Ցուրտ է: a sentence with no actor
"It is cold", "one must go", "it seems" — English fills these with a dummy "it". Here nothing is needed: the copula է stands alone. Tsurd e — it is cold; ush e — it is late. That is a complete two-word sentence. For example: “Դրսին մէջ ցուրտ է, բաճկոնդ հագիր” — It is cold outside, put on your coat. A rule from the Western Armenian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
"It is cold", "one must go", "it seems" — English fills these with a dummy "it". Here nothing is needed: the copula է (e) stands alone. Tsurd e — it is cold; ush e — it is late. That is a complete two-word sentence.
To say to whom, the dative form goes in front: indzi tsurd e — I am cold. The same scheme: indzi doktor e bedk — I need a doctor.
Three turns of this family. Bedk e — one must: bedk e shdapel. Kareli e — one may; chi kareli — not allowed. T'vum e — it seems: t'vum e՝ antsev k'gay. After t'vum e one puts the mark ՝ (but`); it replaces "that".
Two more turns. "They say that…" is the third person plural: k'əsen՝ vaghə tsyun bidi gay. And "no smoking here", "the shop closes at nine" use -ուի- inside the verb: aysdegh dzkhelə arkeluadz e. The action happens by itself, with no named doer.
Table
| English | Armenian | Literally |
|---|---|---|
| it is cold | ցուրտ է | cold is |
| I am cold | ինծի ցուրտ է | to me cold is |
| one must hurry | պէտք է շտապել | need is to hurry |
| I need a doctor | ինծի դոկտոր է պէտք | to me a doctor is needed |
| it seems it is raining | թւում է՝ անձրեւ կը գայ | it seems — the rain is coming |
| not allowed | չի կարելի | it cannot be done |
| they say it will snow | կ'ըսեն՝ ձիւն պիտի գայ | they say — snow will come |
| smoking is forbidden | ծխելը արգելուած է | smoking is forbidden |
By example
- Դրսին մէջ ցուրտ է, բաճկոնդ հագիրtrsin mech tsurd e, pajgont hakirIt is cold outside, put on your coat
- Թւում է՝ մարտկոցը նստած էt'vum e mardgotsə nsdadz eIt seems the battery is dead
- Այստեղ լուսանկարել չի կարելիaysdegh lusangarel chi gareliPhotographing is not allowed here
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
a sentence with no actor: how does it work in Western Armenian?
"It is cold", "one must go", "it seems" — English fills these with a dummy "it". Here nothing is needed: the copula է stands alone. Tsurd e — it is cold; ush e — it is late. That is a complete two-word sentence.
What does it look like in an example sentence Western Armenian?
“Դրսին մէջ ցուրտ է, բաճկոնդ հագիր” (trsin mech tsurd e, pajgont hakir) — It is cold outside, put on your coat. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.