Lingwa De Planeta (Lidepla) Grammar With Examples

The helping verb "fai"

It has the general meaning ‘to do, to perform an action’ and is used in combination with nouns and adverbs:

fai kwesta — to make (ask) a question

fai kasam — to make (take) a vow

fai fiasko — to not succeed

fai interes om koysa — to take an interest in something

fai bak! — may mean "set back" or "throw back!" etc.

fai avan! — may mean "throw forward!" etc.

As distinct from ‘zwo’ (to do, to make) ‘fai’ is a helping verb and may be used only in combinations, so “Do it!” is “Zwo to!”

In speech the combination ‘fai+noun’ may sometimes replace verbs that you cannot remember. In such a case ‘fai’ means ‘to use the object in some usual way, to act in usual way in connection with the object’:

fai kitaba — to read a book

fai kama — to sleep or lie on a bed

fai kaval — to ride a horse

fai gitara — to play guitar

fai kino — to watch a cinema or to go to the cinema

fai (defai) butas — to lace (unlace) shoes.

Modal verbs

Mog — can, may:

Me bu mog lekti: kitaba yok. — I cannot read: there is no book.

Yu mog zwo to kom yu yao. — You may do it as you like.

Bu mog — one can't, it is impossible.

Bu mog jivi sin chi. — One can't live without eating.

Darfi — to have permission, be allowed, (one) may:

Lu darfi gun kom leker. — He is allowed to work as a doctor.

Me darfi zin ku? — May I come in?

Yao — want:

Kwo yu yao? — What do you want?

Me yao aiskrem. — I want ice-cream.

Me wud yao safari kun yu. — I would like to go on the trip with you.

Mus — must; have to:

Oli jen mus chi fo jivi. — All people must eat in order to live.

Manya me mus go a ofis. — Tomorrow I must go to the office.

Treba — it is necessary; require:

Treba zwo se olo til aksham. — It is necessary to do it all till the evening.

Treba kaulu to. — One should consider this.

Sey kwesta treba kaulusa. — This question requires consideration.

Treba pyu jen. — More people are needed/required.

("Treba" has a wider meaning than "nidi" and "gai").

Nidi — need:

Lu nidi yur helpa. — He needs your help.

Durtitaa sempre nidi ahfi swa. — Craftiness always needs to hide.

Gai — (one) should, (one) ought, supposed to:

Me gai lekti mucho. — I should read a lot.

Yu bu gai lanfai. — You should not be lazy.

Sempre gai zwo olo tak kom gai. — One should always do everything as needed.

Majbur — be compelled to, have to, there is no other way but:

En-pluvi, nu majbur go a dom. — It begins to rain, we have to go home.

Meteo es bade, majbur deri avion-ney departa. — The weather is bad, the plane's departure has to be delayed.

Si me bu findi kitaba, majbur kupi nove-la. — If I don't find the book, I'll have to buy a new one.

Pri — to like:

Me pri flor. — I like flowers.

Me pri sey flor. — I like this flower.

May kinda pri rasmi. — My child likes to draw.

"Intensive" verbs

Some verbs are used to add specific meanings to the action description.

Pai — (the basic meaning "to get, receive") imparts the meaning "to succeed, achieve, obtain":

nulwan pai kapti ta — nobody managed to catch it

pai kreki nuta — to (succesfully) crack the nut

pai ofni ken — to open can (at last)

nu pai zwo to — we did it.

Lwo — (the basic meaning "to fall") conveys the depth of transition into another state/condition:

lwo in plaki — burst into tears

lwo in ridi — burst out laughing; start roaring with laughter

lwo in pyani — take to hard drinking

lwo in lekti nove kitaba — to become thoroughly engrossed in reading a new book.

Dai — (the basic meaning "to give") conveys unexpectedness of action for observers or its unexpected intensity:

dai shwo — blurt out, plump out

ta lai e dai darbi ta in nos — he came and all of a sudden hit him in the nose

ta dai kwiti molya — he took and abandoned his wife.

Verb prefixes

be — when added to intransitive verbs, makes action apply to an object:

dumi — to think

bedumi koysa — to think something over

kresi — to grow

pelin bekresi korta — wormwood overgrows the yard

when added to transitive verbs, changes the object of action:

chori koysa — to steal something

bechori koywan — to rob somebody

planti koysa — to plant something

beplanti agra bay repa — to plant the field with turnips

pendi koysa — to hang something

bependi mur bay piktura — to cover the wall with pictures

de(s) — opposite action ("des" if before a vowel):

desharji — discharge

delodi — unload

desorganisi — disorganize

ek- — denotes that something is done only one time or rather suddenly (from Hindi "ek" one):

tuki — to knock

ek-tuki — to give a knock

krai — to cry

ek-krai — to cry out

salti — to jump

ek-salti — to jump up

en- — denotes the beginning of action:

en-somni — to fall asleep

en-lubi — to fall in love

en-krai — to start crying

en-tuki — to begin knocking

en-jan — to come to know, find out