The verb 'to be': байна (is/am/are for ALL persons), байхгүй (is not), биш (noun negation)
Can make basic 'to be' statements and negations using байна, байхгүй, and биш
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
Би оюутан байна.
I am a student.
Тэр энд байхгүй.
He/She is not here.
Би оюутан биш, багш байна.
I am not a student, I am a teacher.
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
The verb байх (to be) has the same form for ALL persons — no conjugation!
| Form | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| байна | am / is / are | Би оюутан байна (I am a student) |
| байхгүй | am/is/are not (location) | Тэр энд байхгүй (He is not here) |
| биш | is not [noun/adj] | Би оюутан биш (I am not a student) |
Word order: ALWAYS verb-final (SOV). байна comes at the END.
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises
Practice ExercisesPlaces байна in the middle of the sentence (SVO order)
Mongolian is SOV — verb ALWAYS last. 'I student am' not 'I am student'.
Uses байхгүй for noun negation or биш for location negation
биш = 'not [noun]'; байхгүй = 'not present/not existing'. Би оюутан биш. Тэр энд байхгүй.
Би оюутан байна.
I am a student.
байна goes at the END. Same form for all persons: Тэр оюутан байна (He/She is a student).
Тэр энд байхгүй.
He/She is not here.
байхгүй negates existence/location. Note SOV: subject (тэр) — location (энд) — verb (байхгүй).
Би оюутан биш, багш байна.
I am not a student, I am a teacher.
биш negates a noun predicate. Use биш (not байхгүй) when saying 'I am NOT a [noun]'.
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises