Lingoflyizan and egon — the two verbs "to be"
English has one verb "to be". Basque has two, and it keeps them apart. For example: “Errusiarra naiz” — I am from Russia (that is what I am, always). A rule from the Basque course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
English has one verb "to be". Basque has two, and it keeps them apart.
izan is for what a person or a thing always is: a job, a birthplace, a character. egon is for a state and a place: where you are, how you feel, what mood you are in.
So Errusiarra naiz is about where you are from, and that does not change. But Ondo nago — I am fine — is only about right now.
Table
| izan | egon | |
|---|---|---|
| ni | naiz | nago |
| zu | zara | zaude |
| hura | da | dago |
| gu | gara | gaude |
| haiek | dira | daude |
By example
- I am from Russia (that is what I am, always)
- Ondo nagoI am well (right now)
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
izan and egon — the two verbs "to be": how does it work in Basque?
English has one verb "to be". Basque has two, and it keeps them apart.
What does it look like in a Basque example sentence?
“Errusiarra naiz” — I am from Russia (that is what I am, always). A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.