Grammaire » 48 » Changing Verbs to Nouns

The affix -jariatsaq / -giatsaq / -riatsaq is added to the end of a verb root in order to talk about the action it describes in a general way (as a noun).

nirijuq he is eating
nirijariatsaq eating
Nirijariatsaq quviagijanga. He enjoys eating.

-giatsaq is the form of the affix used after a root ending in -k or -t :

sinittuq she is walking
sinigiatsaq walking
Sinigiatsaq iqiagijanga. He does not feel like sleeping.

-riatsaq is the form of the affix used after a root ending in -q :

mumiqtuuk They (2) are dancing.
mumiriatsaq dancing
Mumiriatsaq quviagijara. I enjoy dancing.

This affix can be used to describe activities that one enjoys - or does not enjoy - doing.

Tuttuliariatsaq quviagijara. I enjoy caribou hunting.
Pisugiatsaq iqiagijara. I don’t feel like walking.
Aullariatsaq quviagiviuk? Do you enjoy travelling?