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4.4.0

Adjectives
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Klingon doesn't have adjectives in the same way English does. Instead, Klingon uses descriptive verbs to express qualities or states (like be big, be tired). When describing a noun, the descriptive verb is placed directly after it:

  • puq Doy' - tired child (puq - child, Doy' - be tired)

  • Dujmey tIn - big ships (Dujmey - ships, tIn - be big)

The emphatic rover -qu' (section 4.3) can be added to verbs used adjectivally, typically translating as "very":

  • Dujmey tInqu' - very big ships

  • wanI' ramqu' - a very trivial event (wanI' - event, ram - be trivial)

Other rovers, specifically -be' ("not") and -Ha' ("undo, misdo"), can also modify verbs functioning adjectivally:

  • puq Doybe' - not tired child

  • HoD QuchHa' - an unhappy captain (HoD - captain, QuchHa' - be unhappy)

When a Type 5 noun suffix (section 3.3.5) is attached to a noun described by a verb, it must come after the descriptive verb and follows the verb suffixes if any are present:

  • veng tInDaq - in the big city (veng - city, tIn - be big, -Daq - locative)

  • veng tInqu'Daq - in the very big city

  • HoD QuchHa'Daq - on the unhappy captain

When using multiple descriptive verbs ("adjectives") for one noun, use one of the following constructions:

  • SuD Dargh 'ej wov - the tea is green and bright (SuD - be green, wov - be bright)

  • SuDbogh Dargh 'ej wovbogh - the tea that is green and bright

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