Lingoflyვიყიდე or ვუყიდე: the vowel that says who it is for
One word says both 'bought it for myself' and 'bought it for him'. English needs different words for these — Georgian settles them all with one vowel inside the verb. For example: “ჩანთა (chanta) ჩემთვის (chemtvis) ვიყიდე (viqide), შარფი (sharpi) კი (ki) დედას (dedas) ვუყიდე” (vuqide) — 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
One word says both 'bought it for myself' and 'bought it for him'. 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 (viqide) (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 (vuqide) (bought for him), ვუჩუქე (gave him as a gift). Look at the pair ვისესხე / ვასესხე (vaseskhe): 'borrowed' and 'lent' differ by the same vowel. Only with a few verbs 'for another' is not უ- but ა- — they settled that way historically.
Table
| Form | Vowel | For whom | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| ვიყიდე (viqide) | ი- | for oneself | I bought it (for myself) |
| ვუყიდე (vuqide) | 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
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?
One word says both 'bought it for myself' and 'bought it for him'. English needs different words for these — Georgian settles them all with one vowel inside the verb.
Ვიყიდე (viqide) vs ვუყიდე (vuqide)?
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.
The Georgian vowel that says who it is for?
One word says both 'bought it for myself' and 'bought it for him'. English needs different words for these — Georgian settles them all with one vowel inside the verb.
Ვისესხე or ვასესხე: borrowed or lent?
უ- is for somebody else: ვუყიდე (vuqide) (bought for him), ვუჩუქე (gave him as a gift). Look at the pair ვისესხე / ვასესხე: 'borrowed' and 'lent' differ by the same vowel. Only with a few verbs 'for another' is not უ- but ა- — they settled that way historically.
What does it look like in a Georgian example sentence?
“ჩანთა (chanta) ჩემთვის (chemtvis) ვიყიდე (viqide), შარფი (sharpi) კი (ki) დედას (dedas) ვუყიდე” (vuqide) (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.