Proposed Definitions And Examples


This is all based on the overall view at Magic Words.

cmavo: si (SI)

Proposed Definition

Erase previous word or word-like phrase. Erases the last Lojban word, treating certain special cases as a single word. These cases are due to special cmavo which are identified in their definitions as changing other words into words of the pseudo selma'o any-string or any-word. In particular, this includes, words quoted with zo, zoi, or lo'u...le'u, and words bound to bu or zei. The construct erased by "si" becomes invisible to the rest of the text. Any number of "si" at the beginning of text have no effect, but are not in error. In the case of an apparent conflict, the effects of this word (and all other words that change the grammatical effects of nearby words) should be read left to right.

See Also

  • {sa}
  • {su}

Proposed Keywords

  • erase word
  • erase previous word
  • oops

Usage Examples


All translations of "si" into English are approximate at best. Many of these examples are special cases that only make sense in the context of the definitions of the other cmavo in question.

mi pu cusku di'u .y. si di'e
I said the preceding, umm, I mean the following:

mi pu cusku zo mi .y. si zo do
I said "me", umm, I mean "you".

mi pu cusku lu do cinki si fenki li'u
I said "You're an insect", I mean, "crazy".

Note that this sentence does not imply that there was a "si" in the original statement; use lo'u...le'u quotes for that.

mi pu cusku lo'u do cinki si fenki le'u
I said "You're an insect, I mean, crazy".

This sentence states that the "cinki si" was in what is being quoted.

mi pu cusku lo'u do cinki le'u si lo'u do fenki le'u
I said "You're an insect.", I mean, "You're crazy.".

The whole lo'u..le'u quote is destroyed.

lu se'i zei dai si se'i zei sai li'u cu cmene le karni be fi mi
"Self-Empathy", I mean, "Self-Oriented, Very" is the name of my journal.

mi tatpi sei me'o cisma bu si frumu bu
I'm tired. :-), I mean :-(

This is an example only; no-one actually uses bu that way.

zoi zoi What a moron! zoi si zoi zoi What a maroon! zoi cu to'e makcu zdile
"What a moron!", I mean, "What a maroon!" is silly.

Issues

cmavo: sa (SA)

Proposed Definition

Erase specified previous utterance. Erases a complete or partial utterance. The next word after "sa" shows how much erasing to do: "sa" erases the preceding text back until it sees a word of the same selma'o as the word that follows it; this earlier word is also erased. In other words, "sa" replaces itself and all text back to the most recent previous instance of a word of the same selma'o as the following word, inclusive, with the following word. cmene and brivla are considered their own selma'o for "sa" erasure choice purposes (i.e. "sa" followed by a brivla will erase to the previous brivla, and similarily for cmene). Words whose selma'o has been changed to any-word or any-string by certain other special cmavo are invisible to "sa" for purposes of deciding what to erase; they are erased as any other word would be. In particular, this includes words bound to bu and to the left of zei. If a word of the same selma'o is not found (which will always be the case with SI and SU), it erases back to the beginning of text. Multiple "sa" before a word erase back to successively further instances of the same selma'o, one for each "sa". Any number of "sa" at the beginning of text have no effect, but are not in error. To back out of a SA spoken in error, simply follow the SA with the word that preceded it. In the case of an apparent conflict, the effects of this word (and all other words that change the grammatical effects of nearby words) should be read left to right.

See Also

  • {si}
  • {su}
  • {zo}

Proposed Keywords

  • erase utterance

Usage Examples


All translations of "sa" into English are approximate at best. Many of these examples are special cases that only make sense in the context of the definitions of the other cmavo in question.

mi viska le blanu zdan. sa le xekri zdani
I see a blue house, I mean a black house.

mi pilno zo by .e lo clani valsi sa zo cy .e lo clani valsi
I used B and a long word, I mean C and a long word.

mi pu cusku lo'u do cinki le'u .i ko'a cusku lu .y. sa lo'u do fenki le'u li'o
I said "You're an insect", and he said, umm, no, "You're crazy"...

mi pu cusku lo'u do cinki le'u .i ko'a cusku lu .y. sa le'u .i ko'e cusku li'o
I said "You're an insect", and he said, umm, no, the other guy said...

mi pu viska broda bu .e lo drata .y. sa by .e cy
I saw the-letter-broda and something else, umm, rather, B and C

zoi zoi Kamatari Damacy zoi cu cizra sa zoi zoi Katamari Damacy zoi cu cizra se kelci
"Kamatari Damacy" is a strange, umm, I mean "Katamari Damacy" is a strange game.

lo .ui zei se zei cinmo cu cafne .y. sa sa gleki se cinmo cu cafne se lifri
The happiness-emotion is often, umm, I mean happy emotion is often experienced.

Issues

cmavo: su (SU)

Proposed Definition

Erase previous discourse. Erases all words back to the beginning of the discourse or text. More precisely, "su" erases back to the previous word of selma'o NIhO, LU, TUhE, or TO. The construct becomes invisible to the rest of the text. Any number of "su" at the beginning of text have no effect, but are not in error. Use "su" to drop a subject or start over. One "su" erases the speaker's discourse, and two "su" in a row erase the entire conversation. In the case of an apparent conflict, the effects of this word (and all other words that change the grammatical effects of nearby words) should be read left to right.

See Also

  • {si}
  • {sa}

Proposed Keywords

  • erase discourse

Usage Examples

mi na nelci le ca selsnu su
I don't like this topic. Nevermind.

.y. le ca nuncasnu cu na snadu su su
Umm, this discussion isn't working. Let's start over.

Impact

  • No substantial impact that I am aware of. Interactions of these cmavo with other Magic Words have changed greatly, but that is due to the new definitions of those words.