The morphology of the verb

“Verb is the name given to the parts-of-speech class in which occur most of the words that express actions and processes and the like. What is distinctive about verbs, is the foregrounding of temporal relations (relations that are anchored in time) or of relations concerned with process.” (Shopan, 2007: 9).

In agreement with the above-mentioned view, “a verb is a word which signifies an action connected with a substantive or the state in which a substantive is and is brought into concordial agreement therewith (except when used imperatively) by the subjectival concord.” (Doke, 1965: 124). According to Aronoff et al. (2005: 243), “verbs denote actions (e.g., jump), sensations (e.g., taste) and states (e.g., understand). In many languages, verbs inflect for tense, mood, aspect or agreement with their subject. We can distinguish between auxiliary and main verbs. Auxiliary verbs (also called helping verbs) typically accompany another verb and express person, number, mood, or tense.”

The predicates of isiXhosa can be distinguished as verbs, e.g., bayathetha ‘they speak’ and copulatives, e.g., singootitshala ‘we are teachers’. Verbs indicate processes that take place, while copulatives existentially connect substantives to each other. According to Oosthuysen (2016: 173) “Morphologically verbs can be distinguished as words containing a verb stem, e.g., bona ‘see’. The minimum requirement for a verb is that it consists of a root, -bon-. and a terminal vowel, e.g., -a.” Verb stems can be classified according to their phonological, morphological, semantic, and syntactical characteristics.

Concordial links

“A subject agreement morpheme is obligatory in all modal forms of the verb, except the imperative mood. Other possible prefixes are the negative morpheme, the present tense, progressive, potential and the temporal morphemes, as well as one or more object agreement morphemes (including the reflexive). The negative morphemes, subject agreement morphemes, present tense morpheme, progressive and the future tense morpheme contribute to tense, aspect, mood and polarity. The productive suffixes include the verbal extensions and the perfect morpheme.” (Berg 2018: 55).

According to Oosthuysen (2016: 175) “(a)ll predicates, excluding the ambivalent verbs in the imperative and infinitive moods, have an explicit or implied link to the substantive referring to the subject executing the process indicated by the predicate”:

• Abasebenzi bawile. ‘The workers have fallen.’
• Ikomityi iwile. ‘The cup has fallen.’
• Isitena siwile. ‘The brick has fallen.’
• Izithethi zithethile. ‘The speakers have spoken.’

Also, the object of a predicate is sometimes linked to it with a concord, called an object concord as:

• Abakhi bazithengile izitena. ‘The builders have bought the bricks.’
• Abahlali bakutyile ukutya. ‘The residents have eaten the food.’
• Ingonyama iliqhelile ihlathi. ‘The lion is used to the forest.’

Morphological structure of the verb

IsiXhosa has an agglutinative morphology with the main verb being the most complex word category. Each morpheme in the main verb occupies a specific slot in a verb. The core of the main verb is the root. The root is usually a bound morpheme that carries the basic lexical meaning of the word and requires one or more affixes to modify its meaning to form a complete word (Kosch, 2006: 7). The main verb may include inflectional prefixal as well as derivational and inflectional suffixes.

According to Satyo (1985: 48) “the morphological constituents of the verbal which are often mentioned during the description of the shape of the verbal are the following:”

1. the negative formative (in initial position);
2. the subject concord (which is dependent on the class of a subject noun;
3. the tense (aspect marker);
4. the object concord which is dependent on the class of an object noun;
5. the verbal root;
6. the derivational or extension affixes;
7. the terminative vowel.

The examples below are meant to illustrate the analysis of isiXhosa verbs into various morphological units:

• a- ndi- sa- ba- bon- i ‘I don’t see them any longer’
• a- ndi- sa- ba- fund- eli ‘I don’t read for them anymore’
• a- ndi- sa- ba- cuk- ani- si ‘I don’t crowd them together anymore’

Classification of verb stems

Oosthuysen (2016: 247) states “Verb stems can be classified by means phonological – morphological characteristics, relating to the nature and number of syllables they consist of and their morphological characteristics, depending on whether they are basic stems or stem derived by having their roots extended.”

• Polysyllabic verb stems commencing in a consonant:

  IsiXhosa verbs stems consist of a root plus a final vowel, e.g., -bon-a ‘see’, -bamb-a ‘catch’, -fund-a ‘read/learn’. Most verb stems start in a consonant and are polysyllabic, mostly disyllabic as in: -thula ‘keep quiet’, -sula ‘wipe’, -galela ‘pour’, -khalipha ‘be brave’.

• Polysyllabic verb stems commencing in a vowel:

  Several polysyllabic verb stems commence in a vowel. These vowel-commencing verb stems can be subdivided into vowel- commencing verb stems, which always commence in the same vowel, such as -enza ‘do, make’, -akha ‘build’, -ona ‘do wrong/sin’, -aphula ‘break’, -eyisa ‘defeat’ and -onwaba ‘be happy’. (Oosthuysen, 2016: 250).

• Monosyllabic verb stems

  Several verb stems consist of only one syllable and are referred to as monosyllable verb stems. These stems can be divided into regular monosyllabic verb stems, such as -fa ‘die’, -ya ‘go’, -dla ‘eat’, -pha ‘give as a gift’ and -tsha ‘burn’. (Oosthuysen, 2016: 252).

  There are also monosyllabic verb stems with latent <i>, such as -(i)za ‘come’, (i)ma ‘stand’, (i)ba ‘steal’, (i)va ‘hear; taste, feel’. (i)hla ‘go down’ and (i)tha ‘pour’. (Oosthuysen, 2016: 253).

Morphological classification of verb stems

Morphological verb stems can be classified as either basic or derived and further differentiated according to the nature of their irregularities.

• Basic verb stems and derived verb stems

  Basic verb stems consist of a root, morpheme plus a final morpheme:

  • -bon-a ‘see’
  • -akh-a ‘build’
  • -y-a ‘go to’

  Derived verb stems consist of a root morpheme, plus one or more root extension morphemes, plus a final morpheme:

  • -bon-is-a ‘show’
  • -akh-el-an-a ‘build for each other’
  • -y-el-a ‘go for’

  Basic verb stems can be classified as regular, defective, deficient and pseudo basic verb stems as presented by Oosthuysen (2016: 256):

  • Regular verb stems show no particular deviations, and they constitute the stems of the vast majority of verbs as in -linda ‘wait’, -bona ‘see’.
  • Defective basic verb stems are irregular in respect of their final morpheme, as in -azi ‘know’, -thi ‘say/do’ and -tsho ‘say/do/think’.
  • Deficient basic verb stems can be called auxiliary or dependent stems, that are found in verbs that have another predicate as complement, and that often undergo mutation or elision of morpheme as in ungafumane used instead of ungafumani ‘you (singular) must not irresponsibly/carelessly/vainly do’ as in:
    • Uze ungafumane ulithenge ihashe ngetyala. ‘You (singular) must not vainly buy a horse on credit.’

Independent and dependent verb stems

• Independent verb stems

  Independent verb stems are stems of verbs that have the ability to express a complete independent predicate as in: -bona ‘see’: (Oosthuysen, 2016: 265)

  • Abantwana babona abazali. ‘The children see parents.’
  • Inja ikhonkotha unoposi. ‘The dog barks at the postman.’
  • Umama upheka inyama. ‘Mother cooks meat.’
• Dependent or auxiliary verb stems.

  “Dependent or auxiliary verb stems are also called deficient stems as they often drop characteristics of independent verb stems. These stems, that may or may not also operate and independent stems, need to be followed by another verb as complement so as to express a complete predicate, and often undergo mutations that leave these verbs deficient, e.g., -ungafumane ‘and not’ the regular ungafumani – ‘an-you (singular) irresponsibly (carelessly do)’, as in:” (Oosthuysen 2016: 265)

  • Uze ungafumane uthethe unxilile. ‘Do not irresponsibly speak when you are intoxicated.’

Suffixes are affixes which are attached at the end (or to the right) of a root: (Kosch, 2006: 9)

• Nouns
  • i- nkosi -kazi ‘chief’s wife’
• Verbs
  • u-ku- bhal -el-an- a ‘to write to each other’
  • u-ku-bhal-el-an-a ‘to write to each other’
  • u-ku-bhal-is-w-a ‘to be registered’

In some grammars a distinction is drawn between two types of suffixes for the verb, namely an extension and a verbal ending. According to this view the extensions in the verbs above would be those suffixes which occur between the root and the final morphemes, namely -el-, -an-, -is- and -w-. The suffixal morphemes of the verb include all the extensions and all the endings. “The extensions are verbal suffixes that are affixed to verbal roots in order to add flexibility to the verb in respect of its application, e.g., performing the action of the root reciprocally, doing something for a person, purpose or reason, moving towards or away from some place, causing someone or something to perform the action of the root, etc.” (Pahl, 1978: 395)

Whereas in many languages these aspects of application are expressed by means of prepositions or auxiliary verbs, in isiXhosa they are effected by means of suffixal extensions to verbal roots:

• ‘to beat is’: ukubeth-a
• ‘to hit each other’: ukubeth-ana
• ‘to cause to hit’: ukubeth-isa
• ‘to be beaten’: ukubeth-wa (Pahl, 1978: 395)

Verbal extensions are one of the main characteristics of the verb in isiXhosa. A verb stem may assume a whole series of different meanings just by suffixing a particular verbal extension or derivative suffix:

• -pheka ‘cook’ > -phekela ‘cook for’
• -thenga ‘buy’ > -thengwa ‘be bought’
• -thanda ‘like/love’ > -thandana ‘like/love each other’
• -dla ‘eat’ > -dleka ‘edible/can be eaten’
• -funda ‘learn’ > -fundisa ‘teach’
• -bona ‘see’ > -bonakala ‘be visible’

Verbal stems may be inflected in various ways to form derivative verbs, each of which is conjugated in the different moods and tenses as is the simple stem. The most common verbal derivatives are in the passive, the neuter, the applied, the reciprocal, the causative, the consecutive, the intensive, the reduplicated, and the diminutive.

Productive and unproductive suffixes

Productivity is a general term in linguistics to refer to the creative capacity of language users, to produce and understand an indefinitely large number of sentences as in the following:

• ukuhlek-a ‘to laugh’
• ukuhlek-ana ‘to laugh at each other’
• ukuhlek-eka ‘to be laughable’
• ukuhlek-ela ‘to laugh at, for’
• ukuhlek-isa ‘to cause to laugh’
• ukuhlek-wa ‘to be laughed at’ (Satyo, 1985: 4).

Non-productive (or unproductive) patterns lack instances where they are used repeatedly in a language, to produce further instances of the same type whereby a new verb is assigned. Unproductive extensive suffixes (also referred to as inactive) can no longer be detached from their stems as the roots are not identifiable anymore. Some of the unproductive suffixes are the contactive, dispersive and deideophonic as in the following:

• -fumbatha ‘close the hand, make a fist’
• -thabatha ‘take’
• -cambalala ‘lie flat’
• -ngqubangqu! ‘bump, butt’
• -diba / di! ‘fill up a hole’

Neuter

The neuter suffixes -ek- and -akal- denote an intransitive state which is also often expressed in English by the suffix -able:

• -funa ‘seek/desire’ > -funeka ‘desirable/wanted/needed’
• -thanda ‘love/like’ > -thandeka ‘lovable’
• -fihla ‘hide’ > -fihleka ‘can be hidden’
• -va ‘hear/listen’ > -vakala ‘audible’

Applied

The applied form of the verb indicates that the action of the verb takes place on behalf of, or about some object. This stem is, therefore, in the first place, a transitive one. The -el- is suffixed to the basic root and is followed by the terminative:

• -hamba ‘go’ > -hamb + el + a > -hambela ‘go for/ visit’
• -bona ‘see’ > -bon+el+a > -bonela ‘see for’
• -suka ‘go away’ > -suk+el+a > -sukela ‘go away from’

Reciprocal

The reciprocal extension -an- expresses “each other, one another”. Like the applied extension, it is inserted between the root and the final -a. of the verb stem. The addition of the reciprocal extension indicates that the action takes place reciprocally between two subjects:

• -betha ‘beat’ > -bethana ‘beat each other’
• -jonga ‘look’ > -jongana ‘look at each other’
• -ncedisa ‘help’ > -ncedisana ‘help each other’

Causative

Verb stems with a causative connotation are derived from other verb stems by extending the root of the verb stem with the causative morpheme -is-:

• -hamba go > -hambisa ‘cause to go’
• -bona ‘see’ > -bonisa ‘show’
• -funda ‘learn’ > -fundisa ‘cause to learn, i.e., teach’

A limited number of verb stems that terminate in -la, -eka, -ika, -oka and -mka are found with an old or archaic causative, where the final vowel of the stem, i.e., /l/ or /k/, is replaced with /z/:

• -dilika ‘cave in’ > -diliza ‘knock down’
• -khumbula ‘remember’ > -khumbuza ‘remind’
• -limala ‘be injured’ > -limaza ‘injure’
• -phumla ‘rest’ > -phumza ‘give rest’ (Oosthuysen, 2016: 272).

Intensive

The intensive extension denotes an intensive causative action:

• -qina ‘be firm’ > -qinisisa
• -qonda ‘understand’ > -qondisisa
• -funda ‘read’ > -fundisisa

Reduplicate

The effect of reduplicated verb stems may be either to diminish the action or to increase it; i.e., reduplication may have a dimunitive or augumentive effect. The context decides which effect is intended:

• -hamba ‘go’ > -hambahamba ‘walk about’
• -bona ‘see’ > -bonabona ‘see somewhat’
• -hlamba ‘wash’ > -hlambahlamba ‘wash a little’

To indicate that a process takes place continually or repeatedly the first two syllables consisting of a consonant or consonant cluster plus a vowel of a verb stem are duplicated:

• -bheka-bheka look around
• -chitha -chitha spill all over
• -chola-chola pick up here and there

Deideophonic

According to Oosthuysen (2016: 283), “(a) large number of verb stems exhibit a similarity to related ideophones, many obsolete, from which they were initially derived by suffixing an extension morpheme and the final vowel -a as in”:

• -nqam > -nqamla ‘cut off’
• -qheke > -qhekeza ‘break’
• -ngqu > -ngquba ‘bump’
• -xhu > -xhuma ‘leap’

Aronoff, M. & Fudeman K. (2005) What is Morphology? Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishing.

Berg, A. (2018) Computational syntactic analysis of Setswana. Doctoral Thesis. North-West University, Potchefstroom.

Doke, C. M. (1965) Textbook of Zulu Grammar. 6th edn. Cape Town: Longman.

Kosch, I. M. (2006) Topics in Morphology. Pretoria: University of South Africa.

Oosthuysen, J. C. (2016) The Grammar of IsiXhosa. Stellenbosch: SUN MeDIA.

Pahl, H. W. (1978) ‘The Functions of the Verbal Extensions in Xhosa’. Fort Hare Papers 6(5): 395-406.

Satyo, S. C. (1985) Topics in Xhosa verbal extension. Doctoral Thesis. University of South Africa: Pretoria.

Shopan, T. (2007) Language Typology and Syntax description. 2nd edn. Vol 1. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.