Abilitive ‘know how’ Modal attitude verbs

16.2.2 Modal verb ‘attempt to’

Subject makes an attempt which commonly fails. The verb of the main clause is t ɕhit which has all finite verb endings. • This modality verb combines with the T1 type complement clause which has abilitive verb tshuu which is nominalized with the object nominalizer -pa, NMLZ;Q. • The subject of the main clause is always ergative marked. • The modality verb may be negated and used in imperative. • The main clause is T1 type and the complement clause without the subject is the object. The following examples illustrate this modal attitude verb complement clause is in square brackets. 16.43 phits-e [ tepal-ki thok-la nuku ɕok tshuu-pa ] tɕhi-soŋ. child-ERG table-GEN top-DAT pen put.leave be.able-NMLZ;Q do;VBZR-PST.VIS ‘The child tried to put the pen on top of the table.’ Though he attempted he was not able to. 16 .44 ŋ-e [ loŋ tshuu-pa ] tɕhi-pen. 1SG-ERG get.up[NPST] be.able-NMLZ;Q do;VBZR-1PST ‘I tried to get up.’ Or: ‘I made an attempt to get up.’ 16.45 api- ki [ loŋ tshuu-pa ] t ɕhi-pa bet. aunt-ERG get.up[NPST] be.able-NMLZ;Q do;VBZR-NMLZ;Q AUX ‘Aunt tried to get up physically.’ This implies that the person is too weak to get up and stand.

16.2.3 Abilitive ‘know how’

The semantic modal attitude of the verb ɕii- is learned ability. I call it ‘know how’ abilitive. The verb ɕii- ‘to know’ is a T1 type verb which occurs in all kinds of environments. Here I discuss only its use as a ‘know how’ verb which has a clausal complement. Typically it entails a preceding learning process. The person has learned the ability one way or the other. See also chapter 14 on evidentials. Note the following comments about this modality: • The complement-clause verb may be an agentive verb, T2 or I type verb, or a copular verb hin, jøt. • The subject of the main clause is in ergative. • The verb of the complement clause is NPST root and the clause is a NP. • The modality verb may be negated but semantic changes follow. • The main clause is T1 type. • When the complement-clause verb is a non-action or non-motion verb, often semantic changes occur. Complement clauses are in square brackets. 16 .46 ŋ-e [ baalik la ] ɕii-kuk. 1SG-ERG bamboo.mat weave[NPST] know-PROG;VIS ‘I know how to weave bamboo mats.’ This implies that the speaker has learned it somehow and now he is confident that he knows the skill. He has not known the skill for very long yet. 16.47 phits-e [ døt ] ɕii-kuk. child-ERG sit.down[NPST] know-PROG;VIS ‘The child knows how to sit.’ Speaker has witnessed that the child is able to sit and he asserts this. When the ‘know how’ abilitive ɕii combines with the verbs of T2 or locational existential copular clause, the meaning may shift quite a bit. Consider the following examples the modal is underlined. 16.48 [le-mi-ja-la sa-ma thop ] ɕii-ken bet. work-man-HUM1-DAT eat-F2 receive know-NMLZ;CONJ AUX ‘The workman deserves to get his food.’ It is a fringe benefit of a workman, he deserves it. 16.49 [ toto khim-na jøt ] ɕii-ken bet. brother house-IN EXIST.EXP know-NMLZ;CONJ AUX ‘Possibly my brother is at home.’ Note also that the kinship relation of the speaker to the third person is shown in the complement- clause verb. The following pair of statements illustrate how the meaning changes when this ‘know how’ abilitive is negated: 16.50 t ɕik-ki roo lha-kaŋ-la soŋ-tuk si-kuk. INDF-ERG 3SG god-house-DAT go-PRF.VIS say-PROG;VIS ‘A person says, “He has gone to the temple.”’ joŋmaa-ki ɖo mit-ɕii-ken bet another-ERG go NEG-know-NMLZ;CONJ AUX hunto=raŋ jøk-kel-la. si-kuk. now=FOC EXIST-NMLZ;CONJ-DAT say-PROG;VIS ‘Another man says: “He cannot possibly have gone since he is still here.”’ Someone infers from circumstances that the person has gone to the temple. Another speaker knows better and he corrects the first speaker. Obviously the ‘know how’ abilitive verb here does not refer to knowing how to go to the temple because everybody knows where the temple is. Note also that the tense of the latter clause is nonpast.

16.2.4 Modal verb ‘intend to’