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13 Basic clauses<br />
13.1.5.1 Modal verbs<br />
Modal verbs are used to express modality for the event denoted by the verbal complement.<br />
The complementing verb is in the infinitive (marked by the suffix -t).<br />
Modal verbs include máhttat ‘can, be able to’, ådtjot 10 ‘may, be allowed to’, virrtit<br />
‘must’, hähttut 11 ‘must’, sihtat ‘want’ and gallgat ‘will/shall’. Some examples are<br />
provided in (24) through (26).<br />
(24) tjátsev<br />
tjátse-v<br />
ådtjobihtet juhgat<br />
ådtjo-bihtet juhga-t<br />
water-acc.sg may-2pl.prs drink-inf<br />
‘You all may drink water from that.’<br />
dasste<br />
d-a-sste<br />
dem-dist-iness.sg<br />
(25) ja<br />
ja<br />
dä<br />
dä<br />
del<br />
del<br />
virrtin<br />
virrti-n<br />
allget<br />
allge-t<br />
bäbbmat<br />
bäbbma-t<br />
and then well must-3pl.pst begin-inf feed-inf<br />
‘And then they had to start to feed (the reindeer).’<br />
[pit090519.022]<br />
[pit100405a.029]<br />
(26) mij<br />
mij<br />
máhttep<br />
máhtte-p<br />
ságastit<br />
ságasti-t<br />
Bidumsáme<br />
Bidum-sáme<br />
gielav<br />
giela-v<br />
1pl.nom can-1pl.prs speak-inf <strong>Pite</strong>-<strong>Saami</strong>\gen.sg language-acc.sg<br />
‘We can speak the <strong>Pite</strong> <strong>Saami</strong> language.’<br />
[pit110517b2.022]<br />
The modal verb sihtat ‘want’ behaves the same when the subject <strong>of</strong> the complementing<br />
verb complex is coreferential with the subject <strong>of</strong> the matrix clause,<br />
as in (27).<br />
(27) mån<br />
mån<br />
sidav<br />
sida-v<br />
gulijd<br />
guli-jd<br />
adnet<br />
adne-t<br />
1sg.nom want-1sg.prs fish-acc.pl have-inf<br />
‘I want to have fish.’ [pit090702.012]<br />
However, when the subject <strong>of</strong> the modal verb sihtat is not coreferential with<br />
the subject <strong>of</strong> the complementing verb complex, then a finite verb clause is the<br />
complement to the modal verb, as in the negated clause in (28). Note that, here,<br />
sihtat is in the connegative non-finite form sida.<br />
10 The modal verb ådtjot ‘be allowed to’ is homophonous with the full verb ådtjot ‘get, receive’.<br />
This pattern is found in Swedish, as well, with the verb få ‘be allowed to’ and ‘receive’, and in<br />
English, e.g.: ‘I get to go to the movies’.<br />
11 The word hähttut ‘must’ is likely limited to northern dialects <strong>of</strong> <strong>Pite</strong> <strong>Saami</strong>.<br />
238
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