LingoflyAt the shoe store in Armenian
A shoe store: size, trying on, color in Armenian. 7 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Բարև ձեզ (barev dzez)։ Այս (ays) սպորտային (sportayin) կոշիկը (koshikə) ունե՞ք (unek') քառասուն (k'arrasun) չափսի։» — Hello. Do you have these sneakers in size forty?; «Մի (mi) րոպե (rope) նայեմ։ Այո (ayo), կա (ka)։» — A minute, let me check. Yes, we do. Every line can be played right on the page.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a shoe store: size, trying on, color. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- chap'azants p'ok'r e. aveli mets chap's ka?They're too small. Is there a bigger size?
- sev kam mokhraguyn. ays chap'sə harmar eBlack or gray. This size fits.
Lines one by one
| Armenian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Բարև ձեզ (barev dzez)։ Այս (ays) սպորտային (sportayin) կոշիկը (koshikə) ունե՞ք (unek') քառասուն (k'arrasun) չափսի։ | barev dzez. ays sportayin koshikə unek' k'arrasun chap'si? | Hello. Do you have these sneakers in size forty? |
| Մի (mi) րոպե (rope) նայեմ։ Այո (ayo), կա (ka)։ | mi rope nayem. ayo, ka | A minute, let me check. Yes, we do. |
| Կարո՞ղ եմ փորձել (karogh em p'ordzel)։ | karogh em p'ordzel? | Can I try them on? |
| Իհարկե (iharke)։ Փորձասենյակը այնտեղ է (p'ordzasenyakə ayntegh e)։ | iharke. p'ordzasenyakə ayntegh e | Of course. The fitting room is over there. |
| Չափազանց փոքր է (chap'azants p'ok'r e)։ Ավելի մեծ (aveli mets) չափս (chap's) կա (ka)՞։ | chap'azants p'ok'r e. aveli mets chap's ka? | They're too small. Is there a bigger size? |
| Քառասունմեկը կբերեմ։ Ի՞նչ (inch) գույն (guyn) եք (ek) ուզում (uzum)։ | k'arrasunmekə kberem. inch guyn ek' uzum? | I'll bring size forty-one. What color would you like? |
| Սև (sev) կամ (kam) մոխրագույն (mokhraguyn)։ Այս (ays) չափսը հարմար է (chap'sə harmar e)։ | sev kam mokhraguyn. ays chap'sə harmar e | Black or gray. This size fits. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and noticeably so. The link turns up study after study, and together those studies cover almost twenty thousand people.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Armenian in this situation?
“Բարև ձեզ (barev dzez)։ Այս (ays) սպորտային (sportayin) կոշիկը (koshikə) ունե՞ք (unek') քառասուն (k'arrasun) չափսի։” (barev dzez. ays sportayin koshikə unek' k'arrasun chap'si?) — Hello. Do you have these sneakers in size forty? The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.