Causative formation with a-...-in-eb (ats'erinebs), dative causees, and lexicalized causatives (ach'mevs, asts'avlis).
I can express making, letting, feeding, and teaching with causative verbs.
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
მასწავლებელი ბავშვებს ლექსს აზეპირებინებს.
The teacher makes the children memorize a poem.
ბებია შვილიშვილს სუპს აჭმევს.
Grandma feeds soup to her grandchild.
ეს ფილმი ყოველთვის მაცინებს.
This film always makes me laugh.
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
Causatives wrap a verb in ა-...-ინ-ებ: წერს (writes) → აწერინებს (makes write); the causee stands in the dative. Some are lexicalized into everyday words: აჭმევს (feeds), ასწავლის (teaches), აცინებს (makes laugh). Where English needs 'make/let/have someone do', Georgian grows the verb.
Apply this grammar in B2 course exercises
Practice ExercisesNominative causees (*bavshvebi azepirebinebbs) and periphrastic calques where one causative verb is idiomatic.
Wrong causee case or missing the -in- chain in productive causatives
Make-someone-do drills: base verb to causative with dative causee.
მასწავლებელი ბავშვებს ლექსს აზეპირებინებს.
The teacher makes the children memorize a poem.
The -in-eb chain: azepirebinebs 'makes memorize'; the causee goes dative (bavshvebs).
ბებია შვილიშვილს სუპს აჭმევს.
Grandma feeds soup to her grandchild.
ach'mevs (feeds) is a lexicalized causative of ch'ams (eats) - the supra's favorite verb.
ეს ფილმი ყოველთვის მაცინებს.
This film always makes me laugh.
matsinebs = m- (me) + atsinebs (makes laugh): causative plus object marker in one word.
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in B2 course exercises