The adverbial suffix –like- is translated ‘to fail to X’.

Nesakam eletupuyosamlikesuna.

Nesakang eletsufuyosanglikesuna.

I failed to deliver the letter.

The adverbial suffix –likeku-, composed of –like- and –ku-, is translated ‘to do X successfully’

Nesakam eletupuyosamlikekusuna.

Nesakang eletsufuyosanglikehusuna.

I delivered the letter successfully.

The suffix –mulu- is translated ‘to do X in vain’. This suffix is not the same as –like-; -like- places emphasis on the failure to do X, while –mulu- places emphasis on the futility of the action, whether completed or not. The futility need not be the failure to do X, but possibly the futility of accomplishing X in the face of Y.

Epepipusummulunama.

Epepipusummulunama.

You will learn it in vain. (You accomplish the learning, but not the task for which you acquired the learning.)

When –mulu- is combined with other adverbials to created new adverbials, however, it does have the sense of failure. The suffix –muluyam- is translated ‘to try’ and is composed of –mulu- ‘in vain’ and –yam- ‘to be able’. This suffix requires the imperfective aspect.

Eki epuluwepumuluyamtumumo?

Echi efuluvefumuluyangtsumumo?

Have you tried to find it?

The suffix –muluka- is translated ‘to fail to do what one has resolved to do’. This suffix requires the perfective aspect.

Eki nimulo elekelomulukanana.

Eki nimulo elekelomulukanana.

I have failed to do many good things that I had resolved to do.

These adverbial suffixes indicate how many times the action of the verb was performed. The suffix –tum- indicates that the action was performed once, -so- that it was performed twice, and –mum-/-mnu- that it was performed more than three times; the exact number is indicated by a number in the adverbial case before the verb.

There are certain peculiarities, however, against which one must stand on guard. The suffix –tum- with the perfective aspect indicates that the action is done once. The same suffix with the imperfective suffix indicates that the action was or will be done in one continuous action. The suffix –so- works in a similar vein: with perfective aspect, it indicates that the action is done once, with imperfective, that the action has two parts.

Pe ipekaremputumnuna.

Pe ipekarengfutsungnuna.

You judged him once.

Pe epenuputumnama.

Pe epenufutsungnama.

You did this in one session.

Pe me epesapusotuna.

Pe me epesafusotsuna.

You listened to it twice.

Pe me epeyofusotuma.

Pe me epeyofusotuma.

You listened to it in two parts (because there was an intermission).

The challenge with the suffix –mum-/-mnu- is more severe, particularly to the neo-Victorian sensibility of early 23^rd century Terrestrial culture. The form –mum- is used after a nasal vowel, the form –mnu- after an oral vowel. A recurring problem for the many converbal suffixes in Siye is homophony, and in this case, homophony of a most distressing kind! The suffixal form –mnu- of the suffix –mum-/-mnu- is homophonous and exists under the same conditions as the suffixal form –mnu- of the suffix –hom-/-mnu- ‘to do X lasciviously’. This unfortunate circumstance is a bane to prudes and a boon to poetasters.

I la pewaku ileyepumnutuna.

I la pevahu ileyefungnutsuna.

Thrice she called me.

or

Thrice she spoke in dulcet tones.

First, a brief elaboration on –ka-. –ka– means ‘to have resolved to do something’, and therefore there is a temptation to interpret this resolution as purely external. This is a mistake. –ka– is in the same family of suffixes as –te– and –teka-, both expressions of internal state. The suffix –ka– is similar; although it is certainly possible to have an external expression of an internal state, it would be inappropriate to use –ka– of one who promised insincerely. In such a case, one would use the promissory suffix –kom-, to be discussed in a future post. This is not merely a grammatical nicety; the Simayamka ethical concept of ‘imaka’ combines both external and internal states.

Le koki iletulosumkanana.

Le kochi iletsulosungkanana.

I have resolved to help them.

Le koki iletulosumkomnana.

Le kochi iletsulosungkongnana.

I have promised to help them.

Further suffixes in this family are –teku– and –kaku-. These suffixes are derived from –te– and –ka-, respectively, with the addition of the negative suffix –ku-. –teku– does not mean ‘to not want to X’ (that would be –te– plus the PAM suffix –nu), but rather ‘to fear X happening’, where X must be a verb rather than a noun. Its origin, however, is shown by the requirement that the PAM suffix be in the imperfective aspect.

Leliketekunuma.

Leliketehunuma.

We (few) are afraid to die.

Lasiketekunumu.

Lashiketehunumu.

He is not afraid to insult us few.

The suffix –kaku-, from –ka– ‘to have resolved to X’ and the negative suffix –ku-, is translated ‘to waver on doing X’. ‘To waver’ would seem an imperfective notion, but the etymology of the suffix shows through because the suffix –kaku– requires the perfective aspect. It does so, however, only in the meaning ‘to waver at doing X’. The suffix –kaku– with the imperfective aspect is used to indicate that the subject of the verb is unreliable at performing the task designated by the verb.

Esu yiyemsosumkakutuna.

Esu yiyengsosungkahutsuna.

I hesitate to show them (2). I waver at causing them (2) to see it.

Layeke mena enupukakunama.

Layeke mena enufukahunama.

This girl is an unreliable worker.

Leyake mena enuluwepukakutuma.

Leyake mena enuluvefukahutuma.

This boy is an unreliable tracker.

The adverbial suffix –yosa– ‘supposedly’ takes the irrealis mood in the PAM (polarity-aspect-mood) suffix. Although –yosa– can be used with a neutral tone of voice, its lexical meaning encourages its use in less than sincere statements. The suffix –yosa– with a negative irrealis PAM suffix is translated ‘certainly’. Again, this suffix can be used sincerely, but is more often used sarcastically. If a Siye-speaker wishes to use –yosa– with a negative verb, she must use –yosaku-, the inverse form with the positive but still irrealis, PAM suffix.

Nusu imena ususo eyosoyosanane.

Nusu imena ususo eyosoyosanane.

His sibling supposedly ate the two chickens.

Nusu imena ususo eyosoyosakunane.

Nusu imena ususo eyosoyosahunane.

His sibling supposedly did not eat the two chickens.

Nusu imena ususo eyosoyosananeku.

Nusu imena ususo eyosoyosananehu.

His sibling certainly ate the two chickens.

Nusu imena ususo eyosoyosakunaneku.

Nusu imena ususo eyosoyosahunanehu.

His sibling certainly did not eat the two chickens.

A set of adverbial suffixes whose meanings are related, but nonetheless are non-intuitive for the English speaker are –lo-/-te- ‘to practice’ and -lote- ‘to pretend’. The first thing to note about these suffixes is that –lo- occurs with the imperfective aspect, and –te- occurs with the perfective aspect. The connection of –te- ‘to practice’ with the perfective aspect prevents confusion with –te- ‘to want’ with the imperfective aspect. Similarily, -lo- ‘to practice’ will follow, at a minimum, the pronominal number suffix, and therefore cannot be confused by native speakers with –lo-, the plural pronominal number suffix. The second thing of importance is that –lo-/-te- negates as a regular suffix does, that is, using the PAM (polarity-aspect-mood) suffix, but –lote- belongs to the class of ‘inverse suffixes’ and therefore forms its negative by suffixing the floating negative suffix –ku- to –lote- to form –loteku- ‘to perform authentically’.

Epesikelonamukumo?

Epeshikelonamuhumo?

Aren’t you (few) practicing your singing?

Eleyekatenana.

Eleyekatenana.

We all practiced our singing.

Epeyelolotenana.

Epeyelolotenana.

You (many) pretended to sing (but were actually goofing around)

Samnikem elesikalotekunama.

Sangnikeng eleshikalotehunama.

Now you will all genuinely sing (because I’m the choir director)

Nulotenamaki (nulotenamachi) – toy (that with which you pretend to do X)

Kelotenanaki (kelotenannachi) – play (the activity of playing)

Kimlotekimakim (Chinglotechimaching) – play area

Ilokimayam (Ilochimayang) – cad (one who pretends to love)