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Lessons 31-40
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- 31 - Plurals (3): Class plurals
- 32 - Possessive, singular and diminutive suffixes
- 33 - Comparatives & Superlatives
- 34 - Abstract Suffix
- 35 - Further suffixes
- 36 - How to make names (1)
- 37 - How to make names (2)
- 38 - Gondorian & Mirkwood Sindarin
- 39 - Doriathrin Sindarin
- 40 - Liquid and Stop mutations
- Lessons 41 onwards >
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A-stem past tense
These are the 'normal' past tense endings for A-stem verbs. Some verbs in Sindarin can take both transitive (they need an object) and intransitive (they don't need an object) forms like Banga- 'to trade'. We can say both 'I traded' (this is intransitive) and 'I traded it' (this is transitive). These past tense endings are used for:
Active participles for A-stem verbs require you to apply i-affection. Remember to remove the final -a of the verb too.
e.g. Fara- 'to hunt'.
Singular: Fariel 'having been hunted'; remove the final -a and add -iel.
Plural: Feriel 'having been hunted'; remove the final -a, add -iel and apply i-affection to the initial A.
Passive participle plurals just require you to pluralise the word as normal.
e.g. Banga- 'to trade'.
Singular: Bangannen 'traded' (as in 'the traded good')
Plural: Bengennin 'traded' (as in 'the traded goods')
- The transitive forms of verbs like Banga- that can be used in two ways; when we want to say 'I traded it' we use these endings. When we want to use forms like 'I traded' you need the endings found in Lesson 19.
- Transitive verbs like Gwathra- (you can say 'It overshadowed us' but not 'It overshadowed').
Active participles for A-stem verbs require you to apply i-affection. Remember to remove the final -a of the verb too.
e.g. Fara- 'to hunt'.
Singular: Fariel 'having been hunted'; remove the final -a and add -iel.
Plural: Feriel 'having been hunted'; remove the final -a, add -iel and apply i-affection to the initial A.
Passive participle plurals just require you to pluralise the word as normal.
e.g. Banga- 'to trade'.
Singular: Bangannen 'traded' (as in 'the traded good')
Plural: Bengennin 'traded' (as in 'the traded goods')
Pronominal suffixes
1st person 'I...' |
-nnen |
Plural 'We...' |
-nnem |
2nd person formal 'You...' |
-nnol |
Plural 'You (all)...' |
-nnodh |
2nd person informal 'You...' |
-nnog |
Plural 'You (all)...' |
-nnogir |
3rd person 'He/she/it...' |
-nt |
Plural 'They...' |
-nner |
Active participle 'having been...' |
-iel |
Plural |
-iel |
Passive participle (adjective) |
-nnen |
Plural |
-nnin |
Example: Lasta- 'to listen'
1st person 'I listened' |
Lastannen |
Plural 'We listened' |
Lastannem |
2nd person formal 'You listened' |
Lastannol |
Plural 'You (all) listened' |
Lastannodh |
2nd person informal 'You listened' |
Lastannog |
Plural 'You (all) listened' |
Lastannogir |
3rd person 'He/she/it listened' |
Lastant |
Plural 'They listened' |
Lastanner |
Active participle 'having been listened to' |
Lastiel |
Plural |
Lestiel |
Passive participle 'listened' |
Lastannen |
Plural |
Lestennin |
I-stem past tense
Remember to use i-affection when dealing with i-stem verbs
There are two paradigms for forming the past tense of I-stem verbs in Sindarin. The one below is the Noldorin past tense of the Etymologies. This paradigm treats the Weak past tense as the regular way of conjugating the past tense and treats the conjugations of verbs like Bal-, Men- and Car- as irregulars. The second paradigm found further down the page is to treat the Strong past tense conjugations of verbs like Bal-, Men- and Car- as the regular conjugations applied to all I-stem verbs.
These verbs are attested to use the strong past tense and should always be formed thusly. Regardless of which version of the past tense you prefer, always use Version 2 with these verbs and never Version 1.
Bal- 'to rule'
Car- 'to do, make'
Caw- 'to taste'
Dag- 'to slay'
Dew- 'to fail, miss'
Men- 'to go'
Nidh- 'to intend'
Nor- 'to run'
Bal- 'to rule'
Car- 'to do, make'
Caw- 'to taste'
Dag- 'to slay'
Dew- 'to fail, miss'
Men- 'to go'
Nidh- 'to intend'
Nor- 'to run'
I-stem past tense
Version 1: the Weak past tense
This version of the past tense is based on the idea that as in English there are a small number of 'irregular' verbs that take a strong past tense using internal vowel changes (the English examples would be 'I drank' or 'I swam') and the majority of verbs take a weak past tense (in English these end in an 'ed', e.g. 'I braked', 'I jumped').
Step One
Find the final consonant and change it according to the table below.
Final consonant (from the stem) |
Becomes in 1st person, 2nd person and the passive participle |
Becomes in 3rd person singular (nothing further is added) |
B |
-MM- |
-MP |
D |
-NN- |
-NT |
DH |
-NN- |
-NT |
G |
-NG- |
-NC |
L |
-LL- |
-LL |
M |
-MM- |
-MP |
R |
-RN- |
-RN |
V/F |
-MM- |
-MP |
W |
-WN- |
-WN |
Step Two
Now we apply i-affection to the vowels in the stem UNLESS we want the 3rd person singular ‘he did, she fashioned, it threw’ or the singular passive participle (the released arrow, the caught ball). The former doesn't need anything else added to it e.g. Hemp = He kept, Gant = She threw and the latter's suffix doesn't contain an 'i' so it doesn't trigger i-affection.
Vowel |
Changes to |
a |
e |
e |
e |
i |
i |
o |
e |
Step Three: Pronominal suffixes
1st person 'I ...' |
-in |
Plural 'We...' |
-im |
2nd person formal 'You...' |
-il |
Plural 'You (all)...' |
-idh |
2nd person informal 'You...' |
-ig |
Plural 'You (all)...' |
-igir |
3rd person 'He/she/it came' |
See table in Step One |
Plural 'They...' |
-ir |
Active participle 'having xyz' |
See table below in Step Four for stem vowel change -iel |
Plural |
-ir |
Passive participle (adjective) |
-en |
Plural |
-in |
Step Four: Active participle vowel changes
Stem vowel |
Changes to |
Example |
A |
ó |
Dag- = Dógiel |
E |
í |
Heb- = Híbiel |
I |
í |
Cil- = Cílliel |
O |
ú |
Tog- = Túgiel |
Example: Tol- 'to come'
1st person 'I came' |
Tellin |
Plural 'We came' |
Tellim |
2nd person formal 'You came' |
Tellil |
Plural 'You (all) came' |
Tellidh |
2nd person informal 'You came' |
Tellig |
Plural 'You (all) came' |
Telligir |
3rd person 'He/she/it came' |
Toll |
Plural 'They came' |
Tellir |
Active participle 'having come' |
Túliel |
Plural |
Túlil |
Passive participle 'come' |
Tollen |
Plural |
Tellin |
I-stem verbs with two vowels
If the I-stem verb has two internal vowels, such as Echad- = to fashion, make or Adleg- = to release, i-affection is usually applied to both where appropriate, e.g.
Edlengin = I released, Adlenc = He released (there is no 'i' added as a suffix to cause the first A to change), Edlengir = They released
Echennin = I fashioned, Echant = He fashioned, Echennir = They fashioned
There are five attested verbs (and some reconstructed ones) that this does not apply to:
Orthel-, Orthor-, Osgar-, Palandir- and Trenar-.
Because the first part of these verbs is a prefix, i-affection does not apply to the first vowel, e.g.
Orthellin = I roofed, Orthell = He roofed, Orthellir = They roofed
Orthernin = I conquered, Orthorn = He conquered, Orthernir = They conquered
Oscernin = I amputated, Oscarn = He amputated, Oscernir = They amputated
Palandirnin = I watched from afar, Palandirn = He watched from afar, Palandirnir = They watched from afar
Trenernin = I recounted, Trenarn = He recounted, Trenernir = They recounted
There is one verb, Gwedh- 'to bind' that is only irregular in the 3rd person form; Gwedhant = He/she/it bound.
Edlengin = I released, Adlenc = He released (there is no 'i' added as a suffix to cause the first A to change), Edlengir = They released
Echennin = I fashioned, Echant = He fashioned, Echennir = They fashioned
There are five attested verbs (and some reconstructed ones) that this does not apply to:
Orthel-, Orthor-, Osgar-, Palandir- and Trenar-.
Because the first part of these verbs is a prefix, i-affection does not apply to the first vowel, e.g.
Orthellin = I roofed, Orthell = He roofed, Orthellir = They roofed
Orthernin = I conquered, Orthorn = He conquered, Orthernir = They conquered
Oscernin = I amputated, Oscarn = He amputated, Oscernir = They amputated
Palandirnin = I watched from afar, Palandirn = He watched from afar, Palandirnir = They watched from afar
Trenernin = I recounted, Trenarn = He recounted, Trenernir = They recounted
There is one verb, Gwedh- 'to bind' that is only irregular in the 3rd person form; Gwedhant = He/she/it bound.
I-stem past tense
Version 2: The strong past tense
This is the method most commonly used by Sindarin scholars to form the past tense of all single vowel i-stem verbs.
Verbs like Echad- and Adleg- cannot form their past tense in this manner; use the weak I-stem version method above.
Verbs like Echad- and Adleg- cannot form their past tense in this manner; use the weak I-stem version method above.
Step One
Find the stem vowel.
Place a copy of this vowel at the beginning of the stem, e.g.
Ped- take another E and place it at the beginning, EPED
Car- take another A and place it at the beginning, ACAR
Tog- take another O and place it at the beginning, OTOG
Mab- take another A and place it at the beginning, AMAB
Place a copy of this vowel at the beginning of the stem, e.g.
Ped- take another E and place it at the beginning, EPED
Car- take another A and place it at the beginning, ACAR
Tog- take another O and place it at the beginning, OTOG
Mab- take another A and place it at the beginning, AMAB
Step Two
Apply soft mutation to the first consonant in your new stem
EPED - we apply soft mutation to P giving us EBED
ACAR - we apply soft mutation to C giving us AGAR
OTOG – we apply soft mutation to T giving us ODOG
AMAB – we apply soft mutation to M giving us AVAB
If the first consonant had been a G, e.g. from Gir- ‘to shudder’ or Gal- 'to shine'
IGIR – we apply soft mutation to G which disappears leaving us with I’IR
We then collapse the identical vowels leaving us with a new stem of IR
AGAL - we apply soft mutation to G which disappears leaving us with A'AL
We then collapse the identical vowels leaving us with a stem of AL
EPED - we apply soft mutation to P giving us EBED
ACAR - we apply soft mutation to C giving us AGAR
OTOG – we apply soft mutation to T giving us ODOG
AMAB – we apply soft mutation to M giving us AVAB
If the first consonant had been a G, e.g. from Gir- ‘to shudder’ or Gal- 'to shine'
IGIR – we apply soft mutation to G which disappears leaving us with I’IR
We then collapse the identical vowels leaving us with a new stem of IR
AGAL - we apply soft mutation to G which disappears leaving us with A'AL
We then collapse the identical vowels leaving us with a stem of AL
Step Three
Now we need to look at the final consonant. If it ends in B, D, DH or G skip to Step Four.
All other stems now need to go through a slight change.
Find your original stem vowel, e.g.
AGAR – the original stem vowel is the final A (left to right)
We now lengthen this vowel according to the table below.
All other stems now need to go through a slight change.
Find your original stem vowel, e.g.
AGAR – the original stem vowel is the final A (left to right)
We now lengthen this vowel according to the table below.
Original vowel |
Lengthens to (in 3rd person forms of one syllable) |
Lengthens to (when pronominal suffixes are attached) |
A |
AU |
O |
E |
I |
Î |
I |
I |
Î |
O |
U |
Û |
The 3rd person forms of one syllable are uncommon and generally arise from verbs like Gir- or Gal- that have collapsed, e.g.
AL from Gal- (AGAL, soft mutation removes the G, A’AL collapses to AL). This stem is a single syllable so for the 3rd person singular past tense form we need to lengthen A to AU, giving us AUL = he shone, it shone.
It is the final column that you will mostly use, as the ‘pronominal suffixes’ are all the endings indicating ‘I, we, you’ etc.
AGAR – we’ve already found the original stem vowel, which is an A. We now lengthen this to O, giving us AGOR. This stem is now ready for us to attach whatever ending we like to it.
AL from Gal- (AGAL, soft mutation removes the G, A’AL collapses to AL). This stem is a single syllable so for the 3rd person singular past tense form we need to lengthen A to AU, giving us AUL = he shone, it shone.
It is the final column that you will mostly use, as the ‘pronominal suffixes’ are all the endings indicating ‘I, we, you’ etc.
AGAR – we’ve already found the original stem vowel, which is an A. We now lengthen this to O, giving us AGOR. This stem is now ready for us to attach whatever ending we like to it.
Step Four
Now we make the changes to those stems that end in B, D, DH or G. These verbs do not go through Step Three.
EBED – because the stem ends in a D we change the D to either NN or NTH (personal preference) giving us EBENN or EBENTH
If your verb stem ends in DH, treat it identically to D above
ODOG – because the stem ends in a G we change the G to either NG or NCH giving us ODONG or ODONCH
AVAB – because the stem ends in a B we change the B to MM or MP(H) giving us AVAMM or AVAMP(H). The H isn’t needed for 3rd person forms but it is needed when we put endings onto this root.
Now all our roots are ready for us to attach pronominal endings to them.
*The attested example 'Echanthel = You fashioned' from a 1969 document indicates that instead of changing to MM/NN/NG, the verbs would inflect somewhat differently and change to MPH/NTH/NCH. As not everyone uses this approach I leave it up to you as to which version you would prefer to use.
EBED – because the stem ends in a D we change the D to either NN or NTH (personal preference) giving us EBENN or EBENTH
If your verb stem ends in DH, treat it identically to D above
ODOG – because the stem ends in a G we change the G to either NG or NCH giving us ODONG or ODONCH
AVAB – because the stem ends in a B we change the B to MM or MP(H) giving us AVAMM or AVAMP(H). The H isn’t needed for 3rd person forms but it is needed when we put endings onto this root.
Now all our roots are ready for us to attach pronominal endings to them.
*The attested example 'Echanthel = You fashioned' from a 1969 document indicates that instead of changing to MM/NN/NG, the verbs would inflect somewhat differently and change to MPH/NTH/NCH. As not everyone uses this approach I leave it up to you as to which version you would prefer to use.
Step Five - Pronominal suffixes
1st person 'I...' |
-en |
Plural 'We...' |
-em |
2nd person formal 'You...' |
-el |
Plural 'You (all)...' |
-edh |
2nd person informal 'You...' |
-eg |
Plural 'You (all)...' |
-egir |
3rd person 'He/she/it...' |
See notes below |
Plural 'They...' |
-er |
Active participle 'having been...' |
Follow the same rule as for the Weak Past Tense |
Plural |
-iel |
Passive participle (adjective) |
Follow the same rule as for the Weak past tense |
Plural |
-in |
3rd person singular forms:
If the verb went through Step Three (i.e. it doesn't end in a B, D, DH or G) then the form you have at the end of Step Three is the 3rd person form, e.g. Aul = It shone; îr = it shuddered (from Gir- 'to shudder') or Agor = He did, she did.
If the verb went through Step Four (it does end in a B, D, DH or G) then the form you have at the end of Step Four is the 3rd person form, e.g. Ebenn = He spoke, she spoke; Odong = He led, she led
If the verb went through Step Three (i.e. it doesn't end in a B, D, DH or G) then the form you have at the end of Step Three is the 3rd person form, e.g. Aul = It shone; îr = it shuddered (from Gir- 'to shudder') or Agor = He did, she did.
If the verb went through Step Four (it does end in a B, D, DH or G) then the form you have at the end of Step Four is the 3rd person form, e.g. Ebenn = He spoke, she spoke; Odong = He led, she led
Passive participles
Refer to the table above directly under the heading 'I-stem past tense Version 1: the Weak past tense' to alter the final consonant in your stem. Then add -en. For plurals treat it as any other word and use the rules in Lesson 6.
e.g.
1. Find the final consonant (e.g. in Ped 'to say, speak' it is D)
2. Alter it as per the table (D -> NN)
3. Add -en. (Pennen).
e.g.
1. Find the final consonant (e.g. in Ped 'to say, speak' it is D)
2. Alter it as per the table (D -> NN)
3. Add -en. (Pennen).
Example: Car- 'to do, make'
1st person 'I...' |
Agoren |
Plural 'We...' |
Agorem |
2nd person formal 'You...' |
Agorel |
Plural 'You (all)...' |
Agoredh |
2nd person informal 'You...' |
Agoreg |
Plural 'You (all)...' |
Agoregir |
3rd person 'He/she/it...' |
Agor |
Plural 'They...' |
Agorer |
Active participle 'having been...' |
Agoriel |
Plural |
Egeriel |
Passive participle (adjective) |
Carnen |
Plural |
Cernin |
Exceptions to the rules
If we put the verb Tol- 'to come' through the Strong past tense, it would come out as
Odulen = I came, Odulel = You came, and so on.
However, because the original stem vowel of the root is U (see here) some scholars prefer to conjugate Tol- like this in the past tense instead, where the verb form after Step Three is UDUL not ODUL:
Udulen = I came, Udulel = You came, etc.
Odulen = I came, Odulel = You came, and so on.
However, because the original stem vowel of the root is U (see here) some scholars prefer to conjugate Tol- like this in the past tense instead, where the verb form after Step Three is UDUL not ODUL:
Udulen = I came, Udulel = You came, etc.
Irregular example: Saf- 'to have, own, possess'
I possessed/had |
Awen |
We had |
Awem |
You possessed (formal) |
Awel |
You all had (formal) |
Awedh |
You possessed (informal) |
Aweg |
You all had (informal) |
Ewigir |
He/she/it possessed |
Aw |
They had |
Ewir |
Passive participle |
Awen |
Plural |
Ewin |
