tensevoice

Tensevoice is a term used in linguistic theory to describe a hypothetical grammatical category in which tense information and voice information are encoded together in a single morphological marker. In such systems, a verb form may simultaneously indicate time reference (past, present, or future) and the voice relation (active or passive), rather than using separate affixes for tense and for voice. The concept is primarily discussed in typological and theoretical writings as a possible encoding scheme, rather than as a widely attested, independently defined feature.

Typology and realizations: Tensevoice would typically arise in languages with rich verbal morphology. Realizations might include a single suffix or clitic that carries both tense and voice meaning, a portmanteau morpheme that must be analyzed as a fused form, or a sequence of affixes that function as a unit. Such systems blur the boundary between tense and voice categories and can complicate morphological parsing but may offer efficiency advantages in certain grammars.

Behavior and examples: In a hypothetical tensevoice language, a past active form might be realized by one morpheme, while a past passive form would use another; this contrasts with languages where past marks tense and passive is expressed by a separate voice marker. Some discussions treat tensevoice as a theoretical idealization or as a possible diachronic outcome of contraction and reanalysis.

Relation to theory: The idea remains debated. Critics argue that cross-linguistic data make a dedicated tensevoice category unlikely, while proponents emphasize how it could simplify certain morphophonological patterns in specific languages. Further descriptive work would be needed to identify any natural languages that reliably encode tense and voice together.