Like nouns, verbs only have one form that never changes. There are no irregular verbs, no participles, no gerunds, no infinitives. Although verbs can take prefixes and suffixes, this is entirely regular.
All verbs start with consonants. There are no verbs that start with vowels.
Qualitative and Dynamic Verbs
There are two types of verbs: qualitative and dynamic.
Qualitative verbs usually translate English adjectives. They refer to qualities and characteristics. Qualitative verbs take the predicate markers i (positive) and man (negative). Here are some examples of qualitative verbs:
bai — to be good
dai — to be big
dogo — to be small
yèye — to be pretty
tia — to be hot
saɲi — to be cold
suka — to be difficult
yoɲì — to be easy
witi — to be quick, fast, swift, rapid
Dynamic verbs refer to actions, events, and relationships. Most verbs are dynamic verbs. Dynamic verbs can be transitive (they can take an object) or intransitive.
ke — to do, to make
lon — to know a thing
kai — to eat
Tense and aspect
Tense—that is to say, the distinction between past, present, and future—is not very important in Lio Sabalè. What’s more important is the “aspect” of a verb, which is how it fits into a timeline in relation to other events and facts, not in relation to the present moment.
Tense and aspect are indicated through predicate markers and through suffixes or post-verbal particles.
Perfective aspect | Ø; ma
This aspect is expressed without any marking in the positive, and with the predicate marker ma in the negative.
This refers to an event that is seen as a simple whole, without any overlap with other events. It can be past, present, or even future (if a future time-word is used).
Progressive aspect | de; la
Formed with the predicate markers de (positive) and la (negative). This refers to an ongoing action or a temporary state of being.
Perfect aspect | …lè
Formed with the particle lè, which comes after the verb. It can be written as a suffix or separated with a space.
With dynamic verbs, this refers to a state that results from the completion of an event. It is not a past-tense marker.
O ge lè jì manga. “He/she has cut his/her own hair.”
When used with qualitative verbs, it refers to the state that results from a change.
Omina murà. “Gas is cheap.” (In general.)
→ Omina murà lè. “Gas has gotten cheaper.”
This aspect has no negative form in itself. However, when used with negative predicate particles (usually ma), it means “to stop doing something” or “won’t do something anymore”.
Ye ma soko lè. “Stop talking.”
N ma soko lè. “I’ll stop talking.”
Qualitative aspect | Ø; man
This is used for qualitative verbs. In positive sentences, there is no marker. In negative sentences, the marker is man.
Mìnde ne co kai. “These noodles are tasty.”
Mìnde ne man co kai. “These noodles are not tasty.”
Incompletive aspect | mè
This means “has not done something”. It is often pared with the time adverb sibè, which altogether means “not yet”.
Ita sibè mè gi jì gi. “He/she hasn’t gotten dressed yet.”
Habitual aspect | kàn …; la kàn …
This refers to actions that are done repeatedly as a habit. It is often paired with with a time word to express the interval of repetition.
O kàn ge jì manga. “She cuts her own hair.”
Ita la kàn ge jì manga. “She does not cut her own hair.”
Continuous aspect | …mà; la …mà
This aspect only occurs on a small set of verbs. It refers to an ongoing action that had some definite beginning point. The bare verb refers to the beginning of the action. For example:
gi “to put on” → gimà “is wearing”
nò “to sit down on” → nòmà “is sitting on”
jin “to stand up; to stop” → jinmà “is standing somewhere”
Passive stative aspect | …kà; man …kà
This means “has been [verb]ed”. It refers to something that as undergone a change as a result of being acted upon.
beni “to bend” → benikà “is bent”
po “to bare, strip” → pokà “is bare, is naked”
Potential stative aspect | zà …kà; la zà …kà
This translates the English suffix “-able”. It refers to the potential of something to be acted upon successfully.
non “to drink” → zà nonkà “is drinkable”, la zà nonkà “is undrinkable”
sème “to lean on” → zà sèmekà “is reliable”
Serial Verbs
[Coming soon!]
Verbs of change
The suffix –ya A qualitative verb (or a noun) can be changed into
Causative verbs
A verb can be made causative with the suffix –sa/sà. This suffix takes the same tone as the last syllable of the verb.
dugu “to read, to study” → dugusa “to educate”
loa “to be long” → loasa “to lengthen”
wò “to fall” → wòsà “to drop, to let fall”
jà “to dry” → jàsà “to dry”
Mood
Mood is indicated with predicate markers.
Commands
Positive commands are the same as statements, but the subject is omitted. You can optionally add a sentence-final particle like a.
Negative commands are formed with the predicate markers kà ma:
Kà ma lai dùn ne. “Don’t come in here.”
To say “stop [verb]ing”, add the complement lè:
Kà ma jèjene lè mo. “Stop bothering me.”
There are a few ways to make a command into a polite suggestion.
You can use the predicate marker ye, and optionally add the adverb sù bai (“if that’s okay”): Ye lie nò sù bai. “You should take a seat, if that’s okay.”
To make a polite suggestion, use the predicate marker kà and add the sentence particle dun: Kà lie nò dun? “How about (you) take a seat?”
Lio Sabaalè | ߟߌߐ ߛߊߓߊ߯ߟߍ߬ 