[tlhIngan Hol] nuS

Steven Boozer sboozer at uchicago.edu
Thu Aug 24 06:59:08 PDT 2017


It doesn’t answer your question about {nuS} – I’ll let someone else do that -- but whenever you need a word and can’t find an exact match, look for a similar one.  That’s why I add a “See Also” list of related words when I respond to the Word of the Day posts.

Synonyms for “ridicule [someone]” include {vaq} “mock, taunt”, {tIch} “insult”, {ghong} “abuse”, {quvHa'moH} “dishonor”, {maw} “offend”, {tuHmoH} “shame”.   For “be ridiculous” there’s {QIp} “be stupid”,  {maw'} “be crazy” or, better yet, {Dogh(qu’)} “be (very) foolish/silly”:

Dogh; tIghla' rur
foolish as a *t'gla* (KGT)

jIDoghqu' vIghIjlu’mo' 'ej bortaS vIneHmo' jIleghlaHbe' 'ach chovuvtaH
What a fool I have been, blinded by fear and spite, and still you find me worthy. (PB)

Dogh ghaH 'e' Sov moratlh
Morath knows he has been a fool  (PB)

matlhHa'lu'chugh vaj Doghlu' 'e' yaymeH molor
[translation unavailable] (PB p.173)

… or look for the opposite idea, perhaps *{SaghHa’} “be un-serious”.

… or another part of speech.  E.g. the noun {qoH} “fool, idiot”.  E.g. the saying {qoH vuvbe' SuS} “The wind does not respect a fool.”

… or use an idiom:

(KGT 122):  The idiomatic expression {ghaH vuv SuS neH} (“he/she wants the wind to respect him/her”) comes from the same story; it is used to mean “He/she is foolish” or “He/she is a fool”. For example, one might answer the question {qatlh betleHDaj tlhapbe'?} (“Why doesn't he take his bat'leth?") by saying {ghaH vuv SuS neH} (“He wants the wind to respect him”--that is, “He's a fool”. The expression can be modified to apply to different persons or situations: {muvuvpu' SuS vIneH} (“I wanted the wind to respect me”--in other words, “I acted like a fool”); {bImaw''a'? Duvuv SuS DaneH'a'?} (“Are you crazy? Do you want the wind to respect you?"--that is, “What's with you? Are you an idiot?”).

--Voragh


On Behalf Of mayqel qunenoS

Often, I come across the need to say the word "ridiculous", but unfortunately this word doesn't exist in klingon.

The only word we have is {nuS} (v) "to ridicule". Is it possible, through the use of suffixes or by any other way, to produce the word "ridiculous", from {nuS} ?

qunnoq
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