Ինձ ամոթ է, ինձ դուր է գալիս: to whom the feeling happens
The course already knows the impersonal ցուրտ է — it's cold — where nobody acts. Feelings work along the same lines but are subtler: Armenian sorts them into two piles, and the pile decides whether the person is the subject. For example: “Ինձ այս երգը շատ է դուր գալիս” — I really like this song. A rule from the Armenian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
The course already knows the impersonal ցուրտ է (tsurt e) — it's cold — where nobody acts. Feelings work along the same lines but are subtler: Armenian sorts them into two piles, and the pile decides whether the person is the subject.
The first pile — the person acts, and is the subject. Most verbs land here: ամաչում եմ (amachum em) — I am ashamed, նյարդայնանում եմ (nyardaynanum em) — I am getting nervous, հպարտանում եմ (hpartanum em) — I am proud, կարոտել եմ (karotel em) — I miss. English often frames these impersonally ('it's embarrassing', 'it's sad'), while Armenian says 'I am ashamed', 'I grieve' head-on. The first mistake to avoid is starting such sentences with ինձ (indz) when the verb does not ask for it: ինձ ամաչում եմ (indz amachum em) is wrong, plain ամաչում եմ is right.
The second pile — the feeling arrives at the person, who stands in the to-form: ինձ, քեզ (k'ez), նրան (nran), մեզ (mez). The language's most frequent formula lives here: ինձ դուր է գալիս (indz dur e galis) — I like it, word for word 'to me the liking comes'. What is liked is the subject: ինձ այս ֆիլմը դուր է գալիս (indz ays filmə dur e galis); if many things are liked, the verb goes plural: ինձ այս գրքերը դուր են գալիս (indz ays grk'erə dur en galis). English flips it around ('I like it'); Armenian keeps the thing as the subject — the shape of old-fashioned 'it pleases me'.
States with a noun are measured by the same yardstick: ինձ ամոթ է (indz amot' e) — I am ashamed, ինձ հետաքրքիր է (indz hetak'rk'ir e) — I am curious, ինձ ցավ է պատճառում — it causes me pain. The scheme is simple: to whom in the to-form, what as a noun, and the linker է (e).
A third little thing everyone trips on. A couple of verbs point in the opposite direction from English. Ջղայնացնում է (jghaynatsnum e) — it annoys: the subject here is the irritant, and the person is the object — աղմուկը ինձ ջղայնացնում է (aghmukə indz jghaynatsnum e). While ջղայնանում եմ (jghaynanum em) — I get annoyed all by myself. The -ացնել / -անալ pair runs through the whole language: տաքացնել (tak'atsnel) — to heat and տաքանալ (tak'anal) — to get heated, արդարացնել — to justify someone else and արդարանալ (ardaranal) — to justify oneself.
Table
| In English | Who is the subject | In Armenian |
|---|---|---|
| I'm ashamed | I myself | ամաչում եմ / ամոթ եմ զգում |
| I'm nervous | I myself | նյարդայնանում եմ |
| I'm proud of you | I myself, you with -ով | քեզնով հպարտանում եմ |
| I like it | the thing that is liked | ինձ դուր է գալիս |
| I'm curious | a state with a noun | ինձ հետաքրքիր է |
| the noise annoys me | the noise | աղմուկը ինձ ջղայնացնում է |
| I get annoyed | I myself | ջղայնանում եմ |
| I miss you | I myself, you directly | քեզ եմ կարոտել |
By example
- Ինձ այս երգը շատ է դուր գալիսindz ays yergə shat e dur galisI really like this song
- Ամոթ եմ զգում, բայց ինձ ամոթ էլ էamot' em zgum, bayts indz amot' el eI feel ashamed, and the shame is really there
- Աղմուկը ինձ ջղայնացնում է, ես էլ ջղայնանում եմaghmukə indz jghaynatsnum e, yes el jghaynanum emThe noise annoys me, and I get annoyed
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
How to say I like it in Armenian?
The course already knows the impersonal ցուրտ է — it's cold — where nobody acts. Feelings work along the same lines but are subtler: Armenian sorts them into two piles, and the pile decides whether the person is the subject.
What ինձ դուր է գալիս means?
The first pile — the person acts, and is the subject. Most verbs land here: ամաչում եմ — I am ashamed, նյարդայնանում եմ — I am getting nervous, հպարտանում եմ — I am proud, կարոտել եմ — I miss. English often frames these impersonally ('it's embarrassing', 'it's sad'), while Armenian says 'I am…
Why ինձ ամաչում եմ is wrong?
The second pile — the feeling arrives at the person, who stands in the to-form: ինձ, քեզ, նրան, մեզ. The language's most frequent formula lives here: ինձ դուր է գալիս — I like it, word for word 'to me the liking comes'. What is liked is the subject: ինձ այս ֆիլմը դուր է գալիս; if many things are…
Armenian feeling verbs: who or to whom?
States with a noun are measured by the same yardstick: ինձ ամոթ է — I am ashamed, ինձ հետաքրքիր է — I am curious, ինձ ցավ է պատճառում — it causes me pain. The scheme is simple: to whom in the to-form, what as a noun, and the linker է.
What does it look like in an example sentence Armenian?
“Ինձ այս երգը շատ է դուր գալիս” (indz ays yergə shat e dur galis) — I really like this song. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.