ვიყიდე or ვუყიდე: the vowel that says who it is for
'Gave it to him', 'borrowed it from him', 'bought it for myself' — English needs different words for these. Georgian settles them all with one vowel inside the verb. For example: “ჩანთა ჩემთვის ვიყიდე, შარფი კი დედას ვუყიდე” — I bought the bag for myself, and the scarf for my mom. A rule from the Georgian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
'Gave it to him', 'borrowed it from him', 'bought it for myself' — English needs different words for these. Georgian settles them all with one vowel inside the verb.
One root, different forms: ვიყიდე (viqide) — I bought it for myself, ვუყიდე (vuqide) — I bought it for him. And ვყიდულობ is simply 'I buy', with nobody in mind. The vowel before the root is what tells them apart.
ი- is for yourself: ვიყიდე (bought for myself), ვისესხე (borrowed), ვიშოვე (got hold of). No separate word for 'myself' is added — it is already inside.
უ- is for somebody else: ვუყიდე (bought for him), ვასესხე (lent him), ვუჩუქე (gave him as a gift). Look at the pair ვისესხე / ვასესხე: 'borrowed' and 'lent' differ by that vowel alone.
Table
| Form | Vowel | For whom | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| ვიყიდე | ი- | for oneself | I bought it (for myself) |
| ვუყიდე | უ- | for another | I bought it for him |
| ვისესხე | ი- | for oneself | I borrowed it |
| ვასესხე | ა- | for another | I lent it |
| ვუჩუქე | უ- | for another | I gave it to him as a gift |
| მაჩუქა | the recipient 'მ-' | to me | he gave it to me as a gift |
| ვყიდულობ | neutral | — | I am buying |
By example
- ჩანთა ჩემთვის ვიყიდე, შარფი კი დედას ვუყიდეchanta chemtvis viqide, sharpi ki dedas vuqideI bought the bag for myself, and the scarf for my mom
- მეზობელს ბურღი ვასესხე, თოკი კი მისგან ვისესხეmezobels burghi vaseskhe, toki ki misgan viseskheI lent my neighbor the drill and borrowed a rope from him
- დაბადების დღეზე წიგნი მაჩუქესdabadebis dgheze tsigni machukesFor my birthday they gave me a book
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
How to say I bought it for myself in Georgian?
'Gave it to him', 'borrowed it from him', 'bought it for myself' — English needs different words for these. Georgian settles them all with one vowel inside the verb.
Ვიყიდე vs ვუყიდე?
One root, different forms: ვიყიდე — I bought it for myself, ვუყიდე — I bought it for him. And ვყიდულობ is simply 'I buy', with nobody in mind. The vowel before the root is what tells them apart.
The Georgian vowel that says who it is for?
ი- is for yourself: ვიყიდე (bought for myself), ვისესხე (borrowed), ვიშოვე (got hold of). No separate word for 'myself' is added — it is already inside.
Ვისესხე or ვასესხე: borrowed or lent?
უ- is for somebody else: ვუყიდე (bought for him), ვასესხე (lent him), ვუჩუქე (gave him as a gift). Look at the pair ვისესხე / ვასესხე: 'borrowed' and 'lent' differ by that vowel alone.
What does it look like in an example sentence Georgian?
“ჩანთა ჩემთვის ვიყიდე, შარფი კი დედას ვუყიდე” (chanta chemtvis viqide, sharpi ki dedas vuqide) — I bought the bag for myself, and the scarf for my mom. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.