Mirad Grammar/Prepositions

100% Prepositions are words that connect and show a relationship between a noun or noun phrase and the rest of the sentence. In Mirad, prepositions are simple monosyllables or phrases. Prepositions, as in English, are positioned before the noun or noun phrase they connect. Single-word Prepositions thumb| In Mirad, there are single-word prepositions and compound prepositions. Here is a chart of single-word prepositions. Most are spatial, but some are temporal, relational, or mathematical. {| class="wikitable" style="background:lightyellow;; font-size:smaller;" |+ Simple Prepositions |- ! Positive !! Neutral !! Negative |- ! colspan="3" | Spatial |- | ab....on, upon || eb....between || ob....off, off of |- | ayb....over, above || eyb....among, amid || oyb....under, below |- | bu....to || be....at || bi....from, of |- | byu....as far as, up to || || byi....starting with |- | ub....toward || || ib....away from |- | yub....near || yeb....in, insideoyeb....outside|| yib....far from |- | yuz....around || yez....along || yiz....beyond |- | za....in front of || ze....at the middle of || zo....behind, in back of |- | zya....throughout || zye....through || |- | || zey....across || |- ! colspan="3" | Temporal |- | ja....before || je....during, while || jo....after |- | ju....until || || ji....since |- ! colspan="3" | Relational |- | av....for || ev....neither for nor againstvyel....than, as, compared to, about || ov....against |- | ayv....about || || oyv....despite |- | ay....and || ey....oroey....nor || oy....but, except |- | bay....with || bey....by, via || boy....without |- | || gel....like, asogel....unlike || |- ! colspan="3" | Mathematical |- | || ge....equal tooge....unequal to || |- | gab....plus, + || gaob....plus or minus || gob....minus, - |- | gal....times, × || || gol....divided by, ÷ |- | gar....to the power of, ˆ || || gor....to the root of, √ |} Some of the above prepositions can be negated by prefixing lo. For example: jo....after --> lojo....no later than, by ji....since --> loji....not since The most versatile and useful single-word preposition is be, which means at as a general locative when used literally, but is used before many nouns and noun phrases when the meaning is idiomatic. Some examples follow: Yat se be tam.....We are at home. (literal, general locative) Yat se be dropek.....We are at war. (idiomatic) At teata et be yibsin.....I saw you on television. (idiomatic) At se be mep.....I am on the way/en route. The preposition be is used as a general locative for all named places. Unlike French, where one has to decide among à, en, and dans before placenames, Mirad just uses the one preposition be, eg.: be Paris....in Paris be Usam....in the U.S. be McDonald's....At McDonald's be Ha Anxwa Doobi....At the United Nations be Totmir....in Heaven Be is can be used to translate at in English most everywhere it is used: be ha yaniv bi zomoj....at last night's party be ha alza mansiun....at the red light be yiban bi yat....at a distance from us be iwa jwobi....at three o'clock be ha uj bi ha domep....at the end of the street The locative preposition yeb is used only for places where on can be physically inside, eg.: Ata teabari se yeb ata nyeyf.....My glasses are in my purse. Ha kapet bese yeb ha tam.....The dog stays in the house. At ifie milper yeb ha mip.....I like swimming in the river. Where the notion of in is used abstractly and not physically, Mirad uses be instead of yeb, eg.: Duven eta agna tixnead be tuz?....Was your major in art? Ese hyogla vladi be tej.....There are no guarantees in life. The preposition into is translated in Mirad as yeb bu, eg.: Bu eta tyoyavi yeb bu ha bixar.....Put yours sock into the drawer. The preposition bi can mean of or from. It is used for possessive (of) and ablative (from) constructions. Here are some examples: Hus se tam bi ifron.....That is a house of worship. At tyopa bi ha nam bu ata pur.....I walked from the store to my car. Bi him bu jobuj.....From here to eternity. Ha tajem bi Tom se him.....Tom's birthplace is here. His sa ha gwaifwa tuzun bi eta teyd.....This was your mother's favorite piece of art. Simple Preposition Examples Ha dyes se ab ha sem.....The book is on the table. Von pyosu ob ha abtamas!....Don't fall off the roof! Ha pati papa ayb ata tam.....The birds flew over my house. It kosa oyb ha yagsim.....He hid under the bench. Simbiu eb hut ay at.....Take a seat between that person and me. Yat teje eyb fiati.....We live among good people. Duhos se nax bi pop bu ay bi Boston?....What is the cost of a trip to and from Boston? His se ifek bi kyen.....This is a game of luck. Duven et sa be hua duzun zomoj?....Were you at that concert last night? Yit se embwa be ha zenod bi ha mapiluzlun.....We are positioned at the hub of this storm. Iyt tyopa byu ha mes.....She walked up to/as far as the door. Ha twob tojbwa bey goblar.....The man was killed with/by a knife. Et xu ga fiay ser bay at vyel boy at.....You would do better to be with me than without me. Teaxu ib ha amar.....Look away from the sun. Von teaxu iz ub ha man.....Don't look directly toward the light. Yibdaliru ub ha uj bi eta pop.....Call me toward the end of your trip. Emkyoxu eta pur yub ha tam.....Park the car near the house. At voy se yib et.....I'm not far from you. Iyt simpa za at. ....She sat in front of me. Et yeyfe simbier zo hua toyb.....You should sit in back of that woman. Embu has zu ha mis.....Put it to the left of the door. At simpo zi et.....I will sit to the right of you. Ha pat besa ze ha tim.....The bird stayed in the middle of the room. Mil upeye zye ha yijun.....Water is coming through the opening. Bikiu je pen zey ha domep......Take care when going across the street. Eso ivan zya ha mir.....There will be happiness throughout the world. His xwo ja zajub. ....This will happen before tomorrow. Esa mapil je ha moj.....There was a storm during the night. Ju zamaj.....Until tomorrow morning. At voy teataye et ji zoyejub.....I have not seen you since last week. Diwe xu hes av at.....Please do something for me. Hia dyes se ayv dalzeyntun.....This book is about linguistics. Hia dyen se din vyel ewa fiuti.....This book is a story about two lovers. Datan se ga fia vyel nas.....Friendship is better than money. Hos se ge fua vyel has hu yat xola zojab.....Nothing is as bad as what we underwent last year. Yit yexeya ov yat.....They were working against us. Ha vakdibut dopoxa at oyv ata azovdeyni.....The police officer arrested me despite my protests. At se ev hua doyafkexut.....I am neither for nor against/neutral toward that candidate. Et ay Bob yeyfe ser dati.....You and Bob should be friends. Duhot ako, et ey at?....Who will win, you or I? Hyat oy hwut ta ha dud.....Everyone but that guy knew the answer. Esa mag yub at.....There was a fire near me.:: Voy ese fabi yuz ata tam.....There are no trees around my house. Et yafo tyoper yez ha kunad.....You'll have to walk along the edge. Ese gla mari yiz yata amar.....There are many stars beyond our sun. Ha fepet tyopa iz zye hia mes.....The cat walked right through this door. Boy yombiel, tej voy se fia.....Without ice cream, life is not good. Et voy se gel at.....You are not like me. Et se hyagla ogel at.....You are totally unlike me. Pu yez ha domep ay bilu at ebpovel.....Go down the street and get me a sandwich. Ewa gab ewa gese uwa.....Two plus two equals four. Uwa gob ewa gese ewa.....Four minus two equals two. Ewa gal ewa gese uwa.....Two times two equals four. Ewa gol ewa gese awa.....Two divided by two equals one. Uwa gar ewa gese asya.....Four squared (42) equals sixteen. (Lit: Four to the power of two...) Alya gor e gese u.....The square root (√16) of sixteen is four. (Lit: Sixteen to the minus power of two...) The case of ay, ey, oey, and oy These words can function as either prepositions or conjunctions. When used between two words that are not clauses, they act as prepositons, for example: (Hyaewa / ay) ata twed ay ata teyd....(Both) my father and my mother Yat peye (hyeawa / ey) dem ey dyezun.....We are going to (either) a park or a movie. Hyat oy et te his.....Everybody but you knows this. (Hyoewa / oy) wit oey iyt dale Mirad.....(Neither) he nor she speaks Mirad. See the chapter on Conjunctions for the use of these connectors with clauses. Hybridized Prepositions Some of the above prepositions can be hybridized: bui taam....to and fro home zui ha dodalut....to the left and right of the speaker gaob glos....plus or minus a bit aov at....for or against me aoyeb bi ha tim....in and out of the room aob ha seem....on and off the counter Compound Prepositions Compound prepositions require the use of multiple morphemes, including prepositions, adverbs, and nouns. Compound Prepositions Using Adverbs There are certain directional adverbs that can play a part in forming prepositional phrases, but cannot act as prepositions in and of themselves: {| class="wikitable" style="background:lightyellow;; font-size:smaller;" |+ Adverbs Used in Compound Prepositions |- | iz....directly, straight || uz....indirectly, roundabout |- | yab....up || yob....down |- | yan....together || yon....apart |- | zay....forward, ahead || zoy....back |- | zi....right || zu....left |} The next chart lists some compound prepositions using the above adverbs or other combinations. Note that when combining two words, if the first word ends in b and the second begins with b, one of the b 's is dropped. {| class="wikitable" style="background:lightyellow;; font-size:smaller;" |+ Compound Prepositions Using Adverbs and Other Prepositions |- ! Compound Preposition !! Example |- | ab bu....onto || Ha zyun pyosa ab bu ha abtamas.....The ball fell onto the roof. |- | ob bi....off of || Ha zyun pyosa ob bi ha abtamas.....The ball fell off of the roof. |- | yab bu....up to|| It fu paper yab bu ha mam.....He would like to fly up to the sky. |- | yab bi....up from || Su yab bi ha sum.....Get up from the bed. |- | yab yez....up (along) || Yat tyoyapo yab yez ha memyayz.....We will walk up the hill. |- | yab be....up at || Ha kapet kaxwa yab bee ha tam.....The dog was found up at the house. |- | yab ab....up on, upon || Ha fepet se yab ab ha abtamas.....The cat is up on the roof. |- | yob bu....down to || Igpu yob bu ha obmos.....Run down to the cellar. |- | yob bi....down from || Ha tat upa yob bi ha mam.....The angel came down from the sky. |- | yob yez....down || Iyt igtyoyapa yob yez ha meab.....She ran down the hill. |- | yob be....down at || Ha dyes kaxwa yob be ha obem.....The book was found down at the bottom. |- | yob ab....down on || Has kaxwa yob ab eta oybmos.....It was found down on your floor. |- | yeb bu....into || It pusa yeb bu ha mip.....He jumped into the river. |- | yeb bi....in from || Upu yeb bi ha oma oyebem.....Come in from the cold outdoors. |- | oyeb be....out in/at || Ha tudi sa oyeb be ha zodeym.....The children were out in the backyard. |- | oyeb bi....out from || Yepu oyeb bi ha om.....Come in out from the cold. |- | oyeb buu....out to || Yat fu peper oyeb bu ha meim.....We'd like to ride out to the countryside. |- | iz bu....straight to || Pu iz bu fyomir! ....Go straight to hell! |- | iz zoy bi....right back from || It upu iz zoy bi ha yexim.....He came right back from the office. |- | zay bu....on to, forth to, ahead to || Ha bixpur popa zay bu zona doym.....The train traveled on to the next town. |- | zey bi....across from || At simbeseya zey bi et.....I was sitting across from you. |- | zoy bi....back from || At se zoy bi ha yextim.....I am back from the office. |- | zoy bu....back to || Pu zoy bu ha nam.....Go back to the store. |- | zoy be....back at || Duven et se zoy be tam?....Are you back at home? |- | zu bi....to the left of || Ata tam se zu bi hut.....My house is to the right of that guy's. |- | zi bi....to the right of || Huta tam se zi bi atas.....That guy's house is to the right of mine. |- | yan bay....together with || Wit pa yan bay at bu ha dyezam.....He went together with me to the theater. |- | yon bi....apart from || Yon bi at, hyot ta ha dud.....Apart from me, nobody knew the answer. |} Prepositional Phrases Using Spatial Nouns The following chart shows how prepositions and directional adverbs can be joined with the spatial ending -(e)m meaning place (or others) to be form spatial nouns, which, in turn, can be used in idiomatic prepositional phrases: {| class="wikitable" style="background:lightyellow;; font-size:smaller;" |+ Spatial Nouns Built on Prepositions or Adverbs |- | ab....on || abem....topabned....upper surfaceabmas....roof |- | eb....between || ebem....intersticeebjob....intervalebnod....intersectionebmas....partition |- | ob....off || obem....bottomobned....lower surfaceobmas....foundation |- | ayb....above || aybem....area aboveaybmas....ceiling |- | oyb....below || oybem....area belowoybmas....floor |- | eyb....among || eybem....midst |- | yab....up || yabem....upstairs, upper areayabneg....top level |- | yob....down || yobem....downstairs, lower areayobneg....bottom level |- | yeb....in || yebem....inside, interior, indoorsyebnig....inner space |- | oyeb....out || oyebem....outside, exterior, outdoors |- | za....in front of || zam....front, foregroundzan....face |- | ze....in the middle of || zem....middlezenod....center, hubzen....centerzenad....median |- | zo....behind || zom....back, rear, background |- | zi....right || zim....right areazikum....left sideziizon....right directionimer....east |- | zu....left || zum....left areazukum....left sidezuizon....left directionumer....west |- | iz....straight || izmep....direct routeiznad....vectorizon....direction |- | uz....indirectly || uzmep....detouruznad....curveuzon....deviation |- | yub....near || yubem....vicinityyubkum....near sideyubaj....recent past |- | yib....far || yibem....distanceyibkum....far sideyibnod....poleyiboj....distant future |- | yuz....around || yuzem....periferyyuznad....perimeteryuznig....environment |- | yiz....beyond || yizem....area beyondyiznod....extremity |} The following chart shows phrasal prepositions that can be created with the use of the spatial nouns in the previous section or other nouns. These phrases are considered idiomatic, because they are abbreviated by the omission of the definite article ha in front of the noun: {| class="wikitable" style="background:lightyellow;; font-size:smaller;" |+ Idiomatic Phrasal Prepositions ! At Somewhere !! To Somewhere !! From Somewhere |- | be abem bi....at the top of || bu abem bi....to the top of || bi abem bi....from the top of |- | be obem bi....at the bottom of || bu obem bi....to the bottom of || bi obem bi....from the top of |- | be ebem bi....in the area between || bu ebem bi....to the area between || bi ebem bi....from the area between |- | be aybem bi....above, over || bu aybem bi....to the area above || bi aybem bi....from the area above |- | be oybem bi....below, under || bu oybem bi....to the area below || bi oybem bi....from the area below |- | be eybem bi....amid || zye eybem bi....through the midst of || bi eybem bi....from the midst of |- | be zam bi....at the front of || bu zam bi....to the front of || bi zam bi....from the front of |- | be zem bi....at the middle of || bu zem bi....to the middle of || bi zem bi....from the middle of |- | be zom bi....at the back of || bu zom bi....to the back of || bi zom bi....from the back of |- | be zim bi....at the right of || bu zim bi....to the right of || bi zim bi....from the right of |- | be zum bi....at the left of || bu zum bi....to the left of || bi zum bi....from the left of |- | be yubem bi....in the vicinity of || bu yubem bi....to the vicinity of || bi yubem bi....from the vicinity of |- | be yibem bi....at a distance from || bey azon bi....by dint of || be avon bi....in favor of |- | be ubem bi....in the direction of || bay ux bi....with assistance from || be byux bay....in touch with |- | be yabem bi....in the upper reaches of || be vyen bu....in relation to || doytaxwa bay....associated with |- | be yobem bi....in the bottom area of || be ned bi....on the level of || be mep bu....on the way to, en route |- | be yebem bi....on the inside of, inside || be oyebem bi....on the outside of, outside || bu oyebem bi....to the exterior of |- | bey mep bi....by way of, via || be kum bi....beside, at the side of || be ij bi....at the start of |- | be uj bi....at the end of || bey uxun bi....by means of || be kunad bi....at the edge of |- | be nod bi....at the point of || be yebem bi....at the interior of, inside || be oyebem bi....at the exterior of, outside |- | be nad bay....in line with || be uznod bi....alongside || be tes bi....in the sense of |- | be teas bi....in the guise of || be san bi....in the form of || be yanx bi....in conjunction with |- | be bol bi....in support of || be gab bu....in addition to || be dyun bi....in the name of |- | be avson bi....on behalf of || be vyeson bi....on the subject of || bay yux bi....with the aid of |} Adjectivized Prepositions Simple prepositions can be converted into adjectives by suffixing the adjectival ending -a. Here are some examples: aba....superior (ex. aba doyevam....superior court) oba....inferior ayba....upper oyba....lower yaba....high yoba....low eba....in-between gaba....additional goba....subtractive gala....multiple gaza....logarithmic gea....equal gela....same iba....away ogea....unequal jaa....anterior, prior jea....present joa....posterior ava....in favor, favorable, pro eva....neutral ova....against, unfavorable, counter oyva....opposite, inverse yeba....inner oyeba....outer yeza....flush yuba....near yiba....far, distant yiza....extreme, yonder yuza....circular zaa....front, anterior zea....medial, middle zoa....rear, back, posterior zia....left zua....right A slight nuanced meaning can be achieved by suffixing -na instead of -a. jana....previous jona....next zana....next, anterior zona....last, posterior ovna....antithetical yebna....interior, internal oyebna....exterior, external zena....central ebna....intermediate yizna....ulterior, extreme yuzna....peripheral yubna....proximate Prepositions and Adverbs as Verb Prefixes Prepositions and adverbs can be prefixed to verbs to alter their directionality. If such a prefix ends in -b and the verb is a form of ber (to put) or per (to go), the final b of the prefix is dropped. Let take the verbs per (to go) and ber (to put) as examples: {| class="wikitable" style="background:lightyellow;; font-size:smaller;" |+ Prepositional/Adverbial Prefixes on Verbs |- ! Preposition/Adverb !! per (intr.) !! ber (tr.) |- | ab....on || aper....to get on, to board || aber....to put on, apply |- | ob....off || oper....to get off, to dismount || ober....to take off, remove |- | eb....between || eper....to intervene || eber....to block |- | ib....away || iper....to go away || iber....to receive |- | ub....toward || uper....to come || uber....to send |- | yab....up || yaper....to get up, to rise, to ascend || yaber....to raise |- | yob....down || yoper....to get down, to descend || yober....to lower |- | yeb....in || yeper....to get in, to enter || yeber....to put in |- | oyeb....out || oyeper....to get out, to exit || oyeber....to take out |- | yub....near || yuper....to get near, to approach || yuber....to bring |- | yib....far || yiper....to retreat, to distance oneself || yiber....to remove |- | yiz....beyond || yizper....to pass, exceed || yizber....to pass |- | yuz....around || yuzper....to go around, to circulate || yuzber....to encircle |- | yez....along || yezper....to go along || yezber....to set along |- | yan....together || yanper....to get together, to meet || yanber....to join |- | yon....apart || yonper....to go apart, to separate|| yonber....to separate |- | ja....before || japer....to go before, to precede || jaber....to prepare |- | jo....after || joper....to go after, to follow|| jober....to postpone |- | za....front || zaper....to lead, to go in front|| zaber....to put in front |- | zo....back || zoper....to lag, to go in back || zober....to delay |- | zay....forward || zayper....to go forward, to advance || zayber....to put forward |- | zoy....backward || zoyper....to go back, to return || zoyber....to put back |- | zey....across || zeyper....to go across, to transit || zeyber....to transfer |} If the verb to which a prefixed preposition ending in -b is attached begins in a b, but a verb other than ber, the b of the prefix remains. If the stem begins in p, the b of the prefixed preposition is dropped. ab + byexer....to strike) => abbyexer....to pat ab + pyexer....to hit) => apyexer....to attack The above rule is applied, because otherwise, ambiguities could arise. For example, abyexer could be analyzed as ab+byexer (to hit on = to pat) or ab+yexer (to work on). Separable Verb Prefixes Verbal prefixes that are formed from prepositions and adverbs can usually be "unpacked", that is, treated as separate words. This works like separable verbs in German. The following table demonstrates this: {| class="wikitable" style="background:lightyellow;; font-size:smaller;" |+ Separable Verb Prefixes |- ! Verb-bound !! Unpacked !! English |- | Mapuzrun yuzpa yata tam. || Mapuzrun pa yuz yata tam.||A tornado circled/went around our house. (= went around) |- | Ha yux bi calk yeyfe yobnogxwer. || Ha yux bi cal yeyfe nogxwer yob.||The use of carbon should be downscaled. (= scaled down) |- | Yat zaybuxo hia dovyabdren. || Yat buxo hia dovyabdren zay.'''||We shall advance this legislation. (= push forward)'' |} Verbs Conjunctions