Nouns

Noun endings

Most nouns end in -a or consonants (but, as a rule, not 'b', 'g' or 'd'):

lingwa — language
jiva — life
kordia — heart
vagon — carriage
situasion — situation
aksham — evening
profesor — professor
dwar — door
nivel — level
mes — month
fish — fish
chokolat — chocolate
handak — ditch
taraf — side

Nouns may end also in other vowels:

kino — cinema
oko — eye
shampu — shampoo
madu — honey
kafee — cafe
shosee — highway
mani — money
gari — cart
taxi — taxi
chay — tea
skay — sky

The word "ski" ski, to ski has the same form as a noun and as a verb.

The singular

The basic noun form does not convey the grammatical meaning of singularity. To specify singularity, use "un" (one) or the optional marker of the singular "ge" (piece, single item):

doga — dog/dogs
un doga, doga-ge — one dog.

Plurals

The basic noun form does not convey the grammatical meaning of singularity. To specify singularity, use "un" one. In order to specify plurality, the plural form of noun may be used. Its ending is -(e)s. If a noun ends in a vowel, add -s; otherwise add -es:

lingwa — language/languages
lingwas — languages

boy — boy/boys
boys — boys

aksham — evening/evenings
akshames — evenings

•   When speaking generally about a group or class of uniform objects, plural endings are not used:

Yan chi bush. — Sheep eat bushes.

Amiga sempre helpi. — A friend always helps.

Bobra es animal. — Beavers are animals.

•   After any indication of plurality (numerals; quantifiers like ‘mucho’ many, much, ‘kelke’ several, some, ‘shao’ little, ‘ambi’ both, ‘grupa de’ a group of, ‘menga de’ a lot of, ‘para’ a pair of; plural subject, personal pronouns 'nu' we, 'li' they), as a rule, plural endings are not used:

pet jen — five people

tristo dolar — three hundred dollars

trishi kilometra — thirty kilometers

mucho yar — many years

shao jen — few people

kelke pes sukra — some pieces of sugar

oli dey — all days

oli jen — all people

Sey jenta es hao guner. — These people are good workers.
(Jenta means folk, (a particular group of) people).

Li es may amiga. — They are my friends.

Luy amigas es studenta. — His friends are students.

Toy kelke rosa es jamile. — Those roses are beautiful.
(lit.: Those some roses are beautiful).

A note: plural endings may be used after “mucho” and “shao” in order to specify that countable objects are implied (in cases where a noun may be countable as well as uncountable):

shao ananas — few pineapples or little of pineapple
shao ananases — few pineapples
shao de ananas — little of pineapple

mucho fish — many fishes or much fish
mucho fishes — many fishes
mucho de fish — much fish.

•   In case of pair objects the plural endings are usually used:

okos — eyes
labas — lips
handas — hands
plechas — shoulders.

Sex indication

There is no grammatical gender. Animate nouns may be of both sexes:

doga — a dog (never mind whether male or female)

amiga — friend (generally)

gova — a bull or a cow (such notion is practical in plural form: govas — cows and bulls)

swina — a pig of any sex

gansa — a goose or a gander (gansas — geese).

If there is need to indicate sex, it may be done two ways.

The first, more frequent, way is the use of particles ‘man’ and ‘gin’:

man-doga — male dog
gin-doga — female dog

man-studentas — male students (‘studentas’ are students generally)

man-gova — bull
gin-gova — cow

man-swina — boar.

Another, less frequent, way is the use of suffixes -o for masculine and -ina for feminine. If a noun ends in -a, the latter is dropped, otherwise the suffix is simply added:

rega — king/queen
rego — king
regina — queen

dogo — male dog
dogina — female dog

studento — male student
studentina — female student

govo — bull
govina — cow

swino — male pig
swinina — female pig

ganso — gander
gansina — female goose.

It is obvious that it is not always needed to indicate sex, so it is correct to say:

Ela es hao leker. — She is a good doctor.

Ela es hao amiga. — She is a good friend.

Juchka es pumbe doga. — Zhuchka is a silly dog.

•   In several cases different words are used for the male and female:

mata/patra — mother/father

oma/opa — grandmother/grandfather

docha/son — daughter/son

kindocha/kinson — granddaughter/grandson

tia/onkla — aunt/uncle

sinior/madam — sir/madam.

Genitive

Genitive is formed with the particle -ney (hyphenated):

sedey-ney sivilisasion — the today's civilization

mata-ney kitaba — mother's book

Alex-ney jaketa — the jacket of Alex.

Nouns meaning action

The correspondence between noun's form and its meaning is basically the following:

Meaning

Nouns for i-verbs

Nouns for other verbs

(type 1)

(type 2)

Act and its manifestation/instance/result/resulting state

-a

-sa

The very action as process; repeated action;
occupation, hobby, sport

-ing

-ing

Examples:

adi — to add
ada — addition (both act of adding and what is added)

konvinsi — to convince
konvinsa — persuasion, conviction, convictions, beliefs

konekti — to connect
konekta — connection

judi — to judge
juda — judgement (both judging and decision)

reflekti — to reflect
reflekta — reflection (action as well as image)

inviti — to invite
invita — invitation

inuspiri — to inhale
inuspira — inhalation

lubi — to love
luba — love

darbi — to strike
darba — strike

jivi — to live
jiva — life

joi — to rejoice
joisa — joy

gun — to work
gunsa — work

jan — to know
jansa — knowledge

begin — to begin
beginsa — beginning

kan — to look
kansa — a look

flai — to fly
flaisa — flight

krai — to cry
kraisa — a cry

prei — to pray
preisa — prayer

zwo — to do
zwoing — doing

go — to go
going — going; course

swimi — to swim
swiming — swimming

fishi — to fish
fishing — fishing

ski — to ski
skiing — skiing

boxi — to box
boxing — boxing

fumi — to smoke
fuming — smoking

bru — to brew
bruing — brewing

piloti — to pilot
piloting — piloting.

A note: if verb ends in -i, that ending is replaced with -ing; in other cases -ing is added. The only exception is monosyllabic i-verbs (ski to ski, pi to drink ): in their case -ing is added (skiing, piing).
An important remark: "ng" in this suffix may be read simply as "n". The suffix is never stressed.

Further examples:

shuti — to shoot
shuta — a shot
shuting — shooting

gloti — to swallow
glota — a swallow
gloting — swallowing

kiki — to kick
kika — a kick
kiking — kicking

kliki — to click
klika — a click
kliking — clicking

salti — to jump
salta — a jump
salting — jumping

lansi — to throw
lansa — a throw
lansing — throwing.

The concretizing suffixes -(i)ka, -tura, -wat

The suffix -(i)ka has the meaning "object, thing, something concrete":

mole — soft
molika — pulp

nove — new
novika — something new, novelty

metal — metal
metalka — a metal thing

brili — to shine
brilika — something shining

ofni — to open
ofnika — opener

plei — to play
pleika — toy, plaything

Derivation: in adjectives ending in -e and nouns ending in -a, this last vowel is transformed into -ika; in other cases -ka is added. With monosyllabic i-verbs, -ika is added with a hyphen:

ski — ski-ika
pi — pi-ika.

It should be reminded that the ending -ika is unstressed.

On the whole, one can regard this suffix as an equivalent of "kosa" (thing) or "koysa" (something). Thus the suffix -(i)ka is polysemantic, the exact meaning of a word following from the context. In order to be more precise, one can use the suffixes -er (tool, device), -tura (stresses the result, product of action), or -wat (indicates the object of action).

The suffix -tura denotes an end result/product of action:

produkti — to produce
produktura — produce, output

mixi — to mix
mixitura — mixture

solvi — to dissolve
solvitura — solution

texi — to weave
texitura — fabric, tissue

sekwi — to follow
sekwitura — consequence

derivi — to derive
derivitura — derivative

shwo — to say
shwotura — saying

Derivation: just added to a verb, however -titura=> -tura, -ditura=> -dura. NB: In some words like ‘temperatura’, ‘natura’ ‘tura’ is not a suffix.

The suffix -wat denotes object of action:

pi — to drink
piwat — beverage

chi — to eat
chiwat — food, eaten things

rosti — to roast
rostiwat — roast (meat)

sendi — to send
sendiwat — something sent

konteni — to contain
konteniwat — contents

Derivation: just added to a verb.

One can distinguish between mixiwat (something mixed, an ingredient) and mixitura (mixture, a result of mixing), solviwat (dissolved thing) and solvitura (resulting solution).

The suffixes of doer and tool

The suffix -er means both doer (person) and tool/ device/appliance.

When added to a verb, the final -i of the verb is dropped (except for the monosyllabic verbs ending in -i). When added to a noun, the final -a of the noun is dropped. In other cases -er is just added:

kapti — to capture, catch
kapter — trap or trapper/catcher

lekti — to read
lekter — reader (person or device)

vendi — to sell
vender — seller

kondukti — to conduct (heat etc.)
kondukter — conductor

zwo — to do
zwoer — doer

shwo — to speak
shwoer — speaker

ofni — to open
ofner — opener

banka — bank
banker — banker

ski — to ski
skier — skier

politika — politics
politiker — politician

milka — milk
milki — to milk
milker — milker (person or device)

astronomia — astronomy
astronomier — astronomer

historia — history
historier — historian

plei — play
pleier — player (person or device)

milion — million
milioner — millionaire

yuwel — jewel
yuweler — jeweller

To specify the meaning of doer, the suffix -sha may be used which is derived from the active participle marker -she; it is used only with verbs:

milki — to milk
milki-sha — milker (person)

plei — to play
plei-sha — player (person)

lekti — to read
lekti-sha — reader (person)

kapti — to catch
kapti-sha — catcher

To specify the meaning of tool/ device/appliance, one may use the suffixes -(i)ka (see above) or compound words with tul (tool, instrument):

ofni — to open
ofnika — opener

plei — play
pleika — toy, plaything

vinti — to screw
vintitul — screwdriver

komuniki — to communicate
komunikitul — means of communication

The suffix -ista denotes a person in relation to a certain doctrine (‘ism’) or profession:

komunista — communist
metodista — methodist
dentista — dentist
artista — artist
spesialista — specialist

This suffix is basically applied to other nouns.

The words ending in -or, -ator.

LdP also imports common European words ending in -or, -ator which mean either doer or tool:

kalkulator — calculator
ventilator — ventilator
aktor — actor
direktor — director
profesor — professor

NB: Not every word meaning a tool must have a suffix. Many verbs are derived from tool-nouns: 'hamri' to hammer from 'hamra' hammer.

Abstract nouns meaning quality

Abstract nouns meaning quality (as such) are formed with the suffixes -nesa and -(i)taa:

feble — weak
feblenesa — weakness

dule — tender
dulenesa — tenderness (-nesa is simply added)

diverse — diverse
diversitaa — diversity

probable — probable
probablitaa — probability

amiga — friend
amigitaa — friendship

If a word ends in the vowel e/a, it is transformed into -itaa. For adjectives like ‘gao, lao’ and those ending in a consonant the suffix has the form -taa:

shao — little (in quantity)
shaotaa — scarcity

karim — kind, good
karimtaa — kindness

donishil — generous
donishiltaa — generosity

•   The suffix -(i)taa differs in that the nouns formed with it have a broader meaning: not only that of quality but also that of a particular phenomenon connected with this quality:

reale — real
realenesa — realness
realitaa — reality (world)

gao — high
gaonesa — highness
gaotaa — height

vere — true
verenesa — trueness
veritaa — truth

•   The suffix -nesa also derives from verbs nouns with the meaning of the state which results from the action (-edness) or is otherwise connected with action:

adapti — to adapt
adaptinesa — adaptedness

koni — be acquainted with
koninesa — acquaintance

godi — be fitted/suited (for)
godinesa — suitability, fitness

•   A special case.

For adjectives which are longer than 2 syllables and end in -ente or -ante, abstract nouns end in -ensia or -ansia correspondingly:

presente — present
presensia — presence

abundante — abundant
abundansia — abundance

Other suffixes

The suffix -yuan means "employee, worker, organization member":

kafeeyuan — cafe worker
partiayuan — party member
polisyuan — policeman
shopyuan — shop worker
koalisionyuan — coalition member

The suffix -nik (when it is added the word's last vowel may be dropped) denotes a person as bearer of some characteristic feature or adherent of something:

batalnik — scrapper
fobnik — coward
shwonik — chatterer
novnik — novice
sindomnik — homeless person
fishnik — enthusiastic fisherman
ginnik — womanizer
sportnik — lover of sport
pyannik — drunkard
safarnik — confirmed traveller

The suffix -inka denotes one small part of something:

ramla — sand
ramlinka — grain of sand

snega — snow
sneginka — snowflake

pluva — rain
pluvinka — drop of rain

The suffix -menga denotes a certain multitude, gathering of uniform objects:

moskamenga — swarm of flies
jenmenga — crowd

The suffix -tot (from tota — a whole) means a whole, aggregate, system:

antra — gut
antratot — intestine

Compound words with jen, man, gina

auslanda — foreign countries
auslandajen — foreigner
auslandagina — female foreigner
auslandaman — male foreigner

samtaimjen — contemporary
samtaimgina — female contemporary
samtaimman — male contemporary

jadu — sorcery
jadujen — sorcerer/sorceress
jadugina — sorceress, witch
jaduman — sorcerer

lao — old
laojen — old person
laogina — old woman
laoman — old man

Names of countries, peoples and languages

Names of countries are written with a capital letter and are close to how they sound in the official language of the country:

Espania — Spain
Jungwo — China
Portugal — Portugal
Rusia — Russia
Nipon — Japan
Doichland — Germany
Frans — France
Ingland — England.

In case the country has two names or two official languages, it may have also an alternative name, especially if those names are not similar to each other:

Suomi / Finland — Finland
Bharat / India — India

But:

Belgie — Belgium (based on Dutch, the country's name in the two other official languages, German and French, sounds similar).

Composite names are translated into LdP:

Unisi-ney Statas de Amerika (USA) — The United States of America.

A compound word from country's name and 'jen' (man) denotes an inhabitant/subject of the country (written with a hyphen):

Suomi-jen — an inhabitant of Finland
Rusia-jen — an inhabitant of Russia
Jungwo-jen — an inhabitant of China
USA-jen — a person living in the USA

These compound words should not be mixed with words for etnicity (a Russian, a Finn).

For ethnicity and the corresponding language a special word is used. It is close to how people refer to themselves. It plays the role of noun as well as adjective. "jen" and "lingwa" may be used for precision. Examples:

ruski — Russian; a Russian; the Russian language

me es ruski (jen) — I am Russian
me shwo ruski (lingwa) — I speak Russian
ruski fabula — a Russian fairy tale

inglish — English; an Englishman/-woman; the English language:

me bu shwo inglish — I don't speak English

doiche — German; a German; the German language:

doiche exaktitaa — German punctuality

amerikan — American (expressing the culture and national values of the USA); an American:

fama-ney amerikan poeta — a famous American poet
ta es amerikan, ta shwo inglish — he/she is American; he/she speaks English

espaniol — Spanish; a Spaniard; the Spanish language

portuges — Portuguese; a Portuguese; the Portuguese language:

me shwo espaniol, yoshi me samaji portuges — I speak Spanish; also I understand Portuguese

han — Chinese (ethnic); a Chinese; the Chinese language

Ta es han (jen), ta shwo han (lingwa). — He/she is a Chinese; he/she speaks Chinese.

Me es Jungwo-jen, bat me bu es han (jen). — I live in China, but I am not a Chinese.

hindi — Hindu (ethnic); a Hindu (ethnic); Hindi

suomen — Finnish; a Finn; the Finnish language

ukrainska — Ukrainian; a Ukrainian; the Ukrainian language

Ela es ukrainska jen, ela shwo ukrainska. — She is a Ukrainian; she speaks Ukrainian.

ukrainska-ruski lexikon — a Ukrainian-Russian dictionary

nihon — Japanese; a Japanese; the Japanese language

romale — Gipsy; a Gipsy; the Gipsy language:

jamile romale gana — a beautiful Gipsy song.

A hint on how to pronounce proper names:

If a proper name ends in several consonants and produces a difficult consonant cluster together with a following word, it's recommended to insert a neutral sound (which however isn't written).

For example, it's recommended to pronounce:

Doichland-jen

as if it were written

Doichlanda-jen.