6 - The adverb

6 The Adverb

A) Formation

Some root-words are naturally adverbs. Other adverbs are derived from adjectives

1) Root-words

2) Adverbs having the same form as adjectives

3) Building adverbs from adjectives adding: -m or -im (adverbs of manner)

This is much more widespread than for English adverbs in -ly

In London nu ve faro busim

* Adjective / past participle in -en > Adverb in -em

* Adjective / present participle in -an > Adverb in -am

* Adjectives in -u > Adverbs in -um (rare)

Note The adverbs in the last two categories (-am & -um) are quite rare

4) Formation with prefixes * BE- Adverbs (& prepositions) of place

Ex berù = behind benìz = below beòp = above beròn = approximately beprù = soon (time)

* DA- Adverbs of time

Ex dafòr before dapòs afterwards davos then, at that time dadòd since then

5) Formation with suffixes * -IA Adverbs of place

Ex inia inside usia outside altia elsewhere ekia somewhere nekia nowhere…

(See indefinite pronouns: 4) Determiners and pronouns)

6) Adverbial phrases

B) Place of Adverbs

1) An adverb is generally placed before the word it refers to

Yet Uropi is very flexible, the place of adverbs is relatively free

2) The following adverbs are always placed before the adjectives or adverbs they refer to

In soma, je s' prijan nemo prijèd usia

3) After the verb

* Adverbs of place, time, manner (after the object, when there is one)

* Adverbs of frequency (after the verb)

(after the auxiliary when there is one)

4) At the beginning or end of a sentence Adverbs of place or time

(= adverbial phrases of place or time)

Domòr nu v'ito a kina

- At the beginning of a sentence * Adverbs reffering to the whole sentence; they can also be placed in the middle or at the end

of the sentence

* When we want to emphasize the adverb

Ex Nevos i avì vizen da Never had I seen this

C) Comparatives and Superlatives

MAJ /…-ES, MIN, OS…TE (See 5) The adjective)

Adverbs follow the same rules as adjectives

Ex Vok maj lud / ludes Speak louder Far min spel Don't drive so fast (less fast) os bun te as well as

D) Adverbial particles and Compound Verbs

1) Formation of Compound Verbs

* These verbs are formed with an ordinary verb (generally expressing a movement)

and an adverbial particle (or adverb of movement)

* Origin

These verbs correspond to compound verbs in English (to go up, to come in, to sit down…), to separable particle verbs in German (aufstehen, umbringen…) to verbs with a prefix in Russian (при-ходить, у-ходить, с-ходить). Romance languages use a different verb every time.

Let us compare

* These verbs always have a concrete meaning; both the verb and the particles keep their

original meaning, the sense of the compound is perfectly transparent

B) Place of adverbs of movement

* Before the object if it is long

After the object if it is short

Ce per op de vaizele

C) Value of these adverbs

* They indicate the direction of the action expressed by the verb

* Give a general verb a more precise meaning or modify the meaning of a precise verb

* Transform a verb of position into a verb of movement

D) Meaning of the Adverbs of movement (See prepositions & prefixes: 7, 9b)

Ex Ven in ! Come in ! De ovel flevì in tru de fent = The bird flew in through the window

De ovel flevì in tru de fent

Ex I it op de skalia I go up the stairs de kat klim op u drev the cat climbs up a tree

Ex: Ven ru! Come back! Ito ru to go back davo ru to give back pajo ru to pay back