With no doer: Han ekoizten da, bertan muntatzen da
When "who does it" does not matter, the verb is left alone: …tzen da — it is done. Han ekoizten da — it is made there, bertan muntatzen da — it is put together here. Many things take …tzen dira: Gure produktuak bertan muntatzen dira. For example: “Han ekoizten da munduko gaztarik onena” — The best cheese in the world is produced there. A rule from the Basque course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
When "who does it" does not matter, the verb is left alone: …tzen da — it is done. Han ekoizten da — it is made there, bertan muntatzen da — it is put together here. Many things take …tzen dira: Gure produktuak bertan muntatzen dira.
With this form a factory explains its whole process: Nola egiten da gazta? — how is cheese made? Esnea berotzen da, gazi egiten da — the milk is heated and soured. Not one "who", and the story runs by itself.
Table
| the meaning | the form | the example |
|---|---|---|
| it is done | …tzen da | Han ekoizten da |
| they are done | …tzen dira | bertan muntatzen dira |
| how is it done? | nola …tzen da | Nola egiten da gazta? |
By example
- Han ekoizten da munduko gaztarik onenaThe best cheese in the world is produced there
- Gure produktuak bertan muntatzen diraOur products are assembled here
- Nola egiten da gazta?How is cheese made?
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
With no doer: how does it work in Basque?
When "who does it" does not matter, the verb is left alone: …tzen da — it is done. Han ekoizten da — it is made there, bertan muntatzen da — it is put together here. Many things take …tzen dira: Gure produktuak bertan muntatzen dira.
What does it look like in an example sentence Basque?
“Han ekoizten da munduko gaztarik onena” — The best cheese in the world is produced there. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.