მაღალი კაცი and კაცი მაღალია: the adjective before the noun and in the predicate
Describing a person is almost all adjectives. They behave more simply than you expect, and in two places quite differently. For example: “ჩემი მეზობელი მოკრძალებული და საიმედოა” — My neighbor is modest and dependable. A rule from the Georgian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Describing a person is almost all adjectives. They behave more simply than you expect, and in two places quite differently.
First: an adjective has no gender and no number. მაღალი კაცი (maghali katsi), მაღალი ქალი (maghali kali), მაღალი ბიჭები — the word never changes once. The noun carries the plural.
Second: 'he is tall' is made by the ending -ა, not by a separate word. English needs 'is'; Georgian glues -ა onto the adjective itself: მაღალია (maghalia). If the word ends in -ი, that -ი goes: ჯიუტი (jiuti) → ჯიუტია (jiutia).
Third, about endings. A description in front of the noun changes too, but more briefly: it drops -ი and takes the ending. ახალი ბინა (akhali bina) → ახალ ბინაში (akhal binashi) — in the new flat. The noun gets the full ending, the word in front of it a clipped one.
Table
| Role | Form | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| a description | no change | ჯიუტი ბავშვი | a stubborn child |
| a description in a case | shortened, without '-ი' | ჯიუტ ბავშვს | to a stubborn child |
| the predicate | '-ი' → '-ა' | ბავშვი ჯიუტია | the child is stubborn |
| the plural | only the noun changes | ჯიუტი ბავშვები | stubborn children |
| 'with something' | the suffix '-იანი' | ხასიათიანი | with character |
| 'without something' | 'უ-…-ო' | უხასიათო | out of sorts, lifeless |
| the name of a quality | the prefix 'სი-' | სიმაღლე | height |
By example
- ჩემი მეზობელი მოკრძალებული და საიმედოაchemi mezobeli mokrdzalebuli da saimedoaMy neighbor is modest and dependable
- ხუჭუჭა თმის გოგონას ველოდებიkhuchucha tmis gogonas velodebiI am waiting for a girl with curly hair
- დღეს უხასიათო ვარ და ხმაზეც ეტყობაdghes ukhasiato var da khmazets etqobaI am out of sorts today, and you can hear it in my voice
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
the adjective before the noun and in the predicate: how does it work in Georgian?
Describing a person is almost all adjectives. They behave more simply than you expect, and in two places quite differently.
What does it look like in an example sentence Georgian?
“ჩემი მეზობელი მოკრძალებული და საიმედოა” (chemi mezobeli mokrdzalebuli da saimedoa) — My neighbor is modest and dependable. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.