Language/Georgian/Grammar/Present-Tense

Georgian Grammar → Verbs and Tenses → Present Tense

As a Georgian language teacher with over 20 years of experience, I'm excited to guide you through the basics of the present tense in Georgian. You'll learn how to conjugate verbs and form sentences in the present tense.

Finish this lesson and explore these related pages: Word Order & The postposition of the Nominative.

Conjugation of Regular Verbs in Present Tense

In Georgian, regular verbs are conjugated in the present tense by adding specific endings based on the subject of the sentence. Here are the endings for the three subject types:

• 1st person (I, we): -ვ (-v)
• 2nd person (you): -ს (-s)
• 3rd person (he, she, it, they): -ა (-a)

To illustrate this, let's conjugate the verb "to speak" (ლაპარაკობს - laparakobs) in the present tense with the subject pronouns:

Georgian	Pronunciation	English
მე ლაპარაკობივ	me laparakobiv	I speak
შენ ლაპარაკობია	shen laparakobia	you speak
ის/იგი ლაპარაკობა	is/igi laparakoba	he/she/it speaks
ჩვენ ლაპარაკობივართ	chven laparakobivart	we speak
თქვენ ლაპარაკობთ	tkven laparakobt	you speak
ისინი ლაპარაკობენ	isini laparakoben	they speak

You may have noticed that verbs in Georgian have a unique feature of infix insertion. The infix -ატ- (-at-) is inserted between the verb stem and the verb ending in the present tense, for example in the verb "to learn" (ისწავლებს - istsavlebs).

Irregular Verbs in Present Tense

Now that you understand the basics of conjugation, let's take a look at some irregular verbs in Georgian. The most common irregular verbs in the present tense are:

• "to be" (არის - aris)
• "to have" (ჰყავს - hqavs)
• "to do" (აკეთებს - aketebs)
• "to go" (წასვლა - tsasvla)

Here's how to conjugate these verbs in the present tense:

Georgian	Pronunciation	English
მე ვარ	me var	I am
შენ ხარ	shen khar	you are
ის არის	is aris	he/she/it is
ჩვენ ვართ	chven vart	we are
თქვენ ხართ	tkven khart	you are
ისინი არიან	isini arian	they are

Georgian	Pronunciation	English
მე მაქვს	me makvs	I have
შენ გაქვს	shen gakvs	you have
ის ჰყავს	is hqavs	he/she/it has
ჩვენ გვქვს	chven gvkvs	we have
თქვენ გაქვთ	tkven gakvt	you have
ისინი ჰყავენ	isini hqaven	they have

Georgian	Pronunciation	English
მე ვაკეთებ	me vaketebe	I do
შენ აკეთე	shen akete	you do
ის აკეთებს	is aketebs	he/she/it does
ჩვენ ვაკეთებთ	chven vaketebeb	we do
თქვენ აკეთებთ	tkven aketebebt	you do
ისინი აკეთებენ	isini aketebeen	they do

Georgian	Pronunciation	English
მე ვარგა	me varga	I go
შენ წავისვლე	shen tsavisvle	you go
ის წავისვლის	is tsavisvlis	he/she/it goes
ჩვენ ვარგავთ	chven vargavt	we go
თქვენ წავისვლეთ	tkven tsavisvlet	you go
ისინი წავისვლენ	isini tsavisvlen	they go

Negation in Present Tense

To create negative sentences in Georgian, we use the particle "არ" (ar) before the verb. Here's how to form negative sentences in the present tense:

• 1st person (I, we): არ -ვ (-arv)
• 2nd person (you): არ -ს (-ars)
• 3rd person (he, she, it, they): არ -ის (-aris)

To illustrate this, let's use the same verb "to speak" (ლაპარაკობს - laparakobs) and form negative sentences:

Georgian	Pronunciation	English
არ ვლაპარაკობ	arv laparakob	I do not speak
არ ლაპარაკობ	ar laparakob	you do not speak
ის არ ლაპარაკობს	is ar laparakobs	he/she/it does not speak
არ ვლაპარაკობთ	arv laparakobt	we do not speak
არ ლაპარაკობთ	ar laparakobt	you do not speak
არ ლაპარაკობენ	ar laparakoben	they do not speak

Conclusion

Congratulations, you've learned the basics of present tense conjugation in Georgian! Keep practicing to improve your skills and see how the language comes to life.

Congratulations on finishing this lesson! Explore these related pages to keep learning: Transitive Verbs VS Intransitive Verbs & Adjectives Degrees.

Table of Contents - Georgian Course - 0 to A1

• Course Presentation

  ---

Alphabet and Sounds

• Consonants and Vowels
• Pronunciation Rules
• Word Order

  ---

Greetings and Introductions

• Greetings and Responses
• Introducing Yourself
• Polite Phrases

  ---

Nouns and Cases

• Noun Gender
• Nominative Case
• Genitive Case
• Dative Case
• Accusative Case
• Locative Case

  ---

Family and Relationships

• Family Members
• Relationships and Titles

  ---

Food and Drink

• Traditional Dishes
• Wine and Spirits
• Table Manners

  ---

Verbs and Tenses

• Present Tense
• Past Tense
• Future Tense
• Conditional and Imperative

  ---

Transportation and Directions

• Public Transportation
• Asking for and Giving Directions

  ---

Holidays and Celebrations

• New Year's and Christmas
• Easter
• Independence Day

  ---

Adjectives and Adverbs

• Adjective Agreement
• Comparison

  ---

Shopping and Services

• Money and Currency
• Shopping Vocabulary
• Services and Emergencies

  ---

Arts and Entertainment

• Music and Dance
• Theater and Film
• Literature and Poetry

  ---

Prepositions

• Simple Prepositions
• Compound Prepositions

  ---

Work and Employment

• Job Titles and Professions
• Applying for a Job

  ---

Georgian History and Geography

• Ancient Kingdoms
• Recent History
• Geographic Regions

Other Lessons

• Possessive pronouns
• Participles
• The Ergative Case
• Negation
• Vocative case markers “—ო” and “—ვ”
• Preverbs and their functions
• The postposition “ თან”
• Cases of Verbal Persons in Transitive Verbs
• Inflection of demonstrative pronouns with nouns
• Infinitives

Sources

• 15+ Basic Georgian Verbs: Easiest Guide - Ling App
• Georgian grammar - Wikipedia
• Georgian Verbs – The Reluctant Georgian Learner