Lingofly-ად and -ით: how a word turns into 'how'
Words like 'mostly', 'luckily', 'by hand' look like a class of their own in English. In Georgian they are two endings, and once you know them you stop learning each such word separately. For example: “საბედნიეროდ (sabednierod), ანგარიში (angarishi) ავტომატურად (avtomaturad) შეივსო” — Fortunately, the bill filled in automatically. A rule from the Georgian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Words like 'mostly', 'luckily', 'by hand' look like a class of their own in English. In Georgian they are two endings, and once you know them you stop learning each such word separately.
-ად makes a 'how' word out of an adjective: კარგი (kargi) → კარგად (kargad), სწრაფი → სწრაფად (stsrapad), ავტომატური → ავტომატურად (avtomaturad). No exceptions: -ი falls off, -ად grows on.
The same ending makes 'as what' out of a noun: საჩუქრად (sachukrad) — as a gift, მასწავლებლად მუშაობს (mushaobs) — works as a teacher. One form, two jobs, and the neighbours tell them apart.
-ით (-it) answers 'with what, how': ხელით (khelit) — by hand, ფეხით (pekhit) — on foot. Some of these froze and now want a second noun in front of them: ექიმის (ekimis) თქმით (tkmit) (ekimis tkmit) — according to the doctor.
Table
| Form | Built from | What it does | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| -ად | an adjective | a how-word | სწრაფად (stsrapad) — quickly |
| -ად | a noun | as what | საჩუქრად (sachukrad) — as a gift |
| -ით | a noun | with what, how | ხელით (khelit) — by hand |
| თქმით (tkmit) | თქმა (tkma) | a trailing word: according to | ექიმის (ekimis) თქმით (tkmit) |
| წყალობით (tsqalobit) | წყალობა | a trailing word: thanks to | შენი (sheni) წყალობით (tsqalobit) |
| შედარებით (shedarebit) | შედარება (shedareba) | a trailing word: compared to | შარშანთან (sharshantan) შედარებით (shedarebit) |
| განსხვავებით (ganskhvavebit) | განსხვავება (ganskhvaveba) | a trailing word: unlike | შენგან განსხვავებით (ganskhvavebit) |
| სა-…-ოდ | a noun | an opening word | საბედნიეროდ (sabednierod) — fortunately |
By example
- sabednierod, angarishi avtomaturad sheivsoFortunately, the bill filled in automatically
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 a word turns into 'how': how does it work in Georgian?
Words like 'mostly', 'luckily', 'by hand' look like a class of their own in English. In Georgian they are two endings, and once you know them you stop learning each such word separately.
What does it look like in a Georgian example sentence?
“საბედნიეროდ (sabednierod), ანგარიში (angarishi) ავტომატურად (avtomaturad) შეივსო” (sabednierod, angarishi avtomaturad sheivso) — Fortunately, the bill filled in automatically. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.