Like all languages, Sindarin uses verbs for the action of a sentence. In dictionaries, Sindarin verbs are listed by their verb stem which ends in a dash “-”, such as mad- “to eat”. The verb stem is not used by itself; various suffixes or inflections are added when forming sentences. Here is a sample of Sindarin verbs with their meanings:
Note ¹: ᴺS. rista- v. “to cut; to rend, rip” vetted by Hiswelókë’s Sindarin Dictionary (HSD).
Note ²: ᴺS. lor- v. “to sleep, slumber” is used with the sense of “sleep” or “slumber”. This usage was created by Elaran.
Note ³: ᴺS. hir- v. “to find, *light on, chance on” is used to mean “to find”, or in a broader sense, “to light on” or “to chance on”, a meaning attributed to the verb by David Salo.
Sindarin, including its earlier forms, features two primary verb categories: basic verbs, originating from simple primitive verbal roots, and derived verbs, formed by adding verbal suffixes. These categories are often referred to as i-stem and a-stem verbs in literature, named after the common i or a ending in their present tense forms. This classification is used by David Salo in his book, “Gateway to Sindarin,” though it's unclear if he was the first to use these terms. Paul Strack labels them as “basic” and “derived” verbs and finds that is more aligned with the terminology used for similar verb classes in Quenya.
1.2.2.1 Aorist Tense/Present Tense The simple present tense in Sindarin appears to originate from the ancient Common Eldarin aorist tense.
Due to limited examples, its precise usage is challenging to pinpoint. However, many Neo-Sindarin writers believe it operates similarly to the English simple present tense and can also convey the present continuous or imperfective. For instance, the Sindarin phrase “tôl achar(n)” has been interpreted in various sources as “vengeance comes” (simple present) or “vengeance is coming” (present continuous/imperfective). Going forward, I am using the simple present tense for all my sentences.
Note ¹: The last sentence can read as “An orc eats birds.” and “An orc eats a bird.”
Remember: The English indefinite article “a, an” is not reflected in the Sindarin sentences above, because a word without e “the” is already indefinite in Sindarin.
Present Tense: For basic verbs, the third singular present form (without any suffix) is just the verb stem with the vowel lengthened (but not mutated) if the verb is monosyllabic: en·edhel nôr “the elf runs (nor-)”, en·edhel orthor “the elf conquers (orthor-)”. When a pronominal subject suffix is added, the verb (a) inserts an -i- between the verb stem and suffix, and (b) the base vowel undergoes internal i-affection, changing a, o, u to e, e, y: nerin “I run”. This i-affection does not apply to any known prefixes: ortherin “I conquer (= over-rule)”, but they are mutated if unrecognized: ephedin (aphad-) “I follow”. For plural subjects, the verb adds the suffix -r, again causing internal i-affection: en·edhil nerir “the elves run”, en·edhil ortherir “the elves conquer”.
* Basic verbs with u in Sindarin are very rare (none are attested), and this example verb *run- “to rub” is created for demonstration purposes.
For derived verbs, the third singular present form (without any suffix) is just the verb stem: en·edhel padra “the elf walks (padra-)”. With a suffix, the final a becomes o: padron “I walk”. The only exception is the suffix -r, which is added without changing the vowel: in·edhil badrar “the elves walk”. Half-strong verbs drop the final a in the third singular: en·edhil dangada “the elf confirms (tangad(a)-)”. The a returns with subject suffixes but usually does not change to o as with derived verbs: tangadan “I confirm”.
More Present Tense Sentences
1.2.2.2 Verb Suffixes: Here are the following conjugations for Neo-Sindarin based on Paul Strack's chart for the present tense. This chart shows basic verbs, with the ancient aorist suffix “i” causing vowel mutation plus the subject suffixes, -n, -g, -l, etc. It also displays derived verbs, where the vowel shift from a → o was not uniformly applied, particularly when the suffixal -r was used. It likely was appended directly to the more contemporary verb stem, bypassing earlier phonetic developments, suggesting that -r was added after the original long ā in the stem had already shortened. Furthermore, the shift from a → o was also absent in instances involving pronominal suffix clusters, as seen in examples like “galanc” (“we grow”) using the 1962 1st person inclusive suffix -nc. Similarly, the 1969 1st person inclusive suffix yields “athab” (“we won't”), suggesting its archaic form might have been *athā-kwē. In these cases, the long ā shortened prior to the formation of these ancient clusters and therefore did not undergo the ā → o transition. More in-depth info can be found here.
| Present Tense | Basic (car-) | Derived (gala-) | Half-Strong (tangad(a)-) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st: Singular | cerin “I do” | galon “I grow” | tangadan “I confirm” |
| 2nd: Singular Familiar | cerig “you do” | galog “you grow” | tangadag “you confirm” |
| 2nd: Singular Formal | ceril, †ceridh “you do” | galol, †galodh “you grow” | tangadal, †tangaladh “you confirm” |
| 3rd: Singular | câr “he/she does” | gala “he/she grows” | tangod “he/she confirms” |
| 1st: Plural Inclusive | cerib “we (and you) do” | galab “we (and you) grow” | tangadab “we (and you) confirm” |
| 1st: Plural Exclusive | cerif “we (but not you) do” | galof “we (but not you) grow” | tangadaf “we (but not you) confirm” |
| 2nd: Plural Formal | ceridh, †ceridhir “you do” | galodh, †galodhir “you grow” | tangadadh, †tangadadhir “you confirm” |
| 3rd: Plural | cerir “they do” | galar “they grow” | tangadar “they confirm” |
Below are comparative sentences in Neo-Sindarin, illustrating how verbs are conjugated for different subjects and how subtle changes in verb forms can alter the meaning slightly:
In the last two sentences, aew can cause some ambiguity one way to get around this is to add a definite article. Yrch vedir in·aew. “Orcs watch the birds.”
1.2.2.3 Future, Past: The remaining tenses are not covered in detail in this chapter, but briefly they are formed as follows and you can find more info here on Parf Edhellen:
The Sindarin past tense seems to function similarly to the English past tense, but its formation is more complicated, and we have relatively few examples to work from. The Sindarin past tense seems to be marked by a variety of morphological features, not all of which apply in every case:
The past is quite complicated. For now, you just need to be aware these tenses exist.
1.2.2.4 Section Summary: This summary covers both this and the previous section.
Exercise 1.1
This course includes a comprehensive All-Exercises chapter at the end. For convenience, you might consider printing the exercises by chapter, allowing you to write your answers directly next to each question. Additionally, for easier reference, these exercises are also incorporated within the relevant sections of each chapter. At the conclusion of this chapter, you'll find a Section 1.3.1 titled “Chapter Vocabulary”, which will be useful for the exercises in this and subsequent chapters.
Reminder: Like English, the direct object of a phrase generally follows the verb in Sindarin. Unlike English, the direct object undergoes soft mutation to mark it as an object, a process I refer to as (grammatical) lenition. Also from PE23: Verbs following their subjects, nouns or emphatic pronouns mutate.
Click the phrase to reveal the answer. I have also updated to using PE23's definate article e/en & in.
Translate the following into English:
Translate the following into Sindarin: