Lesson 20: Verbs — Future Tense
Sindarin future tense: continuative future (-tha- infix) and simple future forms, all 6 persons — with the famous le linnathon as a worked example.
Future Tense Overview
Sindarin expresses futurity — actions that will happen — through a dedicated morphological marker. Unlike English, which uses an auxiliary verb ("will"), Sindarin encodes the future directly in the verb's form using the infix/suffix element -tha- (or -thi- in some environments).
The future tense marker appears between the verb stem and the personal ending, creating a recognizable three-part structure:
[Verb Stem] + [-tha-] + [Personal Suffix]
This system is well-attested: the form linnathon (I will sing) appears directly in Tolkien's Sindarin verse, making it one of the most solidly confirmed grammatical patterns in the language.
Future Tense Marker: -tha-
The morpheme -tha- signals future tense for both primary verbs and A-stem verbs. The attachment works as follows:
For Primary Verbs:
- Verb stem + -tha- + personal suffix
- The stem vowel may lengthen before -tha- (continuative future sense)
- Example: tir- + -tha- → tîr-tha- → tîrithon (I will watch) — the vowel lengthens and th follows
For A-Stem Verbs:
- The thematic -a- of the A-stem merges with the -tha- suffix
- linna- + -tha- → linna-tha- → linnatha- → personal suffix
- Example: linna- + -thon → linnathon (I will sing)
Primary Verb tir- — Future Tense
The future stem for primary verbs inserts -ith- between the stem and the personal ending (the -th- is the future marker; the -i- is a connecting vowel):
| Person | Future Form | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1st sg. | tirithon | I will watch |
| 2nd sg. fam. | tirithog | thou wilt watch |
| 2nd sg. pol. | tirithodh | you will watch |
| 3rd sg. | tiritha | he/she will watch |
| 1st pl. incl. | tirithom | we will watch |
| 1st pl. excl. | tirithonc | we will watch (excl.) |
| 2nd pl. | tirithodh | you (pl.) will watch |
| 3rd pl. | tirithir | they will watch |
Formation pattern: tir- + -ith- + personal ending:
- tir- + -ith- + -on → tirithon
- tir- + -ith- + -a → tiritha
- tir- + -ith- + -ir → tirithir
A-Stem Verb linna- — Future Tense
For A-stem verbs, -tha- follows directly after the stem (with the -a- of the stem merging):
| Person | Future Form | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1st sg. | linnathon | I will sing |
| 2nd sg. fam. | linnathog | thou wilt sing |
| 2nd sg. pol. | linnathodh | you will sing |
| 3rd sg. | linnatha | he/she will sing |
| 1st pl. incl. | linnathom | we will sing |
| 1st pl. excl. | linnathonc | we will sing (excl.) |
| 2nd pl. | linnathodh | you (pl.) will sing |
| 3rd pl. | linnathir | they will sing |
Formation pattern: linna- + -th- + personal ending:
- linna- + -th- + -on → linnathon
- linna- + -th- + -a → linnatha
- linna- + -th- + -ir → linnathir
ATTESTED: le linnathon
This future form is one of the most celebrated pieces of attested Sindarin. It appears in Tolkien's poem A Elbereth Gilthoniel in the version found in The Road Goes Ever On (the song-book with music by Donald Swann, annotated by Tolkien):
Fanuilos, le linnathon nef aear, sí nef aearon!
Translation: "Fanuilos [= Varda, the Ever-white], to thee I will sing, here on this side of the ocean, here on this side of the Great Sea!"
Full Analysis of le linnathon
| Element | Sindarin | Translation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Object pronoun | le | to thee / thee | 2nd sg. dative/object pronoun |
| Verb stem | linna- | to sing | A-stem verb |
| Future marker | -tha- | future tense | merges with stem's -a- |
| Personal suffix | -on | I (1st sg.) | first person singular ending |
| Full form | linnathon | I will sing | A-stem future 1sg |
The phrase le linnathon = "to thee I will sing" puts the object le first for emphasis (standard Sindarin allows object-fronting for focus), then the verb linnathon with its built-in 1st singular subject marker.
Context: nef aear, sí nef aearon
- nef — on this side of
- aear — (the great) sea (singular)
- sí — here, now
- aearon — Great Ocean (augmentative form; aear + augmentative -on)
The verse is a vow of devotion: "I will sing to you, Varda, even here in Middle-earth, on this side of the Western Sea."
Future of Other Essential Verbs
ped- (to speak) — Future
| Person | Form | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1sg | pedithon | I will speak |
| 3sg | peditha | he/she will speak |
| 3pl | pedithir | they will speak |
cen- (to see) — Future
| Person | Form | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1sg | cenithon | I will see |
| 3sg | cenitha | he/she will see |
| 3pl | cenithir | they will see |
tol- (to come) — Future
| Person | Form | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1sg | tolthon | I will come |
| 3sg | toltha | he/she will come |
| 3pl | tolthir | they will come |
Note: tol- uses -th- directly without the connecting -i-: tol- + -th- → tolth- + suffix. The connecting vowel -i- is used in some analyses for verbs whose stem ends in a consonant cluster; single-consonant stems may attach -th- directly.
men- (to go) — Future
| Person | Form | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1sg | menithon | I will go |
| 3sg | menitha | he/she will go |
| 3pl | menithir | they will go |
car- (to do/make) — Future
Car- in the future may show its irregular g- stem (reflecting the gor- base seen in the past agor):
| Person | Form | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 1sg | gerithon / carithon | I will make/do |
| 3sg | geritha / caritha | he/she will make/do |
The form with ger- (from the ablaut root) is one reconstruction; using car- + -ith- directly is simpler and equally defensible for Neo-Sindarin. Mark your preference and be consistent.
Future Tense: Comparison Table
| Verb | Aorist 1sg | Past 3sg | Future 1sg |
|---|---|---|---|
| tir- | tiron | tirnant | tirithon |
| ped- | pedon | pendant | pedithon |
| cen- | cenon | cennant | cenithon |
| car- | caron | agor | carithon |
| tol- | tolon | tollant | tolthon |
| men- | menon | mennant | menithon |
| linna- | linnon | linnant | linnathon |
| sogo- | sogon | sogant | sogathon |
| mato- | maton | matant | matathon |
| teitho- | teithon | teithant | teithathon |
Future Tense in Context: Wishes and Vows
The Sindarin future tense appears frequently in:
Pledges and Vows
Vows in Elvish tradition are made in the future tense, expressing personal commitment:
- Tirithon le = "I will watch over thee" — a pledge of protection
- Linnathon nef aear = "I will sing on this side of the sea" — a pledge to remain devoted
Prophetic and Poetic Statement
The future appears in prophecies and poetic declarations:
- Tolthir i Edhil = "The Elves will come"
- Cenithir i galadh = "They will see the tree"
- Peditha i aran = "The king will speak"
Questions About the Future
Future forms appear in direct questions (note VSO word order maintained):
- Tolthog? = "Wilt thou come? / Will you come?"
- Pedithon? = "Shall I speak?" (deliberative)
The Verb na- (to be) in Future
The future of the copula nâ (is) is formed irregularly. The expected nâ + -tha- + suffix gives:
- nathon (I will be) — 1st sg. future of na-
- natha (it/he/she will be) — 3rd sg.
- nathir (they will be) — 3rd pl.
Example: I aran natha beleg = "The king will be great"
Practice: Future Tense Conjugation
Conjugate each verb completely in the future tense (all 8 persons):
1. ped- (to speak):
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| 1sg | pedithon |
| 2sg fam. | pedithog |
| 2sg pol. | pedithodh |
| 3sg | peditha |
| 1pl incl. | pedithom |
| 1pl excl. | pedithonc |
| 2pl | pedithodh |
| 3pl | pedithir |
2. sogo- (to drink):
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| 1sg | sogathon |
| 2sg fam. | sogathog |
| 3sg | sogatha |
| 1pl incl. | sogathom |
| 3pl | sogathir |
3. tol- (to come):
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| 1sg | tolthon |
| 2sg fam. | tolthog |
| 3sg | toltha |
| 1pl incl. | tolthom |
| 3pl | tolthir |
Summary: The Three Tenses at a Glance
You have now learned all three basic tenses of Sindarin:
| Tense | Marker | A-stem 1sg | Primary 1sg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aorist (Present) | — (bare stem + suffix) | linnon | tiron |
| Past | -n- infix / -ant | linnant (3sg) | tirnant (3sg) |
| Future | -tha- / -ith- | linnathon | tirithon |
With these three tenses, personal suffixes (Lesson 17), soft mutation (Lesson 11), and vocabulary from Lessons 1–14, you now have the foundational grammar to form the majority of Sindarin sentences encountered in Tolkien's writings and to compose basic Neo-Sindarin prose and poetry.
The lessons that follow (21–30) will cover the copula nâ, relative clauses, imperative mood, the passive voice, and mixed mutation — building toward full grammatical fluency.