A talk about character in Georgian
Two people discuss the new colleague and argue about what he's really like in Georgian. 7 phrases that the conversation is made of: «ახალი კოლეგა როგორია? ჩაკეტილი მეჩვენა.» — What's the new colleague like? He seemed withdrawn to me.; «ჩაკეტილი კი არა, მორცხვია. პირველ კვირას ყველა ასეთია.» — Not withdrawn, just shy. Everyone is like that the first week. 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: two people discuss the new colleague and argue about what he's really like. 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.
- ახალი კოლეგა როგორია? ჩაკეტილი მეჩვენა.akhali kolega rogoria? chaketili mechvena.What's the new colleague like? He seemed withdrawn to me.
- ჩაკეტილი კი არა, მორცხვია. პირველ კვირას ყველა ასეთია.chaketili ki ara, mortskhvia. pirvel kviras qvela asetia.Not withdrawn, just shy. Everyone is like that the first week.
- შეიძლება. სამაგიეროდ ზედმიწევნითია, ყველაფერს ორჯერ ამოწმებს.sheidzleba. samagierod zedmitsevnitia, qvelapers orjer amotsmebs.Maybe. But he's thorough, he checks everything twice.
- ესეც კარგია. ჩვენთან ხშირად დაუდევრობა გვჭირს.esets kargia. chventan khshirad daudevroba gvchirs.And that's good. Carelessness is often our problem.
- ერთი რამ მაინც არ მომწონს: წყენიანია, ხუმრობა არ ესმის.erti ram maints ar momtsons: tsqeniania, khumroba ar esmis.One thing still bothers me: he's touchy, he doesn't get jokes.
- შენ განგებ ხუმრობ ხოლმე. ყველა ხომ დამყოლი არაა.shen gangeb khumrob kholme. qvela khom damqoli araa.You joke on purpose all the time. Not everyone is easygoing, after all.
- მართალი ხარ. ნდობა დროს მოითხოვს, თანაბარ პირობებში კი მოვრიგდებით.martali khar. ndoba dros moitkhovs, tanabar pirobebshi ki movrigdebit.You're right. Trust takes time, and we'll get along on equal footing.
Lines one by one
| Georgian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| ახალი კოლეგა როგორია? ჩაკეტილი მეჩვენა. | akhali kolega rogoria? chaketili mechvena. | What's the new colleague like? He seemed withdrawn to me. |
| ჩაკეტილი კი არა, მორცხვია. პირველ კვირას ყველა ასეთია. | chaketili ki ara, mortskhvia. pirvel kviras qvela asetia. | Not withdrawn, just shy. Everyone is like that the first week. |
| შეიძლება. სამაგიეროდ ზედმიწევნითია, ყველაფერს ორჯერ ამოწმებს. | sheidzleba. samagierod zedmitsevnitia, qvelapers orjer amotsmebs. | Maybe. But he's thorough, he checks everything twice. |
| ესეც კარგია. ჩვენთან ხშირად დაუდევრობა გვჭირს. | esets kargia. chventan khshirad daudevroba gvchirs. | And that's good. Carelessness is often our problem. |
| ერთი რამ მაინც არ მომწონს: წყენიანია, ხუმრობა არ ესმის. | erti ram maints ar momtsons: tsqeniania, khumroba ar esmis. | One thing still bothers me: he's touchy, he doesn't get jokes. |
| შენ განგებ ხუმრობ ხოლმე. ყველა ხომ დამყოლი არაა. | shen gangeb khumrob kholme. qvela khom damqoli araa. | You joke on purpose all the time. Not everyone is easygoing, after all. |
| მართალი ხარ. ნდობა დროს მოითხოვს, თანაბარ პირობებში კი მოვრიგდებით. | martali khar. ndoba dros moitkhovs, tanabar pirobebshi ki movrigdebit. | You're right. Trust takes time, and we'll get along on equal footing. |
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?
“ახალი კოლეგა როგორია? ჩაკეტილი მეჩვენა.” (akhali kolega rogoria? chaketili mechvena.) — What's the new colleague like? He seemed withdrawn to me.. 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.