That very room: definiteness without an article
There is no article in Georgian. So how do you tell 'give me a knife' from 'give me that knife'? The means exist, they are just different. For example: “თავისუფალი ნომერი გაქვთ?” — Do you have a room free?. A rule from the Georgian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
There is no article in Georgian. So how do you tell 'give me a knife' from 'give me that knife'? The means exist, they are just different.
First and foremost, pointing words: ეს (es) — this one, near; ის (is) — that one, far off or already mentioned. ეს ნომერი (es nomeri) — this room, ის ბილეთი (is bileti) — that ticket. ის does the work of 'the'.
Second, ერთი (erti) in the sense of 'some'. ერთი კითხვა მაქვს (erti kitkhva makvs) — 'I have one question', meaning a question, not exactly one.
Third, word order. What is known stands nearer the front, what is new at the very end. ბილეთი მაგიდაზეა (bileti magidazea) — the ticket is on the table. მაგიდაზე ბილეთია — on the table there is a ticket, and the ticket is the news.
Table
| in English | in Georgian | what carries it |
|---|---|---|
| a room (some room) | ნომერი | nothing — that is just how it is |
| one room, some room or other | ერთი ნომერი | ერთი as 'some' |
| this room | ეს ნომერი | the pointing word ეს |
| the room we mentioned | ის ნომერი | the pointing word ის |
| a ticket on the table (news) | მაგიდაზე ბილეთია | the new thing went to the end |
By example
- თავისუფალი ნომერი გაქვთ?tavisupali nomeri gakvt?Do you have a room free?
- ეს ნომერი მომწონსes nomeri momtsonsI like this room
- ის ბილეთი ძვირი იყოis bileti dzviri iqoThat ticket was expensive
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
That very room: how does it work in Georgian?
There is no article in Georgian. So how do you tell 'give me a knife' from 'give me that knife'? The means exist, they are just different.
What does it look like in an example sentence Georgian?
“თავისუფალი ნომერი გაქვთ?” (tavisupali nomeri gakvt?) — Do you have a room free?. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.