Commands and indefinite subjects
Two kinds of sentence have no subject, and the difference between them is one particle.
| Pikotika | Meaning | Kind |
|---|---|---|
| Sista! | Stop! | command |
| Ri sista! | It's stopping! | indefinite subject |
A command drops ri along with the subject — there is nobody to describe, only an instruction for the listener. An indefinite subject keeps ri: there is a subject, but it's unspecified. Usually, it's a nebulous, ill-defined subject, like the it in "it's raining," or the they in "that's what they say."
Commands
Start with the verb. Add pam ‘please’ in front to make it a request rather than an order.
| Pikotika | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Sista! | Stop! |
| Pam komi. | Please eat. |
| Pam tonar a tis ver eko. | Please give that to me. |
| Pam servi! | Please help! |
Sentences with nobody in particular
English has to put something in the subject slot, so it invents it and there, or rewrites the sentence as a passive. Pikotika just leaves the slot empty and opens with ri.
| English | Pikotika |
|---|---|
| It's raining. | Ri ruva. |
| There is a problem. | Ri marumkosa. |
| My luggage has been lost. | Ri perti a eko irevaso. |
| Food is sold here. | Ri kompar a komi in tisroko. |
| Is this allowed? | Ri reke a tis, ker? |
| Payment is required. | Ri neses tonar a moni. |
| They say time is money. | Ri tika a tempo ri moni. |
Note that there is no separate passive sentence construction in Pikotika; just use an indefinite subject, as in the examples above.
Try it yourself
Can you translate the following sentences?
- Ri ruva.
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‘It's raining.’ (an observation)
- Ruva!
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‘Rain!’ (commanding the rains to come)
- Ri nem wo aku.
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‘There's no hot water.’
- ‘Please bring water.’ (bring is teneveni;
water is aku)
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Pam teneveni a aku. — literally please have-come A water.