The order deadline in Georgian
A customer calls a furniture factory to find out where his order is in Georgian. 7 phrases that the conversation is made of: «გამარჯობათ, შემკვეთი ვარ. მომარაგების ვადა ხომ ორშაბათი იყო?» — Hello, I'm the customer. The delivery date was Monday, wasn't it?; «დიახ, მაგრამ ნედლეული დაგვიანებით მოგვივიდა.» — Yes, but the raw material reached us late. 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 customer calls a furniture factory to find out where his order is. 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.
- გამარჯობათ, შემკვეთი ვარ. მომარაგების ვადა ხომ ორშაბათი იყო?gamarjobat, shemkveti var. momaragebis vada khom orshabati iqo?Hello, I'm the customer. The delivery date was Monday, wasn't it?
- დიახ, მაგრამ ნედლეული დაგვიანებით მოგვივიდა.diakh, magram nedleuli dagvianebit mogvivida.Yes, but the raw material reached us late.
- ესე იგი, საამქროში ჯერ არ დაუმზადებიათ?ese igi, saamkroshi jer ar daumzadebiat?So it hasn't been made in the shop yet?
- ნაკეთობის აწყობა დაწყებულია. ხარისხზე დათმობა არ გვინდა.naketobis atsqoba datsqebulia. khariskhze datmoba ar gvinda.Assembly of the item has begun. We don't want to compromise on quality.
- როდის გატვირთავთ? ზედნადები მჭირდება ბუღალტერიისთვის.rodis gatvirtavt? zednadebi mchirdeba bughalteriistvis.When will you ship? I need the waybill for accounting.
- ხუთშაბათს. გადამზიდავს დავურეკავთ და მარკირებასაც გავაკეთებთ.khutshabats. gadamzidavs davurekavt da markirebasats gavaketebt.On Thursday. We'll call the carrier and do the labeling too.
- მაშინ მიღება-ჩაბარებას პარასკევს დავნიშნავთ.mashin migheba-chabarebas paraskevs davnishnavt.Then let's set the handover for Friday.
Lines one by one
| Georgian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| გამარჯობათ, შემკვეთი ვარ. მომარაგების ვადა ხომ ორშაბათი იყო? | gamarjobat, shemkveti var. momaragebis vada khom orshabati iqo? | Hello, I'm the customer. The delivery date was Monday, wasn't it? |
| დიახ, მაგრამ ნედლეული დაგვიანებით მოგვივიდა. | diakh, magram nedleuli dagvianebit mogvivida. | Yes, but the raw material reached us late. |
| ესე იგი, საამქროში ჯერ არ დაუმზადებიათ? | ese igi, saamkroshi jer ar daumzadebiat? | So it hasn't been made in the shop yet? |
| ნაკეთობის აწყობა დაწყებულია. ხარისხზე დათმობა არ გვინდა. | naketobis atsqoba datsqebulia. khariskhze datmoba ar gvinda. | Assembly of the item has begun. We don't want to compromise on quality. |
| როდის გატვირთავთ? ზედნადები მჭირდება ბუღალტერიისთვის. | rodis gatvirtavt? zednadebi mchirdeba bughalteriistvis. | When will you ship? I need the waybill for accounting. |
| ხუთშაბათს. გადამზიდავს დავურეკავთ და მარკირებასაც გავაკეთებთ. | khutshabats. gadamzidavs davurekavt da markirebasats gavaketebt. | On Thursday. We'll call the carrier and do the labeling too. |
| მაშინ მიღება-ჩაბარებას პარასკევს დავნიშნავთ. | mashin migheba-chabarebas paraskevs davnishnavt. | Then let's set the handover for Friday. |
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?
“გამარჯობათ, შემკვეთი ვარ. მომარაგების ვადა ხომ ორშაბათი იყო?” (gamarjobat, shemkveti var. momaragebis vada khom orshabati iqo?) — Hello, I'm the customer. The delivery date was Monday, wasn't it?. 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.