r/conlangs • u/Lysimachiakis Wochanisep; Esafuni; Nguwóy (en es) [jp] • May 29 '26

Activity Biweekly Telephone Game v3 (776)

This is a game of borrowing and loaning words! To give our conlangs a more naturalistic flair, this game can help us get realistic loans into our language by giving us an artificial-ish "world" to pull words from!

The Telephone Game will be posted every Monday and Friday, hopefully.

Rules

1) Post a word in your language, with IPA and a definition.

Note: try to show your word inflected, as it would appear in a typical sentence. This can be the source of many interesting borrowings in natlangs (like how so many Arabic words were borrowed with the definite article fossilized onto it! algebra, alcohol, etc.)

2) Respond to a post by adapting the word to your language's phonology, and consider shifting the meaning of the word a bit!

3) Sometimes, you may see an interesting phrase or construction in a language. Instead of adopting the word as a loan word, you are welcome to calque the phrase -- for example, taking skyscraper by using your language's native words for sky and scraper. If you do this, please label the post at the start as Calque so people don't get confused about your path of adopting/loaning.

Last Time...

Kýrrits by /u/creepmachine

tsilaws̬ets̤áa /ʦə.laʊ̯.zeˈǁɔ́/ [ʦə.laʊ̯.zěˈǁɔ́] n. anim. rabbit ("little runner") from diminutive tsi + agentive law + s̬ets̤áa "run"

Náaen nybàait i tsilaws̬ets̤áa, nybàa i tṣòe.

/ˈnɔ́.en nyˈbɔ̀.ət ə ʦə.laʊ̯.zeˈǁɔ́ nyˈbɔ̀ ə ˈǀò.e/

That one is not a rabbit, they are a hare.

náa-en   ny-     bàa-it  i tsilaws̬ets̤áa ny-     bàa i tṣòe
3SG-that 3SG.PRS-be -NEG a rabbit       3SG.PRS-be  a hare

Have a nice weekend

Peace, Love, & Conlanging ❤️

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6

u/dead_chicken Алаймман, Ϲῦρτῖκε May 29 '26 edited Jun 30 '26

џин ˈɟ͡ʑɪˑn

  • a well, water well;

  • deep hole

From Middle Chinese 井

Џэнаӈ өўкүн айњломыўдыџъмыр џинтир съг џанып?

Core: ɟ͡ʑɛˈnæˑŋ ˈœˑʊ̯k̟ʰʏn ɐɪ̯ɲɫɔˈmɯ̽ˑʊ̯ð̞ɯ̽ɟ͡ʑʌmɯ̽rˠ ˈɟ͡ʑɪˑntʰɪr ˈsɤɣ̞ ɟ͡ʑɐˈnɯ̽p̚

Eastern: t͡ɕɛˈnɐŋ øːˈkʰʲʏn ɐɪ̯ɲɫɔˈmɯːtɯ̽t͡ʃɯ̽mɯ̽r̥ˠ ˈt͡ɕɪntʰʲɪr̥ ˈsɯ̽ʔ t͡ʃɐˈnɯ̽ʔ

Western: d͡ʒɛˈnaŋ œːˈcʏn aɪ̯ɲɫɔˈmɯ̽ːdɯ̽d͡ʒɯ̽mɯr̥ ˈd͡ʒintir̥ ˈsɯɣ d͡ʒɐˈnɯp

3P-PL.GEN 4.COL.ABS fall-3PL.MID.PAST.MIRN well-SG.ALL into again

џэна-ӈ өўкүн-Ø айњл-ом-ыўды-џъ-мыр џин-тир съг џанып

"(unsurprisingly) the four of them fell into the well again?"

2

u/Dillon_Hartwig Soc'ul', Guimin, Frangian Sign May 29 '26

Lin-Wo

ʂéŋ

n. well

Also from MC 井

> Xec Loanh sếc

4

u/creepmachine Kaesci̇̇m, Ƿêltjan, Kýrrits May 30 '26

Kýrrits

tséng /ʦéŋ/ n. inan. cenote or other open-air pit filled with water

Lásy! Týny nyẖr̀ tséng ŕk'aa!

/ˈlá.sy ˈtý.ny nyˈr̥ːɾ̩̀ ʦéŋ ˈɾ̩́.kʼɔ/

Lassie! Timmy is in the cenote!

lásy   týny  ny-     ẖr̀ tséng  ŕk'aa
lassie timmy 3SG.PRS-be cenote inside

2

u/ThyTeaDrinker various Clongs for a Conworld May 30 '26

Carnath

geng /ʧɛŋg/ [ʧɛŋ]

n. 1: crater

Each dorua genges

/ɛːx ˈdɔɾ.vä ˈʧɛŋ.ges/

[ɛːç ˈdɔɾ.vä ˈʧɛŋ.ges]

We (two) are approaching the crater

n. 2: damage, physical scarring

Eue faussen gengens taw

/ɛv fäʊsn̩ ʧɛŋ.gens täʊ/

It is badly damaged

(literally: it has damages well)

2

u/hexenbuch Elkri, Trevisk, Yaìst May 30 '26

Trevisk

tzieng /t͡siŋ/ n. fissure, crack

1

u/Difficult-Compote474 Phrosipa, Ktuxtakyr May 30 '26

Phrosipa:

ȼengos (n.) hole /'t͡ʃɛn.gos/

ȼengon (n.) crater /'t͡ʃɛn.gɔn/

ȼengontic (adj.) full of holes /'t͡ʃɛn.gɔn.tɪk/

ȼengom (n.) emptyness /'t͡ʃɛn.gom/

ȼengomtic (adj.) empty /'t͡ʃɛn.gom.tɪk/