Help:A Guide to Klingon/others

Articles
There is no Klingon equivalent to the definite article (the) or the indefinite articles (a, an). When translating from Klingon they must be inferred from the context.

Interrogative Pronouns
In addition to the verb suffix -'a', Klingon has words corresponding to the interrogative words of English.

The word order is important.

Use of Pronouns
If a pronoun is required with a verb, then usually a verb prefix is used (this is explained under Verbs):
 * qamuS - I hate you.

However, as shown above, there are distinct pronouns in Klingon. They act in two ways:
 * 1) They can act simply as a noun replacement, either as the subject or object of a verb. They can be used to provide emphasis or for clarity. When used this way they take the appropriate noun suffixes.
 * 2) They also act as the verb to be, and so take the usual verb suffixes.

Here the subject is a pronoun: If the subject is a noun, then it takes the -'e' suffix:
 * jup ghaH - He is a friend.
 * jup ghaH loD'e' - The man is a friend.

Conjunctions
After a verb je means also or too.

Examples:

Adjectives
There are no adjectives in Klingon. Instead verbs which express a state or quality are used, such as chong (be good) or Doq (be orange, be red). The noun is the object of the phrase.

When a Klingon verb is used in this way as an adjective, then any type 5 suffixes which would normally apply to the noun are instead applied to the verb:

Comparatives and Superlatives
There are no Klingon equivalents to the comparative adjectives (such as better) or superlative adjectives (such as best) that are used in English. Instead a complicated construction using the verbs law' (be many) and puS (be few) are used, together with a verb of quality. It is best shown with some examples:

Multiple Adjectives
In English, several adjectives can be applied to a noun, for example big black ship. In Klingon, since the words for big (tIn) and black (qIj) are verbs, this construction is not allowed. Instead we have to use a relative clause, using -bogh. A couple of constructions are possible:
 * tInbogh Duj 'ej qIjbogh - a ship which is big and which is black
 * tInbogh Duj qIj - a black ship which is big

Adverbs
Adverbs are not formed by modifying an adjective, instead there is a closed list.

Several verb suffixes also act as adverbs, such as -bej, -ba', -chu', -law' and -qu'.

These adverbs are placed at the beginning of a sentence or clause, except for neH which appears after the verb it modifies.

Suffixes
Two suffixes are used with Klingon numbers.

An ordinal always comes after the noun. Also, an ordinal can act as a noun.

The adverbs go at the start of a sentence.

Hoch
Hoch is variously translated as all, each, every, everyone, everybody or everything.


 * Used without a noun, it means everyone, everybody or everything:
 * Suv Hoch - everyone fights; everybody fights; they all fight; all of them fight
 * If it precedes a plural noun it means all:
 * Hoch puqpu' - all the children; all of the children
 * If it precedes a singular noun it means each or every.
 * Hoch puq - each child; every child
 * Hoch jaj - each day; every day
 * If it follows a noun means all of or the whole of
 * nIn Hoch - all of the fuel
 * jaj Hoch - all day; the whole day

HochHom means most of and follows the noun:
 * nIn HochHom - most of the fuel

HochDIch means last or final, and like wa'DIch (first), it follows the noun:
 * puq HochDIch - the last child

Curses
No translation is recorded for these.
 * ghuy'cha'
 * QI'yaH
 * Qu'vatlh