Wiki-Grammar of Lidepla

- the plural form of nouns (+ (e)s): kitAba / kitAbas – book / books, man / mAnes – man / men

- adverbs formed from adjectives: jamIle / jamIlem – beautiful / beautifully

- nouns formed from verbs: lOpi / lOping – run / running

Simple sentence

1. Word order in a clause: subject – predicate – object (usually)

- Me (I) lubi (to love) yu (you). – I love you.

To mark the change of the word order special particles are used:

a) da (before the subject)

b) den (before the object):

- Lubi (to love) da me (I). – I love.

- Den yu (you) me (I) lubi (to love). – I love you. It's you whom I love.

2. Word order in a phrase: adjective is before a noun (usually).

- Es (is/are) may (my) syao (little) son (son). – That's my little son.

To emphasize the adjective, it can be placed after the noun.

- Me (I) pri (to like) elay (her) gran (big) okos (eyes) blu (blue). – I like her big blue eyes.

3. Predicative adjectives and nominals

- May (my) mata (mother) es (is) talimer (teacher). – My mother is a teacher.

- May (my) sista (sister) yao (to want) bikam (to become) leker (doctor). – My sister wants to become a doctor.

- Sey (this) gela (girl) es (is) muy (very) jamile (beautiful). – This girl is very beautiful.

- Es (is) jamile (beautiful) hir (here). – It's beautiful here.

4. Impersonal sentence (without the subject)

- Pluvi (to rain) gro (much). – It rains / is raining much.

- Treba (it's necessary) shwo (to talk). – It's necessary to talk.

- Es (is) garme (hot). – It's hot.

5. Negation: negation particle bu is placed before the verb group.

- Lu (he) bu (not) somni (to sleep). – He doesn't sleep / isn't sleeping.

- Me (I) bu (not) wud (would) yao (to want) resti (to remain) dar (there). – I won't stay there.

If there is at least one negative word in the phrase, the whole phrase gets a negative meaning. If there are several of them, that only emphasizes the negative meaning.

- Lu (he) bu (not) samaji (to understand) nixa (nothing), neva (never)! – He doesn't understand anything, ever!

6. General question: the particle ob (is placed before the phrase):

- Ob yu (you) lubi (to love) me (I)? – Do you love me?

Possible answers: ya (yes), non (no), doh

a) Ob yu lubi me? – Ya, me lubi. Non, me bu lubi. – Do you love me? – Yes, I do. No, I don't.

b) Ob yu bu lubi me? – Ya / non, me bu lubi. Doh, me lubi. – Don't you love me? – No, I don't. Yes, I do.

Other ways to make a general question:

a) "bu ver?" (is placed after a phrase, with a comma):

- Es (is) hao (good) meteo (weather), bu (not) ver (really)? – The weather is good, isn't it?

Possible answers: ver (yes, it's true), bu es ver (no, it isn't true).

b) Repeating of the verb with "bu" particle:

- Yu lai-bu-lai? – Are you coming (or not)?

7. Special question

In a special question the question word is put in the beginning of the phrase, the word order doesn't change. The inversion can occur only in the phrase with the verb "bi / es/ bin": Wo (where) es (is) may (my) kalam (pencil)? – Where is my pencil?

hu – who: Hu (who) somni (to sleep)? – Who sleeps?

kwo – what: Kwo (what) yu (you) vidi (to see)? – What do you see?

kwel – what sort of, which: Kwel (what) flor (flower) yu (you) pri (to like)? – What flower do you like?

komo – how: Komo (how) yu (you) zwo (to make) se (this)? – How do you make this / have you made this?

way – why: Way (why) yu (you) bu (not) somni (to sleep)? – Why don't you sleep?

wen – when: Wen (when) yu (you) lai (to come)? – When are you coming?

wo – where: Wo (where) es (is) may (my) docha (daughter)? – Where is my daughter?

a wo – where, to what direction: A wo (where) yu (you) yao (to want) go (to go)? – Where do you want to go?

fon wo – where from: Fon wo (where from) yu (you) lai (to come)? – Where do you come from?