3 · lo pelori
Two small tools in this chapter. The word lo before a noun makes it many. And a describing word placed before a noun describes it. You met thiku and whalo as things a sentence says; now watch them walk up and stand beside a noun instead.
I
pelori meliho.
lo pelori meliho.
lo pelori wapi.
lopia lo pelori nila.
| new word | say it | it means |
|---|---|---|
| pelori | pe · lo · ri | bird |
| meliho | me · li · ho | sing |
| lo | lo | (makes many) |
| wapi | wa · pi | fly |
One bird sings; the birds sing; the birds fly; the child watches them go. One small word, and the garden fills with wings.
II
thiku pelori meliho.
whalo lohau nulae.
welao phao nuora pilewa.
lo thiku pelori wapi.
No new words. Look instead at where the old ones stand. Before a noun: thiku pelori, a small bird. The describer announces; the noun delivers. You have been reading this order since chapter one without being told.
III
lo shiro whalo nai.
lo peloru thiku nai.
lo peloru welao nai.
thepalu welao nai.
| new word | say it | it means |
|---|---|---|
| shiro | shi · ro | tree |
| peloru | pe · lo · ru | flower |
| thepalu | the · pa · lu | garden |
The trees are large, the flowers are small, and all of it is good. Notice peloru and pelori: flower and bird, one vowel apart, the garden's two ornaments.
IV
lopia mua thepalu nai. Say it and keep walking; the little word mua is chapter five's secret, arriving early so your ear knows it when it is named.
lopia lo peloru nila.
wheo lo shiro nila.
lohau lo pelori nila.
lo pelori wapi.
waero whalo nai.
| new word | say it | it means |
|---|---|---|
| waero | wa · e · ro | sky |
Everyone looks at what suits them: the child at flowers, the elder at trees, the dog at birds (who decline to be looked at). Above all of it, the sky is large.
Aloud, once more, slower. Small words are doing large work now: many, before; describer, before. Everything announces, then delivers.
The machinery, when you want it: plural lo and noun phrases are the manual's Part IV, chapter 11.