Wir Ain Leed — Verbs

Verbs indicate an action, occurrence or state. Events can be placed:

in present time i.e. the present tense e.g. is (is).

in past time i.e. the past tense e.g. wis; or

as having taken place in the past but are relevant to the present time, the perfect. e.g. haes (has) plus past participle.

The suffix (e)n may be used to form verbs from adjectives and nouns.

The suffix le alternating with er may be added for frequentative or diminutive emphasis.

The prefix be can be used before verbs to strengthen them and to make nouns into verbs.

The infinitive and present indicative

The infinitive marker, for tae or for til means 'in order to'.

The present indicative (the mood of the present tense expressing fact) is usually formed by adding s to the infinitive.

Verb concord

The verb inflexion s (Northern Subject Rule).

When a verb immediately follows a personal pronoun in the present tense, the verb remains the same.

The verb ending s, occurs:

In all persons of the plural except immediately following a personal pronoun (see above).

Where the subject of the verb includes two pronouns.

Where the subject is a plural noun.

Where the plural pronoun is separated from the verb by some other word or words.

In the narrative resent the verb sometimes takes the ending s, even in the first person singular and after a single personal pronoun.

The past tense and past participle

Some verbs may have both weak and strong forms (see below).

Weak verbs that end with b, d, g, k, p and t usually form the past tense and the past participle by adding it including verbs with a final silent e, which is dropped. Some weak verbs also have strong forms (see below).

* In Mid Northern Scots note is used for the past tense and note(n) for the past participle of need.

Note that want and need are regularly followed by a past participle.

In Scots, besides 'to wish, to desire', want also has the meaning 'to be in need', 'to be lacking', 'to do without' or 'to go without'.

Weak verbs that end with ch (/ç, x/), f, s (/s/), sh (/ʃ/), (t)ch (/ʧ/) and th (/θ/) usually form the past tense and the past participle by adding t. If a final silent e follows the above sounds 't may be added.

Weak verbs that end with l, m, n, ng or r usually form past tense and the past participle by adding t or (e)d, the latter especially in the south. If a final silent e follows the above sounds 't may be added.

In some weak verbs a double l is rendered single and final le after a consonant is changed to elt to form the past tense and past participle.

* The past perfect of daur when followed by a noun or complex verb phrase is daurd. Durst is only used in the sense of ventured.

Weak verbs that end with (d)ge (/ʤ/), th(e) (/ð/), v(e) (/v/) and se or z(e) (/z/) usually form the past tense and the past participle by adding (e)d.

* Note the difference between the verb uise (use) and the noun uiss (use).
Uised wi means 'used to' in the sense of being in the habit of or familiar with. Uised tae (Central [ˈjɪste:], Northern [ˈistiː]) means 'used to' in the habitual sense.

Some weak verbs have assimilated the t or d past tense and the past participle and/or changed the vowel or undergone metathesis.

Some weak verbs distinguish the vowel in the past tenses and have final cht (/xt/).

* Note the difference between the verb wirk (work) and the noun wark (work), but wirker (worker).

Some Verbs of Latin origin traditionally have no inflection in the past participle.

Weak verbs that end with a vowel usually form the past tense and the past participle by adding (e)d, except after final <ee> which add 'd.

* The alternative gang [gaŋ], [gjaŋ] or [gɪŋ] in Mid Northern Scots or gan [gan, gɑn] in Central and Southern Scots may be used in place of gae.

Some dialects with an unstressed pronunciation of the final ae, ie or y of weak verbs also form the past tense and the past participle by adding it.

Strong verbs usually form their past tenses by a change of vowel and in past participle usually add (e)n.

* Also dreeve in North Eastern varieties and past participle dri'en.

 

 

* Also choise in Southern varieties or chise in Northern varieties, inflecting choised and chised.

 

 

 

 

* The verb see is used colloquially to indicate a desire to be handed something.

 

 

 

 

* The prevalent forms are held and hauden, huid occurs in North Northern and Insular dialects, huild in Mid Northern dialects and some Insular dialects.

 

* The prevalent forms are bakit, baken and laucht.

 

In simple sentences Scots prefers the word order Subject - verb - adverb - (adjective) object.

Standard English prefers Subject - verb - (adjective) object - adverb.

Present participle

In middle Scots the present participle (referring to an action that is roughly contemporaneous ) was formed by adding and to the verb. By the twentieth century the pronunciation had become indistinguishable from that of the verbal noun in most dialects. During the Scots revival some Scots writers started to revive the older form spelling the present participle an. In line with modern pronunciation the form in is used here.

In words like bide, side, ride and hate the final e is dropped when forming the present participle. Where the verb ends with ie the ie changes to y.

The regular present participle of gae is gaein and of gang, gangin, however, the irregular present participle gaun is the most prevalent form.

Scots often uses the continuous tense with stative verbs where Standard English would have a simple tense.

A'm thinkin means much the same as 'I imagine' in Standard English.
A'm doutin expresses the sense of 'I suspect' or 'to anticipate something undesired'.

This also occurs with other tenses and verbs.

Scots prefers the use of present participle to the infinitive.

In a few words the older past participle survives in various forms such as appearant, awnd, though now usually awin, farrant and willint now often willin.

Negative verbs

Single syllable verbs used to be negated by affixing na.

These are now usually replaced by modal verb forms or no.

The usual negative with past tense verbs is niver.

Negative or unpleasant attributes may be indicated by the prefix mis.

Interrogtives

Interrogative sentences (questions) may begin with a verb instead of an auxiliary.