Seńru
seńra is a constructed language intended to be expressive, enjoyable to use, and simple to learn. its grammar is somewhat unique and may require some adjustment, but it is designed to be exceptionally consistent and flexible.
writing and pronunciation
seńra is simple to pronounce, and it has a regular writing system. tables follow of each phoneme (sound) in the language and the letter used to write it.
| letter | IPA | guide |
|---|---|---|
| p | /p/ | like spin |
| t | /t/ | like stop |
| k | /k/ | like skirt |
| b | /b/ | like bat |
| d | /d/ | like dog |
| g | /g/ | like go |
| s | /s/ | like see |
| z | /z/ | like zoo |
| ts | /ts/ | like cats |
| sh | /ʃ/ | like ship |
| j | /ʒ/ | like measure |
| h | /h/ | like hat |
| w | /w/ | like we |
| r | /ɾ/ | like spanish pero |
| y | /j/ | like yes |
| m | /m/ | like man |
| n | /n/ | like net |
| ń | /ŋ/ | like sing |
| letter | IPA | guide |
|---|---|---|
| a | /a/ | like father |
| e | /e/ | like they |
| i | /i/ | like see |
| o | /o/ | like go |
| u | /u/ | like boot |
the pronunciation guides are not to be taken too seriously. there is a lot of variation in how these english words are pronounced, especially with the vowels.
one particular difference between english and seńra (and many other languages in the world) is that the plosives (like, p, t, or k) in english are often pronounced with what is called aspiration. if you say the word *cat* and hold your hand in front of your face, you may feel a burst of air. the word skirt has a similar sound, but if you hold your hand to your mouth, it won't feel the same way. this is because in the word skirt, the sound is not aspirated. one should try to pronounce the plosives in seńra like this.
another particularity is that the vowels in seńra are "pure" vowels. the vowels in the words go and they are often pronounced as diphthongs, meaning that they start out as one vowel and end at another. one should try to pronounce a single, unchanging vowel.
the consonants p, t, k, s, and *sh* may be geminated. this simply means that they pronounced for longer. this is written by repeating the consonant (p -> pp). geminated sh is written as ssh.
pronouns and articles
| pronoun | kind | meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ka | first person singular | I, me |
| ki | first person plural | we, us |
| ta | second person singular | you |
| ti | second person plural | y'all, youse |
| na | third person singular | she, he, they (singular), her, him, them, it |
| ni | third person plural | they, them |
| ro | reflexive | myself, yourself, ourselves, yourselves, itself, themselves |
| ru | demonstrative | this, that, these, those |
| toshu | interrogative | who, what |
pronouns are the simplest kind of word in seńra. they are not inflected, with the exception of toshu (explained later) and ru. they may act as the subject or object of a verb.
ru is specifically a pronoun. it is not an article, like the, and it is used in the sense of this is good, or I like that. however, it may be inflected into ri and act similarly to an article by means of being a modifier, to be used in the sense of this dog, or that house.
grammar
seńra has one main part of speech, content word, which acts as a verb, but it is used anywhere a noun, adjective, or adverb would be. it is inflected with different suffixes to do different tasks.
| regular | infinitive | imperative | adverbial | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -u | ||||
| intransitive | -i | -ui | -e | -iń |
| transitive | -a | -ua | -ea | -ań |
the word order of a sentence is verb, then object, then subject. the subject of a verb is who is doing or being it, and the object of a verb is what it is being done to.
when a content word is intransitive, it is followed by a subject but no object. when a content word is transitive, it is followed by an object, then a subject.
when a content word is infinitive, it is being used as a subject or object. otherwise, it is being used as a verb.
the imperative form is used for commands. the intransitive imperative form has no explicit subject because the subject is whoever you're talking to. the transitive imperative form has only an explicit object.
tti ka
eat-INTRANS 1s"I'm eating"
tta kinu ka
eat-TRANS plant-INF 1s"I'm eating a plant"
ttea kinu
eat-IMP.TRANS plant-INF"eat a plant"
kini ka
plant-INTRANS 1s"I am a plant"
rezi ttu
good-INTRANS eat-INF"eating is good"
the subject and object of a verb can be the subject of other verbs (called modifiers), which act much like adjectives. the grammar is the same as if it were its own sentence, just inside a larger sentence.
tta rezi kinu ka
eat-TRANS good-INTRANS plant-INF 1s"I'm eating a good plant"
suta kua zegatsi seku sshu ka
talk-TRANS have-TRANS fuchsia-INTRANS hair-INF person-INF 1s"I'm talking to the person with fuchsia hair"
infinitives can have a subject and object via their transitive/intransitive forms.
kuhama mati mitui ta hadua zarui ta ta
reveal-TRANS bad-INTRANS think-INF.INTRANS 2s advocate-INF.TRANS leader-INF.INTRANS 2s 2s`"your presidential campaign has revealed poor thinking on your part"
verbs can themselves be the subject of adverbs, which use the adverbial form.
dońmiń mazi ka
fast-INTRANS.ADV walk-INTRANS 1s"I walk quickly"
gajań ońyi sshu suti ka
frustrate-TRANS.ADV many-INTRANS person-INF talk-INTRANS 1sI talk in a way that frustrates many people
all additional suffixes of a content word occur after the suffixes described above.