Magic words are all cmavo that have some interaction with words as words irrespective of their function. These are SI SA SU ZO ZOI LOhU LEhU ZEI BU and FAhO. (BAhE, even though it can modify any word, is not a magic word, because it doesn't affect the function of the word it modifies.)
- Magic words are processed left-to-right.
Proposed definitions
- Y is not a word (i.e. it is considered as white space) for the purposes of these definitions.
- ZO turns the following word into a quoted word. The construct now behaves just as a member of KOhA (and thus as a single word for any magic word that comes after it).
- LOhU quotes all following Lojban words up to a LEhU, and turns them into a quotation word. The construct now behaves just as a member of KOhA (and thus as a single word for any magic word that comes after it).
- LEhU terminates a LOhU quotation. It is never elidable.
- ZEI combines the preceding word (including ZO-quoted words, LOhU-quotation words, ZEI-lujvo, BU-lerfu words, and ZOI-foreign words) and the following word into a ZEI-lujvo. The construct now behaves just as a member of BRIVLA (and thus as a single word for any magic word that comes after it).
- BU makes the preceding word (including ZO-quoted words, LOhU-quotation words, ZEI-lujvo, BU-lerfu words, and ZOI-foreign words) into a lerfu word. The construct now behaves just as a member of BY (and thus as a single word for any magic word that comes after it).
- ZOI uses the following word as a delimiting word, and turns anything that follows until the delimiting word is found again into a foreign word. The construct now behaves just as a member of KOhA (and thus as a single word for any magic word that comes after it).
- SI erases the preceding word (including ZO-quoted words, LOhU-quotation words, ZEI-lujvo, BU-lerfu words, and ZOI-foreign words). The construct becomes invisible to the rest of the text.
- SA erases the preceding text back until it sees a word of the same selma'o as the word that follows SA. That word is also erased and thus replaced by the one that follows SA. (Words that have been turned into a quoted word, a quotation word, a zei-lujvo, a lerfu word, or a delimiter in a foreign word are not seen, but the magic word in those constructs is.) The construct becomes invisible to the rest of the text.
- SU erases all words back to the beginning of text. The construct becomes invisible to the rest of the text.
- FAhO terminates the text, absorbing any preceding word or words that would otherwise leave the text ungrammatical.
Marking Words
- BAhE marks the following word but does not change its nature. The construct behaves just as that word by itself.
- Attitudinals (UI and CAI cmavo) mark the previous word (including ZO-quoted words, LOhU-quotation words, ZEI-lujvo, BU-lerfu words, and ZOI-foreign words), but do not change its nature. Attitudinals do not blend into a single word with the word they modify, but remain as separate words for the purposes of magic words that come after them.
- DAhO, FUhE, and FUhO are the same as UI, but do not absorb a following NAI.
Comparison
A comparison between this method and Robin's method. Bear in mind that all of these differences could theoretically be rectified by exceptions to one or the other method.
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| Subject Phrase | LTR | Precedence
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| broda .y. bu | The letter broda | broda + The letter y
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| zoi si stuff si | "stuff" | Error (first si erases the zoi)
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| da zoi sa da joi de | Unclosed zoi | da joi de
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| da zei fa'o | Lujvo of da and fa'o | Error (unclosed zei)
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| lo'u co co zo le'u co le'u | Error ("co le'u" outside of quotes) | "co co le'u co"
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| zoi si doi do | Uclosed zoi | doi do
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| zo da si | Nothing | Open zo
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| zo da si si | Error (too many si) | Nothing
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| da zei de bu | Letter da type of de | Error
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| bu zei de | Error (nothing for bu to use) | bu type-of de
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| zo bu zei de | "bu" type-of de | Error
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| broda zei brode si brodi | brodi | broda zei brodi
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| zei zei zei | Error | Error
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| da zei zei | da type-of zei | Error
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| lo'u co co co le'u bu | The letter "co co co" | Error
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| lo'u co co co le'u si bo le'u | Error (bare bo) | lo'u co co bo le'u
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| broda ba'e si | nothing (but emphatically!) | broda
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| broda ba'e da si da | broda da | broda da
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| zo da bu | The letter "da" | Error
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| zoi zoi That letter that you use between a user id and a host name in an e-mail address zoi bu | @ | Error
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| broda brode si bu | The letter broda | Same
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| zoi zoi stuff zoi si | Nothing | An open zoi quote
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| zoi zoi lots of stuff zoi si si si si | Error (too many si) | Nothing
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| zoi zoi lots of stuff zoi sa zoi si | Open zoi | Nothing
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