The progressive aspect indicates that action is in progress toward the completion of a goal. For example, if someone is swimming around with no particular goal, the imperfective nube is used. If he or she is on the way from one point to another, the progressive ubelh is used.

This position 3 prefix appears only when two conditions are satisfied. First, there must not be a position 2 subject marker (that is, a subject marker immediately preceding the verb base). This limits its occurrence to the first person plural and third person duo-plural, which are marked by outer subject prefixes, and the third person singular, which is marked by no subject prefix. Second, it must be preceded by a conjunct prefix. Therefore, it always appears in the first person plural and third person duo-plural, where the outer subject prefixes ts' and h provide the necessary conjunct prefix. In the third person singular it appears only when the verb contains a conjunct prefix. This distribution is exemplified by the progressive paradigms of ‟to travel by boat”, where no prefix at all precedes the subject markers, and ‟to return by boat”, where only the disjunct prefix na- precedes them. \smallskip \centerlineTo Travel By Boat \smallskip \centerline\vbox\ninepoint\tabskip=0pt \offinterlineskip \def\tbrule\noalign\hrule \halign to \parwid\strut#& \vrule#\tabskip=\partbskip plus2em& #\hfil & \vrule# & #\hfil & \vrule# & #\hfil & \vrule# & #\hfil & \vrule#\tabskip=0pt\cr\tbrule &&\omit && \hfil singular && \hfil dual && \hfil plural&\cr\tbrule &&1 && uskelh && idukelh && ts'ekelh &\cr\tbrule &&2 && inkelh && uhkelh && uhkelh &\cr\tbrule &&3 && ukelh && hekelh && hekelh &\cr\tbrule \smallskip \centerlineTo Return By Boat \smallskip \centerline\vbox\ninepoint\tabskip=0pt \offinterlineskip \def\tbrule\noalign\hrule \halign to \parwid\strut#& \vrule#\tabskip=\partbskip plus2em& #\hfil & \vrule# & #\hfil & \vrule# & #\hfil & \vrule# & #\hfil & \vrule#\tabskip=0pt\cr\tbrule &&\omit && \hfil singular && \hfil dual && \hfil plural&\cr\tbrule &&1 && nasdukelh && naidukelh && nats'edukelh &\cr\tbrule &&2 && naindukelh && nahdukelh && nahdukelh &\cr\tbrule &&3 && nadukelh && nahedukelh && nahedukelh &\cr\tbrule \hipuc Compare ululh ‟it (generic) is floating”, with no conjunct prefix,and delulh ‟it (d-class) is floating”, where the conjunct prefix d-, permits the -e- to appear. The preceding prefix must be a conjunct prefix; a disjunct prefix is not sufficient. Thus, no -e- appears in forms such as 'oyalulh ‟it (generic) is floating by” and nadlulh ‟it (generic) is floating back”.

Examples of words containing this affix:

Related Words:   Affixes

ling