Եփելուց առաջ, եփելիս: one action wrapped around another
A recipe is a chain of 'first… then… while…', and in English it hangs on conjunctions with clauses: 'before you boil', 'after it cools'. Armenian does it shorter: it takes the infinitive and hangs an ending on it, building no subordinate clause at all. Three forms cover almost everything. For example: “Եփելուց առաջ բանջարեղենը մաքրիր” — Before boiling, peel the vegetables. A rule from the Armenian course: worked out…
How it works
A recipe is a chain of 'first… then… while…', and in English it hangs on conjunctions with clauses: 'before you boil', 'after it cools'. Armenian does it shorter: it takes the infinitive and hangs an ending on it, building no subordinate clause at all. Three forms cover almost everything.
-ուց առաջ — 'before doing'. The infinitive takes -ուց, then comes առաջ (arraj): եփելուց առաջ (yep'eluts arraj) — before boiling, գնալուց առաջ — before leaving, քնելուց առաջ — before sleeping. Note: առաջ stands after the word — it is a postposition.
-ուց հետո — 'after doing': եռալուց հետո (yerraluts heto) — after it boils, ուտելուց հետո (uteluts heto) — after eating, վերանորոգելուց հետո — after the renovation. The pair -ուց առաջ / -ուց հետո works without exceptions — the most useful link in this note.
-իս — 'while, when'. The ending hangs on the same stem: եփելիս — while cooking, կարդալիս (kardalis) — while reading, գնալիս — on the way. No English 'when' is needed here at all: Ակնոց եմ կրում կարդալիս (aknots em krum kardalis) — I wear glasses while reading.
And two smaller tails, both from recipes and shops. -ու (-u) / -ելու — 'for the purpose of': կտրատելու տախտակ (ktratelu takhtak) — a cutting board, տանելու համար (tanelu hamar) — to go, for takeout. -ով (-ov) after an infinitive gives 'by means of': եփելով — by boiling, սակարկելով — by haggling.
The main gain of these forms: they demand no person. Եփելուց առաջ covers both 'before I boil' and 'before you boil' — who exactly is clear from the main clause. That is why cookbooks and instructions are written almost entirely in them.
Table
| Meaning | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| before doing | -ուց առաջ | եփելուց առաջ — before boiling |
| after doing | -ուց հետո | ուտելուց հետո — after eating |
| while, when | -իս | կարդալիս — while reading |
| for the purpose of | -ելու / -ալու | կտրատելու տախտակ — a cutting board |
| so that (with համար) | -ելու համար | տանելու համար — for takeout |
| by means of | -ելով | սակարկելով — by haggling |
By example
- Եփելուց առաջ բանջարեղենը մաքրիրyep'eluts arraj banjareghenə mak'rirBefore boiling, peel the vegetables
- Եռալուց հետո ավելացրու աղyerraluts heto avelatsru aghAfter it boils, add salt
- Ուտելիս հեռախոսին մի նայիրutelis herrakhosin mi nayirWhile eating, don't look at your phone
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
one action wrapped around another: how does it work in Armenian?
A recipe is a chain of 'first… then… while…', and in English it hangs on conjunctions with clauses: 'before you boil', 'after it cools'. Armenian does it shorter: it takes the infinitive and hangs an ending on it, building no subordinate clause at all. Three forms cover almost everything.
What does it look like in an example sentence Armenian?
“Եփելուց առաջ բանջարեղենը մաքրիր” (yep'eluts arraj banjareghenə mak'rir) — Before boiling, peel the vegetables. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.