Description:

Trima is part of a set of three main terms in Common dealing with images, the others being 'foto' and 'snap'. It is the only one that is a native Common word. Trima comes from Old Common and was coined by Davidson himself for the original screenshow. It was evidently meant to be the abstract form of 'trema', 'body'.

'Trima' deals with images as abstractions that may attempt to approximate or represent something real but are not necessarily faithful captures. As such, it deals the most with art and activities such as drawing and painting. It also deals metaphorically with public image, 'face', stature or respect, with the direct implication that it is meant in terms of how one is seen.

Noun:

As a noun, 'trima' means an image, painting or representation. It might refer to a photograph, especially when discussing it in an artistic sense, but it is more often employed for creative representation. It is also extended metaphorically to mean public image, respect, or reputation.

The derived form 'etríma' has more of the sense of a description or a diagram. If you were trying to create a factual and detailed representation of something for the purposes of providing information, this is the form you'd use.

Verb:

As a verb, 'trima' is a semitransitive noxaj verb meaning to paint or artistically represent something, or to metaphorically describe or represent it. It takes an absolutive person or piece that is making the representation and a dative object which is represented.

The 'etríma' form departs consistently, even though it was originally defined to share the same verbal grammar as the plain 'trima'. However, in even the speech of the educated elites, it came to be used as a transitive skurun verb meaning to describe something verbally, or perhaps to diagram it visually, taking an ergative describer and an absolutive thing described. It can act like a copular word, applying any adverbial modifiers to its object, with the descriptor typicallty coming directly after the verb and before the direct object..

Detail of the description as a noun phrase or dependent clause can be added in two ways, as a prepositional phrase with 'lo', or using a happat benefactive form and adding the description in the dative case.

Examples:

Ja Can teo etríma etyl a costo.
John described the house as red.

Ja Mari teo etríma a Can lo ny zemy atuin.
Mary described John as a kind person.

Ja Mari hapo etríma a Can ijy zemy atuin.
Mary described John as a kind person.

The latter is a bit more adamant than the former, which is more distant.

Modifier:

The modifier form 'trimas' means representative or descriptive. It could also mean publically well-regarded.

The derived form 'iketrímas' can mean indescribable or ineffable.