Hand-book of Volapük/13

by Charles E. Sprague

TENSES

Each of the tenses has one of the vowels as its peculiar sign: [a], ä, e, i, o, u.

for the present or	patüp	a
for the past (imperfect), or	pätüp	ä
for the perfect, or	petüp	e
for the past-perfect (pluperfect), or	pitüp	i
for the future, or	potüp	o
for the future perfect, or	putüp	u

These vowels when prefixed to the verb are called tense-signs or augments.

The present-sign, a, is omitted in the activ voice.

Binob, I am; äbinol, you were; ebinom, he has been; ibinof, she had been; obinos, it will be; ubinon, one will have been.

In English, most of the tenses are expressed by using the auxiliary verbs, have, shall and will; while in Volapük there are no such auxiliaries, the verb-form consisting of a single word.

The word "do" is used in English as an auxiliary denoting emphasis, as, "I do believe." In Volapük this cannot be translated otherwise than "I believe."

The same tense-vowels,

a, ä, e, i, o, u,

are used with some words other than verbs, when time is to be distinguished.

adelo,	to-day.
ädelo,	yesterday.
odelo,	to-morrow.
udelo,	day-after-tomorrow.
amulo,	this month.
omulo,	next month.
oyelo,	next year.