[tlhIngan Hol] The problem with po'

SuStel sustel at trimboli.name
Mon Mar 23 11:50:09 PDT 2020


On 3/23/2020 2:25 PM, mayqel qunen'oS wrote:
> The verb {po'} is given as "be expert, skilled".
>
> The problem though is, that while "to be skilled", is one thing, "to 
> be expert" is quite another.
>
> Now, I can understand the crap we usually say, that "context will 
> clarify", but there are times when context *can't* clarify, or in 
> order for it to do so, the main story will need to be disrupted losing 
> its' intended focus.

It doesn't mean /be skilled or be expert, depending on context./ It 
means what the combination of /be skilled/ and /be expert/ means. It 
means the subject has enough training or ability to be really good at 
something.


> What is a {Qel po'} ? An expert i.e. a specialist ? Or someone 
> "skilled", who can be just a med-school graduate with many years of 
> experience, but nowhere near the level of a specialist ?

A *Qel po'* is a doctor who has enough training or ability to be a 
really good doctor.

When a Klingon word is defined with more than one English term, it 
doesn't mean the word means either one or the other. The Klingon word 
has one meaning, possibly with multiple senses, and it has that meaning 
without any connection to how many definitions it's given in English.

In other words, Klingons don't think of the word *po'* as having two 
meanings. It has just one meaning to them. It means *po'.* We just don't 
have a single English word that means exactly what *po'* means, so we're 
given a couple to try to give us a good understanding of what *po'* 
actually means.

-- 
SuStel
http://trimboli.name

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