How to go to Batumi? By train for example. That is why today we’ll learn how to create sentences like that in Georgian. And we’ll learn also the past imperfect form for 2 verbs of movement.
The Georgian verb of movement we have already learned in the preset tense in one of the previous articles of this series. Today we’ll learn how to use the verbs “to go” and “to come” in the imperfect form (similar to present continuous).
The situations, when one uses imperfect in Georgian we have covered in a separate article, where you may go for more detailed explanation. In a nutshell, one uses imperfect when talking about past that lasted for some time or was in some kind of a process. For example, I was going or coming to Batumi by train.
Therefore we indicate that this action did not happen once, but for example during each trip to Batumi, we were choosing train as our means of transportation. When we stopped being the fans of going to Batumi by train, you may use the today’s form also in a sentence like: “I used to go to Batumi by train, but now I go by bus.”
How to say “I was going” in Georgian?
Let’s now move on to the conjugation of the verb “to go” in the imperfect form. If you are curious why I say “form” not “tense”, check this article on the most common used verb forms in Georgian. And now to our verb:
მე მივდიოდი
შენ მიდიოდი
ის მიდიოდა
ჩვენ მივდიოდით
თქვენ მიდიოდით
ისინი მიდიოდნენ
If you compare this form with the conjugation to go in present tense, you’ll notice that the main difference is the particle -ოდ-. Just after it there is the ending showing the person (the subject). However when you study Georgian language, you know it’s not the most regular verb. On the other hand I will just say, that this particle you’ll see and use in many other verbs in similar situations.
How to say in Georgian I was coming to Batumi?
Let’s now look at the second verb in this series, so “to come” and how it changes in the imperfect form in Georgian. Just in case when we already are in Batumi and want to say “I was coming to Batumi by train”.
მე მოვდიოდი
შენ მოდიოდი
ის მოდიოდა
ჩვენ მოვდიოდით
თქვენ მოდიოდით
ისინი მოდიოდნენ
As you may see, similarly to present tense in Georgian language, those both verbs of movement are quite similar. They just differ by the prefix indicating the direction of the movement.
Then how to say „I was going to Batumi by train.”?
As we talk about traveling to Batumi by train so much today, you should learn this whole sentences as well in Georgian.
ბათუმში მატარებლით მივდიოდი.
This is how the sentence looks in a standard form, which you may hear the most in Georgia. Please notice a couple of interesting parts in it. Firstly, you may skip using the personal pronoun I, because the Georgian verb already shows which person was going.
Secondly, the phrase “to Batumi” consists of two parts: the word ბათუმი and particle ში, meaning “in” or “to some” place. As the particle ში connects with the 3rd Georgian case, we have to cut last letter “i” from Batumi. This is how the phrase ბათუმ+ში is created.
Thirdly, the train to Batumi (and not only there 😉 ) will be in Georgian მატარებელი. To say “by train”, you have to use the 5th case (noun form), so მატარებლით.
This is how the whole phrase ბათუმში მატარებლით – to Batumi by train – is being created.
If you want to say you were not going but coming to Batumi by train, the only thing you need to do is to change the verb form.
If you want to learn not only the present tense, but also other ones of those 2 verbs, check out our e-book “50 Georgian verbs” where those are conjugated and provided with example sentences for each verb form.