Transport in Georgian
14 words Georgian words on the topic “transport”: მეტრო — metro, ავტობუსი — bus, ტაქსი — taxi, სადგური — station. 14 words can be played from recordings.
14 words on the topic
- მეტროmetrometroTwo lines in Tbilisi; the announcements in the cars run in Georgian and in English
- ავტობუსიavtobusibusA borrowing with the -i. 'By bus' is avtobusith: the ending -it means 'by means of'
- ტაქსიtaksitaxiThe t is ejective, with no puff of air. Ordered by app nowadays, but 'call a taxi' is understood everywhere
- სადგურიsadguristationAlso 'station' in general: the metro station and the railway station are the same word
- გაჩერების პუნქტიgacherebis punktitransit stopThe signs say simply gachereba, but the course gave that word to the verb 'to stop'. The p is ejective
- მგზავრიmgzavripassengerFour consonants around one vowel — an ordinary affair. Hence also mgzavroba, a trip
- დასაჯდომიdasajdomiseatThe da-sa-...-omi ring from jdoma, to sit: 'that which one sits on'. The j is one letter for the fused j sound
- მოაჯირიmoajirihandrailThe same word means a stairway railing. moajirse echide — hold on to the handrail, with no preposition 'on'
- კონტროლიორიkontrolioriticket inspectorA borrowing, but with the tail -i and ejective k and t
- მგზავრობის საფასურიmgzavrobis sapasurifaresapasuri comes from pasi, price: 'that which is paid for'. There is no preposition 'for', there is a genitive on the left
- გადატვირთულიgadatvirtuliovercrowdedFrom tvirthi, a load: literally 'overloaded'. A bus and a road are spoken of alike
- თავისუფალი ადგილიtavisupali adgilifree seattavisupali comes from tavi, head: a head unto oneself. The course already gave tavisupali nomeri
- ბილეთის აპარატიbiletis aparatiticket machineaparathi is any device, not only this one. The p is ejective
- შეფერხებაsheperkhebahold-updagvianeba the course gave as 'to be late'. sheperkheba is a hitch in the movement; the p is aspirated
How it sounds in a sentence
A word list is a blank. Conversation is made of sentences, and these are the ones the words fit into most often.
- მეტროთი უფრო სწრაფიაmetrot upro stsrapiaThe metro is faster
- ავტობუსი უკვე გავიდაavtobusi ukve gavidaThe bus has already left
- ტაქსი გამოვიძახოთtaksi gamovidzakhotLet's call a taxi
- სადგური აქ ახლოსააsadguri ak akhlosaaThe station is close by
- გაჩერების პუნქტი აქვეაgacherebis punkti akveaThe transit stop is close by
- მგზავრი ბილეთს ეძებსmgzavri bilets edzebsThe passenger is looking for a ticket
What is worth knowing about these words
მეტრო (metro) — metro. Two lines in Tbilisi; the announcements in the cars run in Georgian and in English
ავტობუსი (avtobusi) — bus. A borrowing with the -i. 'By bus' is avtobusith: the ending -it means 'by means of'
ტაქსი (taksi) — taxi. The t is ejective, with no puff of air. Ordered by app nowadays, but 'call a taxi' is understood everywhere
სადგური (sadguri) — station. Also 'station' in general: the metro station and the railway station are the same word
Test yourself
First by ear — the way you will meet the word in conversation. Click the speaker and pick the translation.
- What is this word?
It is მეტრო (metro) — metro.
- What is this word?
It is მგზავრი (mgzavri) — passenger.
- What is this word?
It is გადატვირთული (gadatvirtuli) — overcrowded.
- What is this word?
It is ავტობუსი (avtobusi) — bus.
- What is this word?
It is დასაჯდომი (dasajdomi) — seat.
Now the other way around: recall the spelling from the meaning. That is harder, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “metro” in Georgian?
Two lines in Tbilisi; the announcements in the cars run in Georgian and in English
- How do you say “passenger” in Georgian?
Four consonants around one vowel — an ordinary affair. Hence also mgzavroba, a trip
- How do you say “overcrowded” in Georgian?
From tvirthi, a load: literally 'overloaded'. A bus and a road are spoken of alike
- How do you say “bus” in Georgian?
A borrowing with the -i. 'By bus' is avtobusith: the ending -it means 'by means of'
- How do you say “seat” in Georgian?
The da-sa-...-omi ring from jdoma, to sit: 'that which one sits on'. The j is one letter for the fused j sound
How to learn the set instead of just reading it
Bus, metro, taxi, stop, station. These are words you need to recognize in writing — off a departure board and off a sign.
A list is read in a minute and forgotten in a day. What works: hide the translation, try to recall, get it wrong — and come back to the same words tomorrow.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- This holds not only in experiments but in ordinary classrooms, with real students.checked many timesMawson & Kang, 2025, Behavioral Sciences 15(6):771 · 22 studies, d = 0.54 (confidence interval 0.31–0.77). The authors warn that individual studies disagree widely.
Frequently asked
How do you say “metro” in Georgian?
«მეტრო», read “metro”. Two lines in Tbilisi; the announcements in the cars run in Georgian and in English. It is one of 14 words in the set “transport” — the rest are in the table above.
How many transport words do you need to start?
A dozen is enough. The set of 14 words on this page covers nearly every everyday case on the topic — but it is best taken a few at a time, not all at once.
Is there audio?
Yes, 14 words on this page can be played — click the speaker next to the word. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.