LingoflySigning up at the gym in Western Armenian
Signing up at the gym: a season ticket, the machines and an old injury in Western Armenian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Բարեւ ձեզ (parev tsez), կ'ուզեմ (g'uzem) աբոնեմենտ (aponemend) առնել (arrnel)։» — Hello, I would like to get a season ticket; «Երեք (yerek') ամսուա՞ն, թէ (t'e)՞ մէկ (meg) տարուան (daruan)։ Տարեկանը աւելի աժան (aveli azhan) է։» — For three months or for a year? The yearly one is cheaper.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: signing up at the gym: a season ticket, the machines and an old injury. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- yerek' amsvan, t'e meg daruan Dareganə aveli azhan eFor three months or for a year? The yearly one is cheaper.
- Իսկ լողաւազանը աբոնեմենտին մէջ կը մտնէ՞։isg loghavazanə aponemendin mech gə mdneAnd is the pool included in the season ticket?
Lines one by one
| Western Armenian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Բարեւ ձեզ (parev tsez), կ'ուզեմ (g'uzem) աբոնեմենտ (aponemend) առնել (arrnel)։ | parev tsez, g'uzem aponemend arrnel | Hello, I would like to get a season ticket. |
| Երեք (yerek') ամսուա՞ն, թէ (t'e)՞ մէկ (meg) տարուան (daruan)։ Տարեկանը աւելի աժան (aveli azhan) է։ | yerek' amsvan, t'e meg daruan Dareganə aveli azhan e | For three months or for a year? The yearly one is cheaper. |
| Երեք (yerek') ամսուան (amsuan), նախ (nakh) փորձեմ։ Սրահին մէջ (mech) մարզիչ (marzich) կա՞յ (gay)։ | yerek' amsvan, nakh p'ortsem Srahin mech marzich gay | For three months, I'll try first. Is there a trainer at the gym? |
| Կայ (gay)։ Առաջին (arrachin) օրը (orə) ան (an) բոլոր (polor) մարզասարքերը ցոյց (tsuyts) պիտի (bidi) տայ (day)։ | gay Arrachin orə an polor marzasark'erə tsuyts bidi day | There is. On the first day he will show you all the machines. |
| Անցեալ (antsyal) տարի (dari) ձգուածք (tskvadzk') ունեցայ։ Ծանր (dzanr) բան (pan) պիտի (bidi) չբարձրացնեմ։ | antsyal dari tskvadzk' unetsa Dzanr pan bidi chpartsratsnem | Last year I had a sprain. I won't lift anything heavy. |
| Ըսէք մարզիչին։ Թեթեւ (t'et'ev) գանթելներէն եւ (yev) տաքացումէն պիտի (bidi) սկսիք։ | əsek' marzichin T'et'ev kant'elneren yev dak'atsumen bidi sgsik' | Tell the trainer. You'll start with light dumbbells and a warm-up. |
| Իսկ (isg) լողաւազանը աբոնեմենտին մէջ (mech) կը (gə) մտնէ (mdne)՞։ | isg loghavazanə aponemendin mech gə mdne | And is the pool included in the season ticket? |
| Չի (chi) մտներ, առանձին (arrantsin) սակագին (sagakin) է։ Զգեստապահարանին (zkesdabaharanin) բանալին (panalin) առէք (arrek)։ | chi mdner, arrantsin sagakin e Zkesdabaharanin panalin arrek' | It is not included; it is a separate rate. Take the locker key. |
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), կ'ուզեմ (g'uzem) աբոնեմենտ (aponemend) առնել (arrnel)։” (parev tsez, g'uzem aponemend arrnel) — Hello, I would like to get a season ticket. 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.