Re: multiple ce`u (was: Re: whether (was Re: ni, jei, perfectionism)

[John Cowan <cowan@locke.ccil.org>]

la .and. cusku di'e

> I forgot the possibility of this in my reply to Lojbab. I must
> say, I have no idea what, say, {le ka ce`u melbi ce`u zo`e zo`e}
> means.

Why, it means:  "the abstract object which is a dyadic relationship
between a beautiful object and those who find it so, relative to
some understood aspect of beauty and some understood aesthetic
standard."  Simple.  :-)

By counting the "ce'u"s, we find out what the arity (or adicity)
of the relationship is.  All the other places are filled by the
speaker's intent.  (Of course, it's all the same whether the
bridi ends "zo'e zo'e" or just "").
 
> I also find it rather worrying that every single empty sumti
> within a ka clause could in principle be filled with a ce`u.
> And the only way to disambiguate is to fill every single
> sumti! Bloody hell!

The only way to disambiguate *any* bridi, subordinate or top level,
is to fill every single sumti.  Otherwise, the speaker depends on
the listener's goodwill (or the listener depends on telepathy,
as you will).

-- 
John Cowan	http://www.ccil.org/~cowan		cowan@ccil.org
			e'osai ko sarji la lojban