ეს, ეგ, ის: this, that one by you, and that one over there
English points with two words, this and that. Georgian has three, and they split by person, not by distance. ეს — what is by me. ეგ — what is by you, in the listener's hands. ის — what belongs to neither of us. For example: “ეს ჩემი ტელეფონია, ეგ კი შენი” — This is my phone, and that one by you is yours. A rule from the Georgian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
English points with two words, this and that. Georgian has three, and they split by person, not by distance. ეს (es) — what is by me. ეგ (eg) — what is by you, in the listener's hands. ის (is) — what belongs to neither of us.
Beginners lose the middle one and say ეს about everything in sight. You are understood, but it sounds odd. Point at yourself — ეს, at the listener — ეგ, off to the side — ის.
The second thing phrasebooks keep quiet about: before a noun the pointing word changes shape. Not 'ეს კაცმა' but ამ კაცმა; not 'ის დღეს (is dghes)' but იმ დღეს (im dghes). The stems are ეს → ამ (am), ეგ → მაგ, ის → იმ (im).
On its own, with no noun, the word stays whole. ეს არის (es aris) — this is. ამას ვამბობ (amas vambob) — this is what I am saying.
Table
| Word | Where the thing is | Before a noun | Adverb from it |
|---|---|---|---|
| ეს | by me, right here | ამ ბიჭმა — this boy | აქ — here |
| ეგ | by you, the listener | მაგ წიგნში — in that book of yours | მანდ — over there by you |
| ის | with a third person, far off | იმ დღეს — that day | იქ — there |
| ასე | this way, the way I do it | — | ამიტომ — therefore |
| ისე | that way, otherwise | — | იმიტომ რომ — because |
By example
- ეს ჩემი ტელეფონია, ეგ კი შენიes chemi teleponia, eg ki sheniThis is my phone, and that one by you is yours
- ამ კვირას მუზეუმი დაკეტილიაam kviras muzeumi daketiliaThe museum is closed this week
- საცობი იყო, ამიტომ დავაგვიანეsatsobi iqo, amitom davagvianeThere was a traffic jam, so I was late
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
this, that one by you, and that one over there: how does it work in Georgian?
English points with two words, this and that. Georgian has three, and they split by person, not by distance. ეს — what is by me. ეგ — what is by you, in the listener's hands. ის — what belongs to neither of us.
What does it look like in an example sentence Georgian?
“ეს ჩემი ტელეფონია, ეგ კი შენი” (es chemi teleponia, eg ki sheni) — This is my phone, and that one by you is yours. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.