There is one additional set of verb suffixes which Klingon grammarians call lengwI'mey rovers (from leng travel, roam, rove, -wI' thing which does, -mey plural). Rovers are verb suffixes which do not have a fixed position in relation to the other suffixes following a verb but, instead, can come just about anywhere except following a Type 9 suffix. Their position is determined by the meaning intended. There are two types of rovers: the negative and the emphatic.
-be' not
This is the general suffix of negation, translated as English not. It follows the concept being negated.
vIlo'laHbe' they are useless to me, I cannot use them
vI- (prefix) I--them
lo' (verb) use
-laH (5) can, able
-be' (rover) not
jISaHbe' I don't care (which of several courses of action is followed)
jI- (prefix) I
SaH (verb) care, be concerned about
-be' (rover) not
qay'be' it's not a problem, no problem (exclamation)
0 (prefix) it
qay' (verb) be a problem, be a hassle
-be' (rover) not
The roving nature of -be' is best illustrated in the following set of words.
choHoHvIp you are afraid to kill me
choHoHvIpbe' you are not afraid to kill me
choHoHbe'vIp you are afraid to not kill me
cho- (prefix) you--me
HoH (verb) kill
-vIp (2) afraid
-be' (rover) not
In the second word, the negated notion is afraid (that is, not afraid), and -be' follows -vIp. In the third word, the negated notion is kill (that is, not kill), so -be' follows HoH.
The suffix -be' can't be used with imperative verbs to mean "don't!". For imperatives, the following suffix is required to say don't. See the paragraph at the bottom of this section for more information on using -be' and -Qo' on the same verb.
-Qo' don't!, won't
This negative suffix is used in imperatives and to denote refusal.
yIja'Qo' don't tell him/her!
yI- (prefix) imperative: you--him/her
ja' (verb) tell
-Qo' (rover) don't!
choja'Qo'chugh if you won't tell me, if you refuse to tell me
cho- (prefix) you--me
ja' (verb) tell
-Qo' (rover) won't
-chugh (9) if
HIHoHvIpQo' don't be afraid to kill me!
HI- (prefix) imperative: you--me
HoH (verb) kill
-vIp (2) afraid
-Qo' (rover) don't!
Unlike -be', the position of -Qo' does not change: it occurs last, unless followed by a Type 9 suffix. Nevertheless, it is considered a rover because it is the imperative counterpart to -be'.
-Ha' undo
This negative suffix implies not merely that something is not done (as does -be'), but that there is a change of state: something that was previously done is now undone. For convenience, it will here be translated as undo, but it is closer to the English prefixes mis-, de-, dis- (as in misunderstand, demystify, disentangle). It is also used if something is done wrongly. Unlike -be', -Ha' can be used in imperatives.
chenHa'moHlaH it can destroy them
0 (prefix) it--them
chen (verb) take form
-Ha' (rover) undo
-moH (4) cause
-laH (5) can, able
This verb actually means something like it can cause them to undo their form.
yIchu'Ha' disengage it! (e.g., cloaking device)
yI- (prefix) imperative: you--it
chu' (verb) engage, activate
-Ha' (rover) undo
bIjatlhHa'chugh if you say the wrong thing
bI- (prefix) you
jatlh (verb) say
-Ha' (rover) undo
-chugh (9) if
This shows how -Ha' can be used in the sense of wrongly. The word might be translated as if you misspeak. Using -be' (that is, bIjatlhbe'chugh) would mean if you don't speak.
Do'Ha' it is unfortunate
0 (prefix) it
-Do' (verb) be lucky, fortunate [[-Do'=Do']]
-Ha' (rover) undo
The use of -Ha' in this sentence suggests a turn of luck from good to bad.
It is interesting that -Ha' always occurs right after the verb. It is not known why Klingon grammarians insist on calling it a rover. It was felt best not to argue with Klingon tradition, however, so -Ha' is here classified as a rover.
-qu' emphatic
This suffix emphasizes or affirms whatever immediately precedes it.
yIHaDqu' study him/her well
yI- (prefix) imperative: you--him/her
HaD (verb) study
-qu' (rover) emphatic
nuQaw'qu'be' they have not finished us off
nu- (prefix) they--us
Qaw' (verb) destroy
-qu' (rover) emphatic
-be' (rover) not
The roving nature of -qu' can be seen in the following set:
pIHoHvIpbe'qu' we are NOT afraid to kill you
pIHoHvIpqu'be' we are not AFRAID to kill you
pIHoHqu'vIpbe' we are not afraid to KILL you
pI- (prefix) we--you
HoH (verb) kill
-vIp (2) afraid
-be' (rover) not
-qu' (rover) emphatic
The first word above might be used after an enemy challenged the bravery of the speaker. The second might be followed by an explanation such as, "We are not willing to kill you because we require your services." The third word would be used to emphasize killing, as opposed to some other form of punishment.
The rover -qu' also follows verbs when they are used adjectivally (section 4.4).
Clarifying using -be' and -Qo' together
-Qo' is used (and -be' is not) for a negative command when the meaning of the command is "don't do X!" If X contains a -be', but the command is to not do X, you still need -Qo'at the end (if you're saying "don't do X!" and not "do not-X!" or "do un-X!").
choleghbe'moH you cause me to not see.
If you wanted make this a command ("Cause me to not see!"), it would be HIleghbe'moH. That's fine. I'm telling you to do something ("cause me to not see") not to not do something. It doesn't violate the rule about using -Qo' instead of -be' because it's not a negative command. The corresponding negative command would be
HIleghbe'moHQo' Don't cause me to not see!
When -Qo' is used in a non-imperative, it's straightforward:
choleghbe'moHQo' you refuse to cause me to not see.
