lessons an apostrophe is used to indicate a subsequent noun or adjective. 
But that's not an official rule. 

\begin{supertabular}{p{5cm}|ll}
mi moku. && I eat.  \\
mi ' moku. && I am food. \\  
sina pona. && You fix. \\
sina ' pona. && You are good. \\  
\end{supertabular} 

Because Toki Pona lacks `to be', the exact meaning is lost. 
If we ignore the apostrophes in these sentences, \textit{moku} could be a verb, or it could be a noun; just as \textit{pona} could be an adjective or a verb. 
In situations such as these, the listener must rely on context. 
After all, how often do you hear someone say `I am food.'? 
I hope not very often! 
You can be fairly certain that \textit{mi moku} means `I'm eating'.

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\newpage
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\subsection*{The Separator \textit{li} }
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\index{separator!li}
\index{predicate marker}
\index{\textit{li}}
\index{\textit{ona!personal pronoun}}
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For sentences that don't use the personal pronouns \textit{mi} or \textit{sina} as the subject, there is one small catch that you'll have to learn. 
Look at how \textit{li} is used. 
\textit{li} is a grammatical word that separates the subject phrase from the predicate phrase. 
The predicate marker \textit{li} is only used when the subject is not \textit{mi} or \textit{sina}. 
Although the separator \textit{li} might seem worthless right now, as you continue to learn Toki Pona you will see that some sentences could be very confusing if \textit{li} weren't there. 

\begin{supertabular}{p{5cm}|ll}
telo li pona. && Water is cleaning. \\
suno li suno. && The sun is shining. \\
moku li ' pona. && The food is good. \\ 
ona li ' moku. && It is food. \\
\end{supertabular} 

If the verb slot empty, \textit{li} can be followed by a noun or adjective as well. 
Remember, an empty verb slot cannot form a predicate phrase on its own; a noun or adjective must follow. 
That means the sentence can't end with \textit{li}; a verb an object must follow.

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\newpage
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\subsection*{Practice (Answers: Page~\pageref{'basic_sentences'})}
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Please write down your answers and check them afterwards.

\begin{supertabular}{p{5,5cm}|ll}
What is a verb? &&  \\ % no-dictionary
What is a noun? &&   \\ % no-dictionary
What is \textit{li} used for?  &&   \\ % no-dictionary
What does a personal pronoun replace? &&  \\ % no-dictionary
How do you recognize nouns, pronouns, verbs and adjectives in Toki Pona? &&  \\ % no-dictionary
What is a subject?  &&   \\ % no-dictionary
After which subject phrases is \textit{li} not used?  &&  \\ % no-dictionary
Where does the subject stand in a sentence?  &&    \\ % no-dictionary
Can an empty verb slot alone form a predicate? &&    \\ % no-dictionary
When can a verb slot be empty?  &&     \\ % no-dictionary
What is a predicate?  &&     \\ % no-dictionary
What does a complete sentence in Toki Pona always contain?  &&     \\ % no-dictionary
What kinds of words can be used in Toki Pona to form a predicate? &&   \\ % no-dictionary
What is an adjective?  &&    \\ % no-dictionary
Where are the possible adjective slots?  &&    \\  % no-dictionary
Why can't a sentence end with \textit{li}? &&  \\ % no-dictionary
\end{supertabular} 

Which word types can represent the respective word in the sentence after the hyphen?
Example:

\begin{supertabular}{p{5,5cm}|ll}
mi - mi moku. && personal pronoun \\ % no-dictionary
\end{supertabular}

\begin{supertabular}{p{5,5cm}|ll}
sina - sina pona. &&  \\ % no-dictionary
moku - moku li ' pona. &&  \\ % no-dictionary
ona - ona li ' moku. &&  \\ % no-dictionary
li - moku li ' pona. &&  \\ % no-dictionary
\end{supertabular}

Try to translate these sentences. 
You can use the \textit{Toki Pona Parser} (\cite{www:rowa:02}) to check spelling and grammar.

\begin{supertabular}{p{5,5cm}|ll}
People are good. && \\ % no-dictionary
I'm eating. &&  \\ % no-dictionary
You're tall. &&  \\ % no-dictionary
Water is simple. &&  \\ % no-dictionary
The lake is big. &&\\ % no-dictionary
\end{supertabular}

\begin{supertabular}{p{5,5cm}|ll}
suno li ' suli. &&  \\% no-dictionary
mi ' suli. &&  \\% no-dictionary
jan li moku. &&  \\% no-dictionary
\end{supertabular} \\% no-dictionary
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% eof