-ო, -მეთქი, -თქო: other people's words without the word 'that'
You took apart reporting with რომ, and it is correct. But living speech reports differently — with a particle glued onto the last word of the quote, and no 'რომ' is needed. There are three particles, and mixing them up is not allowed: 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…
How it works
You took apart reporting with რომ (rom), and it is correct. But living speech reports differently — with a particle glued onto the last word of the quote, and no 'რომ' is needed. There are three particles, and mixing them up is not allowed: they tell whose words are being passed on.
-ო — someone else's words. 'ხვალ მოვაო' — 'I am coming tomorrow', he said. Note: inside the quote the verb stays in the first person, exactly as the original speaker said it, and the particle at the end reports that it was not you who said it. English has to change the person ('he said he was coming'); 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. The particle works only for the first person and only for the past: it is a report of what you yourself already said.
-თქო (-tko) — your words, which the listener must pass on to a third person. 'უთხარი (utkhari), მოვალ-თქო (moval tko)' — tell him I am coming. The difference from '-მეთქი' is exactly the direction: one is about what was said, the other about what still has to be relayed. This is the most conspicuous foreigner's mistake, and one question fixes it: have the words already been spoken or not?
Impersonal phrases are the bookish layer. ამბობენ (amboben), რომ (they say that), როგორც ცნობილია (as is known), ექიმის თქმით (according to the doctor) fit a news story, a report, a statement. In conversation the same job is done by the single letter '-ო', and it is worth hearing at least once to recognize it afterwards.
And the link with a form you already know: if you did not see it yourself, the verb goes into the perfect. 'წასულაო' — he has left, they say. The perfect reports that you are no witness, and '-ო' that the words are not yours; together they are the Georgian way to say 'rumor has it'.
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 |
| perfect + -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?
You took apart reporting with რომ, and it is correct. But living speech reports differently — with a particle glued onto the last word of the quote, and no 'რომ' is needed. There are three particles, and mixing them up is not allowed: 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.