Before the match in Georgian
Two people arranging to go to a football game in Georgian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «დღეს სტადიონზე მიდიხარ?» — Are you going to the stadium today?; «მინდა, მაგრამ ბილეთი დარჩა კიდევ?» — I want to, but are tickets still left? 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 arranging to go to a football game. 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.
- დღეს სტადიონზე მიდიხარ?dghes stadionze midikhar?Are you going to the stadium today?
- მინდა, მაგრამ ბილეთი დარჩა კიდევ?minda, magram bileti darcha kidev?I want to, but are tickets still left?
- აპლიკაციიდან ორი ჩამოვტვირთე.aplikatsiidan ori chamovtvirte.I downloaded two in the app.
- მშვენიერია! მგონი, ჩვენი გუნდი მოიგებს.mshvenieria! mgoni, chveni gundi moigebs.Great! I think our team will win.
- გასულ კვირას წავაგეთ, დაგავიწყდა?gasul kviras tsavaget, dagavitsqda?We lost last week, did you forget?
- მახსოვს. მაგრამ ახალი მოთამაშე მოვიდა.makhsovs. magram akhali motamashe movida.I remember. But a new player has come.
- მაშინ გაჩერებასთან ექვს საათზე შევხვდეთ.mashin gacherebastan ekvs saatze shevkhvdet.Then let's meet at the stop at six.
- კარგი. თუ დავაგვიანებ, დაგირეკავ.kargi. tu davagvianeb, dagirekav.Okay. If I'm late, I'll call you.
Lines one by one
| Georgian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| დღეს სტადიონზე მიდიხარ? | dghes stadionze midikhar? | Are you going to the stadium today? |
| მინდა, მაგრამ ბილეთი დარჩა კიდევ? | minda, magram bileti darcha kidev? | I want to, but are tickets still left? |
| აპლიკაციიდან ორი ჩამოვტვირთე. | aplikatsiidan ori chamovtvirte. | I downloaded two in the app. |
| მშვენიერია! მგონი, ჩვენი გუნდი მოიგებს. | mshvenieria! mgoni, chveni gundi moigebs. | Great! I think our team will win. |
| გასულ კვირას წავაგეთ, დაგავიწყდა? | gasul kviras tsavaget, dagavitsqda? | We lost last week, did you forget? |
| მახსოვს. მაგრამ ახალი მოთამაშე მოვიდა. | makhsovs. magram akhali motamashe movida. | I remember. But a new player has come. |
| მაშინ გაჩერებასთან ექვს საათზე შევხვდეთ. | mashin gacherebastan ekvs saatze shevkhvdet. | Then let's meet at the stop at six. |
| კარგი. თუ დავაგვიანებ, დაგირეკავ. | kargi. tu davagvianeb, dagirekav. | Okay. If I'm late, I'll call you. |
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?
“დღეს სტადიონზე მიდიხარ?” (dghes stadionze midikhar?) — Are you going to the stadium today?. 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.