Kannada Lesson 10
Lesson 10 - The Progressive Aspect
Welcome to the tenth installment in @currylangs’ series on Kannada, this time featuring the progressive aspect. The progressive aspect is an affix used to denote the ongoing nature of a particular verb in a certain tense. The basic form of a progressive verb is taking the present adverbial participial form (the form marked by -ಉತ್ತ (-utta) in the present tense), and adding the appropriately conjugated auxiliary form of the verb ಇರು (to be or to wait). The table below shows the difference between the regular form of ಇರು and the auxiliary form:
In order to construct the present progressive, simply take the present adverbial participle and then add the auxiliary form of ಇರು:
ಮಾಡುತ್ತ + ಇದ್ದೇನೆ = ಮಾಡುತ್ತಿದ್ದೇನೆ
māḍutta + iddēne = māḍuttiddēne
present adverbial participle + 1st person singular form of ಇರು
ಮಲಗುತ್ತ + ಇದ್ದಾರೆ = ಮಲಗುತ್ತಿದ್ದಾರೆ
malagutta + iddāre = malaguttiddāre
present adverbial participle + 3rd person plural form of ಇರು
ಅರಳುತ್ತ + ಇದ್ದವೆ = ಅರಳುತ್ತಿದ್ದವೆ
araḷutta + iddave = araḷuttiddave
present adverbial participle + 3rd person neuter plural form of ಇರು
ಅರಳು (araḷu) = to bloom, flower, or blossom
It’s important to remember a fact about this form, especially when we get to a different compound form. The progressive aspect is essentially encoded in the part of the verb marked with -ಉತ್ತ (-utta), and the tense to which it applies is marked by the conjugation of the auxiliary ಇರು (iru). To change the tense of the progressive verb, just change the tense of conjugated ಇರು.
For practice, translate the following sentences:
The flowers are blooming.
The children are eating dinner.
The girls are writing.
My father is sitting.
The rabbit is running.
He is dancing.
We are leaving.
They are sleeping.
You (polite) are reading.
They (singular) are coming.