Month 29. The old courtyard
Evening in our old Tbilisi courtyard: Gela fixes his car, Ketevan comes back from the market, Dato plays football. Nobody here speaks textbook Georgian.
Today: affectionate and colloquial Georgian.
LIMBA audio course · Georgian
Hear it, then say it: learn to speak Georgian
- 37 audio lessons
- about 13 minutes each
- explained in simple English
This written course gives you the grammar, the words and the script. The LIMBA audio course trains your ear and your mouth: you listen, you repeat, you answer — the perfect complement to these lessons.
Download the Georgian audio courseOrder form · your download link arrives by email▶ Listen to lesson 1 for free
1Sam’s diary
2Dialogue
Gela
სემ, ძმაო, რა ხდება? როგორ ხარ?sem, dzmao, ra khdeba? rogor khar?Sam, bro, what's up? How are you?
Sam
კაი, გელა, შენ?k'ai, gela, shen?Fine, Gela, and you?
Ketevan
სემ, გენაცვალე, ერთი წუთით დამეხმარე: ეს ჩანთა ზემოთ მომიტანე.sem, genatsvale, erti ts'utit damekhmare: es chanta zemot momit'ane.Sam, dear, help me for a minute: bring this bag up for me.
Sam
აბა რა, ქალბატონო ქეთევან!aba ra, kalbat'ono ketevan!Of course, Mrs Ketevan!
Ketevan
შენი ჭირიმე! რა კარგი ბიჭი ხარ!sheni ch'irime! ra k'argi bich'i khar!Bless you, dear! What a good boy you are!
Dato
სემ, ბიჭო, ბურთი გადმომიგდე!sem, bich'o, burti gadmomigde!Hey Sam, throw me the ball!
Sam
აჰა! ... მაგარი დარტყმაა, დათო!aha! ... magari dart'q'maa, dato!Here! ... Great shot, Dato!
Gela
კაცო, შენ უკვე ნამდვილი თბილისელი ხარ!k'atso, shen uk've namdvili tbiliseli khar!Man, you're already a real Tbilisian!
3New words
| Georgian | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| ძმაო | dzmao | bro, brother (vocative) |
| კაი | k'ai | fine, OK (colloquial for კარგიk'argi) |
| გენაცვალე | genatsvale | my dear (literally "may I take your place") |
| აბა რა! | aba ra! | of course! sure! |
| შენი ჭირიმე | sheni ch'irime | bless you, darling (literally "may your troubles be mine") |
| გადმომიგდე! | gadmomigde! | throw (it) over to me! |
| მაგარი | magari | great, cool (colloquial) |
| კაცო | k'atso | man! (exclamation) |
How to read the pronunciation
The pronunciation is written in English letters, following Georgia’s official romanization. Say every letter: a as in father, e as in pet, i as in machine, o as in port, u as in rule; r is rolled; g is always hard; kh as in Scottish loch; gh a soft gargled g, like a French r; sh as in shop; zh like the s in pleasure; ch as in church; ts as in cats; dz as in adze; j as in jam. An apostrophe marks a “popped” consonant, said with a little click in the throat and no puff of air: k’, p’, t’, ts’, ch’, q’ (q’ is made deep in the throat). Without an apostrophe, k, p, t, ts, ch have a small puff of air. Use the Pronunciation button at the top to hide or show it.
4Grammar and explanations
Affectionate expressions
| expression | literally | used as |
|---|---|---|
| გენაცვალეgenatsvale | may I take your place | "my dear"; also "thank you, dear" |
| შენი ჭირიმეsheni ch'irime | may I take your troubles | "bless you", "darling", "please" |
| ჩემო კარგოchemo k'argo | my good one | "my dear" |
| შვილოshvilo | (my) child | from an older person to a younger one |
Calling people
| word | used for |
|---|---|
| ძმაო / დაოdzmao / dao | bro / sis (friends) |
| ბიჭო / გოგოbich'o / gogo | boy! girl! (between friends, or to children) |
| კაცო!k'atso! | man! (surprise, insistence) |
| ქალბატონო / ბატონოkalbat'ono / bat'ono | madam / sir (respect) |
Diminutives
-იკოik'o makes names and family words tender: დედიკოdedik'o (mummy), ბებიკოbebik'o (granny), ნინიკოninik'o (little Nino).
Everyday shortcuts
| colloquial | standard | meaning |
|---|---|---|
| კაიk'ai | კარგიk'argi | fine, OK |
| რავიravi | რა ვიციra vitsi | I don't know, dunno |
| მაგარია!magaria! | ძალიან კარგია!dzalian k'argia! | that's great! |
| აბა რა!aba ra! | რა თქმა უნდა!ra tkma unda! | of course! |
5Good to know
გენაცვალეgenatsvale and შენი ჭირიმეsheni ch'irime sound very warm: older people use them with children and young people, and friends use them with each other. With a stranger in an office, stay with ბატონოbat'ono and ქალბატონოkalbat'ono.
6Exercises
Choose an answer for each question, then press Check my answers. Score 70% or more and the lesson is ticked on your course map.
- What does გენაცვალეgenatsvale mean in conversation?
- What does შენი ჭირიმეsheni ch'irime literally mean?
- "bro" (to a friend) is…
- "I don't know" (colloquial) is…
- "That's great!" (colloquial) is…
- "Of course!" (colloquial) is…
- "fine, OK" (colloquial) is…
- "mummy" is…
- "Throw me the ball!" is…
- With a stranger in an office, you say…
Well done! Lesson 194 is ticked on your course map.
Say it, then write it
Say your answer out loud, write it down, then open the model answer.
- Greet a friend: "Bro, what's up?"
Show the answer
ძმაო, რა ხდება?dzmao, ra khdeba? - Thank an older lady warmly.
Show the answer
გენაცვალე!genatsvale! - Answer "Of course!" colloquially.
Show the answer
აბა რა!aba ra! - Say colloquially "I don't know."
Show the answer
რავი.ravi. - Say "That's great!"
Show the answer
მაგარია!magaria!
Lesson finished? Now train your ear
Speak Georgian with the 37 LIMBA audio lessons
- 37 audio lessons
- about 13 minutes each
- explained in simple English
This written course gives you the grammar, the words and the script. The LIMBA audio course trains your ear and your mouth: you listen, you repeat, you answer — the perfect complement to these lessons.
Download the Georgian audio courseOrder form · your download link arrives by email▶ Listen to lesson 1 for free