Goal: Agree and disagree politely.
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Download the Mongolian audio course24 audio lessons · MP3 · yours to keepA debate with Nomin
Nomin loves to argue, and she argues well. Tonight's question came from Temuulen himself: should a ten-year-old have a mobile phone? Nomin said yes, I said no, and Saraa was the judge.
I learned that you can disagree in Mongolian without being rude. You start with Уучлаарай, гэвч…, you admit that the other person is right in one way, and only then do you say what you think. In the end we found an answer that pleased everyone, especially Temuulen.
| Mongolian | English |
|---|---|
| санал | opinion, proposal |
| санал нийлэх | to agree (with: comitative) |
| Яг зөв! | Exactly! |
| нэг талаараа | in one way, on the one hand |
| гар утас | mobile phone |
| дөнгөж | only just, barely |
| ганцаараа | on one's own, alone |
| хэт их | too much |
| тоглоом | game, toy |
| энгийн | simple, ordinary |
| мөнгө хураах | to save money |
| бие даасан | independent |
| маргах | to argue |
| аргагүй | impossible, there is no way (to) |
| Mongolian | English |
|---|---|
| Яг зөв! / Яг тийм! | Exactly! |
| Тийм ээ, зөв. | Yes, that's right. |
| Чиний зөв. / Таны зөв. | You're right. |
| Би чамтай санал нийлж байна. | I agree with you. |
| Би ч бас санал нийлж байна. | I agree too. |
Санал is an opinion or a proposal, and нийлэх means "to come together": two opinions meet. The person or the idea you agree with takes the comitative.
| Mongolian | English |
|---|---|
| Нэг талаараа зөв, гэвч … | Right in one way, but … |
| Уучлаарай, гэвч би санал нийлэхгүй байна. | Sorry, but I don't agree. |
| Би тэгж бодохгүй байна. | I don't think so. |
| Үгүй ээ, тийм биш. | No, that's not so. (blunt) |
The polite recipe has three steps: soften with Уучлаарай, give the other side some credit with нэг талаараа зөв, then say your own view after гэвч (lesson 137).
Agreeing is a state you are in now, so it takes –ж байна, and the negative takes –хгүй байна: санал нийлж байна, санал нийлэхгүй байна. For a general truth, use –даг:
Чиний зөв and Таны зөв use the genitive: word for word "yours is the right (view)". It is the same pattern as Би таны зөв гэж бодож байна in lesson 141. Choose таны for adults you respect, чиний for friends.
Go deeper in the grammar guide: Yes and no in Mongolian · The comitative case · Politeness and address in Mongolian
At the end of a discussion, Mongolians prefer a common decision to a winner and a loser. За, тэгвэл тохиролцлоо ("Good, then we're agreed") closes the debate, and the oldest person in the room often has the final word. That is the cooperative –лц– of lesson 133 at work: an agreement is something you reach together.
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Lesson done? Train your ear
This written course teaches you to read and write. The LIMBA audio course makes you speak: 24 lessons of 12 to 15 minutes, recorded with a native speaker. You listen, you repeat, you answer — the perfect partner for these pages.
Download the Mongolian audio course24 audio lessons · MP3 · yours to keep