Talk:Inchoative

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This article should be re-titled "Inchoative aspect", with a redirect from "Inchoative". LudwigVan 23:28, 25 Jun 2005 (UTC)

The term "inchoative" comes from the Latin inchoativus, incohativus, but I haven't seen the etymology traced further. Does anyone know where the Latin word came from? It might elucidate the original meaning better for some.

Inchoative is a verb that describes a change of state. For example in English, "The apples ripened. (The apples became ripe)" and "He has aged a lot (He has become old)."

The definition in the article is highly non standard in my opinion too Pachypachy 11:02, 27 May 2006 (UTC)

Most definitions of inchoative focus on the concept of starting an action or state. Inchoative comes from inchoo, inchoare, inchoavi, inchoatus, meaning "begin/start (work); set going, establish; draft/sketch/outline; enter upon;" (according to http://www.nd.edu/~archives/latin.htm).

Some sources distinguish between ingressive aspect ("begining of an action") an inchoative aspect ("begining of a state"). On the other hand, for the concept of "change of state", you'll find several definitions depending on the focus. I've seen factitive (transfer to a certain state, or "put something in the state of", but some use factitive as equivalent to causative). Don't know if there is an aspect focusing on the transfomation process itself (i've seen transcursive aspect for undergonig actions). Xavier 17:36, 8 December 2006 (UTC)

I always heard of inchoative as entering a state or beginning an action, or an activity, and never as an action "soon to take place" (this is called near future, 'futur proche' in French). I tried to give some examples in different languages in the French version. Félix Potuit.