An old Norwichian Christmas Cracker excerpted a Turkish grammar's example conjugation of a verb involving kicking, to amusing effect; the bit excerpted dealt with habitual aspect and there was an imperative which I remembered as "be thou a habitual kicker". This turns out not to have been quite right, but I'm pleased enough at having discovered the full text that the little improving tricks memory pulls don't bother me that much. I see that there is "be thou one who has kicked".
What economy of expression such verb forms allow! I can imagine starting off a sorrowful memoir with the confession: I had been or become a constant kicker, or: I was about to become a constant kicker (that is, I was in the future state of having previously kicked). (Though actually these appear even in the Turkish to be compounded of multiple words.)
Since — became one who had kicked, I am often on the point of kicking.
Comments