3.2  Shapes and geometry

Talmit distinguishes kan denoting the shape of a 3-dimensional body and ki denoting a 2-dimensional, often drawn shape. So for example, √ko ’round appearance’ leads to kokán ’sphere’ (cf. √kodr > kódro ’wheel’, kódralun ’move once in a circle’) and kokí ’circle’. The compound of both, kankí, means ’picture’, a 2-dimensional shape of a 3-dimensional object, talkí is a ’letter, character’.
A shape existing in mind and imagination only is called gus. This forms dillogús ’dream (in sleeping)’, kangús ’vision of a real object, artistic plan’, degús ’plan (of action), intention’.

Position on a line (spatial or temporal) is denoted by the root √der:

• idérnet ’at the beginning’, idérne ’near the beginning’, idérwe ’near the middle, but behind’
• muldér ’in the very middle’
• adérwe ’near the middle, but before’, adérne ’near the end’, adérnet ’at the end’
• imneχdérnet ’in the beginning’, amneχdérnet ’in the end’
• andér ’length’, andérwe ’short’, andérne ’long’

Interior/exterior position is denoted by trun, the root for the corresponding direction is tru:

• tarún ’interior position’, tirún ’exterior position’
• tarúmmet ’the very middle, center’, tarúmme ’near the center’, tarónwe ’near the border, but within’
• multrún ’at the border’
• tirónwe ’near the border, but outside’, tirúmme ’far outside’, tirúmmet ’outside at maximal distance’
• antrún ’distance from border to point inside’, antrúmme ’wide of area’, intrún ’distance from border to point outside’, intrúmme ’large area lying outside’
• tarú, taráu ’inward’, tirú, tiráu ’outward’

One notices that there is a difference between tarúmmet and muldér – the former can be used for the center of an area or volume, e.g. pelestámi-no tarúmmet ’center of a town’; the latter only for linearly extended objects (also in an abstract sense), e.g. gépre-mo muldér ’middle of the way’, antát-mo muldér ’middle of a time period’.

English makes a consistent distinction regarding the size of one- and three-dimensional objects – long describes the former and big the latter. Properly, the word large is used for areas, i.e. two dimensions, but has by now extended its meaning to three dimensions as well. Talmit makes a rigorous distinction in all three dimensions: andérne ’long’ (1dim), antrúmme ’large’ (2dim) and trámne ’big’ (3dim). On the other hand, it makes no distinction regarding the particular shape of the described object, so that tra is both ’size’ and ’volume’.