C1 · Unit 10
Word order and focus
Use word order and voice to signal new information and corrections.
New words
contrastive stress
contrastive focus
given information
new information
initial position
final position
neutral word order
marked word order
follow-up question
correction of an assumption
centre of meaning
moving an object
object doubling
clitic cluster
contrasting pair
information structure
focus on the agent
Who, what and when?
Vera, the meeting host
Иван ли ти изпрати записа?
Was it Ivan who sent you the recording?
Не, Мария ми го изпрати.
No, Maria sent it to me.
Vera, the meeting host
А, разбрах. Значи снимките са от нея.
Ah, I see. So the photographs are from her.
Vera, the meeting host
Май пак обърках двата файла.
I seem to have mixed up the two files again.
Записа ми го изпрати тя; снимките са от Иван.
She sent me the recording; the photographs are from Ivan.
Vera, the meeting host
На кого изпрати копието?
Who did you send the copy to?
Vera, the meeting host
Аз още нямам нищо в пощата.
I still have nothing in my inbox.
На Мария ѝ го изпратих. На теб ще го изпратя сега.
I sent it to Maria. I will send it to you now.
Vera, the meeting host
Вече е ясно. Не ми трябва нов разказ, а точният получател.
It is clear now. I need the exact recipient, not a new story.
Vera, the meeting host
Словоредът помага, но и въпросът си иска слушане.
Word order helps, but the question needs to be heard too.
Grammar
Answer the question behind the words. For "who?", highlight the doer; for "when?", the time. Fronted objects are often resumed with a short pronoun. Flexible word order does not remove ordering constraints within the clitic cluster.
Мария ми изпрати записа вчера.
Maria sent me the recording yesterday.
Не на нея, а на теб ще дам оригинала.
I'll give the original to you, not to her.
Examples
Вчера Мария ми изпрати записа, не днес.
Maria sent me the recording yesterday, not today.
Записа ми го изпрати Мария, не Иван.
Maria sent me the recording, not Ivan.
На Мария ѝ изпратих снимките още сутринта.
I sent Maria the photographs as early as this morning.
Кой ти изпрати записа?
Who sent you the recording?
Какво ти изпрати Мария?
What did Maria send you?
Не зная дали го е прослушала.
I don't know whether she has listened to it.
А този глас познаваш ли го?
And do you recognise this voice?
Словоредът насочва вниманието, а интонацията довършва смисъла.
Word order guides attention, and intonation completes the meaning.