4.26 Phrasal verbs — the two-word verbs
4 · Verbs — how the system works · a plain-language guide to Assyrian (Sureth) grammar
(Khan §4.26.) A great many everyday actions are not one word but a noun plus a light verb — the verb carries the grammar and the noun carries the meaning, exactly like English "take a bath," "have a look." Assyrian leans on this heavily, and most of these are calques of Persian or Azeri phrases.
Four verbs do nearly all the work: yavvel "give," garesh "pull," makhe "strike," aved "do," plus ave "become."
| Assyrian | English | literally |
|---|---|---|
| juvvab yavvel | to reply | to give an answer |
| zahmat yavvel | to bother | to give trouble |
| azyat yavvel | to distress | to give distress |
| zahmat garesh | to take trouble | to pull trouble |
| azyat garesh | to suffer | to pull distress |
| karavul garesh | to guard | to pull a guard |
| ayna makhe | to wink | to strike an eye |
| gulpa makhe | to flap | to strike a wing |
| khela makhe | to exert oneself | to strike strength |
| ptana aved | to plough | to do a plough |
| kham akhel | to take care | to eat worry |
| majbur ave | to be forced | to become forced |
| tanesh ave | to get acquainted | to become acquainted |
Why this matters for looking things up. In the dictionary these live under the light verb, not under the noun — so "to deepen" is filed as amku aved, under aved. If a phrase is not where you expect it, try the verb.
And the grammar is all in the verb half. The noun never moves and never changes; everything in this chapter happens to the verb beside it — juvvab yuvvelle "he replied," juvvab hal! "reply!"
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