Present Tense Verbs
Present tense: -на/-но (back) or -нэ/-нө (front). Same form all persons. SOV order
Can conjugate common verbs in present tense and build SOV sentences
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
Би монгол хэл сурна.
I am learning Mongolian.
Тэр өдөр бүр ном уншина.
He/She reads a book every day.
Бид хамт хоол идэнэ.
We eat food together.
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
Present tense follows vowel harmony:
| Group | Suffix | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Back (а/о/у) | -на/-но | явна, уншина, сурна, ярина |
| Front (э/ө/ү) | -нэ/-нө | ирнэ, бичнэ, өгнө, идэнэ |
Same form for ALL persons. SOV: Би ном уншина = I book read.
Common Error Patterns
Wrong vowel harmony suffix (-на after front-vowel verb)
Back (а/о/у) → -на/-но. Front (э/ő/ү) → -нэ/-нő.
Places verb before object (SVO)
SOV always: Би ном уншина (I book read).
Би монгол хэл сурна.
I am learning Mongolian.
сур + -на (back) = сурна. SOV: би(I) монгол хэл(Mongolian) сурна(learn).
Тэр өдөр бүр ном уншина.
He/She reads a book every day.
унш + -ина (back) = уншина. өдөр бүр = every day (time before object).
Бид хамт хоол идэнэ.
We eat food together.
ид + -энэ (front) = идэнэ. хамт = together. хоол (object) before verb.
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises