Lesson 8 – introducing verb prefix Da-

"Do you speak Klingon?"

Beginners, welcome!

Today we are going to learn how to ask someone if they can speak Klingon. And for this, we're going to need a new verb prefix!

tlhIngan Hol Dajatlh'a'? = Do you speak Klingon?

• Da- = you (singular)--it/him/her

  The verb prefix Da- indicates that the subject of the verb is the singular you and the object of the verb is in the third person, that is to say: it, him or her.

  As a reminder, since the prefix Da- already serves to identify the subject of the verb, there is no need to add the pronoun SoH (=singular you) to the sentence. It is not wrong to have it, merely superfluous, and so it is usually omitted, but the below is still correct:

  tlhIngan Hol Dajatlh'a' SoH? = Do you speak Klingon?

  And in case you are wondering why I specified "singular you" as the subject, well that's because Klingon makes a difference between singular and plural you and so requires different set of prefixes for each of them. But no worries, the plural you will of course be the subject of future lessons (qID Dalegh'a'? = Do you see the joke?) ;-)

  For now, a couple of examples:
  paq DalaD = you read the book
  HIq Datlhutlh = you drink wine (HIq = liquor, ale, beer, wine)
  yuch DaSop = you eat chocolate

• -'a' = interrogative suffix

  We saw this one in the previous lesson, so let's practice it already by combining it with Da-!

  [noun] Da-[verb]-'a'? = Do you [verb] [noun]?

  tlhIngan Hol DaHaD'a'? = Do you study Klingon?
  yuch DaneH'a'? = Do you want chocolate?
  lut DaSov'a'? = Do you know the story?

Now it's your turn to make your own sentences! Here are a few words for inspiration:

Qapla'!

Prepared by Aurélie Demonchaux (ghItlhjaj)