Volapük was the second language in Ring A of this relay.
Med ta lüg nifüpaÜn göd semik ün dekul, love süt de stopöp nibuda, kanoy logön jenöpi at. Pul, kel binom kleiliko pö täv äl jul, stanom fo buid gada, e labom su jot oka hikati bigik e rediki. Nim leigavetom oki skiliko, du pul steifom ad lemufükön oni okao. Nu dalogoy omi plu e plu dredäliki, bi sevom, das nibud vo olükömon us suno. No tupom nonik kati. Balna, pladom lufuti bal oka sui buid, ab jiniko tuvom oni tu koldiki, so rofom oki sui bäkasakäd julana. Ven pos ekovenikom, nibud jula lükömon. Pos atos, del kata pas enitedikon. |
A remedy for winter depressionOne morning in December, across the street from a bus stop, you can see this scene: A boy, clearly on his way to school, stands in front of a garden fence, with a big red tomcat on his shoulder. The creature is balancing skillfully while the boy tries to shake it off. Now you can see him getting more and more worried, because he knows the bus is sure to arrive soon. He isn't bothering the cat at all. At one point he gets one paw onto the fence, but seems to find it too cold, and pulls back onto the student's backpack. Just when he's gotten comfortable, the bus arrives. The cat's day has just gotten interesting. |
Tense and aspect are indicated by a vowel prefix before the verb stem. Present imperfect is the default tense and usually not marked.
Person and number are indicated by pronominal suffixes on the verb. Moods other than the (default) indicative are indicated by suffixes following the personal suffix, except for the infinitive -ön which takes the place of the personal suffix. The standalone personal pronouns are identical to the personal endings of verbs, and are typically omitted when nominative.
Noun stems end in a consonant. Cases other than nominative are marked with suffixed vowels. Plural number is marked with -s after the case vowel or directly on the stem if nominative.
Compound words are usually formed with the genitive case -a as an epenthetic vowel after the first root, but other case vowels can be substituted according to semantics.
Adjectives are marked with final -ik. The normal position for adjectives is after the noun they qualify. They do not agree with their head noun in case and number unless they precede the noun, or are separated from it by other words.
Adverbs are marked with -o, usually added to an adjectival -ik but sometimes directly to the root. Directional adverbs (quasi-allative and elative, like Esperanto "hejmen") can be formed by adding the accusative -i or genitive -a before the -o (omitting -ik).
| a | suff. | genitive case |
| ad | conj. | to, in order to (+ infinitive verb) |
| an | suff. | person associated with root (more general than Esperanto -an, -ul) |
| at | dem. | this |
| atos | pron. | this (thing, event, situation etc.) |
| bal | num. | one |
| bi | conj. | because |
| bigik | adj. | big, thick, fat |
| binön | v. | to be |
| buid | n. | fence |
| bäkasakäd | n. | backpack |
| dalogön | v. | to look (at) |
| das | conj. | that |
| de | prep. | from, away from |
| dekul | n. | December |
| del | n. | day |
| dredälik | adj. | fearful, panicked |
| du | conj. | during, while |
| e | conj. | and ["ed" before vowels] |
| e | pref. | present perfect tense/aspect |
| e | suff. | dative case |
| fo | prep. | in front of, before |
| gad | n. | garden |
| göd | n. | morning |
| hi | pref. | he-, male, masculine |
| i | suff. | accusative case |
| ik | suff. | form adjective from noun stem |
| jenön | v. | to happen, to appear, to appear |
| jenöp | n. | scene, place where something happens |
| jinön | v. | to appear, seem |
| jot | n. | shoulder |
| jul | n. | school |
| kanön | v. | to be able |
| kat | n. | cat |
| kel | pron. | relative pronoun |
| kleilik | adj. | obvious, clear |
| koven | n. | comfort |
| labön | v. | to have |
| leigavetön | n. | to balance |
| lelüg | n. | sadness, depression |
| lemufön | v. | to shake (intr.) |
| logön | v. | to see |
| love | prep. | across, over |
| lufut | n. | paw, foot |
| lükömön | v. | to arrive, come to |
| med | n. | means, method, way |
| na | suff. | forms adverb: happening N times |
| naed | n. | time, moment, occasion |
| nibud | n. | bus (public transport vehicle) |
| nifüp | n. | winter |
| nim | n. | animal |
| nitedik | adj. | interesting |
| no | adv. | no, not |
| nonik | adv. | none, not any |
| nu | adv. | now |
| o | pref. | forms future tense of verb |
| o | suff. | forms adverb from noun or adjective stem |
| ok | pron. | self, oneself, himself... reflexive pronoun |
| om | pron. | he; 3d person masciuline |
| on | pron. | it, he, she; 3d person neuter/inanimate/indifferent |
| oy | pron. | one (generic 3d-person, like Esperanto "oni") |
| pas | adv. | just, only just |
| pladön | v. | to put, to place |
| plu | adv. | more |
| pos | prep. | after (time) |
| pro | prep. | for |
| pul | n. | boy, youth |
| pö | prep. | at, in, on |
| pö täv | phrase | on the way; en route |
| redik | adj. | red |
| rofön | v. | to pull back |
| semik | adj. | certain, specified |
| sevön | v. | to know |
| skilik | adj. | skillful |
| so | conj. | so, thus |
| stanön | v. | to stand |
| steifön | v. | try, attempt |
| stopön | v. | to stop, halt |
| su | prep. | on, on top of, atop |
| sui | prep. | onto |
| suno | adv. | soon |
| süt | n. | street, way |
| ta | prep. | against |
| tu | adv. | too, too much |
| tupön | v. | to bother, disturb |
| tuvön | v. | to find |
| täv | n. | way, voyage, trip |
| us | adv. | there |
| ven | conj. | when |
| vo | adv. | indeed |
| äl | prep. | to, towards, directed to |
| öp | suff. | place |
| ük | suff. | makes intransitive verbs transitive, like Esperanto -ig |
| ün | prep. | in, at, on (time) |
Abbreviations
| adj. | adjective |
| adv. | adverb |
| conj. | conjunction |
| n. | noun |
| num. | numeral |
| pref. | prefix |
| prep. | preposition |
| pron. | pronoun |
| suff. | suffix |
| v. | verb |
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Last updated November 2010