| Weak | Strong | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short | Long | Short | Long | ||
| Whines | Low | b | B | c | C |
| High | d | D | f | F | |
| Growls | Low | g | G | h | H |
| High | j | J | k | K | |
| Grunts | Low | l | L | m | M |
| High | n | N | p | P | |
| Hisses | Plain | t | T | v | V |
| Trilled | w | W | x | X |
| Sound | Symbol |
|---|---|
| huff | q |
| chuff | r |
| yip | s |
| plain hiss | y |
| trilled hiss | z |
similar to CT, but with the addition of plain and trilled hisses
hisses can act as vowels or semivowels
hisses do not carry tone, only length and strength
hiss semivowels cannot coexist with hiss vowels in the same syllable
plain and trilled hisses cannot occur in the same syllable
syllable is (C)V
verbs are a closed class
word order is SVOC
where C (compliment?) is a noun or determiner phrase that specifies the verb
Most common verb can be translated do, with a transitive and intransitive form. There's also a copula used to form predicate adjectives.
Attributive adjectives may not exist
rMl t qb b sBsb zGK Light do you a shine friend
You can indicate that an action occurred multiple times by making the compliment noun phrase plural. You mark plurality in the articles.
rc t b qMqm B dqDb 1sg do IND human IND.PL see
The sentence above could have several meanings depending on context or modifiers elsewhere in the sentence.
I see a human several times.
I see a human often.
I see a human regularly.
The compliment nouns, such as dqDb see and sBsb shine can be used as regular nouns, in which case they mean an act or event described by the noun, or the abstract concept defined by the noun. So more literally they mean seeing and shining.
There are definite and indefinite articles, and possibly a gnomic article
| Article | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| indefinite | b | B |
| definite | m | M |
| gnomic? | g | G |
There are only a few syntactic verbs.
| Verb | Meaning |
|---|---|
| t | do (transitive) |
| w | do (intransitive) |
| st | be (forms predicate nominatives |
| zh | have/possess (forms predicate adjectives) |
m sMsm w m sBsb DEF sun do.INTR DEF shine
The sun shines
| Person | singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | rc | crc |
| 2nd | qb | bqb |
| 3rd | rl | lrl |
| interogative/relative | ym | mym |
qb t rl B jygj-x Mzm 2sg do 3sg IND.PL hold-CON wrong
You're holding it wrong
The construct state indicates that a noun is being modified by another noun. This usually means the noun in the construct state is possessed by a following noun, but it's also one way Hearthsider expresses attributive adjectives.
You put a noun in the construct state with the suffix -x /short trilled strong hiss/. The suffix was originally a preposition governing the following noun, but gradually decayed to become a suffix on the preceeding noun.
M Lmsl-x m qHKqk zh b ybF DEF.PL claw-CON DEF man have IND sharpness
The man's claws are sharp
Hearthsider uses prepositions in a similar way to the construct state.
m sCFsf rT M sCqg DEF woman covered_in DEF.PL bald_spot
The balding woman (novice healer)
Hearthsider does have a few true adjectives, but only for expressing quantity and comparison.
zG qb rc zh X qMP against 2sg 1sg have more greatness
I'm bigger than you
Relative clauses use the relative pronouns ym /trilled hiss, short low strong grunt/ and mym /short low strong grunt; trilled hiss, short low strong grunt/, which mean “who”, “what”, or “that”.
rc t b qMqm ym w JH-x JqH b dqDb 1sg do IND human who do.INT quickness-CON walking IND seeing
I see a human walking quickly.
Relative pronouns even double as interrogative pronouns.
qb t ym b dqDb? 2sg do who IND seeing
Who did you see