Kovol is a SOV language.
Action clause roots only require a predicate. Other slots are optional. Subject (indicated by verb suffix) and object (indicated by context) are often both implicit in Kovol text.
Action clauses might also be called eventive clauses.
| +/- Subject | +/- Question | +/- Beneficiary | +/- Associated actor | +/- Object | +/- Indirect object | + Predicate | +/- Question | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| eng | . | . | . | . | huwaning ogo | puguminim | . | "I'm going to sit in the sun" |
| . | . | . | . | mena | ina | utugum | . | "he gave food to mother" |
| . | megite | . | . | mehamong | . | nogong | ig? | "What are you doing?" |
| . | . | . | undum wogonongg | . | . | hosisi pigom | . | "I played with the kids" |
| . | . | yog yonggo | . | mena | . | etege | . | "My wife cooked food for you" |
| . | . | . | . | . | . | salibigom | . | "I got up" |
Question clause roots are often followed "ig?"
A rise in intonation can also signal a question, thus the ig can be optional.
The following question words/phrases are known:
The beneficiary words are
They can be used to communicate an action being done to benefit others:
Mena yonggo otogom "I cooked food for you".
It can also be used in the other direction to form a Means-result
Mena nonggo otogong. Mohis mine mu ege umis. "By you cooking food. People will not be hungry"