LingoflyԱյնքան վատ, որքան երեկ: comparing whole situations, not words
You can compare whole situations, not just single words: 'today is not as bad as yesterday'. Armenian does it with paired words — one half in each part of the sentence. For example: “Այսօր (aysor) այնքան վատ (vat) չէ (che), որքան (vork'an) երեկ” (yerek) — Today isn't as bad as yesterday. A rule from the Armenian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
You can compare whole situations, not just single words: 'today is not as bad as yesterday'. Armenian does it with paired words — one half in each part of the sentence.
For equality take այնքան (aynk'an)… որքան (vork'an): Այսօր (aysor) այնքան վատ (vat) չէ (che) (aysor aynk'an vat che), որքան (vork'an) երեկ (yerek) (vork'an yerek). Այնքան means 'to that extent', որքան (vork'an) 'to what extent'.
For a growing pair take որքան (vork'an)… այնքան, 'the more… the more'. The halves come in the opposite order: Որքան (vork'an) շատ (shat) ջուր (jur) եմ (em) խմում (khmum) (vork'an shat jur em khmum), այնքան լավ (lav) եմ (em) զգում (zgum) (aynk'an lav em zgum).
The trap: English repeats one word, so it is easy to lead with the wrong half. In the growing pair որքան (vork'an) always comes first, այնքան second.
Table
| In English | The pair | Example |
|---|---|---|
| as … as | այնքան… որքան (vork'an) | այնքան լավ (lav), որքան (vork'an) առաջ (arraj) |
| just as … as | նույնքան (nuynk'an)… որքան (vork'an) | նույնքան (nuynk'an) բարձր (bardzr), որքան (vork'an) երեկ (yerek) |
| not as … as | այնքան… չէ (che), որքան (vork'an) | այնքան վատ (vat) չէ (che), որքան (vork'an) երեկ (yerek) |
| like (similar to) | ինչպես (inchpes), նման (nman) | ինչպես (inchpes) երեկ (yerek) |
| the more … the more | որքան (vork'an)… այնքան | որքան (vork'an) շատ (shat), այնքան լավ (lav) |
| better … than | ավելի (aveli) լավ (lav) է… քան (k'an) թե (t'e) | ավելի (aveli) լավ (lav) է գնալ (gnal), քան (k'an) թե (t'e) սպասել (spasel) |
By example
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
comparing whole situations, not words: how does it work in Armenian?
You can compare whole situations, not just single words: 'today is not as bad as yesterday'. Armenian does it with paired words — one half in each part of the sentence.
What does it look like in a Armenian example sentence?
“Այսօր (aysor) այնքան վատ (vat) չէ (che), որքան (vork'an) երեկ” (yerek) (aysor aynk'an vat che, vork'an yerek) — Today isn't as bad as yesterday. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.