Lingoflyარ, ვერ, ნუ, აღარ, ვეღარ: five ways to say no
English 'not' covers everything; Georgian has five negations. Pick the wrong one and you say the wrong thing: 'I don't want to run' and 'I can't run' are different here. For example: “დღეს (dghes) არ (ar) მინდა (minda) ვარჯიში (varjishi), ხვალ (khval) წავალ” (tsaval) — Today I don't feel like training, I'll go tomorrow. A rule from the Georgian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
English 'not' covers everything; Georgian has five negations. Pick the wrong one and you say the wrong thing: 'I don't want to run' and 'I can't run' are different here.
არ (ar) is plain denial. Don't do, don't want, don't know: არ (ar) ვმუშაობ (vmushaob) (ar vmushaob) — I don't work, არ (ar) მინდა (minda) (ar minda) — I don't want to. This denies a will or a fact.
ვერ (ver) denies ability. Couldn't, didn't manage: ვერ გავიგე (ver gavige) — I couldn't understand, ვერ (ver) მოვასწარი (movastsari) (ver movastsari) — I didn't make it. The pair shows it. არ (ar) წავედი (tsavedi) (ar tsavedi) — I didn't go, I didn't want to. ვერ (ver) წავედი (tsavedi) (ver tsavedi) — I couldn't, something stopped me.
ნუ (nu) is a ban, only with a request: ნუ (nu) ჩქარობ (nu chkarob) — don't hurry. And აღარ (aghar), ვეღარ (veghar) mean 'no longer': აღარ (aghar) ვმუშაობ (vmushaob) (aghar vmushaob) — I no longer work, ვეღარ ვრბივარ (veghar vrbivar) — I can no longer run.
Table
| negation | what it means | example | in English |
|---|---|---|---|
| არ (ar) | don't want, don't do | არ (ar) მინდა (minda) | I don't want to |
| ვერ (ver) | can't, failed to | ვერ (ver) მოვასწარი (movastsari) | I didn't make it in time |
| ნუ (nu) | don't (a ban) | ნუ (nu) ჩქარობ | don't hurry |
| აღარ (aghar) | no longer (stopped) | აღარ (aghar) ვმუშაობ (vmushaob) | I no longer work |
| ვეღარ | no longer able | ვეღარ ვრბივარ | I can no longer run |
| არ (ar) + არავინ (aravin) | double negation | არავინ (aravin) არ (ar) მოვიდა (movida) | nobody came |
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
Არ (ar) vs ვერ (ver) in Georgian?
ვერ (ver) denies ability. Couldn't, didn't manage: ვერ გავიგე (ver gavige) — I couldn't understand, ვერ (ver) მოვასწარი (movastsari) — I didn't make it. The pair shows it. არ (ar) წავედი (tsavedi) — I didn't go, I didn't want to. ვერ (ver) წავედი (tsavedi) — I couldn't, something stopped me.
Why georgians say ვერ გავიგე (ver gavige)?
ვერ (ver) denies ability. Couldn't, didn't manage: ვერ გავიგე (ver gavige) — I couldn't understand, ვერ (ver) მოვასწარი (movastsari) — I didn't make it. The pair shows it. არ (ar) წავედი (tsavedi) — I didn't go, I didn't want to. ვერ (ver) წავედი (tsavedi) — I couldn't, something stopped me.
How many ways Georgian has to say no?
English 'not' covers everything; Georgian has five negations. Pick the wrong one and you say the wrong thing: 'I don't want to run' and 'I can't run' are different here.
What ნუ (nu) means in Georgian?
ნუ (nu) is a ban, only with a request: ნუ (nu) ჩქარობ — don't hurry. And აღარ (aghar), ვეღარ mean 'no longer': აღარ (aghar) ვმუშაობ (vmushaob) — I no longer work, ვეღარ ვრბივარ — I can no longer run.
What does it look like in a Georgian example sentence?
“დღეს (dghes) არ (ar) მინდა (minda) ვარჯიში (varjishi), ხვალ (khval) წავალ” (tsaval) (dghes ar minda varjishi, khval tsaval) — Today I don't feel like training, I'll go tomorrow. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.