3.3.2.2. Inceptive/inchoative
As a type of perfective aspect, inceptive/inchoative aspect encodes the starting point of an action or state, which in the end is realised. To be more specific, inceptive aspect describes the beginning of an action, whereas inchoative aspect refers to the beginning of a state.
LIS does not encode these aspects through morphological modifications of the verb. It rather employs the aspectual marker done occurring with the mouthing of the Italian word corresponding to ‘already’ (i.e. già) to express inceptive aspect (a), and the verb begin to express inchoative aspect (b). An example for each strategy is provided below.
a. film begin done
‘The film is beginning.’
b. exam approach ix1 begin feel_panic
‘The exam is approaching, and I am starting to panic.’
