kena

Kena for an Unwanted Experience

Level 4

With a passive, put the affected person before kena and the event after it.

How It Works

The Affected Person Comes First
My brother kena scolded. puts the person receiving the scolding first. A by-phrase can name the actor when that information matters.

Usually an Unwanted Experience
Scolding, fines, and cancelled plans suit the common meaning. Do not assume that any neutral or pleasant passive can take kena with exactly the same effect.

One Form, More Than One Construction
Kena can also occur with a noun, as in an unwanted condition. That is not the same structure as kena before a passive event. This card focuses on the passive; the context still supplies the event's time.

Examples (3)

  1. My brother kena scolded by the coach.

    My brother got scolded by the coach.

    The affected person is my brother; the coach did the scolding.

  2. We kena delayed because of the rain.

    We got delayed because of the rain.

    We are the affected people, and the delay is an unwelcome event.

  3. If you park there, you may kena fined.

    If you park there, you may get fined.

    The fine is a possible future consequence, so kena is not a past-tense ending.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

kenaLevel 4Kena for an Unwanted Experience

Learn This First

Identify the affected person before describing an experience from that participant's perspective.