LingoflyԼիճ → լճակ, արեւ → արեւոտ: how nature words are assembled
Many nature words are simple roots with a tail. Learn the tails and one way of compounding, and you won't have to learn the words one by one. For example: “Այգիին մէջ փոքր լճակ կայ (aykiin mech p'ok'r ljag gay), կողքին (goghk'in)՝ առուակ” — There is a small pond in the park, with a brook beside it. A rule from the Western Armenian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Many nature words are simple roots with a tail. Learn the tails and one way of compounding, and you won't have to learn the words one by one.
-ակ is the diminutive: «լիճ (lij)» — a lake, լճակ (ljag) — a pond; «առու (arru)» — a stream, առուակ (arrvag) — a brook. Before the tail a vowel often drops: լիճ (lij) loses its ի (i).
-ոտ means "full of": «արեւ (arev)» — the sun, արեւոտ (arevod) — sunny; «ցեխ» — mud, ցեխոտ (tsekhod) — muddy. -արան is a place or an appliance: «բառարան (parraran)» — a dictionary, «նստարան (nsdaran)» — a bench. -ութիւն makes an abstract noun: «մանկութիւն (mangut'yun)» — childhood. English "-hood" and "-ness" usually come out as -ութիւն.
Compounding two roots gives the longest words: «ջուր (chur)» + «հեղեղ» = ջրհեղեղ (chrheghegh) — a flood, «երկիր (yergir)» + «շարժ» = երկրաշարժ (yergrasharzh) — an earthquake. The first root shrinks, and an ա often links the roots. Meet a long word — cut it up, and the meaning is usually clear at once.
Table
| Tail | Meaning | Built from | What comes out |
|---|---|---|---|
| -ակ | a diminutive | լիճ (lij) — a lake | լճակ (ljag) — a pond |
| -ակ | a diminutive | առու (arru) — a stream | առուակ — a brook |
| -ոտ | full of something | արեւ (arev) — the sun | արեւոտ (arevod) — sunny |
| -ոտ | full of something | կեղտ (geghd) — dirt | կեղտոտ (geghdod) — dirty |
| -արան | a place, an appliance | բառ (parr) — a word | բառարան (parraran) — a dictionary |
| -ութիւն | an abstract noun | մանուկ — a child | մանկութիւն (mangut'yun) — childhood |
| root + root | compounding | ջուր (chur) + փոս (p'os) | ջրափոս (chrap'os) — a puddle |
| root + ա + root | compounding | արեւ (arev) + ծագ | արեւածագ (arevadzak) — sunrise |
By example
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
how nature words are assembled: how does it work in Western Armenian?
Many nature words are simple roots with a tail. Learn the tails and one way of compounding, and you won't have to learn the words one by one.
What does it look like in a Western Armenian example sentence?
“Այգիին մէջ փոքր լճակ կայ (aykiin mech p'ok'r ljag gay), կողքին (goghk'in)՝ առուակ” (aykiin mech p'ok'r ljag gay, goghk'in arrvag) — There is a small pond in the park, with a brook beside it. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.