Verbs 1

Sindarin Grammar 1

Course 1 · Chapter 7 · Verbs 1: Present and Imperative

The verb is where the pronoun endings of Chapter 6 do their work. This chapter covers the present tense, the infinitive, the command form and "to be". As before, the two learner summaries disagree in places, and the chapter says where. The past and future wait for Chapter 8.

The idea in a box

A Sindarin verb is a stem plus endings. The stem decides the pattern: basic verbs end in a consonant (nor- "run"), derived verbs end in -a (padra- "walk").

Two Kinds of Verb

Kind	Stem looks like	Examples
Basic	ends in a consonant	nor- run, car- make/do, ped- speak, tir- watch
Derived	ends in -a	padra- walk, linna- sing

Vocabulary lists show the bare stem. One summary warns that other verb classes probably exist but too little is known to describe them.

The Infinitive

Both summaries use the verbal noun (gerund) as the infinitive, and they disagree on its form:

# elvish.org summary: -ed basic, -ad derived
peded     to speak        linnad    to sing

# Real Elvish Academy summary: -ed basic, -d derived
cared     making          padrad    walking
e aníra tírad     he wants to see      (one of "a couple of" examples)

Neither is a quotation of a full Tolkien paradigm, so treat the infinitive as reconstructed.

The Present Tense

The pattern in the second summary is the simplest. The third singular is the bare stem (a one-syllable vowel is lengthened). With a pronoun ending, basic verbs add -i- and change the vowel (i-affection, as for plurals in Chapter 3), and a plural subject adds -r:

# basic verbs (reconstructed)
i adan nôr         the man runs           (nor-, vowel lengthened)
nerin              I run                  (nor- + -i- + -n; o → e)
in edain nerir     the men run            (plural: + -r)
i adan câr         the man makes
cerin              I make

# derived verbs: the final -a becomes -o before a pronoun ending
i adan padra       the man walks
padron             I walk
in edain padrar    the men walk           (-r added; vowel unchanged)

The other summary proposes two present tenses: a simple one (aorist, pedin "I speak") and a continuous one (pidon "I am speaking"). That fuller system is shown in the table below, and the forms are not the same as in the first set.

Meaning	Real Elvish Academy	elvish.org
I run / make	nerin, cerin	aorist: pedin "I speak"
he speaks	bare stem, pêd	aorist: pêd "he speaks"
they speak	stem + -ir	aorist: pedir
I am speaking	not distinguished	continuative: pidon

The two agree on a core: the third singular is the bare (lengthened) stem, -r marks "they", and -n marks "I".

The Imperative

The command form is the most secure part of the verb system, because it has attested examples in the books:

# attested
pedo mellon a minno      speak, friend, and enter       (pedo = ped- + -o; minno = minna- + -o)
noro lim Asfaloth        ride swiftly, Asfaloth

# the rule as the summaries give it
basic:     stem + -o                       noro!   run!
derived:   final -a becomes -o             padro!  walk!   linno!  sing!

"To Be"

Sindarin often leaves "to be" out. The subject and the word describing it simply stand side by side:

# reconstructed
Arwen edhel          Arwen is an elf
Arwen bain           Arwen is beautiful
i edhel beleg        the elf is mighty
ni glassui           I am happy          (the free pronoun carries the person)

# the verb itself appears as an imperative (na- "to be")
no lim               be quick!
no aer i eneth lín   hallowed be thy name

The other summary lists a present nê "(it) is", a past nant and a future natha. Treat these as proposals.

Watch out: the two present-tense systems differ

Do not mix pidon with nerin-type forms in one sentence. Pick one summary, say which, and keep to it.

Watch out: i-affection hides the stem

nerin looks unlike nor-. When you cannot find a verb, undo the vowel change first, just as you undo mutation for nouns.

Common myths

"Sindarin verbs have one fixed paradigm." Even the experts' summaries differ.
"You must always write 'is'." The verb "to be" is usually omitted.
"The imperative is the hard part." It is the best attested: add -o.

Hands-On Exercises

Exercise 1

Make the present tense of nor- "run" and padra- "walk" for "the man runs/walks", "I run/walk" and "the men run/walk", using the Real Elvish Academy pattern. Label them attested or reconstructed.

📄 View solution

Exercise 2

Form the imperative of ped-, minna- and nor-, then explain pedo mellon a minno word by word.

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Exercise 3

Say "Arwen is an elf" and "I am happy" in Sindarin. Why is no verb written? Then name two points where the two summaries disagree about the present tense.

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Chapter 7 Quick Reference

Basic verbs end in a consonant, derived verbs in -a
He/she: bare stem. I: -i- + -n with vowel change (nerin); derived -o- (padron). They: -r
Imperative: -o (pedo, noro, padro), the best attested form
"To be" is usually omitted; imperative no
Infinitive = verbal noun, form disputed

Coming next

Sindarin Grammar 1, Chapter 8 covers the past and the future tenses, the perfect and participles.