Goal: you will say where you live and work with -ობob verbs and -შიshi.
Course progress: lesson 31 / 200
LIMBA audio course · Georgian
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 emailDay 16. Levan at the garage
Levan works in a car repair garage two streets away. I walk past one morning and he waves at me from under a car, covered in oil.
Today: the first real verbs, "to live" and "to work", and the little ending that means "in".
| Georgian | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| ვცხოვრობ | vtskhovrob | I live |
| ვმუშაობ | vmushaob | I work |
| სამსახური | samsakhuri | job, workplace |
| მაღაზია | maghazia | shop |
| ოფისი | opisi | office |
| საავადმყოფო | saavadmq'opo | hospital |
| ქარხანა | karkhana | factory |
| უბანი | ubani | district, neighbourhood |
| სოფელი | sopeli | village |
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.
Georgian verbs change their beginning and their end to show the person. Here is "to live":
| person | to live | to work |
|---|---|---|
| მეme | ვცხოვრობvtskhovrob | ვმუშაობvmushaob |
| შენshen | ცხოვრობtskhovrob | მუშაობmushaob |
| ისis | ცხოვრობსtskhovrobs | მუშაობსmushaobs |
| ჩვენchven | ვცხოვრობთvtskhovrobt | ვმუშაობთvmushaobt |
| თქვენtkven | ცხოვრობთtskhovrobt | მუშაობთmushaobt |
| ისინიisini | ცხოვრობენtskhovroben | მუშაობენmushaoben |
The markers are the same ones you saw with ვარvar / ვართvart: ვv- for "I" and "we", -თt for the plural of "we" and "you", -სs for "he, she", -ენen for "they". Many common verbs end in -ობob, and they all follow this model.
To say "in" a place, add -შიshi to the word: - words ending in -იi lose it: თბილისიtbilisi → თბილისშიtbilisshi, ბანკიbank'i → ბანკშიbank'shi, სოფელიsopeli → სოფელშიsopelshi - words ending in another vowel keep it: სკოლაsk'ola → სკოლაშიsk'olashi, კანადაk'anada → კანადაშიk'anadashi, მეტროmet'ro → მეტროშიmet'roshi
| to a friend | polite |
|---|---|
| სად ცხოვრობ?sad tskhovrob? | სად ცხოვრობთ?sad tskhovrobt? |
| სად მუშაობ?sad mushaob? | სად მუშაობთ?sad mushaobt? |
Notice ძველ უბანშიdzvel ubanshi, "in the old district": the adjective ძველიdzveli loses its -იi before a noun with -შიshi. You will learn this rule in lesson 56; for now, just repeat the phrase.
Tbilisi is divided into districts, უბნებიubnebi, with famous names: Sololaki, Vake, Saburtalo, Avlabari. When Georgians ask where you live, they often expect the name of a district.
Choose an answer for each question, then press Check my answers. Score 70% or more and the lesson is ticked on your course map.
Well done! Lesson 31 is ticked on your course map.
Say your answer out loud, write it down, then open the model answer.
Lesson finished? Now train your ear
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