endëa

adjective. middle, middle, *average

An adjectival form of endë “middle” implied by Q. atendëa “double-middle” from the first edition of The Lord of the Rings (RC/728).

Neo-Quenya: In a Discord post from 2025-04-24, Delle suggested this adjective might mean “✱average” as well.

endëa

middle

#endëa adj. "middle" in atendëa, q.v. Compare enya.

endya

middle

endya > enya adj. "middle" (ÉNED)

ric-

verb. to try, put forth effort, strive, endeavour

A verb for “to try” based on the root √RIK “put forth effort, strive, endeavour” in notes from around 1967 where Tolkien explored the Quenya equivalent of “try harder” = á rike amríkie (PE17/93-94). In those notes he said:

> ... this apparently simple phrase is in fact very idiomatic, and requires a context. Try retains many divergent meanings owing to its derivation from a word originally meaning “sift” > examine, judge, test, whence later in one branch > make tentative motions, trial efforts > attempt > endeavour, make efforts to a given end. Here the last: “put forth effort”, is usually the meaning (PE17/93).

The verb form rike appeared in what seems to be in a draft to these 1967 notes along with a variant rihta, both derivatives of √RIK “strive” (PE17/167).

Neo-Quenya: Based on the above, I would use ric- “try” mainly in the sense “strive, put for effort”. For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I would use nev- for the sense “try” = “✱seek opportunity, experiment”, a verb that appeared in the draft notes mentioned above (PE17/167); see that entry for discussion. More precisely, I would use ric- “try” when uncertain of whether I was capable of performing the action and it needed concerted effort, where I would use nev- “try” when I believed I was capable, but was uncertain what the result of the action will be.

This verb also conflicts with ric- “to twist”, but I believe the two can coexist since ric- “try” would usually be followed by a verb (rincen mate “I tried to eat”) as opposed to ric- “twist” either used intransitively or followed by a noun (rincen i sicil “I twisted the dagger”).

ric-

try, put forth effort, strive, endeavour

#ric- ("k") (1) vb. "try, put forth effort, strive, endeavour" (PE17:93, 94, 167), imperative á ricë "try!", pl. á ricir "let them try", á rice am(a)ricië "try harder!" (or more idiomatically á carë (sí) ancarië, lit. *"do (now) with more doing!"

toc-

verb. to appraise, tax, assess, assay; to try, test, essay, endeavour; to feel with the hand, handle

nev-

verb. to try, to try, *seek opportunity, experiment

A verb for “to try” based on the root √NDEB in notes from the 1960s (PE17/167). As suggested by Christopher Gilson, this appears to be a draft of Tolkien’s attempt to define the phrase “try harder” in Quenya. Of the root √NDEB, Tolkien said it “too obviously = endeavor”, and he wrote another root √RIK below it, with Quenya verb forms rike or rihta. It seems Tolkien here changed √NDEB >> √RIK, but in later notes from 1969 Tolkien had the root √NDAB “endeavor, try, seek opportunity” with a Quenya verb form nauva “will try” (PE22/151), indicating that the concept of √NDEB was not entirely abandoned.

Neo-Quenya: For purposes of Neo-Quenya, I would mainly use ric- for “to try (put forth effort)”, but I think nev- is worth retaining with a different connotation: “to try, ✱seek opportunity, experiment”. In other words, you use ric- “try” when you are uncertain whether you are capable of performing the action, and nev- “try” when you know you are capable, but are uncertain what the result of the action will be. I prefer nev- over the 1969 form ✱nav- because it has a Sindarin cognate S. dev-.

In 2024-08-19 post on the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS), Luinyelle suggested this verb might be used with an adverb to describe someone’s approach to a task or situation, roughly equivalent to English “take” in phrases like “take something seriously”. For example: néves i hrangwe lungo “he tried the problem serious[ly] (with seriousness)” = English “he took the problem seriously”.

entya

central, middle

entya, enetya adj. "central, middle" (VT41:16; these forms, as well as the noun entë "centre", come from a late, somewhat confused source; the adjective #endëa and the noun endë from earlier material may fit the general system better, and #endëa is even found in the LotR itself as part of the word atendëa, q.v.)

enya

middle

enya < endya adj. "middle" (EN). Compare #endëa.

rihta

noun. effort

A neologism for “effort” coined by Tamas Ferencz in the 1000W project based on the root √RIK “put forth effort, strive, endeavour”.

nav-

verb. to try

nev-

try

nev- vb. "try" (PE17:167; Tolkien in the source expresses uncertainty as to whether this word should be adopted or not)

palta-

feel with the hand, stroke

palta- (2) vb. "feel with the hand, stroke" etc. (basic meaning: "pass the sensitive palm [palta] over a surface") (VT47:9)

ndab

root. endeavor, try, seek opportunity

This is one of various roots that Tolkien considered for “try”. It first appeared as √NDEB in notes from around 1967, but Tolkien noted that this was “too obviously = endeavor”, and followed this with a new root √RIK “strive”, though √NDEB was not explicitly rejected (PE17/167). In Late Notes on Verb Structure (LVS) from 1969 Tolkien reintroduced a similar root √NDAB “endeavor, try, seek opportunity”, with a verb form Q. nauva “will try” (PE22/151).

Neo-Eldarin: For purposes of Neo-Eldarin, I think √NDAB is problematic in that it collides with other forms like √NDAB “judge” (VT42/34; PE22/154), but √NDEB “try” might still be useful, perhaps with the nuance “✱make an attempt, expirement” as opposed to √RIK “strive, ✱work towards, put forth effort”.

rik

root. put forth effort, strive, endeavour, try

This root was connected to Tolkien’s attempt to translate the phrase “try harder” into Quenya around 1966-67. √RIK “strive” first appeared in rough notes as a replacement for √NDEB which Tolkien thought was too close to “endeavor” (PE17/167). Tolkien then firmed up the meaning of √RIK in another note, giving it the gloss “put forth effort, strive, endeavour”, so that “try!” = ā rike in Quenya (PE17/93). Another note had √RIK meaning “try” in the sense “endeavour, make an effort, strive (to do something against an obstacle or opponent)”; this note indicated the root was intransitive and the preposition “against” was required before any obstacle (PE17/182). It seems Tolkien did not entirely abandon √NDEB, however, since a similar form √NDAB “endeavor, try, seek opportunity” appeared in Late Notes on Verb Structure (LVS) from 1969 (PE22/151); see that entry for discussion.

Note that √RIK “strive” is also identical in form to √RIK or ᴹ√RIK(H) “twist”, a root that had a long history in Tolkien’s writings. For purposes of Neo-Sindarin, I assume the two roots co-exist.

tok

root. appraise, tax, assess, assay; try, test, essay, endeavour; feel with the hand, handle

henet

root. middle

rîth

noun. effort, endeavour

A neologism for “effort, endeavour” coined by Elaran and posted on 2018-01-04 in the Vinyë Lambengolmor Discord Server (VLDS) based on the root √RIK “put forth effort, strive, endeavour”. Elaran originally derived rîth from ✱riktā inspired by [ᴺQ.] rihta, but I would assume primitive ✱riktē to avoid the question of whether or not a-affection should occur.

dev-

verb. to try, to try, *seek opportunity, experiment

A verb for “to try” based on the root √NDEB in notes from the 1960s (PE17/167). As suggested by Christopher Gilson, this appears to be a draft of Tolkien’s attempt to define the phrase “try harder” in Quenya. Of the root √NDEB, Tolkien said it “too obviously = endeavor”, and he wrote another root √RIK below it, with a Sindarin verb form ritha- or raitha. It seems Tolkien here changed √NDEB >> √RIK, but in later notes from 1969 Tolkien had the root √NDAB “endeavor, try, seek opportunity” (PE22/151), indicating that the concept of √NDEB was not entirely abandoned.

Neo-Sindarin: For purposes of Neo-Sindarin, I would mainly use ritha- for “to try (put forth effort)”, but I think dev- is worth retaining with a different connotation: “to try, ✱seek opportunity, experiment”. In other words, you use ritha- “try” when you are uncertain whether you are capable of performing the action, and dev- “try” when you know you are capable, but are uncertain what the result of the action will be.

raitha-

verb. try

an e is written above raitha, prob. Indicating alternative forms reitha or retha.

enedh

middle

enedh (core, center), pl. enidh

enedh

middle

(core, center), pl. enidh

plada

feel with the hand

(pass the sensitive palm over a surface) plada- (i blada, i phladar) (VT47:9)

ened

adjective. middle