Georgian Verbs: A Beginner's Guide to Conjugation and Common Verbs

If you’ve looked at Georgian grammar, you’ve probably heard the warnings: Georgian verbs are complicated. There are screeves. There are preverbs. There are things called “series” that change everything.

Here’s the truth: Georgian verbs are complex. But they’re not impossible. And as a beginner, you don’t need to master everything — you need to learn the patterns that matter most for basic conversation.

This guide will get you speaking with real Georgian verbs, not drowning in grammar tables.

Why Georgian Verbs Feel Different

In English, verbs are relatively simple. “I speak, you speak, he speaks.” Add an “-s” for third person, and you’re done.

Georgian is a different beast. The verb changes based on:

• Who is doing the action (subject)
• Who is receiving the action (object)
• When it happens (tense)
• How it happens (aspect, mood)

This means a single Georgian verb root can have dozens of forms. But here’s the good news: patterns exist, and once you see them, verbs become predictable.

The Present Tense: Your Starting Point

Let’s start with the most useful tense — present. This is what you’ll use most as a beginner.

”To want” — უნდა (unda)

This verb is essential and, thankfully, simple:

English	Georgian	Pronunciation
I want	მე მინდა	me min-da
You want	შენ გინდა	shen gin-da
He/She wants	მას უნდა	mas un-da
We want	ჩვენ გვინდა	chven gvin-da
You (pl.) want	თქვენ გინდათ	tkven gin-dat
They want	მათ უნდათ	mat un-dat

Notice the pattern? The verb changes based on who wants something. The prefixes (მ-, გ-, უ-, გვ-) indicate the person.

Example sentences:

• მე მინდა ყავა — I want coffee
• შენ გინდა წყალი? — Do you want water?
• მას უნდა დახმარება — He/She needs help

”To love/like” — უყვარს (uq’vars)

Another high-frequency verb:

English	Georgian	Pronunciation
I love	მე მიყვარს	me mi-q’vars
You love	შენ გიყვარს	shen gi-q’vars
He/She loves	მას უყვარს	mas u-q’vars
We love	ჩვენ გვიყვარს	chven gvi-q’vars

Example sentences:

• მე მიყვარს საქართველო — I love Georgia
• შენ გიყვარს ღვინო? — Do you like wine?
• მას უყვარს ხინკალი — He/She loves khinkali

”To have” — აქვს (akvs)

Georgian doesn’t have a verb “to have” in the English sense. Instead, it uses a construction meaning “it is to me”:

English	Georgian	Pronunciation
I have	მე მაქვს	me makvs
You have	შენ გაქვს	shen gakvs
He/She has	მას აქვს	mas akvs
We have	ჩვენ გვაქვს	chven gvakvs

Example sentences:

• მე მაქვს მანქანა — I have a car
• შენ გაქვს დრო? — Do you have time?
• მას აქვს ფული — He/She has money

Action Verbs: The “Regular” Verbs

Now let’s look at verbs where YOU actively do something.

”To go” — მივდივარ (mivdivar)

English	Georgian	Pronunciation
I go / I’m going	მე მივდივარ	me miv-di-var
You go	შენ მიდიხარ	shen mi-di-khar
He/She goes	ის მიდის	is mi-dis
We go	ჩვენ მივდივართ	chven miv-di-vart

The “მი-” (mi-) prefix indicates movement away from the speaker. This is a preverb — a small prefix that changes the verb’s direction or meaning.

Example sentences:

• სად მიდიხარ? — Where are you going?
• მე მივდივარ სახლში — I’m going home
• ის მიდის სამსახურში — He/She is going to work

”To come” — მოვდივარ (movdivar)

Notice how similar this is to “to go” — just with a different preverb:

English	Georgian	Pronunciation
I come / I’m coming	მე მოვდივარ	me mov-di-var
You come	შენ მოდიხარ	shen mo-di-khar
He/She comes	ის მოდის	is mo-dis

The “მო-” (mo-) prefix indicates movement toward the speaker.

Example sentences:

• მოდი აქ! — Come here!
• ის მოდის საქართველოდან — He/She comes from Georgia

”To do/make” — ვაკეთებ (vaketeb)

English	Georgian	Pronunciation
I do/make	მე ვაკეთებ	me va-ke-teb
You do	შენ აკეთებ	shen a-ke-teb
He/She does	ის აკეთებს	is a-ke-tebs
We do	ჩვენ ვაკეთებთ	chven va-ke-tebt

Example sentences:

• რას აკეთებ? — What are you doing?
• მე ვაკეთებ საჭმელს — I’m making food

”To eat” — ვჭამ (vcham)

English	Georgian	Pronunciation
I eat	მე ვჭამ	me vcham
You eat	შენ ჭამ	shen cham
He/She eats	ის ჭამს	is chams

Example sentences:

• რას ჭამ? — What are you eating?
• მე ვჭამ ხაჭაპურს — I’m eating khachapuri

”To drink” — ვსვამ (vsvam)

English	Georgian	Pronunciation
I drink	მე ვსვამ	me vsvam
You drink	შენ სვამ	shen svam
He/She drinks	ის სვამს	is svams

Example sentences:

• ყავას სვამ? — Do you drink coffee?
• მე ვსვამ წყალს — I’m drinking water

”To speak/say” — ვლაპარაკობ (vlaparakob)

English	Georgian	Pronunciation
I speak	მე ვლაპარაკობ	me vla-pa-ra-kob
You speak	შენ ლაპარაკობ	shen la-pa-ra-kob
He/She speaks	ის ლაპარაკობს	is la-pa-ra-kobs

Example sentences:

• ქართულად ლაპარაკობ? — Do you speak Georgian?
• მე ვლაპარაკობ ცოტას — I speak a little

”To understand” — ვხვდები (vkhvdebi)

English	Georgian	Pronunciation
I understand	მე ვხვდები	me vkhv-de-bi
You understand	შენ ხვდები	shen khv-de-bi
He/She understands	ის ხვდება	is khv-de-ba

Example sentences:

• ხვდები? — Do you understand?
• მე ვხვდები — I understand
• არ ვხვდები — I don’t understand

The Pattern: Subject Markers

By now, you might have noticed a pattern. Georgian verbs mark the subject with specific elements:

Person	Marker	Example
I	ვ- (v-)	ვჭამ (I eat)
You (singular)	— (no prefix)	ჭამ (you eat)
He/She/It	-ს (-s)	ჭამს (he eats)
We	ვ- … -თ	ვჭამთ (we eat)
You (plural/formal)	-თ	ჭამთ (you all eat)
They	-ენ/-ან	ჭამენ (they eat)

This is the key insight: Once you know a verb stem, you can predict its conjugation by applying these markers.

Negation: Saying “Not”

Making verbs negative is simple — add არ (ar) before the verb:

• მე ვჭამ → მე არ ვჭამ (I eat → I don’t eat)
• შენ ხვდები → შენ არ ხვდები (You understand → You don’t understand)
• მას უნდა → მას არ უნდა (He wants → He doesn’t want)

Examples:

• არ მესმის — I don’t understand (literally: “it doesn’t hear to me”)
• არ მინდა — I don’t want
• არ ვიცი — I don’t know

Questions: Making Verbs Interrogative

Good news: Georgian doesn’t require word order changes for questions. Just raise your intonation at the end:

• შენ ლაპარაკობ**?** — Do you speak?
• მას უნდა**?** — Does he/she want?

For “wh-” questions, put the question word at the beginning:

• რას ჭამ? — What are you eating?
• სად მიდიხარ? — Where are you going?
• როდის მოდიხარ? — When are you coming?
• რატომ არ მოდიხარ? — Why aren’t you coming?

Essential Question Words

English	Georgian	Pronunciation
What?	რა?	ra?
Who?	ვინ?	vin?
Where?	სად?	sad?
When?	როდის?	ro-dis?
Why?	რატომ?	ra-tom?
How?	როგორ?	ro-gor?
How much/many?	რამდენი?	ram-de-ni?

Past Tense: A Quick Introduction

Georgian past tense is more complex than present, with different forms for different types of past actions. For beginners, focus on the simple past (aorist):

“I did” vs. “I was doing”

Type	Georgian	Example
Simple past (aorist)	ვჭამე	I ate (completed action)
Imperfect	ვჭამდი	I was eating / I used to eat

Simple past examples:

• წავედი — I went (and arrived)
• მოვედი — I came (and arrived)
• ვჭამე — I ate (the meal is finished)
• დავლიე — I drank (finished drinking)

The Most Important Verbs for Beginners

Here’s your essential verb list. Master these and you can handle most daily situations:

English	Georgian (I form)	Pronunciation
to want	მინდა	min-da
to have	მაქვს	makvs
to go	მივდივარ	miv-di-var
to come	მოვდივარ	mov-di-var
to eat	ვჭამ	vcham
to drink	ვსვამ	vsvam
to speak	ვლაპარაკობ	vla-pa-ra-kob
to understand	ვხვდები	vkhv-de-bi
to know	ვიცი	vi-tsi
to see	ვხედავ	vkhe-dav
to hear	მესმის	mes-mis
to do/make	ვაკეთებ	va-ke-teb
to love/like	მიყვარს	mi-q’vars
to live	ვცხოვრობ	vtskho-vrob
to work	ვმუშაობ	vmu-sha-ob

Tips for Learning Georgian Verbs

1. Learn verbs in context

Don’t memorize conjugation tables. Learn phrases you’ll actually use:

• მე მინდა ყავა — I want coffee
• სად მიდიხარ? — Where are you going?

2. Focus on present tense first

Get comfortable with present tense before tackling past and future. You can communicate a lot with just present tense.

3. Listen for patterns

When you hear Georgians speak, listen for the verb endings. The more you hear them, the more natural they’ll become.

4. Don’t fear mistakes

Georgians will understand you even if your verb form isn’t perfect. Communication matters more than perfection.

5. Use our Audio Course

Our lessons introduce verbs gradually in context, so you learn them naturally through conversation, not grammar drills.

Going Deeper: Resources

Georgian verbs have much more depth than this guide covers — screeves, preverbs, verb classes, and the famous “series” system. If you want to explore further:

• For practical learning: Our Audio Course teaches verbs through real conversations
• For grammar reference: The Georgian Grammar by Hewitt is the academic standard
• For practice: Our Flashcard App includes verb conjugation cards

Summary

Georgian verbs are complex, but not incomprehensible. Start with:

1. High-frequency verbs — want, have, go, come, eat, drink, speak
2. Present tense patterns — the subject markers (ვ-, -ს, -თ)
3. Negation with არ — simple and consistent
4. Question formation — just change intonation

Don’t try to master everything at once. Learn the verbs you need for daily life, use them in conversation, and build from there.

გაიმარჯვე! (Good luck!)

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