მთავარი
“მთავარი” (mtavari) — the main thing in Georgian. Noun, level B1, topic — basic words. the mt is m and an aspirated t at the start: mta-va-ri. In a live sentence: “მთავარი ისაა, რომ ყველა ცოცხალია” — The main thing is that everyone is alive. You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters მ, თ, ა, ვ, ა, რ, ი. One of 303 words in the set “basic words” in the Georgian course.
In short
| Written in Georgian | მთავარი |
| Read in Latin letters | mtavari |
| Translation | the main thing |
| Part of speech | noun |
| Level | B1 |
- მთავარიmtavarithe main thing
How to pronounce it
the mt is m and an aspirated t at the start: mta-va-ri
Why it looks that way
The adjective 'main' working as a noun: mtavari isaa, rom… — the main thing is that… In this role it comes first and drags rom along. From it also mtavroba, the government, from the state unit
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- მთავარი ისაა, რომ ყველა ცოცხალიაmtavari isaa, rom qvela tsotskhaliaThe main thing is that everyone is alive
Nearby words: basic words
Yes, no, good, bad, very. The small change of a language — and no sentence assembles without it.
- დიახdiakhyesThe polite yes: for elders and strangers. Between friends the short ho does the job instead
- ჰოhoyeahThe everyday yes of friends and family. To a stranger answer diakh — that is the respectful one
- არაaranoAlso the negation particle: ar vitsi means 'I don't know' — one word doing both jobs
- კარგადkargadwellAlso a farewell: kargad! alone means 'all the best!' when you part
- ცუდადtsudadbadlyThe partner of kargad: both adverbs end in -ad. The adjective is tsudi, bad
- ძალიან კარგადdzalian kargadvery wellDzalian means 'very', from dzala, strength. Said with a smile it closes most small talk
- დაdaandThe very same word means 'sister'; only the place in the sentence tells: deda da mama, mother and father, but chemi da, my sister
- მაგრამmagrambutIts bookish partner is tumca, 'however'. In speech magram is what sounds most often
- ნახევარიnakhevarihalfAfter a number it is the market's most used word: nakhevari kilo, half a kilo
- კიდევ ერთიkidev ertione moreKidev is 'more'. In a cafe it is half of every order: kidev erti qava
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “basic words”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “the main thing” in Georgian?
The adjective 'main' working as a noun: mtavari isaa, rom… — the main thing is that… In this role it comes first and drags rom along. From it also mtavroba, the government, from the state unit
- How do you say “and” in Georgian?
The very same word means 'sister'; only the place in the sentence tells: deda da mama, mother and father, but chemi da, my sister
- How do you say “no” in Georgian?
Also the negation particle: ar vitsi means 'I don't know' — one word doing both jobs
- How do you say “one more” in Georgian?
Kidev is 'more'. In a cafe it is half of every order: kidev erti qava
- How do you say “very well” in Georgian?
Dzalian means 'very', from dzala, strength. Said with a smile it closes most small talk
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- 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.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “the main thing” in Georgian?
«მთავარი», read “mtavari”. the mt is m and an aspirated t at the start: mta-va-ri. In a live sentence: “მთავარი ისაა, რომ ყველა ცოცხალია” — The main thing is that everyone is alive. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Noun, level B1, from the set “basic words”; written with the characters მ, თ, ა, ვ, ა, რ, ი.
How is “მთავარი” written in Latin letters?
mtavari. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.
Why does this word look the way it does?
The adjective 'main' working as a noun: mtavari isaa, rom… — the main thing is that… In this role it comes first and drags rom along. From it also mtavroba, the government, from the state unit. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
Can I hear how it sounds?
Yes, right on this page: click the word and it will play. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.