At the pharmacy in Georgian
A cold: getting medicine without a prescription in Georgian. 7 phrases that the conversation is made of: «გამარჯობა. ყელი მტკივა და ხველა მაქვს.» — Hello. I have a sore throat and a cough.; «ტემპერატურა გაქვთ?» — Do you have a fever? Every line can be played right on the page. The conversation is predictable: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a cold: getting medicine without a prescription. The conversation is short and predictable — which is exactly what makes it good for a first try: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
- გამარჯობა. ყელი მტკივა და ხველა მაქვს.gamarjoba. qeli mtkiva da khvela makvs.Hello. I have a sore throat and a cough.
- ტემპერატურა გაქვთ?temperatura gakvt?Do you have a fever?
- არა, ტემპერატურა არ მაქვს. სურდოა.ara, temperatura ar makvs. surdoa.No, no fever. A runny nose.
- ეს წამალი აიღეთ. დღეში ორჯერ, ჭამის შემდეგ.es tsamali aighet. dgheshi orjer, chamis shemdeg.Take this medicine. Twice a day, after meals.
- რეცეპტის გარეშე შეიძლება?retseptis gareshe sheidzleba?Can I get it without a prescription?
- დიახ. ათი ლარი, სალაროსთან გადაიხადეთ.diakh. ati lari, salarostan gadaikhadet.Yes. Ten lari, pay at the cash register.
- მადლობა. კარგად იყავით!madloba. kargad iqavit!Thank you. Take care!
Lines one by one
| Georgian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| გამარჯობა. ყელი მტკივა და ხველა მაქვს. | gamarjoba. qeli mtkiva da khvela makvs. | Hello. I have a sore throat and a cough. |
| ტემპერატურა გაქვთ? | temperatura gakvt? | Do you have a fever? |
| არა, ტემპერატურა არ მაქვს. სურდოა. | ara, temperatura ar makvs. surdoa. | No, no fever. A runny nose. |
| ეს წამალი აიღეთ. დღეში ორჯერ, ჭამის შემდეგ. | es tsamali aighet. dgheshi orjer, chamis shemdeg. | Take this medicine. Twice a day, after meals. |
| რეცეპტის გარეშე შეიძლება? | retseptis gareshe sheidzleba? | Can I get it without a prescription? |
| დიახ. ათი ლარი, სალაროსთან გადაიხადეთ. | diakh. ati lari, salarostan gadaikhadet. | Yes. Ten lari, pay at the cash register. |
| მადლობა. კარგად იყავით! | madloba. kargad iqavit! | Thank you. Take care! |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and it gets in the way badly. It is one of the most reliably measured findings in the entire field.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Georgian in this situation?
“გამარჯობა. ყელი მტკივა და ხველა მაქვს.” (gamarjoba. qeli mtkiva da khvela makvs.) — Hello. I have a sore throat and a cough.. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.