LingoflyAt the service centre in Western Armenian
At the service centre: the phone won't charge, a diagnosis, the term and the cost of the repair in Western Armenian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Բարեւ ձեզ (parev tsez)։ Հեռախօսս չի լիցքաւորուիր (herrakhoss chi litsk'avorvir)։» — Hello. My phone won't charge; «Բարեւ ձեզ (parev tsez)։ Ուրիշ (urish) ի՞նչ (inch) խնդիր (khntir) կայ (gay)։» — Hello. What other problems are there?
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: at the service centre: the phone won't charge, a diagnosis, the term and the cost of the repair. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- Բարեւ ձեզ։ Հեռախօսս չի լիցքաւորուիր։parev tsez Herrakhoss chi litsk'avorvirHello. My phone won't charge.
- Վերանորոգման ժամկէտը որքա՞ն է, եւ կա՞յ պահեստամաս։veranorokman zhamgedə vork'an e, yev gay bahesdamasWhat is the repair term, and is there a spare part?
Lines one by one
| Western Armenian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Բարեւ ձեզ (parev tsez)։ Հեռախօսս չի լիցքաւորուիր (herrakhoss chi litsk'avorvir)։ | parev tsez Herrakhoss chi litsk'avorvir | Hello. My phone won't charge. |
| Բարեւ ձեզ (parev tsez)։ Ուրիշ (urish) ի՞նչ (inch) խնդիր (khntir) կայ (gay)։ | parev tsez Urish inch khntir gay | Hello. What other problems are there? |
| Շատ (shad) կը տաքնայ (gə dak'na) եւ (yev) երբեմն (yerpemn) կը կախուի (gə gakhvi)։ | shad gə dak'na yev yerpemn gə gakhvi | It heats up a lot, and sometimes it freezes. |
| Էկրանին ճաք կայ (egranin jak' gay)։ Ինկա՞ծ է։ | egranin jak' gay Ingadz e | There is a crack on the screen. Has it been dropped? |
| Այո (ayo), շաբաթ (shapat') օրը (orə)։ Ախտորոշումը որքա՞ն (vork'an) կ'արժէ (g'arzhe)։ | ayo, shapat' orə Akhdoroshumə vork'an g'arzhe | Yes, on Saturday. How much does a diagnosis cost? |
| Ախտորոշումն անվճար է (akhdoroshumn anvjar e)։ Յայտ (hayd) ձեւակերպենք եւ (yev) լարերը (larerə) ստուգենք։ | akhdoroshumn anvjar e Hayd tsevagerbenk' yev larerə sdukenk' | The diagnosis is free. We'll file a request and check the wires. |
| Վերանորոգման (veranorokman) ժամկէտը (zhamgedə) որքա՞ն (vork'an) է, եւ (yev) կա՞յ (gay) պահեստամաս (bahesdamas)։ | veranorokman zhamgedə vork'an e, yev gay bahesdamas | What is the repair term, and is there a spare part? |
| Երեւի (yerevi) հինգ (hink) օր (or)։ Եթէ (yet'e) երաշխիքով (yerashkhik'ov) է, վերանորոգումն (veranorokumn) անվճար (anvjar) պիտի (bidi) ըլլայ (əllay)։ | yerevi hink or Yet'e yerashkhik'ov e, veranorokumn anvjar bidi əllay | Probably five days. If it is under warranty, the repair will be free. |
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 Western Armenian in this situation?
“Բարեւ ձեզ (parev tsez)։ Հեռախօսս չի լիցքաւորուիր (herrakhoss chi litsk'avorvir)։” (parev tsez Herrakhoss chi litsk'avorvir) — Hello. My phone won't charge. 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.