Սափրվել
“Սափրվել” (sap'rvel) — to shave in Armenian. Verb, level A1, topic — everyday life and routine. without the -v, sap'rel means 'to shave somebody'. The same tail as in sanrvel. In a live sentence: “Օրը մեջ սափրվում եմ” — I shave every other day. You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters Ս, ա, փ, ր, վ, ե, լ. One of 12 words in the set “everyday life and routine” in the Armenian course.
In short
| Written in Armenian | Սափրվել |
| Read in Latin letters | sap'rvel |
| Translation | to shave |
| Part of speech | verb |
| Level | A1 |
- Սափրվելsap'rvelto shave
Why it looks that way
without the -v, sap'rel means 'to shave somebody'. The same tail as in sanrvel
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- Օրը մեջ սափրվում եմorə mej sap'rvum emI shave every other day
Nearby words: everyday life and routine
Work, home, rest, errands. The words the answer to “how are things?” is made of.
- Աշխատանքashkhatank'workfrom ashkhatel — to work: the -ank' ending turns a verb into a noun of action
- Աշխատելashkhatelto workof people and things alike: verelakə chi ashkhatum — the elevator is out of order
- Արթնանալart'nanalto wake upto wake somebody is art'nants'nel, a causative in -ts'n. One tail changes the role
- Վեր կենալver kenalto get upliterally 'rise upward'. Waking and getting up are different deeds and different verbs
- Երես լվանալeres lvanalto wash upliterally 'wash the face' — Armenian names what gets washed. Lats'vel means to wash all over
- Սանրվելsanrvelto comb one’s hairfrom sanr — comb. The -v tail turns the action back on its doer
- Հագնվելhagnvelto get dressedwithout the -v, hagnel means 'to put something on'. The tail removes the need for an object
- Հանվելhanvelto undressthe partner of hagnvel: hanel — to take off, hanvel — to undress
- Նստելnstelto sit downboth 'sit down' and 'sit'. The same verb seats you in transport: avtobus nstel
- Պառկելparrkelto lie downboth 'lie down' and 'lie'. Going to bed is said with the phrase k'nelu gnal — 'go to sleep'
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “everyday life and routine”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “to shave” in Armenian?
without the -v, sap'rel means 'to shave somebody'. The same tail as in sanrvel
- How do you say “to get dressed” in Armenian?
without the -v, hagnel means 'to put something on'. The tail removes the need for an object
- How do you say “to wake up” in Armenian?
to wake somebody is art'nants'nel, a causative in -ts'n. One tail changes the role
- How do you say “to lie down” in Armenian?
both 'lie down' and 'lie'. Going to bed is said with the phrase k'nelu gnal — 'go to sleep'
- How do you say “to comb one’s hair” in Armenian?
from sanr — comb. The -v tail turns the action back on its doer
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “to shave” in Armenian?
«Սափրվել», read “sap'rvel”. In a live sentence: “Օրը մեջ սափրվում եմ” — I shave every other day. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Verb, level A1, from the set “everyday life and routine”; written with the characters Ս, ա, փ, ր, վ, ե, լ.
How is “Սափրվել” written in Latin letters?
sap'rvel. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.
Why does this word look the way it does?
without the -v, sap'rel means 'to shave somebody'. The same tail as in sanrvel. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
Can I hear how it sounds?
Yes, right on this page: click the word and it will play. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.