LingoflyՊէտք է, կրնամ: must, can, worth
"I have to go", "may I try it on?", "it is worth trying" — three turns for every day. For example: “Պէտք է (bedk' e) շուտ (shud) երթամ” (yert'am) — I have to leave early. A rule from the Western Armenian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
"I have to go", "may I try it on?", "it is worth trying" — three turns for every day.
Պէտք է (bedk' e) — have to. The word itself never changes; the person sits in the verb: պէտք է (bedk' e) երթամ (yert'am) (bedk' e yert'am) — I have to go, պէտք է (bedk' e) երթաս — you have to. The verb takes the same form as after պիտի (bidi). The negation is պէտք չէ (bedk' che), "no need".
Կրնամ (grnam) — can. Here the verb itself changes (կրնամ (grnam), կրնաս, կրնայ (grnay)), and the dictionary form follows: Կրնա՞մ փորձել (grnam p'ortsel) (grnam p'ortsel) — may I try it on? "May I?" without saying who is կարելի (gareli)՞ է (gareli e), and "not allowed" is չի (chi) կարելի (gareli) (chi gareli).
Արժէ (arzhe) — worth. It is the same root as in «ինչքա՞ն (inchk'an) կ'արժէ» (g'arzhe) — how much is it? As advice it means "it makes sense": Արժէ (arzhe) համտեսել (hamdesel) (arzhe hamdesel) — worth a taste.
Table
| Turn | What follows it | Example | In English |
|---|---|---|---|
| պէտք է (bedk' e) | the -մ/-ս/-… form | պէտք է (bedk' e) երթամ (yert'am) | I have to go |
| պէտք չէ (bedk' che) | the same | պէտք չէ (bedk' che) շտապել (shdabel) | no need to hurry |
| ինծի (indzi) … պէտք է (bedk' e) | a noun | ինծի (indzi) դոկտոր (togdor) պէտք է (bedk' e) | I need a doctor |
| կրնամ (grnam) | the dictionary form | կրնամ (grnam) օգնել (oknel) | I can help |
| կարելի (gareli)՞ է | the dictionary form | կարելի՞ է ներս մտնել (gareli e ners mdnel) | may one come in? |
| արժէ (arzhe) | the dictionary form | արժէ փորձել (arzhe p'ortsel) | worth trying |
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
must, can, worth: how does it work in Western Armenian?
"I have to go", "may I try it on?", "it is worth trying" — three turns for every day.
What does it look like in a Western Armenian example sentence?
“Պէտք է (bedk' e) շուտ (shud) երթամ” (yert'am) (bedk' e shud yert'am) — I have to leave early. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.