მესამედი, ორჯერ, ცალობით: fractions, multiples and 'how it is counted'
You learned to count to a hundred earlier in the course. The unit u52 adds three things without which a figure cannot be discussed: the fraction, the multiple and the way of counting. All three are made with endings, and there are almost no exceptions. For example: “ხელფასის მესამედი და ბინის ნახევარი ერთი და იგივე თანხაა” — A third of the salary and half the rent are one and the same sum. A rule from the Georgian…
How it works
You learned to count to a hundred earlier in the course. The unit u52 adds three things without which a figure cannot be discussed: the fraction, the multiple and the way of counting. All three are made with endings, and there are almost no exceptions.
The fraction: მე- (me)…-ედი. Wrap the number on both sides: სამი (sami) → მესამედი (a third), ოთხი (otkhi) → მეოთხედი (a quarter), ხუთი (khuti) → მეხუთედი (a fifth). Only half falls out of the system: ნახევარი (nakhevari), a word of its own. One and a half is assembled by addition — ერთნახევარი (ertnakhevari), and two and a half — ორნახევარი (ornakhevari).
The multiple: -ჯერ (-jer). ორჯერ (orjer) — twice and twofold at once, სამჯერ (samjer) — three times, ასჯერ — a hundred times. English splits 'twice' from 'twofold'; Georgian does not, and the verb supplies the meaning: ორჯერ წავიკითხე (orjer tsavikitkhe) — I read it twice, ორჯერ გაძვირდა (orjer gadzvirda) — it doubled in price. The single exception is ერთხელ (once), where -ხელ stands instead of -ჯერ.
Living next door is a second frame: -მაგი / -მაგად. ორმაგი (ormagi) — double, ორმაგად (ormagad) — twofold; სამმაგი — triple, სამმაგად (sammagad) — threefold. The difference from -ჯერ is subtle: ორჯერ counts the times ('twice'), ორმაგად describes the size ('twofold larger'). Everyday speech mixes them, and that is not a mistake.
The way of counting: -ობით. It glues onto the unit of counting and answers 'how is it counted': ცალობით (tsalobit) — piece by piece, ათეულობით (ateulobit) — by the dozen, კილოობით (kiloobit) — by the kilo, წლობით — by the year. Note that English marks this with 'by the' and a plural; Georgian does it with one ending.
'By how much' — the instrumental case. A change of size in Georgian goes through the ending -ით (-it), not through a preposition: მესამედით (mesamedit) — by a third, ორ პროცენტით — by two percent, სიგრძით (sigrdzit) — in length. The English 'by' is not translated here at all.
And comparison. It is built with two words, not an ending: უფრო (upro) in front of the quality and ვიდრე (vidre) in front of what is compared against: უფრო დაბალია (upro dabalia), ვიდრე შარშან (vidre sharshan). Boost it with გაცილებით (gatsilebit) — much, by far.
Table
| ending | what it does | example | in English |
|---|---|---|---|
| მე-…-ედი | a fraction | მესამედი | a third |
| მე-…-ედი | a fraction | მეოთხედი | a quarter |
| -ჯერ | a multiple | ორჯერ | twice, twofold |
| -მაგად | how many times over | ორმაგად | twofold |
| -ჯერ | a multiple | ასჯერ | a hundred times |
| -ხელ | the exception | ერთხელ | once |
| -ობით | the way of counting | ცალობით | piece by piece |
| -ით | by how much | მესამედით | by a third |
| -ით | a measure | სიგრძით | in length |
| უფრო … ვიდრე | comparison | უფრო დაბალი, ვიდრე | lower than |
By example
- ხელფასის მესამედი და ბინის ნახევარი ერთი და იგივე თანხააkhelpasis mesamedi da binis nakhevari erti da igive tankhaaA third of the salary and half the rent are one and the same sum
- ბილეთი ორმაგად გაძვირდა, მოსავალი კი სამმაგად გაიზარდაbileti ormagad gadzvirda, mosavali ki sammagad gaizardaThe ticket doubled in price, and the harvest grew threefold
- კვერცხს ცალობით ვყიდულობთ, ვაშლს კი კილოობითkvertskhs tsalobit vqidulobt, vashls ki kiloobitWe buy eggs piece by piece, and apples by the kilo
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
fractions, multiples and 'how it is counted': how does it work in Georgian?
You learned to count to a hundred earlier in the course. The unit u52 adds three things without which a figure cannot be discussed: the fraction, the multiple and the way of counting. All three are made with endings, and there are almost no exceptions.
What does it look like in an example sentence Georgian?
“ხელფასის მესამედი და ბინის ნახევარი ერთი და იგივე თანხაა” (khelpasis mesamedi da binis nakhevari erti da igive tankhaa) — A third of the salary and half the rent are one and the same sum. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.