At the shoe store in Georgian
The size didn't fit, another color is wanted in Georgian. 7 phrases that the conversation is made of: «გამარჯობა. ეს ბოტასები სხვა ზომაში გაქვთ?» — Hello. Do you have these sneakers in another size?; «რომელი ზომა გჭირდებათ?» — What size do you need? 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: the size didn't fit, another color is wanted. 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. ეს ბოტასები სხვა ზომაში გაქვთ?gamarjoba. es botasebi skhva zomashi gakvt?Hello. Do you have these sneakers in another size?
- რომელი ზომა გჭირდებათ?romeli zoma gchirdebat?What size do you need?
- ორმოცდაერთი. ეს ძალიან პატარაა.ormotsdaerti. es dzalian pataraa.Forty-one. These are too small.
- ერთი წუთით. შავი გირჩევნიათ თუ ყავისფერი?erti tsutit. shavi girchevniat tu qavisperi?One moment. Do you like the black ones or the brown ones better?
- ყავისფერი. მოზომვა შეიძლება?qavisperi. mozomva sheidzleba?The brown ones. Can I try them on?
- რა თქმა უნდა. გასახდელი მარჯვნივ არის.ra tkma unda. gasakhdeli marjvniv aris.Of course. The fitting room is on the right.
- ზომაზე მომდის. ვიღებ.zomaze momdis. vigheb.It fits. I'll take it.
Lines one by one
| Georgian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| გამარჯობა. ეს ბოტასები სხვა ზომაში გაქვთ? | gamarjoba. es botasebi skhva zomashi gakvt? | Hello. Do you have these sneakers in another size? |
| რომელი ზომა გჭირდებათ? | romeli zoma gchirdebat? | What size do you need? |
| ორმოცდაერთი. ეს ძალიან პატარაა. | ormotsdaerti. es dzalian pataraa. | Forty-one. These are too small. |
| ერთი წუთით. შავი გირჩევნიათ თუ ყავისფერი? | erti tsutit. shavi girchevniat tu qavisperi? | One moment. Do you like the black ones or the brown ones better? |
| ყავისფერი. მოზომვა შეიძლება? | qavisperi. mozomva sheidzleba? | The brown ones. Can I try them on? |
| რა თქმა უნდა. გასახდელი მარჯვნივ არის. | ra tkma unda. gasakhdeli marjvniv aris. | Of course. The fitting room is on the right. |
| ზომაზე მომდის. ვიღებ. | zomaze momdis. vigheb. | It fits. I'll take it. |
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. ეს ბოტასები სხვა ზომაში გაქვთ?” (gamarjoba. es botasebi skhva zomashi gakvt?) — Hello. Do you have these sneakers in another size?. 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.