In Kabardian, like all Northwest Caucasian languages, the verb is the most inflected part of speech. Verbs are typically head final and are conjugated for tense, person, number, etc. Some of Circassian verbs can be morphologically simple, some of them consist only of one morpheme, like: кӏуэ "go", щтэ "take". However, generally, Circassian verbs are characterized as structurally and semantically difficult entities. Morphological structure of a Circassian verb includes affixes (prefixes, suffixes) which are specific to the language. Verbs' affixes express meaning of subject, direct or indirect object, adverbial, singular or plural form, negative form, mood, direction, mutuality, compatibility and reflexivity, which, as a result, creates a complex verb, that consists of many morphemes and semantically expresses a sentence. For example: уакъыдэсогъэпсэлъэжы "I am forcing you to talk to them again" consists of the following morphemes: у-а-къы-дэ-со-гъэ-псэлъэ-жы, with the following meanings: "you (у) with them (а) from there (къы) together (дэ) I (со) am forcing (гъэ) to speak (псэлъэн) again (жы)".

Transitivity[edit]

Verbs in Kabardian can be transitive or intransitive.

In a sentence with a transitive verb, nouns in the absolutive case (marked as -р) play the role of direct object. In the sentences of this type the noun in the subject's position is in the ergative case (marked as -м):

Щӏалэм письмор етх "The boy is writing the letter";

Пхъащӏэм уадэр къэщтащ "The carpenter took out the hammer";

Хьэм тхьакIумкӏыхьыр къиубыдащ "The dog has caught the hares".

In these sentences the verbs етх "is writing", къэщтащ "took out", къиубыдащ "has caught" are transitive verbs, and the nouns письмор "letter", уадэр "hammer", тхьакIумкӏыхьыр "hare" are in the absolutive case (suffix -р) and express direct object in the sentences, while the nouns щӏалэм "boy", пхъащӏэм "carpenter", хьэм "dog" are subjects expressed in the ergative case.

In a sentence with an intransitive verb, there is no direct object, and the real subject is usually expressed by a noun in the absolutive case.

Жэмахъуэр щыт "The shepherd is standing (there)";

Пэсакӏуэр макӏуэ "The security guard is going";

Лӏыр мэжей "The man is sleeping".

In these sentences with intransitive verbs, nouns that play role of subject are expressed in the absolutive case: жэмахъуэ-р "shepherd", пэсакӏуэ-р "guard", лӏы-р "man".

There are verbs in the Kabardian language that in different contexts and situations can be used both as transitive and intransitive. For example:

Абджыр мэкъутэ "The glass is being broken",

Щӏалэм абджыр екъутэ "The boy is breaking the glass".

In the first sentence the verb мэкъутэ "is being broken" is used as an intransitive verb that creates an absolutive construction. In the second sentence the verb е-къутэ "is breaking" creates an ergative construction. Both of the verbs are formed from the verb къутэ-н "to break".

In the Kabardian language, intransitive verbs can have indirect objects in a sentence. The indirect objects are expressed by a noun in the oblique case (which is also marked as -м). For example:

Щӏалэр пщащэм йоплъ "The boy looking at the girl",

Лӏыр жыгым щӏэлъ "The man lays under the tree".

Щӏалэр тхылъым йоджэ "The boy reads the book".

In these sentences with intransitive verbs, nouns that play role of indirect object are expressed in the oblique case: пщащэ-м "girl", жыгы-м "tree", тхылъы-м "book".

Intransitive verbs can be turned into transitive with the causative affix -гъэ- (meaning "to force, to make"). For example:

Ар мажэ "He is running", but Абы ар е-гъа-жэ "He forces him to run",

Ар матхэ "He is writing", but Абы ар е-гъа-тхэ "He makes him to write".

The verbs in the first sentences мажэ "is running", матхэ "is writing" are intransitive, and the verbs in the second sentences егъажэ "forces ... to run", егъатхэ "makes ... to write" are already transitive.

Tense[edit]

Tense	Suffix	Example	Meaning
Present	~∅	макӏуэ /maːkʷʼa/	(s)he is going; (s)he goes
Preterite	~ащ /~aːɕ/	кӏуащ /kʷʼaːɕ/	(s)he went
Pluperfect/Discontinuous past	~гъащ /~ʁaːɕ/	кӏуэгъащ /kʷʼaʁaːɕ/	(s)he went a long time ago"
Categorical Future	~нщ /~nɕ/	кӏуэнщ /kʷʼanɕ/	(s)he will go
Factual Future	~нущ /~nəwɕ/	кӏуэнущ /kʷʼanəwɕ/	(s)he will go, (s)he is about to go
Imperfect	~(р)т /~(r)t/	макӏуэ(р)т /maːkʷʼa(r)t/	(s)he was going; (s)he used to go
Pluperfect/Discontinuous past	~ат /~aːt/	кӏуат /kʷʼaːt/	(s)he had gone; (s)he went (but not there anymore)
(Categorical) Future Conditional	~нт /~nt/	кӏуэнт /kʷʼant/	(s)he was about to go / (s)he would go
(Factual) Future Conditional	~нут /~nəwt/	кӏуэнут /kʷʼanəwt/	(s)he was about to go / (s)he would go

Past[edit]

Type 1 :

The past tense of verbs of type 1 are formed by adding -aщ /-aːɕ/. In intransitive verbs it indicate that the action took place, but with no indication as to the duration, instant nor completeness of the action.

Plurality	Person	Positive			Negative
		Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning	Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning
Singular	First-person	седжащ	sajd͡ʒaːɕ	I [have] read it	седжакъым	sajd͡ʒaːqəm	I did not read it
	Second-person	уеджащ	wajd͡ʒaːɕ	You [have] read it	уеджакъым	wajd͡ʒaːqəm	You did not read it
	Third-person	еджащ	jad͡ʒaːɕ	He [has] read it	еджакъым	jad͡ʒaːqəm	He did not read it
Plural	First-person	деджащ	dajd͡ʒaːɕ	We [have] read it	деджакъым	dajd͡ʒaːqəm	We did not read it
	Second-person	феджащ	fajd͡ʒaːɕ	You (pl.) [have] read it	феджакъым	fajd͡ʒaːqəm	You (pl.) did not read it
	Third-person	еджахэщ	jad͡ʒaːxaɕ	They [have] read it	еджахэкъым	jad͡ʒaːxaqəm	They did not read it

In transitive verbs it convey more specific information as regards to completeness of the action, and therefore they indicate some certainty as to the outcome of the action.

Plurality	Person	Positive			Negative
		Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning	Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning
Singular	First-person	слъэгъуащ	sɬaʁʷaːɕ	I [have] seen it	слъэгъуакъым	sɬaʁʷaːqəm	I did not see it
	Second-person	плъэгъуащ	pɬaʁʷaːɕ	You [have] seen it	плъэгъуакъым	pɬaʁʷaːqəm	You did not see it
	Third-person	илъэгъуащ	jəɬaʁʷaːɕ	He [has] seen it	илъэгъуакъым	jəɬaʁʷaːqəm	He did not see it
Plural	First-person	тлъэгъуащ	tɬaʁʷaːɕ	We [have] seen it	тлъэгъуакъым	tɬaʁʷaːqəm	We did not see it
	Second-person	флъэгъуащ	fɬaʁʷaːɕ	You (pl.) [have] seen it	флъэгъуакъым	fɬaʁʷaːqəm	You (pl.) did not see it
	Third-person	ялъэгъуащ	jaːɬaʁʷaːɕ	They [have] seen it	ялъэгъуакъым	jaːɬaʁʷaːqəm	They did not see it

Type 2 :

This is the past perfect tense. It is formed by adding ~гъащ. It indicates that the action took place formerly at some certain time.

Plurality	Person	Positive			Negative
		Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning	Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning
Singular	First-person	стхыгъащ	stxəʁaːɕ	I wrote it	стхыгъакъым	stxəʁaːqəm	I didn't write it
	Second-person	птхыгъащ	ptxaːʁaːɕ	You wrote	птхыгъакъым	ptxaːʁaːqəm	You didn't write it
	Third-person	итхыгъащ	jətxəʁaːɕ	He wrote	итхыгъакъым	jətxəʁaːqəm	He didn't write it
Plural	First-person	ттхыгъащ	ttxəʁaːɕ	We wrote	ттхыгъакъым	ttxəʁaːqəm	We didn't write it
	Second-person	фтхыгъащ	ftxəʁaːɕ	You wrote	фтхыгъакъым	ftxəʁaːqəm	You didn't write it
	Third-person	ятхыгъащ	jaːtxəʁaːɕ	They wrote	ятхыгъакъым	jaːtxəʁaːqəm	They didn't write it

Type 3 :

Verbs of this group designate repetition of action in a vividly expressed manner. They are formed by adding the suffix –т.

Сэ жысIэрт (I kept saying)

Дэ дылажьэрт (We worked repeatedly)

Ар еджэрт (He read many times)

Negative forms:

Сэ жысIэртэкъым (I did not kept saying)

Дэ дылажьэртэкъым (We did not work repeatedly)

Ар еджэртэкъым (He did not read many times)

Present[edit]

Intransitive verbs :

Plurality	Person	Positive			Negative
		Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning	Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning
Singular	First-person	солажьэ	sawɮaːʑa	I work, I am working	сылажьэркъым	səɮaːʑarqəm	I don't work, I am not working
	Second-person	уолажьэ	wawɮaːʑa	You work, You are working	улажьэркъым	wəɮaːʑarqəm	You don't work, You are not working
	Third-person	мэлажьэ	maɮaːʑa	He does works, He is working	лажьэркъым	ɮaːʑarqəm	He doesn't work, He is not working
Plural	First-person	долажьэ	dawɮaːʑa	We work, We are working	дылажьэркъым	dəɮaːʑarqəm	We don't work, We are not working
	Second-person	фолажьэ	fawɮaːʑa	You (pl.) work, You are working	фылажьэркъым	fəɮaːʑarqəm	You (pl.) don't work, You are not working
	Third-person	мэлажьэх	maɮaːʑax	They work, They are working	лажьэхэркъым	ɮaːʑaxarqəm	They don't work, They are not working

Transitive verbs :

Plurality	Person	Positive			Negative
		Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning	Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning
Singular	First-person	соджэ	sawd͡ʒa	I read, I am reading	седжэркъым	sajd͡ʒarqəm	I don't read, I am not reading
	Second-person	уоджэ	wawd͡ʒa	You read, You are reading	уеджэркъым	wajd͡ʒarqəm	You don't read, You are not reading
	Third-person	йоджэ	jawd͡ʒa	He read, He is reading	еджэркъым	jad͡ʒarqəm	He doesn't read, He is not reading
Plural	First-person	доджэ	dawd͡ʒa	We read, We are reading	деджэркъым	dajd͡ʒarqəm	We don't read, We are not reading
	Second-person	фоджэ	fawd͡ʒa	You (pl.) read, You are reading	феджэркъым	fajd͡ʒarqəm	You don't read, You are not reading
	Third-person	йоджэх	jawd͡ʒax	They study, They are studying	еджэхэркъым	jad͡ʒaxarqəm	They don't read, They are not reading

Transitive verb examples :

Сэ адыгэбзэ грамматикэр содж (I study Circassian grammar)

Уэ адыгэбзэ грамматикэр уодж (You study Circassian grammar)

Абы адыгэбзэ грамматикэр едж (He/she studies Circassian grammar)

Дэ адыгэбзэ грамматикэр додж (We study Circassian grammar)

Фэ адыгэбзэ грамматикэр фодж (You (pl.) study Circassian grammar)

Абыхэм адыгэбзэ грамматикэр ядж or Адыгэбзэ грамматикэр яджхэр (They study Circassian grammar)

Intransitive poly-personal verb examples :

Сэ тхылъым соджэ (I read the book, I am reading the book)

Уэ тхылъым уоджэ (You read the book, you are reading the book)

Абы тхылъым йоджэ (He/she reads the book, he/she is reading the book)

Дэ тхылъым доджэ (We read the book, we are reading the book)

Фэ тхылъым фоджэ (You (pl.) read the book, you are reading the book)

Абыхэм тхылъым йоджэх (They read the book, they are reading the book)

Future[edit]

Indicating certainty :

Plurality	Person	Positive			Negative
		Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning	Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning
Singular	First-person	сылэжьэнущ	səɮaʑanəwɕ	I will [definitely] work	сылэжьэнукъым	səɮaʑanəwqəm	I won't work
	Second-person	улэжьэнущ	wəɮaʑanəwɕ	You will [definitely] work	улэжьэнукъым	wəɮaʑanəwqəm	You won't work
	Third-person	лэжьэнущ	ɮaʑanəwɕ	He will [definitely] work	лэжьэнукъым	ɮaʑanəwqəm	He won't work
Plural	First-person	дылэжьэнущ	dəɮaʑanəwɕ	We will [definitely] work	длэжьэнукъым	dəɮaʑanəwqəm	We won't work
	Second-person	фылэжьэнущ	fəɮaʑanəwɕ	You will [definitely] work	флэжьэнукъым	fəɮaʑanəwqəm	You (pl.) won't work
	Third-person	лэжьэнухэщ	ɮaʑanəwɕ	They will [definitely] work	лэжьэнухэкъым	ɮaʑanəwxaqəm	They won't work

Indicating some uncertainty :

Plurality	Person	Positive			Negative
		Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning	Cyrillic	IPA	Meaning
Singular	First-person	сылэжьэнщ	səɮaʑanɕ	I will/may work	сылэжьэнкъым	səɮaʑanqəm	I won't work
	Second-person	улэжьэнщ	wəɮaʑanɕ	You will/may work	улэжьэнкъым	wəɮaʑanqəm	You won't work
	Third-person	лэжьэнщ	ɮaʑanɕ	He will/may work	лэжьэнкъым	ɮaʑanqəm	He won't work
Plural	First-person	дылэжьэнщ	dəɮaʑanɕ	We will/may work	длэжьэнкъым	dəɮaʑanqəm	We won't work
	Second-person	фылэжьэнщ	fəɮaʑanɕ	You will/may work	флэжьэнкъым	fəɮaʑanqəm	You (pl.) won't work
	Third-person	лэжьэнхэщ	ɮaʑanxaɕ	They will/may work	лэжьэнхэкъым	ɮaʑanxaqəm	They won't work

Imperfect[edit]

The imperfect tense is formed with the additional suffix ~(р)т /~(r)t/ to the verb. It can have meanings similar to the English "was walking" or "used to walk".

Examples:

Жаринэ дыгъуасэ сыхьэтыблым телевизорым еплът - Yesterday at seven o’clock Zarina was watching TV.

Япэрэм Руслан тутын ефэрт, иджыпсту ефэжкъым - Ruslan used to smoke before, but now he does not smoke any more.

Щӏалэм щилъэгъуам, ар уэшхэм хэту къафэрт - When the young-man saw her, she was dancing in the rain.’ (She can still be dancing.)

Сэ еджапӏэм сыкӏуэт, си телефоным укъыщеуэм - I was going to school when you called me.

Cищӏалэгъукӏэ тутын сефэт, итӏанэ спортым сыпыхьи сыщыужащ сефу - I used to smoke in my youth, afterward I started engaging in sports and stopped smoking.

Ар ипэкӏэ пщэдджыжыкӏэ фадэ ефэт - In earlier times he used to drink booze in the morning (but now he doesn’t have such a habit any more).

Pluperfect / Discontinuous past[edit]

The tense ~ат /~aːt/ can be used for both past perfect (pluperfect) and discontinuous past:

• Past perfect: It indicates that the action took place formerly at some certain time, putting emphasis only on the fact that the action took place (not the duration)
• Past perfect 2: It expresses the idea that one action occurred before another action or event in the past.
• Discontinuous past: It carries an implication that the result of the event described no longer holds. This tense expresses the following meanings: remote past, anti resultative (‘cancelled’ result), experiential and irrealis conditional.

Examples:

• Зэ си адэм лъакъуэрыгъажэкӏэ къэзжыхьыну сыригъэсат (za səj aːdam ɬaːqʷarəʁaːʒatʃʼa qazʒəħənəw sərəjʁasaːt) - My father once taught me to ride a bicycle.

• Урысыбзэ зэзмыгъэщӏэрэу, адыгэбзэ зэзгъэщӏат (wərəsəbza zazməʁaɕʼarawə, adəɣabza zazʁaɕʼaːt) - Before I started studying the language of Russian, I had learnt Adyghe.
• Сэ еджапӏэм сыкӏуат, уэ си унэм укъыщыӏухьэм (sa jadʒaːp'am səkʷʼaːt, wa səj wənam wəqəɕəʔʷəħam) - I had gone to school, when you arrived at my house.
• Даринэ лэпсыр ищӏат Руслан унэм къыщехьэжым (daːrəjna ɮapsər jəɕʼaːt, rəwsɬaːn wənam qəɕajħaʒəm) - When Ruslan came home, Darina had already cooked soup.

• Си ӏункӏыбзэр ӏэнэм телъат (səj ʔʷəntʃʼəbzar ʔanam tajɬaːt) - My keys were lying on the table (and now they are not there).
• Щхьэгъубжэр хэт къызӏухатыр? (ɕħaʁʷəbʒar xat qəsʔʷəxaːtər) - Who had opened the window? [Now it is closed.].
• Дыкъыщыкӏуатэм си анэ полыр ипхъэнкӏытэмэ, унэм дыщигъэхьэнутэкъым (dəqəɕəkʷʼaːtam səj aːna pawɮər jəpχantʃʼətama, wənam dəɕəjʁaħanəwtaqəm) - If my mother had been sweeping the floor at the moment when we had come, she would not have let us into the house.
• Дыкъыщыкӏуатэм си анэ полыр ипхъэнкӏатэмэ, унэм дыщигъэхьэнутэкъым (dəqəɕəkʷʼaːtam səj aːna pawɮər jəpχantʃʼətama, wənam dəɕəjʁaħanəwtaqəm) - If my mother had (already) swept the floor by the time we had come, she would not have let us into the house.

Future II Factual[edit]

The suffix ~нут /~nəwt/ applies to actions that may occur or stand contrary to factual certainty.

Examples:

• Еджапӏэм сыкӏуатэмэ унэм сыщIэсынутэкъым (jadʒaːpʼam səkʷʼaːtama wənam səɕʼəsənəwtaqəm) - Had I gone to school, I would not be home.
• Сэ къэсщэхунт, ауэ ахъшэ сиӏэкъым (sa qasɕaxʷənt, aːwa aːχʃa səjʔaqəm) - I would buy, but I have no money.
• Игъуэм укъэкӏуатэмэ, директорым ущIигъэхьэнт (jəʁʷam wəqakʷʼaːtama, dəjrajktawrəm wəɕʼəjʁaħant) - If you had come on time the director would have let you in.
• Ди сэнэхьатыр фӏы ямылъэгъуатэмэ, ахэр абы кӏуэнухэтэкъым (dəj sanaħaːtər fʼə jaːməɬaʁʷaːtama, aːxar abə kʷʼanəwxataqəm) - If they had not loved our profession, they would not have gone there.
• Си анэ пщэдей къэкӏуэнутэмэ, сэ сыӏущӏэнут (səj aːna pɕadaj qakʷʼanəwtama, sa səʔʷəɕʼanəwt) - If mother were to arrive tomorrow, I would have met her.
• Дыгъуасэ си къуэщыр унэм щʼэсатэмэ, къыпхуэтеуэнут (dəʁʷaːsa səj qʷaʃər wənam ɕʼasaːtama, qəpxʷatajwanəwt) - If my brother had been at home yesterday he would have called you.

Morphology[edit]

The Kabardian language has an especially complex morphology. A verb by its set of morphemes can express subject's and object's person, place, time, manner of action, negative, and other types of grammatical categories. A verb can have some combinations of different affixes to describe specific verbs in different situations.

Verbal Prefixes[edit]

Causative (гъэ~)[edit]

The verbal suffix гъэ~ (ʁa~) designates causation; rendered by the verbs: to force, compel, make; to order, tell; to allow, permit; to give the opportunity to do something.; also forms transitive verbs; for example :

• псэлъэн: to talk → гъэпсэлъэн: to make (somebody.) talk.
• мэжэлІэн: to become hungry → гъэмэжэлІэн: to make (somebody.) go hungry.
• шхэн: to eat → гъэшхэн: to feed (somebody.)
• бзэхын: ещ disappear → гъэбзэхын: to hide/conceal (somebody., something.) quickly.

Directional[edit]

Directional (къэ~)[edit]

This preverb can be used with dynamic as well as static verbs. With this preverb, verbal stems are created which denote a motion to the speaker.

• кIуэн (kʷʼan): to go → къэкIуэн (qakʷʼan): to come here
• жэн (ʒan): to run → къэжэн (qaʒan): to run here
• тхэн (txan): to write → къэтхэн (qatxan): to write here
• хьын (ħən): to carry Y → къэхьын (qaħən): to carry Y here
• джэн (dʒan): to yell → къэджэн (qadʒan): to yell here

With dynamic verbs the preverb къэ- doesn't necessarily have a directional meaning.

• къэнэн (qanan): to remain at Y
• хъун (χʷən): to happen; to grow → къэхъун (qaχʷən): to happen; to grow
• укIын (wətʃʼən): to kill Y (an animal) → къэукIын (qawətʃʼən): to kill Y (an animal)
• къэпцIэн (qaptsʼan): to lie about Y
• лъытэн (ɬətan): to take into account Y → къэлъытэн (qaɬətan): to take into account Y

It can also result into verbs with a more resultative meaning.

• гупсысэн (gʷəpsəsan): to think → къэгупсысын (qagʷəpsəsən): to come up with Y
• псэлъэн: to talk → къэпсэлъэн: to pronounce Y
• вэн: to boil → къэвэн: to boil
• губжьын (gʷəbʑən): to be angry → къэгубжьын (qagʷəbʑən): to get angry

The verbal prefix къэ~ designates arrival, approach, movement directed to the speaker; for example :

• мафӏэгур къэсащ: the train has arrived.

It also designates approach of some season, time; for example :

• щӏымахуэр къэсащ: winter has arrived.

It also adds a tinge of definiteness to the verb; for example :

• къэпсэлъэн: to deliver a speech; to begin to speak.

Direction of motion (нэ~)[edit]

The verbal prefix нэ~ (ны~) designates direction of motion from speaker to second person; for example :

• ар уи деж нэкӏуащ: he went to you.
• ар уи деж ныщӏыхьащ: he went to visit you.

It also forms verbs that convey a sense of completion of an action; for example :

• нэдысын: to finish (sewing); нэвысын: to finish ploughing/tilling.
• нэджысын: to finish (reading), to read to the end.

Inside (и-)[edit]

The verbal prefix и~ (jə~) designates movement or position inside something.

• бытулъкIэм илъын (bətəwɬtʃʼam jəɬən): to lie inside a bottle

It can denote motion downward and inward:

• игуэн (jəgʷan): to push Y into Z

It can denote being inside:

• вагоным исын (vaːɣawnəm jəsən): to sit inside a wagon

It can denote removal from something:

• игъэхун (jəʁaxʷən): to drop Y out of Z (e.g. a pocket)
• пэгуным псыр ижащ (pagʷənəm psər jəʒaːɕ): water flowed out of the bucket
• игъэщIеикIын (jəʁaɕʼajətʃʼən): to deflect Y backwards

Within (хэ-)[edit]

The verbal prefix хэ~ (xa~) designates movement or position inside something.

• мазым хэсын: to be inside a forest

It can denote being somewhere in some sort mass, in an abstract and practical way:

• псым хэтын (psəm xatыn): to stand in water
• хасэм хэтын (xaːsam xatыn): to stand/be in the Khase
• академием хэтын (aːkaːdajməjajm xatən): to stand/be in the academy

It can denote motion towards a mass:

• тхакIуэхэм я союзым хыхьэн (txaːkʼʷaxam jaː sawjəwzəm xəħan): to join a writers' union
• артистхэм хыхьэн (aːrtəjstxam xəħan): to join the artists (the ranks of artists)

Among (дэ-)[edit]

The verbal prefix дэ~ (da~) designates movement or position inside something.

• къалэм дыхьэн (qaːɮam dəħan): to be in the city

It can denote the presence in a certain territory or landscape:

• машинэр уэрамым дэтщ (maːʃəjnar waraːnəm datɕ): the car is on the street
• пщIантIэм дэтын (pɕʼantʼam datən): to be in the yard

It can denote motion towards a certain territory or landscape:

• пхъэр пщIантIэм дэшэн (pχar pɕʼantʼam daʃan): bring wood into the yard

It can denote motion from a certain territory or landscape:

• щхьэгъубжэм дэплъын (ɕħaʁʷəbʒam dapɬən): to look out of the window

Bypass (блэ~)[edit]

The verbal suffix блэ~ (bɮa~) designates movement bypass somebody or something; for example :

• унэм блэжын: to run by/past the house.

Through (пхы~)[edit]

The verbal prefix пхы~ (пхыры~) designates action, motion directed through some obstacle, object; ex.: * пхырыжын: to run through smth.;

• шэр nхъэбгъум пхыкІащ: the bullet went through the board;
• пхивыкІын: to get wet/soaked through.

Across (пыры~)[edit]

The verbal prefix пыры~ designates action of transference over object that is of comparatively small height; ex.:

• жыхьым пырыплъын: to look over the fence

It also designates action, motion directed across some obstacle; ex.:

• псым пырышын (е зэпырышын): to take/lead across the river;
• лъэмыжым пырышын: to take/lead across the bridge

After (кӏэлъ~)[edit]

The verbal prefix кӏэлъ~ (tʃʼaɬ) indicates action that happened towards after something or somebody; for example.:

• мыщэм кІэлъыкIуэн: to go after the bear;
• кІэлъежьэн: to set off/ out after, to start after, to leave after (smb., smth.);
• кІэлъесын: to swim after (smb., smth.).
• кІэлъытхэн: to write after (smb., smth.).
• кІэлъыжэн: to run after (smb., smth.).
• кIэлъыхьын: to carry after (smb., smth.).
• кIэлъыдзын: to throw after (smb., smth.).

Comitative (дэ~)[edit]

The verbal suffix дэ~ (da~) designates action performed jointly with somebody.

• шхэн: to eat → дэшхэн: to eat with somebody.
• кӏуэн : to go → дэкӏуэн : to go with somebody.

Reciprocal (зэ~)[edit]

The verbal prefix зэ~ is used in formation of reciprocal verbs; for example :

• зэзэуэн: to fight each other.

зэдэ~ is used in formation of reciprocal verbs; for example :

• зэдэгушыIэн: to joke with one another.

Reflexive (з~)[edit]

The verbal prefix з~ designates reflexive action; for example :

• зылъэщІын: to wipe oneself.
• зыплъыхьын: to look about oneself.
• зэгъэжьэн: to force oneself to wait;
• зэлъэфэлӏэн: to drag to oneself.

Destination (здэ~)[edit]

The verbal suffix здэ~ designates destination of action; for example :

• сыздэкIуэнур сощӏэ: I know where I am going to.

Involuntative (ӏэщӏэ~)[edit]

The verbal prefix ӏэщӏэ~ (ʔaɕʼa~) designates an action which was done unintentionally. for example :

• хьэм бaжэр ӏэщӏэтхьэлыхьaщ - "The dog slaughtered the fox (unintentionally)"
• хьэр бaжэм ӏэщӏэтхьэлыхьaщ - "The fox (unintentionally) slaughtered the dog"
• щIaлэм дыгъур ӏэщӏэyкӏaщ - "The young man (unintentionally) killed the thief"
• yэ yсӏэщӏэyкӏaщ - "I accidentally killed you"
• щӏaлэм лӏыжьым дыгъур ӏэщӏигъэyкӏaщ - "The boy made the old man accidentally kill the thief"

Against (фӏэ~)[edit]

The verbal prefix фӏэ~ (фӏы~) designates action done against somebody's will or interest. This verbal prefix can also be used indicate that the action was done to take an object or an opportunity away from somebody else.; for example :

• кӏуэн: to go → фӏэкӏуэн: to go against somebody's wish.

Benefactive (ху~)[edit]

The verbal prefix хуэ~ (xʷa~) designates action performed to please somebody, for somebody's sake, in somebody's interests; for example :

• анэм ӏуэху хуэщІэн: to do work for one's mother

Verbal Infixes[edit]

Negative (~мы~)[edit]

~мы~ negatory infix; for example :

• жыӏэ: say → жумыӏэ: do not say.
• къакӏуэ: come → укъэмыкӏуэ: do not come.

Verbal Suffixes[edit]

Directional Suffixes[edit]

Directional suffixes denote a certain directionality. They usually can only be attached in combination with directional preverbs.

Upwards (~и)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~и designates action in an upward direction or against a flow. It is used in combination with the preverb дэ-.

Examples:

• кIуэн: to go -> дэкІуеин: to go upwards.
• лъэн: to jump -> дэлъеин: to jump/leap up.

Downwards (~хы)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~х designates downward direction of action. It is always used with the preverb е-. The resulting verb is always dynamic.

Verbs are divided into groups depending on how this suffix interacts with ablaut alteration.

One group alternates, the other doesn't.

Group 1:

• лъэфын (ɬafən): to decorate Y → елъэфэхын (jaɬafaxən): to decorate Y from up to down
• лъэн (ɬan): to jump → елъыхын (jaɬəxən): to jump down

Group :

• шэн: to lead Y → ешэхын: to lead Y down
• щIын: to do/build Y → ещIыхын: to build Y from up to down

Examples:

• ежэхын: to roll down; to run down.
  • джабэм ежэхын: to roll down the mountain's slope.
  • псыр джабэм хуабжьу йожэх (psər dʒaːbam xʷabʑəw jawʒax): the river is streaming down the mountain' slope.
• ехьэхын: to lower, sink somebody or something.
  • щхьэр ехьэхын: to hang one's head.
  • рабочэхэр шахтэм ехьэхын: to get the workers down to the mine.

Directed towards (~лӏ)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~лӏ designates action directed towards, or applied to smb., smth.; ex.:

• ежэлІэн: vi to run up (to smb., smth.), to come running up (to smb., smth.);
• ехьэлІэн: vt 1. to take, carry (smb., smth. to smb., smth.);
• хьэпшыпхэр автобусым ~: to carry the articles to the bus.
• къекIуэлIащ: he appeared; he presented himself.

Around (~хь)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~хь designates action performed on a definite location or repetition of the action;

• къэжыхьын: to run about;
• къэкIухьын: to go/walk about;

It also designates movement round an object :

• Іуащхьэм къэкIухьын: to walk/go round the hill;
• жыгым къэкIухьын: to walk/go round the tree.

Completion (~гъах)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~гъэхэ designates absolute accomplishment/realization of the action; for example :

• кӏуагъэхэщ: he's already gone.

Frequentative (~ж)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~ж designates recurrence/repetition of action; for example :

• къэсын: to arrive → къэсыжын: to arrive again.
• къэшэн: to bring → къэшэжын: to bring again.

Connective (~и)[edit]

~и (connective suffix) and, also; for example :

• къакӏуи еплъ: come and have a look.

Negative (~къым)[edit]

~къым (verbal suffix) negatory suffix; for example :

• хьэщӏэр иджыри къэс къэсакъым: the guest hasn't arrived yet.
• сэ еджапӏэм сыкӏуакъым: I didn't go to school.

Conditional mood (~мэ)[edit]

The conditional suffix is indicated by ~м(э); for example :

• ар къакIуэмэ, сэ бэзэрым сыкIуэнущ: If he comes, I will go to the market.

Concessive mood (~ми)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~ми designates concessive mood; for example :

• укIуами: even if you had gone.

Infinitive (~н)[edit]

~н infinitive forming suffix; for example :

• тхэн: to write.
• кIуэн: to go.

Recurrence (~рей)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~рей (~raj) designates recurrence, presence of a characteristic; for example :

• мэпсэлъэрей: he is fond of talking; he is garrulous.
• мэдауэрей: he is given to brawling; he is a brawler.

Repetition (~рт)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~рт designates repetition/recurrence of action; ex.:

• тхэрт: he wrote repeatedly.

Imperative mood (~т)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~т designates the imperative mood; for example :

• жыӏэт: do say; just say.
• тхэт: just write.

Subjunctive mood (~тэмэ)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~тэмэ designates subjunctive mood; for example :

• укӏуатэмэ: if you had gone.

Concessive mood (~тэми)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~тэми designates concessive mood; for example :

• укӏуатэми: even if you had gone.

Capability (~фы)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~ф designates the ability to perform the indicated action; for example :

• жыӏэфын: to be able to speak/talk; to speak eloquently/articulately;to manage to say (something.)
• хьыфын: to manage, be able, to take/carry (away) (something. somewhere.).

Completeness (~пэ)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~пэ designates completeness and fulfilment of the action; ex.:

• илэжьыпащ: accomplished, realized, carried into effect;
• шхыпэн: vt to eat (up) (smth.) entirely.

Absolute completeness (~кӏэ)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~кӏэ designates absolute completeness of action; ex.:

• сщIакIэщ: I have already done it.

Slight excessiveness (~ӏуэ)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~ӏуэ designates slight excessiveness; ex.:

• тхэӏуэн: to write more than is necessary.

Excessiveness (~къуэ)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~къуэ designates excessiveness; ex.:

• псэлъэкъуэн: to out-talk somebody; to talk too much; to have a long talk with somebody, to get carried away by a conversation with somebody.

Plural (~хэ)[edit]

The pluralizing suffix is indicated by ~хэ; for example :

• къэкIуахэщ: they came.

Preliminary condition (~хэ)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~хэ designates preliminary condition; for example :

• зытхьэщIыхэн: wash yourself first.
• зытхьэщIыхи шхэ: first wash yourself, and then eat.

Absolute negation (~ххэ)[edit]

~ххэ (verbal suffix) designates absolute negation; for example :

• сыкIуэххэнкъым: I will definitely not go.

Optative mood (~щэрэ)[edit]

The verbal suffix ~щэрэ (~щэрэт) designates optative mood; ex.:

• Налшык сыкIуащэрэ: if only I could go to Nalchik; I wish I could go to Nalchik.

References[edit]

Bibliography[edit]

• Kabardian Verbal Affixes; collected, arranged and edited by Amjad Jaimoukha.