No signal in Georgian
Calling a friend from a cafe with bad reception in Georgian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «ალო, გესმის ჩემი?» — Hello, can you hear me?; «ცუდად მესმის. აქ კავშირი არ არის.» — I can barely hear you. There's no signal here. 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: calling a friend from a cafe with bad reception. 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.
- ალო, გესმის ჩემი?alo, gesmis chemi?Hello, can you hear me?
- ცუდად მესმის. აქ კავშირი არ არის.tsudad mesmis. ak kavshiri ar aris.I can barely hear you. There's no signal here.
- ხმის სიმაღლე მოვუმატე. ახლა როგორ?khmis simaghle movumate. akhla rogor?I turned up the volume. How about now?
- ისევ ცუდად. ბატარეაც დაჯდა.isev tsudad. batareats dajda.Still bad. And the battery died.
- მაშინ შეტყობინებას დაგიწერ. ვაი-ფაი გაქვს?mashin shetqobinebas dagitser. vai-pai gakvs?Then I'll text you. Do you have Wi-Fi?
- მაქვს, მაგრამ პაროლი არ ვიცი. ვკითხავ.makvs, magram paroli ar vitsi. vkitkhav.I do, but I don't know the password. I'll ask.
- კარგი. დამტენი თუ გაქვს, მითხარი.kargi. damteni tu gakvs, mitkhari.Okay. If you have a charger, tell me.
- მაქვს. ნახევარ საათში თავიდან დამირეკეთ.makvs. nakhevar saatshi tavidan damireket.I do. Call me back in half an hour.
Lines one by one
| Georgian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| ალო, გესმის ჩემი? | alo, gesmis chemi? | Hello, can you hear me? |
| ცუდად მესმის. აქ კავშირი არ არის. | tsudad mesmis. ak kavshiri ar aris. | I can barely hear you. There's no signal here. |
| ხმის სიმაღლე მოვუმატე. ახლა როგორ? | khmis simaghle movumate. akhla rogor? | I turned up the volume. How about now? |
| ისევ ცუდად. ბატარეაც დაჯდა. | isev tsudad. batareats dajda. | Still bad. And the battery died. |
| მაშინ შეტყობინებას დაგიწერ. ვაი-ფაი გაქვს? | mashin shetqobinebas dagitser. vai-pai gakvs? | Then I'll text you. Do you have Wi-Fi? |
| მაქვს, მაგრამ პაროლი არ ვიცი. ვკითხავ. | makvs, magram paroli ar vitsi. vkitkhav. | I do, but I don't know the password. I'll ask. |
| კარგი. დამტენი თუ გაქვს, მითხარი. | kargi. damteni tu gakvs, mitkhari. | Okay. If you have a charger, tell me. |
| მაქვს. ნახევარ საათში თავიდან დამირეკეთ. | makvs. nakhevar saatshi tavidan damireket. | I do. Call me back in half an hour. |
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?
“ალო, გესმის ჩემი?” (alo, gesmis chemi?) — Hello, can you hear 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.