Chü Tubílíbdönöks - Formation
To form the impersonal, the locative -v of the nominal declensions is affixed to the shléts:
la → lav → lav
la glozh - eats, is eating, does eat
lav glozh - one eats, one is eating, one does eat
la gdez - throws, is throwing, does throw
lav gdez - one throws, one is throwing, one does throw
la inth - reads aloud, is reading aloud, does read aloud
lav inth - one reads aloud, one is reading aloud, one does read aloud
With the three tenses, seven voices, and seven moods introduced thus far, the verb paradigm now looks like this:
Indicative:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
1) In the modern language, as one might expect, the pronoun "seth" agrees with any fpaukiths antecedent:
A: Öçek la, gü che Kföths lé cha hereçkethlünsav cher'ha höisörhath sho, hösferül?
A: Do you know where the Pope was visiting last week?
U: Sí la, gü seth lé Filidelfíasarsauv haumal sho, övaz.
U: I think he was in Philadelphia.
Matíaths lé, gü seth la sít höisöl sho, ngamath, de fí la feget auth.
Matthew said he loves me, but I don't believe him.
Che galanshuths la wuzhdöth rhöseu haunöi sho, fenfe la feget ba glozh hedaikh.
If the bacon is too salty, you don't have to eat it.
2) However, its origins in the omnial gender and, consequently, its use as a referent to "celestial things" led to its becoming the default pronoun in weather expressions:
Seth la mözh.
It's sunny.
Seth la fun.
It's raining.
Seth la knön.
It's snowing.
Seth la ézhgin.
It's drizzling.
Seth la ötengüdhaun.
It's warm.
Seth la ésüköth.
It's hailing.
One leaves it to the gentle reader to decide whether "seth" is a dummy subject in these contexts, a genuine referent to a tacit fpaukiths antecedent, like "gdonöths" (weather) or "auths" (cosmos), or a cocktail of both.
3) Its origins in the omnial gender, used to indicate referents of unknown or mixed gender(s), also led "seth" to be used as an impersonal pronoun. The verb in the impersonal voice disambiguates this usage from usage 1) above, and to a limited extent, usage 2).
Chü Hínabdönöks - Usage
1) With the impersonal voice, "seth" is analogous with pronouns like German "man", French "on", or English "one":
Man muß die Geschichte kennen.
Seth lav chö fadülobsöt ba umpeth daikh.
One should know history.
On ne sait jamais.
Feg lav bzéngöi sferül.
One never knows.
Like its continental European counterparts, impersonal "seth" is used more often and in less formal contexts than "one" in English, where it may also be translated as impersonal "they" or "you":
Seth lav, gü seth lí che helkedalthsev höifun sho, ngamath.
They say it's going to rain tomorrow.
Sa kízangínsav zvakíalenav, seth lav sü mníaksüt sak etrönsaf bésenaf se dalthseb abo ba frozh daikh.
In a healthy lifestyle, you should drink eight glasses of water daily.
2) In addition to impersonal "seth", other impersonal/indefinite pronouns are also used with verbs in the impersonal voice:
shahöcheths - someone, somebody / anyone, anybody
shahöchens - something / anything
shahövegs - no one, nobody
shahöveps - nothing
híauíalörs - everyone, everybody
híaufans - everything
fanfuröths - each and every one/person
tsovíeths, gníeths - whoever, he/they/those who
tsobíbs - whatever, that which
Shahöcheths lév öçket cha hengesegensav ba audruz thauth.
Someone came to see you this morning.
Shahöchens lav naiata'u dvétekh.
Something is banging outside.
Shahövegs lav vü Mfögéçadsüt Éspaníolatöidüt ailaf!
Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!
Vau föltölömsauv, shahöveps lav zçalíkfoshköp íe fö mvakhsöb tengüdhaukhöb íe va papöteraltepsas fö sthökhsön nöi.
When you have a cold, nothing is better than a nice bowl of chicken soup.
Shtanö Kateríns lé chö sospobsöt tloraznalöböt fergönen sho, híauíalörs lév fan argnöz kfö ngkoséf.
When Katherine scored the winning goal, everyone stood up and cheered.
Sau ars mnözçer tabezhör! Híaufans lav techetneken mníéí mva hönöi?
What a nice wedding! Isn't everything lovely?
Cha shebseuthrönsav, fanfuröths lév chö béöbsöv vöcha'u mal.
At curfew, each and every person was safely in their home.
Tsovíeths lav sö ngarebsöt shfé jurushal sho, seth lav sa abashunsat vgénat augzébezh.
He who keeps a dog well has a faithful companion.
Tsobíkhs lav pantalach nggavökh sho, söb lav makhlamach höi rakusöthep íe ban nöi hökh.
That which/What does not kill us makes us stronger.
N.B.: With "tsovíeths" and "tsobíbs", the sentence patterns are "They who..., they..." and "That which..., it...", with the second clause headed by impersonal "seth" for "tsovíeths" and impersonal "söb" for "tsobíbs". If a regular third person pronoun other than "seth" takes the impersonal voice, it is due antecedent-referent concordance.
Tsovíeths lav sö ngarebsöt shfé jurushal sho, seth lav sa abashunsat vgénat augzébezh.
They who keep a dog well, they have a faithful companion.
tsobíbs - söb:
Tsobíkhs lav pantalach nggavökh sho, söb lav makhlamach höi rakusöthep íe ban nöi hökh.
That which does not kill us, it makes us stronger.
shahöchens - san
Shahöchens lav che çülenstörmfailöthsev mal, kfö san lav pamuf.
There's something in the picnic basket, and it's moving.
híauíalörs - saur
Híauíalörs lív helkeveçö fan haudravnath sho, saur lív önchaur íarpané fan ölzdenü hevanöi.
If everybody did that, they'd soon be poor.
3) The interrogative pronouns "cheths" (who) and "chens" (what) (see here) also take the impersonal voice:
Cheths lív chau dhvénarsauv höthauth?
Who's coming to the party?
Chens lav cha alüshtülans Géarthtörsaus hönöi?
What's the capital of Géarthtörs?
4) The impersonal voice of the verb is used only when the impersonal or interrogative pronouns are in the nominative case:
Shahöcheths lav hömal?
Is anybody here?
but
Fí la shahövegset tel.
I don't see anybody.
Fenfe la shahövegsek vük hüdsüch hengedüch hügamez.
Don't give these keys to anyone.
Híauíalörs lav chö mvabsöt fan ba fautail zçeth.
Everybody seems to like the soup.
but
Fenfe lí híauíalömsaut fan ba ftotin kalokh.
You won't be able to please everybody.
Arons lé híauíalörsauk fan íaugavel.
Aaron told everybody.
Cheths lav cha gerauhöilkansat hökaul?
Who's knocking at the front door?
but
Öçek lé chethsek höhiçmöl?
Who were you talking to on the phone?
Chens lév hömnaizekh?
What happened?
but
Makhlama lí chensat hövangketh?
What are we having for dinner?
Sak Flaivonapwerinsap Sfönap - Other Example Sentences
Zhdanis seth lív sí kfedhölsít saurauv hauzbíauf sho, chau zdörs henger lí aukhbrelü shfé hechafaz.
even.if 3SG-NOM AUX.FUT.IMPERS INDEF rock-ACC 3SG-LOC drop-SPEC PTCL, DEF rock-NOM this-NOM AUX.FUT still-ADV well-ADV cut-CONCL
Even if you drop a rock on it, this knife still cuts well.
Rheth las, gü híaufans lív mníéí höidnef sho, spanga'u ngamath.
3PL-NOM AUX.PRES.REFL, CONJ everything-NOM AUX.FUT.IMPERS all-ADV go.well-DISC PTCL, each.other-ADV tell
They're telling each other that everything will be fine.
Fanfuröths lav sethníe híau haumahun, cha shtülans ersfanen la örhön híau henöi.
each.and.every.person-NOM AUX.PRES.IMPERS oneself-ADV all-ADV sweep.in.front.of.the.door-SPEC, DEF city-NOM entire-NOM AUX.PRES clean-NOM all-ADV be-CONCL
When each and every person sweeps in front of one’s own door, the entire city is clean.
It rains
Weather and other natural phenomena
On manga men having big baskets
Someone in the house next to ours started singing
On tasting like bergamot
Lexember 28, 2014
Who runs faster than me?
Sentence 224 of the Snowball Game
Hengegíau chau radzöntölörsauv sík shajinhakfalíshevílsíng toulíng, ezhdölsíng zhöshelíng, zhö sauk shajinhakfalíchorsaung zhösheraung, chöi shajinhakfalíeskanets la gaiçö hengeveçö hepsönöi:
Agamírs:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
![[:'(]](./images/smilies/icon_crying2.png ":'("){kind=icon}
); rarely used, and almost never if a third person is perceived to be nearby