THE ESSENTIALS OF QUENYA GRAMMAR

Writing

Quenya uses an alphabet called Tengwar. It is designed to be written by pen from left to right. The full letters only indicate consonants. Vowels are shown by marks written above the preceding letter. If the vowel does not have a preceding consonant, it must be written above the short carrier (Additional symbol 37).

The Tengwar

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36.

t p c qu nd mb ng ngw s f h hw nt mp nc nqu n m ng nw r v - w r rd l ld s s ss ss h - i u

(always pronounced as 'k') (kw) (always as in 'single') (never initially) (from archaic 'th', not used in 3rd age) (pronounced like German 'ch' in 'Bach' [x], never initial(see letter 33)) (aspirated 'w') (nkw) (always as in 'sing') (only initial) (untrilled as in English, not used before a vowel or semi-vowel) not used in Quenya by itself (see 45) (does not affect the vowel as in English 'bell','hill', which would be transcribed in Quenya more like 'beol','hiol') (no difference from letter 29, used for convenience) (no difference from letter 31, used for convenience) (as in English, only used initially before vowel) not used in Quenya (used only in diphthongs), the tehta represents the preceding vowel in this case (see 46) (used only in diphthongs), the tehta represents the preceding vowel in this case (see 46)

Additional Symbols

37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47.

short carrier, for a vowel mark (tehta) with no preceding consonant long carrier, for long vowels h (before r or l) examples of punctuation corresponding approximately to: ,.!? examples of tehtar for following a (as in father). The three points are standard, quicker modes use the circumflex. In some modes, the sign for a is not written at all and has to be determined from context. The long á is indicated by the long carrier (38). (read: ta, ta, t(a), tá, tá, tá) examples of tehtar for following e (as in when). The long é can be shown by doubling the tehta or using the long carrier (38). (read: te, té, té) examples of the tehta for following i, í (as in machine). (read: ti, tí) examples of the tehtar for following o(as in for). The long ó can be shown by doubling the tehta or using the long carrier (38). (read: to, tó, tó) examples of the tehtar for following u (as in brute). The long ú can be shown by doubling the tehta or using the long carrier (38). (read: tu, tú, tú) examples of tehtar used for consonants, consecutively: following s (in particular ts, ps, cs); doubled consonant (in particular tt, mm, nn, ll); following y or with letter 23, y itself. Then follows two cases to be noted in particular. (read: ts, tt, ty, hy, y) examples of diphthongs. (read: ai, ai, ai, oi, au, au, au, eu)

Long vowels have longer duration but é and ó are pronounced tenser and 'closer' than the short vowels.
The accent in Quenya is on the second to last syllable unless that syllable does not have a long vowel or more than one consonant following the vowel. In this case, the accent is on the preceding syllable (3rd from last).
In rapid speech, the final -a of a word is elidded before a word that begins with a vowel. Ex.: i hall' antan, the tall man; Túl' Endórenna, Come to Middle Earth.
Note on spelling
In the literature one will sometimes find x used for the combination cs, ks and k for c. Also a diacritical mark will often appear on final e to indicate that it is to be pronounced. These variations will not be employed here.

The Article
The definite article is i in all cases. Ex.: i alda, the tree; i eleni, the stars. The definite article is also used before a verb indicating a conjunction (+ pronoun). Ex.: i quena, one who speaks; i quenar, those that speak; antan i quena, a man that speaks.
Quenya does not have an indefinite article. With no article the noun is considered indefinite. Ex.: alda, a tree; eleni, some stars.

The Noun
The plural is formed in -i or -r. -i is used after a consonant or in place of a final -e. Some irregular forms are given in the dictionary. Ex.: alda(tree), aldar; elen(star), eleni.
The dual plural is shown by -t or -u (following d or t). Ex.: aldu, two trees; ciryat, two ships. The dual had ceased to be generally employed in the third age and was retained only for nouns that naturally occured in twos. Ex.:hendu, (two) eyes; rancot, (two) arms.
Quenya has no grammatical gender.
Seven marked cases have been recognized in Quenya.
The nominative and accusative are not marked. The nominative precedes the accusative in word order independent of the position of the verb which is flexible. The verb agrees with the nominative in number, so, if it can be distinguished, the sequence of nominative and accusative can also be changed. Ex.: I aran yala i cánor, The king summons the captains; I aran yalar i cánor, The captains summon the king.
The genitive (of) is formed in -o, -ron,-ion in the plural and -to in the dual. -a is elidded before -o. The genitive precedes the noun it modifies except with proper names and titles where it follows. Ex.: aldo, of a tree; eleno, of a star; aldaron, of trees; elenion, of stars. If the noun already ends in -o, it converts to -u. Ex: telco gen. telcuo, of a stem.
The associative (of) is formed in -va,-wa (after a consonant), -iva in the plural and -twa in the dual. The associative follows the noun it modifies and is similar to the genitive but does not represent a source or intrinsic relation, only a general association. It also (uniquely amoung the cases) agrees in number (by -ve,-we) with the noun it modifies. Ex.: yulma míruvóreva, a cup of (containing) mead; arda aldaiva, a region of trees; yulmar míruvóreve, cups of mead. The associative can also be shown by the construct. Ex.: míruvóre-yulma, a cup of mead.
The dative (-,for) is formed in -n,-in in the plural and -nt in the dual. This represents the indirect object and also the benificiary. Ex.: Annen i eldan parma, I gave the elf a book; Ea nen roccoin, There is water for the horses.
The locative (at) is formed in -sse, -ssen in the plural and -ste in the dual. Ex.: Lóriendesse, in Lórien; i cardesse, at the house.
The ablative (from) is formed in -llo, -llon in the plural and -lto in the dual. Ex.: earello, from the ocean; Tullente i cardellon, They came from the houses.
The allative (to) is formed in -nna, -nnar in the plural and -nta in the dual. Ex.: Linne i círyanna, He went to the ship; Linnente i círyannar, They went to the ships. This can also be used in association with prepositions to indicate that the position is the result of the action. Ex.: Linne mí cardenna, He went into the house.
The instrumental (with) is formed in -nen, -inen in the plural and -nten in the dual. This shows the instrument of an action and is also used to show the subject of passive verbs. Ex.: Palpanyes nambanen, I am hitting it with a hammer; I nórie ná turna táronen, The country is controlled by the king.
Note: Plural cases with -i- will elid the final -e and lengthen the -i in stems. The vowels -a and -o are retained.
The augmented plural is shown by -li. This element will precede the case endings which then must be in the plural. If the case ending begins with i, it is lengthened. Ex.: aldalisse, in many trees; antallion, of many men; lasselínen, by many leaves

The Adjective
The adjective precedes the noun it modifies and agrees in number, but not case.
The plural of the adjective is formed the same as the noun, except adjectives in -a change to -e and -ea to -ie. Ex.: mílie antani, some greedy men; orne cánot, two hasty commanders.
Comparitive is formed by the conjunction la (more). Ex.: Nante melce la ni. They are stronger than I.
Superlative is formed with the prefix an(a)- (most). Ex.: Nalme anorne, We are the most hasty.
The cardinal numbers are míne, atta, nelde, canta, lempe, enque, otso, tolto, nerte, cainen, minque, rasto....tucsa, hundred(144)...menca, thousand(1728). The system is base 12 with the smaller units stated first, thus: míne rasto(13)...attarasto(24), míne attarasto(25)...míne attarasto otsotucsa(1+2*12+7*144=1033)
The ordinal numbers are formed in -ea replacing the final vowel and -en in the case of cainen. Ex.: lempea, fifth; cainea, tenth. For numbers less than five -ya is more common. Ex.:minya, first; tatya, second; nelya, third.
Some fractions are pére, half; ilúve, whole.

The Pronoun
The personal pronouns are given in the following table.

pronoun	indep.	aug.1	subject	obj.2	poss.
I	ni	inye{pe}	-n(ye-)	-	-nya
you	tye	itye*	-t(ye-)*	-	-tya*
he	so	ero*	-ro{pe},-so*,-	-s*	-rya
she	se	erye*	-rye*,-se*,-	-s*	-rya
it	sa	e	-s,-	-s	-rya*
we	me	elme*	-lme	-	-lma*
we (ex.)3	?	emme*	-mme	-	-mma*
we (dual)	met	elve*	-lve*	-	-lva
you(pl.)	le	elye	-lye	-	-lya*
they	te	ente*	-nte4	-t	-nta*

1. These are actually the particle e (indeed) with the subject suffix.
2. It is probable that only 3rd person object is suffixed in this manner. 1st and 2nd person would use the full form for the object.
3. This is the exclusive form which excludes the listener as a participant.
4. In pre-etymology sources, one will find -lto. However, -o in this type would normally represent a masculine form which would correspond to an independent form of to. In later works te is used for masculine subjects, so -lto was probably discontinued. Also the implied possessive -lta would then conflict when it was in the genitive (-lto) .

The independent forms are used with prepositions or when inflected. They are also used as an object of a verb when the verb has no subject suffix. The object precedes the verb unless the verb is in the imperative form in which case it follows immediately after the verb. Ex.: laita te, praise them; Tye melan, I love you; Quenne nin, He spoke for me.
The augmented forms are used to represent 'also', 'even'. Ex.: Nai elye hiruva, May it be that even you shall find it.
The subject forms are suffixed to the verb to represent the subject. Ex.: Quenan, I am speaking; Lastalye, You are listening.
The object forms are used only after the subject suffix to show the object of the verb. Ex.: Laituvalmet, We will praise them; Utúvienyes, I have found it.
The possessive forms are attached to a noun to show possession. They precede the case ending and the plural. Ex.: parmanya, my book; parmanyar, my books; parmanyallo, from my book; parmanyallon, from my books; parmanyalillon, from my many books; lotinya, my flower.

The demonstrative pronouns are sina (si-), this; tana (ta-), that;enta, that(en=over there); yana (yá-), that(long ago); tai, those; sí*, these. These, when adjectives, follow the noun they modify. these can take the cases: tanna, to there; sillo, hence, from here. Note also: sin, sí(before m or n), now; san, then; símen, sinome, here;
The interrogative pronouns are mana (ma-), what; man [mane-*], who. Other interrogatives can be shown by cases. Ex.: masse, where; manna, to where, whither; manen how,by what. Note also: mare {--S. marin like pe. íre} , when;
The indefinite pronouns are qua, something{--ilqua}; quen, someone; aiqua*, whatever, if something; aiquen, whoever, if someone; ilqua, everything; ilquen*, everyone; úqua*, nothing; úquen*, no one, nobody.
The relative pronoun is: i (ya-), that, which. It can be fully inflected. Ex: yasse, in which; yanen, by which. Note also: yare {--pe íre}, when, while.
The impersonal relative pronoun is mo, that/which one....Ex: tana mo quena, that which one says.

The Verb
The present stem of the verb is given in the dictionary. By adding a subject pronoun suffix to this stem, the present tense is signified. Without a suffix, this form represents the 3rd person singular present form. Ex.: Elda quena, An elf speaks; I filit víle, The bird flies. With the 1st person singular (-n(ye-)) verb stems in -e change to -i-. Ex.: Vílin. I fly.
With a plural subject other than the plural pronouns, the verb is pluralized with -r. Ex.: Eldar quenar, Some elves speak.
The imperfect past is formed in -ne. Certain final consonants will merge with this to show the past. These endings change as follows: l-lle, n-nne, m-mne, r-rne, t-nte, p-mpe, c-nce. Ex.: Tellen, I finished; I nauco sa hante, The dwarf broke it; Túvanelyes, You found it.
The perfect past is formed in -nie (with the same merging rules as the past) and the ómataina , the prefixing of the root vowel (sundóma). Ex.: Orqui eldar anwaller, The orcs have tormented the elves; Endorenna utullelme, We have come to Middle Earth.
The imperfect near past is formed in -e with the root vowel lengthened (when not followed by two consonants). Ex.: Télen, I (just) finished; Quénenyet, I spoke to them.
The perfect near past is formed in -ie with the root vowel lenghthened (if possible) and the ómataina, the prefixing of the root vowel. Ex.: Utúlien, I have (just) come; Equénielme, We have spoken.
Note: The use of the near past represents an action that is still influencing (or connected with) the present, whereas the past represents actions which have in a sense become historical.
The future is formed in -uva. Ex.: Endorenna tuluvalme, We will come to Middle Earth; Quenuvanyet, I will speak to them.
The imperative is like the 3rd person present or formed with the reduced second person suffixes -t or -l in the plural. Ex.: Ea, Let there be; Quena(t) seron ar minta(t), Speak friend and enter; Care, Do it!; Quenal serondi ar mintal, Speak friends and enter. The third and first person imperative is formed with the word  á. Ex.: á lesta, Let him go!; á lestamme, Let us go (from you); á lestalme, Let us go (together with you). This represents also a wish. A stronger imperative can be indicated by nai. Ex.: Nai lesta, Be it that he should leave.
The verbal noun is formed in -ie. Ex.: omentie, meeting; quenie, speaking.
The infinitive is the same as the third person present. Ex.: omenta, to meet; quena, to speak. The infinitive can also take -(i)ta. This form can take the personal poseessive suffixes which then indicate the subject and also the object suffixes. Yeltanen quenatas. I loathed to say it; Yeltanen quenatalyas. I loathed your saying it.
The passive infinitive is shown by a-. Ex.: ahosta, to be collected.
Frequentive verbs can commonly be shown by doubling the initial syllable of the verb. Ex.: hohosta-, to continually collect.
The active present participle is formed in -la. It follows the noun it modifies. Ex.: mérala, wanting; lantala, falling. The active participles take the case ending. Ex.: alda lantalasse, in the falling tree.
The passive past participle is formed in -na or -ina with an undetermined subtle difference in meaning. -na has the same consonant merging rules as the imperfect past. -a- verb stems retain the vowel before -ina, but -e- stems lose the vowel. Ex.: tuvaina, found; yalla, called, summoned; nanca, bitten; mastina, baked.
The negative is shown by ú-{--S.}(with bad conotation) in all tenses. Ex.: úquenuvanyet, I shall not speak to them (I cannot stand to); útulle, he did not come. Interjections: lá, no!; lala, certainly not!. lá can also be used as "not" before the verb as simple negation: Lá quenuvanyet. I will not speak to them.
The augmented negative is shown by the verb úye-[úme-] [fut. úva]. Ex.: Úvan quena, I definitely shall not speak.
The prohibitive is formed in (a)va-. Ex.: avaquenuvanyet, I will not speak to them (I do not wish to); avaquena, he is not speaking, he is prohibited from speaking. Interjections: (a)vá, don't!; (a)ván(ye), I won't!; (a)vamme, we won't!.

Word Formation
Enhancement
on noun:
-(a)le(general intensive),tumbo(valley)-tumbale, deep valley;
-en(great in size or importance), ear(sea)-earen, ocean;
-ince(dimunitive), olwa(branch,stick)-olwince, stick,twig;
-lle(dimunitive), ngande(harp)-ngandelle, little harp;
-asse(collective), ronde(hall)-rondasse, castle;
-enne(feminine), rau(lion)-ravenne, lioness.
on verb:
-ila-(general intensive), tíra-(watch)-tirila-, stare;
-ta-(causitive), pále-(expand)-palta-, enlarge(tran.);
-ya-(transitive,causative), úla-(pour,flow)-ulya-, pour(tran.).
Nouns
on verb:
-no[pl.-ni](agent), orta-(beget)-ortáno, parent;
-r(o)(masc. agent), maca-(fight with sword)-macar, swordsman;
-re(fem. agent), móta-(work)-motáre, female worker;
-(in)do(masc. agent), cola-(carry)-colindo, carrier,bearer;
-(al)de,-(al)le(fem. agent), tinta-(kindle)-tintalle, kindler;
-isse(fem. agent), mela-(love)-melisse, lover;
-il(instrument), tece-(write)-tecil, pen;
-sse(action), yala-(call, summon)-yalasse, calling,summons;
-le(action), quena-(speak)-quenale, speaking, speech;
-ie(action), omenta-(meet)-omentie, meeting.
on noun:
-mo(agent), cirya(ship)-ciryamo, sailor,mariner;
-ndil(agent in names, 'lover of'), elen(star)-Elendil, Star-lover;
-ndur(agent in names, 'expert of'), elen(star)-Elendur, Star-studier;
-ser(agent in names), elda(elf)-Eldaser, Elf-friend;
-we(masc. agent in names), alcar(glory)-Alcarwe, Glorious-one.
on adjective:
-o, from -a(agent), melca(strong, mighty)-melco, strong one;
-mir(agent in names), boro-(S. steadfast)-Boromir, Steadfast one;
-ie(noun,-ness), anda(long)-andie, length;
-sse(noun,-ness), vea(vigorous)-veasse, vigor.
Adjectives
on noun:
-ea[pl.-ie](basic), laure(gold)-laurea, golden;
-ya(basic), númen(the west)-númenya, western;
-i(t)e(with,-ed), má (hand)-maite, handed;
-in(que)(-ous,-y), alcar(glory)-alcarin, glorious;
-un(que)(-ous,-y, with bad conotation), alcarun, brazenly glorious;
-arwa(-ful), hála(fish)-halarwa, full of fish;
-ina(made of), anga(iron)-angaina, made of iron.
on verb:
-ima[pl.-ime](-able), rahta-(reach)-rahtima, reachable.
Prefixes
au-(off,away), aucíre-, cut off;
hó-,so-(off,to here(to use)), hócire-, cut off a portion;
ala-(without), alahaste, without defect;
yo-(together(many)), yomenie, meeting, gathering;
o-(together(two)), omentie, meeting (of two);
ú-(not,un-,with bad conotation), úvanimo, monster(unfair-one);
il-(not,un-), ilfirin, immortal;
ava-(not,un-,without,prohibited), avaquenima, not to be spoken;
en-(re-,again), envinyata-, renew;
at(a)-(back,again), atalanta-, fall back;
am(a)-(upwards), ampende, upslope;
un(du)-(down), untúpa-, cover(down-roof);
an(a)-(to,towards;most), anasinda, most gray;
ap(a)-(after), apanóna, man(after-born);
ar(a)-(outside,beside), Araman, outside-Aman (the mortal lands);
et(e)-(out), etsir, outflow;
min-(in,into), millanta-, fall into;
ter-(through), ternáre-, recount, tell to end;
er-(single);
táte-(double,two);
nel-(triple,three);
can-(quadruple);
lin-(multiple,many).

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