Now we are reaching the more difficult parts of Sindarin. Here you will learn how to use "of" and its special qualities, how possessives and "of" tie together, the mysterious verb "to be", and how to use articles (words like "a" and "the") in Sindarin.

"Of"

When speaking of "of", I'm talking about the "of" as in possessives, not "from", "about", or "concerning". There are three words in Sindarin for the concept of "of", but I'll cover those with the other prepositions once lenition is learned.
Often, "of" is understood, which means the word isn't said but its meaning remains. When we make "of" understood in English, we switch the order of the nouns.
Example: a cushion of a chair-->a chair cushion
In Sindarin, the word order doesn't switch when taking "of" out.
Example: Fangorn (a beard of a tree)

Possessives

Sindarin doesn't have possessives that are as easily made as ours. We add a "'s" (or an apostrophe if the word is plural) and it's as easy as pie. In Sindarin, there is no way to do that outside of pronouns. Instead, use the Sindarin "of". To do this correctly, write the thing being possessed first, then the thing doing the possessing.
Example: tham aran (a king's hall)
Because of this, "Fangorn" can also be translated as "a tree's beard".

"To be"

"To be" is often the most difficult verb to use in languages you are not familiar with. However, in Sindarin, it's slightly easier. Remember Lesson 1, where it says, "Unlike English, Sindarin modifiers most often go after what they modify"? "To be" is going to build on this knowledge.

"To be" and all of its conjugations (am, is, are, was, were, been, being) are understood most of the time.
For an example, I'll use one of the most common errors in the use of Sindarin: mellon nin (a friend [is] me).
When saying something that falls to this pattern: noun [to be] adjective, the adjective doesn't undergo any lenition.
Example: Ni bain (I [am] beautiful)

When a noun is the object of the sentence, following this pattern: noun [to be] noun, the noun undergoes soft lenition.
Example: Le geredir (You [are] a craftsman)

Even though it is hardly ever used, the verb "to be" still exists. Keep this in mind when we start learning how to conjugate verbs in Sindarin.

Articles

Articles are a little more complex in Sindarin than in English. In Sindarin, there are singular and plural articles that take different types of lenition. The articles in Sindarin are:
singular the-i; soft lenition applies.
Example: i dhrambor (the fist)
plural the-in; nasal lenition applies.
Example: in drembyr (the fists)

And there are no words for "a" or "an", because they are always understood.

Homework

Symbols that you may need:
áéíóúý
ÁÉÍÓÚÝ
âêîôûŷ
ÂÊÎÔÛŶ

Wordbank

Nouns:
Draug (wolf)

Adjectives:
Ring (cold)

Translate the following phrases with articles into Sindarin: