-ო, -მეთქი, -თქო: other people's words without the word 'that'
Live speech relays other people's words with a particle glued to the last word of the quote, and no რომ is needed. There are three of them, and they tell whose words are being passed on. For example: “მეზობელმა თქვა, წყალს დილით გამორთავენო” — The neighbor said they would cut the water off in the morning. A rule from the Georgian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Live speech relays other people's words with a particle glued to the last word of the quote, and no რომ (rom) is needed. There are three of them, and they tell whose words are being passed on.
-ო — somebody else's words. ხვალ მოვაო — 'I'll come tomorrow', he said. Inside the quote the verb stays in the first person, exactly as it was spoken. English has to switch the person; Georgian does not.
-მეთქი (-metki) — your own words, already spoken. ვუთხარი (vutkhari), არ მინდა-მეთქი (ar minda metki) — I told him I didn't want to. It works only for the past: a report of what you have already said.
-თქო (-tko) — your words, which the listener is to pass on. უთხარი (utkhari), მოვალ-თქო (moval tko) — tell him I will come. One question sorts the two out: have the words been said yet or not?
Table
| Particle | Whose words | Example | In English |
|---|---|---|---|
| -ო | a third person's | მოვაო | he said he is coming |
| -მეთქი | yours, already spoken | არ მინდა-მეთქი | I said I don't want to |
| -თქო | yours, to be relayed | მოვალ-თქო | tell him I am coming |
| რომ | any, bookish | თქვა, რომ მოვა | he said he is coming |
| ამბობენ, რომ | nobody's, impersonal | ამბობენ, რომ ცივა | they say it is cold |
| the not-seen past + -ო | a rumor about the past | წასულაო | he has left, they say |
By example
- მეზობელმა თქვა, წყალს დილით გამორთავენოmezobelma tkva, tsqals dilit gamortavenoThe neighbor said they would cut the water off in the morning
- ვუთხარი, ხვალ ვერ მოვალ-მეთქიvutkhari, khval ver moval-metkiI told him I wouldn't be able to come tomorrow
- უთხარი, ბილეთი ვიყიდე-თქოutkhari, bileti viqide-tkoTell him I bought the ticket
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
other people's words without the word 'that': how does it work in Georgian?
Live speech relays other people's words with a particle glued to the last word of the quote, and no რომ is needed. There are three of them, and they tell whose words are being passed on.
What does it look like in an example sentence Georgian?
“მეზობელმა თქვა, წყალს დილით გამორთავენო” (mezobelma tkva, tsqals dilit gamortaveno) — The neighbor said they would cut the water off in the morning. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.