Transitive animate verbs are verbs that talk about people doing stuff with people. These verbs are complex because two animate participants are involved, one is an animate subject that could be any of the eight animate persons (I, you, he, we, we, you plural, they and X) and the other is an animate object that could be any of the eight possibilities (me, you, him, us, us, you plural, them, X)
VTA Stems
The VTA verb stem is easily deduced from the dictionary listing. These verbs are listed in the 3rd person singular ‘absolute’ form which has the form:
(vta stem)-(aaw)
Simply drop the (aaw) and you have the functional stem in most instances.
VTA Stem Types
Knowing the VTA stem types is useful because some stem types interact with conjugation endings which start with a (u) to form a contraction to either (ąą) or (oo) or (aa).
The table below lists the stem types and the type of contraction for illustration and reference purposes. Specific contractions will be explained when they are encountered and will be easier to understand with examples.
VTA or Transitive Animate Verb Stems
| Example | Stem Ending | Stem | Inverse Contraction | Local Contraction | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ahnaaw | Consonant | (ahn) | None | None | put s.o. down |
| paθahaaw | Hidden (w) | (paθahw) | w+ukw=ookw | w+un=oon | split s.o. |
| muskawaaw | (aw) | (muskaw) | aw+ukw=ąąkw | aw+un=aan | find s.o. |
| paashuwaaw | (uw) | (paashuw) | uw+ukw=ookw | uw+un=oon | bring s.o. |
| kwxaaw | (x) | (kwax) | x+ukw=xookw | x+un=xoon | fear s.o. |
| naawaaw | (aaw) | (naaw) | None | None | sees s.o. |
| atąąwaaw | (ąąw) | (atąąw) | None | None | buy s.o. |
Stems with hidden (w) have a (w) on the stem that only appears in certain conjugated forms as a contraction, where the (w) interacts with (u) to form (oo). This will be discussed in the inverse mode chapter.
Overview of VTA modes of construction
There are many ways to construct verbs with animate subjects and objects in order to say things specifically or in a more vague manner and to express different meanings from subject to object. These are outlined here to provide an overview and to gain familiarity with some of the terms.
(1) Independent Indicative Mode
Direct Independent Indicative Mode
Used when a person (or animate noun) interacts with a third person object.
Characterized by the theme sign -ąą-.
Objective and absolute forms exist to express precision and vagueness.
Naawąąw niimanaaw. I see him the man. (objective; precise and specific)
Kunaawąąw niimanaaw. You see him the man. (objective; precise and specific)
Naawah niimanaaw. I see a man. (absolute; vague and indefinite)
Kunaawah niimanaaw. You see a man. (absolute; vague and indefinite)
Inverse Independent Indicative Mode
Reverses the order, i.e a third person subject interacting with a person
(me, you, him, her, we, you plural, they)
Characterized by the theme sign -ukw-.
Nuyah naawukw. He sees me. (me-he sees)
Kuyah kunaawukw. He sees you. (you-he sees)
Local Independent Indicative Modes (You-Me and Me-You)
Used when the verb involves non 3rd person subjects and objects.
The prefix (ku) with the theme sign (un) expresses ‘’me-you’’
Kunaawun. I see you. The prefix (ku) with the theme sign (ii) expresses ‘’you-me’’
Kunaawih. You saw me. Inanimate subject Indicative mode
Níhnkwun. It killed me.
Kuníhnkwun. It killed you.
Indefinite Subject (Passive) Independent Indicative Mode
Characterized by the theme sign -ukaa-.
Naawukah I was seen.
Kunaawukah You were seen.(2) Independent Subordinative mode
Has forms for direct, inverse, passives, you-me and me-you constructions.
(3) Conjunct Order
Has forms for direct, inverse, passives, you-me and me-you constructions.
(4) Imperative Order.
Includes commands directed to a 3rd person object such as ‘Show him,’ and commands directed toward a first person object such as ‘Show me.’
The rest of this chapter will be devoted to objective and absolute construction for the VTA direct independent indicative mode.
VTA direct independent indicative mode
Objective or Noun Optional Construction
Objective construction is used when one refers to a specific, definite object and may be used with or without a noun in the phrase. (Noun optional construction) The verb in this mode points precisely to an animate object translated as ‘he.’ This ‘he’ might be ‘he’ or ‘she’ or an animate noun or pronoun. If a noun is used, the verb is understood as referring to that noun object specifically and in a definite way, thus the English translation will use the definite article ‘’the’‘.
Naawąąw.
I saw him.
Naawąąw tkwax.
I saw him, the bread.
Naawąąk.
I saw them.
Absolute or Noun Required Construction
Absolute forms are used when one refers to non-specific, indefinite object. In this mode the verb cannot stand alone. In other words a noun or word representing the object must be added. This noun or word added does not refer to any one specific object however, it simply tells one what kind of object one is talking about, in vague or generic terms. Thus the translation in English will use the indefinite articles ‘a’ (or ‘some’). The same verb form is used for a singular or a plural absolute object. This underscores how lacking this mode is in terms of definiteness.
Naawah awaan.
I saw someone.
Naawah tkwax.
I saw a loaf of bread.
Naawah tkwaxak.
I saw some loaves of bread.
Naawaak niimanaan.
They saw a man. (obv)
Conjugation Paradigm for the Direct Indicative Mode Objective Forms
Uses prefixes and endings known as the w endings (or affixes more properly said…) which are added to (-ąą-) which is the ‘direct’ direction marker for VTAs.
PREFIX + VERB STEM + THEME SIGN + ENDINGS
The (-ąą-) theme sign indicates ‘direct’ speech, in contrast to the (-ukw-) ‘inverse’ theme sign, which inverts the relationships of prefixes and endings from subject/object to object/subject. If that is confusing, have no worries as it will be fully discussed in a later chapter. For now, simply associate the term ‘direct’ with the idea that the prefixes refer to the subject of the verb and the endings refer to its object. For TA verbs in this mode, the subject is a person or an animate noun (I, you, he, she, we ye or they) and the object is an animate third person (him, her or they).
‘He’ or ‘him’ in the translations provided are used to mean an animate singular entity which could refer to a ‘she’ or ‘her’ or to an animate noun.
VTA Direct Indicative Mode Objective Forms (Sg Object)
| Paradigm | Meaning |
|---|---|
| nu-(stem)-ąąw | I — him |
| ku-(stem)-ąąw | You — him |
| wu-(stem)-ąąn* | He — him (obviative) |
| nu-(stem)-ąąnah* | We — him (exclusive) |
| ku-(stem)-ąąnah | We — him (inclusive) |
| ku-(stem)-ąąnookw | We all — him (inclusive) |
| ku-(stem)-ąąwah | You pl — him |
| wu-(stem)-ąąwąąn* | They — him (obviative) |
| —-(stem)-ąąw | He was — |
* Note:
ąą-wan contracts to ąąn
ąą-wunah contracts to ąąnah
ąą-wąąwan contracts to ąąwąąn
Example using the verb ahwąąnaaw vta love s.o.
Ndahwąąnąąw
I love him
Ktahwąąnąąw
You love him
Wtahwąąnąąn
S/he loves him
Ndahwąąnąąnah
We love him
Ktahwąąnąąnah
We love him
Ktahwąąnąąnookw
We all love him
Ktahwąąnąąwah
You (pl) love him
Wtahwąąnąąwąąn
They love him
Ahwąąnąąw
He is loved
Negative Forms
These are formed by adding the negative suffix to the direction marker (ąą) followed by the w endings.
The final (w) of the 1st and 2nd person singular drops off after the negative suffix, final vowel shortening also applies.
ustah (prefix)(stem)(wii)(w) => ustah (prefix)(stem)(wih)
Final (ih) drops off the 1st and 2nd person negative forms only. These are called truncated negative forms.
ustah (prefix)(stem)(wih) or ustah (prefix)(stem)(w)
VTA Negative Direct Indicative Mode Objective Forms Sg Object
| Paradigm | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ustah nu-(stem)-ąąw | I — him not |
| ustah ku-(stem)-ąąw | You — him not |
| ustah wu-(stem)-ąąwiin* | He — him not (obviative) |
| ustah nu-(stem)-ąąwiinah* | We — him not (exclusive) |
| ustah ku-(stem)-ąąwiinah* | We — him not (inclusive) |
| ustah ku-(stem)-ąąwiinookw | We all — him not (exclusive) |
| ustah ku-(stem)-ąąwiiwah | You (pl) — him not |
| ustah wu-(stem)-ąąwiiwąąn* | They — him not (obviative) |
| ustah —-(stem)-ąąwih | He was not — |
*Note
-wiin contracted from –wiiwan
-wiinah contracted from –wiiwunah
ąąwiiwąąn contracted from ąą-wii-wąąwan
Example using the verb naawaaw vta see s.o.
Ustah naawąąw (naawąąwih)
I saw him not
Ustah kunaawąw (kunaawąąwih)
You saw him not
Ustah wunaawąąwiin
S/he saw him not
Ustah naawąąwiinah
We saw him not
Ustah kunaawąąwiinah
We saw him not
Ustah kunaawąąwiinookw
We all saw him not
Ustah kunaawąąwiiwah
You (pl) saw him not
Ustah wunaawąąwiiwąąn
They saw him not
Ustah naawąąwih
S/he was not seen
Plural objects forms use the animate plural ending (ak). Plural obviative forms use the ending -ah . Like animate possessed nouns, the forms for ‘we’ and ‘you plural’ (1st and 2nd pl subject forms) use endings built on the full, non shortened ending.
VTA Direct Indicative Mode Objective Forms (Pl Object)
| Paradigm | Final Form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| nu-(stem)-ąą-w-ak | nu-(stem)-ąąk | I — them |
| ku-(stem)-ąą-w-ak | ku-(stem)-ąąk | You — them |
| wu-(stem)-ąą-w-ah | wu-(stem)-ąą | He — them (pl obv) |
| nu-(stem)-ąą-w-unąą-ak | nu-(stem)-ąąnąąk | We — them (excl) |
| ku-(stem)-ąą-w-unąą-ak | ku-(stem)-ąąnąąk | We — them (incl) |
| ku-(stem)-ąą-w-unookw | ku-(stem)-ąąnookw* | We all — them (incl) |
| ku-(stem)-ąą-wąąw-ak | ku-(stem)-ąąwąąk | You (pl) — them |
| ku-(stem)-ąą-wąąw-ah | wu-(stem)-ąąwąą | They — them (pl obv) |
| —-(stem)-ąą-w-ak | —-(stem)-ąąk | They were — |
*This form is the same as the sg object form
Example using the verb naawaaw vta see s.o.
Naawąąk
I saw them
Kunaawąąk
You saw them
Wunaawąą
S/he saw them
Naawąąnąąk
We (excl.) saw saw them
Kunaawąąnąąk
We (incl.) saw them
Kunaawąąwąąk
You (pl) saw them
Wunaawąąwąą
They saw them
Naawąąk
They were seen
Negatives for the objective forms with plural object follow the same patterns as the non-negative plural object forms.
VTA Negative Direct Indicative Mode Objective Forms Plural Object
| Paradigm | Final form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| nu-(stem)-ąą-wii-w-ak | ustah nu-(stem)-ąąwiik | I — them not |
| ku-(stem)-ąą-wii-w-ak | ustah ku-(stem)-ąąwiik | You — them not |
| wu-(stem)-ąą-wii-w-ah | ustah wu-(stem)-ąąwiiwah | He — them not (pl obv) |
| nu-(stem)-ąą-wii-wunąą-ak | ustah nu-(stem)-ąąwiinąąk | We — them not (excl) |
| ku-(stem)-ąą-wii-wunąą-ak | ustah ku-(stem)-ąąwiinąąk | We — them not (incl) |
| ku-(stem)-ąą-wii-wunookw | ustah ku-(stem)-ąąwiinookw* | We all — them not (incl) |
| ku-(stem)-ąą-wii-wąąw-ak | ustah ku-(stem)-ąąwiiwąąk | You (pl) — them not |
| wu-(stem)-ąą-wii-wąąw-ah | ustah wu-(stem)-ąąwiiwąą | They — them not (pl obv) |
| —(stem)-ąą-wii-w-ak | ustah —-(stem)-ąąwiik | They were not — |
*identical to sg object forms
Some uncontracted versons for the inclusive and exclusive we forms were found in Schmick: ustah (prefix)-(stem)-ąąwiiwunah
Western Mahican does not all plural endings to the we forms or to the 2nd pl forms.
Example using the verb naawaaw vta see s.o.
Ustah naawąąwiik
I did not see them
Ustah kunaawąąwiik
You did not see them
Ustah wunaawąąwiiwah
S/he did not see him or her
Ustah naawąąwiinąąk
We did not see them
Ustah kunaawąąwiiwunąąk
We did not see them (un-contracted variant)
Ustah kunaawąąwiinookw
We all did not see him, her or them
Ustah kunaawąąwiiwąąk
You (pl) did not see them
Ustah wunaawąąwiiwąą
They did not see them
Ustah naawąąwiik
They were not seen
Conjugation Paradigm for Absolute VTA Construction
These forms use the m ending set, added to the (ąą) direction marker which tells us that the mode is direct or non inverse. Like the VTI absolute forms, a noun is required and the verb form does not vary for object plurality. The animate plural ending (ak) references a 3rd person plural subject. There are no plural endings for plural objects because in this mode the object is vague and indefinite.
Note the absence of the (wu) prefix in 3rd person sg and pl forms.
Footnote: VTIs and VTAs using m endings conjugate like VAIs almost as if the verb has no object. The noun adds the object but in a non specific form.
VTA Direct Indicative Mode Absolute Forms
Noun Required Construction
| Paradigm | Meaning |
|---|---|
| nu-(stem)-ah | I — ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate noun(s) |
| ku-(stem)-ah | You — ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate noun(s) |
| —-(stem)-aaw | He or She — ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate obviative noun(s) |
| nu-(stem)-áhnah | We — ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate noun(s)(excl) |
| ku-(stem)-áhnah | We — ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate noun(s) (incl) |
| ku-(stem)-áhnookw | We alln— ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate noun(s) (12c incl) |
| ku-(stem)-áhmah | You (pl) — ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate noun(s) |
| —-(stem)-aak | They — ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate obviative noun(s) |
| —-(stem)-ąąw | ‘A’ or ‘some’ obviative noun(s) was (were) … |
animate noun = 3rd person animate noun sg or pl; him, her, they, awaan, awaaniik, etc
Example using the verb paasuwaaw vta bring s.o.
Mbaasuwah tkwax
I brought a loaf of bread.
Kpaasuwah tkwax
You brought a loaf of bread
Paasuwaaw tkwaxan
S/he brought a loaf of bread (obv)
Mbaasuwahnah tkwax
We brought a loaf of bread
Kpaasuwahnah tkwax
We brought a loaf of bread
Kpaasuwahmah tkwax
You (pl) brought a loaf of bread
Paasuwaak tkwaxan
They brought a loaf of bread (obv)
Paasuwąąw tkwax
A loaf of bread was brought. Someone brought a loaf of bread.
Negative absolute forms use (ąą) then the negative suffix (w) followed by the m endings. The optional truncated negative ending may be used in the 1st and 2nd sg forms.
Note how the (ąą) shifts to (aa) in the 3rd person forms.
VTA Negative Direct Indicative Mode Absolute Forms
Noun Required Construction
| Paradigm | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ustah nu-(stem)-ąąw | I — not ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate noun(s) |
| ustah ku-(stem)-ąąw | You — not ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate noun(s) |
| ustah —-(stem)-aawih | He or She — not ‘a’ or ‘some’ obviative noun(s) |
| ustah nu-(stem)-ąąwíhnah | We (excl) — not ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate noun(s) |
| ustah ku-(stem)-ąąwíhnah | We (incl) — not ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate noun(s)) |
| ustah ku-(stem)-ąąwíhnookw | We (all incl) — not ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate noun(s)) |
| ustah ku-(stem)-ąąwíhmah | You (pl) — not ‘a’ or ‘some’ animate noun(s) |
| ustah —-(stem)-aawíik | They — not ‘a’ or ‘some’ obviative noun(s) |
| ustah -—(stem)-ąąwih | ‘A’ or ‘some’ noun(s) was (were) not … |
animate noun = 3rd person animate noun sg or pl; him, her, they, awaan, awaaniik, etc
Example using the verb paasuwaaw vta bring s.o.
Ustah mbaasuwąąw tkwax.
I did not bring a loaf of bread.
Ustah kpaasuwąąw tkwax.
You did not bring a loaf of bread.
Ustah paasuwaawih tkwaxan.
S/he did not bring a loaf of bread.
Ustah mbaasuwaawihnah tkwax.
We did not bring a loaf of bread.
Ustah kpaasuwaawihnah tkwax.
We did not bring a loaf of bread.
Ustah kpaasuwaawihmah tkwax.
You (pl) did not bring a loaf of bread.
Ustah paasuwaawiik tkwaxan.
They did not bring a loaf of bread.
Ustah paasuwąąwih tkwax.
A loaf of bread was not brought.
These absolute negative verb constructs do not take additional endings to match the plurality of the object, however the required noun can be sg or pl or obviative and the noun takes endings appropriate to its status as sg, pl or obviative .