LingoflyPhrases that save you in Georgian
16 words in Georgian on the topic “phrases that save you”: ვერ გავიგე (ver gavige) — I don't understand, ნელა (nela) — slowly, გაიმეორეთ (gaimeoret) — please repeat, ინგლისურად ლაპარაკობთ? (inglisurad laparakobt) — do you speak English? 16 words can be played from recordings.
16 words on the topic
- ვერ გავიგეver gavigeI don't understandBuilt on the past tense, literally 'I could not understand' — said exactly where English says 'I don't understand'. Ver is a special 'not': couldn't rather than wouldn't
- ნელაnelaslowlyFrom neli, slow. The word of your first weeks: nela, tu sheidzleba — slowly, please
- გაიმეორეთgaimeoretplease repeatOne Georgian word covers the whole request: the -t on the end already carries the politeness, no 'please' needed
- ინგლისურად ლაპარაკობთ?inglisurad laparakobt?do you speak English?Literally 'Englishly do-you-speak?'. The -ad ending marks the language: it turns the language name into an adverb
- დახმარებაdakhmarebahelpDamekhmaret means 'help me' — the appeal is already built into the verb
- დავიკარგეdavikargeI am lostOne word for the whole English phrase: the prefix da- plus v- (I) in the past tense about oneself
- ერთი წუთით მოიცადეთerti tsutit moitsadetwait a minuteTsuti is minute, -ith is the instrumental: 'wait with one minute'
- კარს ვერ ვაღებkars ver vaghebI can't open itVer is 'could not', not 'did not want': the same ver as in ver gavige
- სასწრაფო დახმარებაsastsrapo dakhmarebaambulancesastsrapo is urgent, from stsrapli, fast; dakhmareba means help. In speech they simply say sastsrapo
- ექიმი მჭირდებაekimi mchirdebaI need a doctorThe same mchirdeba as in ar mchirdeba, only without the negation
- ფრთხილადprtkhiladcareful!four consonants in a row: p-r-t-kh, no vowel between them, all said in one push: prtkhi-lad
- საშიშიაsashishiait is dangerousFrom shishi, fear: sashishi is dangerous, sashishia is it is dangerous
- პოლიცია გამოიძახეთpolitsia gamoidzakhetcall the policeThe same verb as in 'call a plumber'. The single emergency number in Georgia is 112
- პასპორტი დავკარგეpasporti davkargeI lost my passportdavkarge is I lost a thing; davikarge is I myself got lost. One letter changes everything
- ცუდად ვარtsudad varI feel badLiterally 'I am badly': tsudad, badly, plus var, I am
- ხელი არ ახლოთkheli ar akhlotdo not touchLiterally 'do not apply the hand'. A museum sign looks exactly like this
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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.
What is worth knowing about these words
ვერ გავიგე (ver gavige) — I don't understand. Built on the past tense, literally 'I could not understand' — said exactly where English says 'I don't understand'. Ver is a special 'not': couldn't rather than wouldn't.
ნელა (nela) — slowly. From neli, slow. The word of your first weeks: nela, tu sheidzleba — slowly, please.
გაიმეორეთ (gaimeoret) — please repeat. One Georgian word covers the whole request: the -t on the end already carries the politeness, no 'please' needed.
ინგლისურად ლაპარაკობთ? (inglisurad laparakobt?) — do you speak English? Literally 'Englishly do-you-speak?'. The -ad ending marks the language: it turns the language name into an adverb.
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 ვერ გავიგე (ver gavige) — I don't understand.
- What is this word?
It is კარს ვერ ვაღებ (kars ver vagheb) — I can't open it.
- What is this word?
It is ცუდად ვარ (tsudad var) — I feel bad.
- What is this word?
It is დავიკარგე (davikarge) — I am lost.
- What is this word?
It is პოლიცია გამოიძახეთ (politsia gamoidzakhet) — call the police.
Now the other way around: recall the spelling from the meaning. That is harder, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “I don't understand” in Georgian?
Built on the past tense, literally 'I could not understand' — said exactly where English says 'I don't understand'. Ver is a special 'not': couldn't rather than wouldn't
- How do you say “I can't open it” in Georgian?
Ver is 'could not', not 'did not want': the same ver as in ver gavige
- How do you say “I feel bad” in Georgian?
Literally 'I am badly': tsudad, badly, plus var, I am
- How do you say “I am lost” in Georgian?
One word for the whole English phrase: the prefix da- plus v- (I) in the past tense about oneself
- How do you say “call the police” in Georgian?
The same verb as in 'call a plumber'. The single emergency number in Georgia is 112
How to learn the set instead of just reading it
“I don't understand”, “say that again”, “slower, please”, “help”. They are learned first for a reason: they bring back a conversation that has already gone wrong.
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.
- Study spread over days wins 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 “I don't understand” in Georgian?
«ვერ გავიგე» (ver gavige), read “ver gavige”. Built on the past tense, literally 'I could not understand' — said exactly where English says 'I don't understand'. Ver is a special 'not': couldn't rather than wouldn't. It is one of 16 words in the set “phrases that save you” — the rest are in the table above.
How many emergency phrases do you need to start?
The whole set on this page is 16 words, but there is no need to start with all of it: the words you will need in the next few days are enough. Take them a few at a time — five to seven new ones per session.
Is there audio?
Yes, 16 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.