Common Georgian Phrases for Travelers
The Georgian phrases you'll actually use in Tbilisi: greetings, the bill, prices, numbers, and where-is-the-metro — with script, transliteration, and context.
A small honest secret about Georgian travel phrasebooks: most of them are assembled far from Georgia. The phrases in this guide aren't — every single one is taught in KartWheel's course, in the same words real Georgians use. Learn these and you can greet, buy, order, and find your way around without a screen between you and the person you're talking to.
One thing first: the Georgian script (Mkhedruli) has 33 letters, one sound each, perfectly phonetic spelling — you can learn to read it in about a week (full guide). So read these out loud; what you say is what you see.
Hello, please, and thank you
| Georgian | Transliteration | Meaning | When to use |
|---|---|---|---|
| გამარჯობა | gamarjoba | hello | anyone, any time of day |
| ბოდიში | bodishi | sorry / excuse me | getting attention, apologizing |
| გთხოვთ | gtkhovt | please | requests, and "here you are" |
| მადლობა | madloba | thanks | casual thanks |
| დიდი მადლობა | didi madloba | many thanks | the emphatic version |
| ნახვამდის | nakhvamdis | goodbye | leave-taking |
The course notes the register: მადლობა is the friendly default, while გმადლობ (gmadlob) is the formal form for strangers and elders. Start with მადლობა and add გმადლობ when someone deserves extra respect.
Small talk starters
| Georgian | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| გამარჯობა, როგორ ხართ? | gamarjoba, rogor khart? | Hello, how are you? |
| კარგად, მადლობა. თქვენ? | kargad, madloba. tkven? | Fine, thanks. And you? |
| მე მქვია... | me mqvia... | My name is... |
| დიახ / არა | diakh / ara | yes / no |
The course's own dialogues use these constantly — a two-minute introduction is one of the first things you learn.
The pattern that gets you everywhere: "Where is...?"
The single most useful travel pattern in Georgian is ბოდიში, სად არის...? — "Excuse me, where is...?" Put any place word on the end and you're asking directions:
| Georgian | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ბოდიში, სად არის მეტრო? | bodishi, sad aris metro? | Excuse me, where is the metro? |
| სად არის ბანკი? | sad aris banki? | Where is the bank? |
| სად არის აფთიაქი? | sad aris aptiaki? | Where is the pharmacy? |
| სად არის ბაზარი? | sad aris bazari? | Where is the market? |
| სად არის ტუალეტი? | sad aris tualeti? | Where is the toilet? |
Once you have the pattern, it's just vocabulary — every place word you add to it multiplies what you can ask.
How much does it cost?
| Georgian | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| რა ღირს ეს? | ra ghirs es? | How much is this? |
Prices in Georgia are quoted in ლარი (lari), the currency. Two more course words that help in any market or shop: იაფი (iapi, "cheap") and ძვირი (dzviri, "expensive") — as in the course's own shopping dialogue, where the apples are იაფი and the cheese is ძვირი.
Ordering food and drink
The course's food unit is built on one formula: მინდა ("I want") + the item + გთხოვთ ("please").
| Georgian | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| მენიუ, გთხოვთ. | meniu, gtkhovt. | The menu, please. |
| მინდა ერთი ყავა, გთხოვთ. | minda erti qava, gtkhovt. | I'd like one coffee, please. |
| მინდა ერთი ხაჭაპური და ერთი წყალი. | minda erti khachapuri da erti tsqali. | I'd like a khachapuri and a water. |
| ანგარიში, გთხოვთ. | angarishi, gtkhovt. | The bill, please. |
Swap in anything from the menu and the sentence works: one wine (ერთი ღვინო), two beers (ორი ლუდი), half a kilo of cheese (ნახევარი კილო ყველი) — all straight from the course's ordering lessons.
Numbers 1–10
| Georgian | Transliteration | n | Georgian | Transliteration | n |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ერთი | erti | 1 | ექვსი | ekvsi | 6 |
| ორი | ori | 2 | შვიდი | shvidi | 7 |
| სამი | sami | 3 | რვა | rva | 8 |
| ოთხი | otkhi | 4 | ცხრა | tskhra | 9 |
| ხუთი | khuti | 5 | ათი | ati | 10 |
Numbers cover prices, quantities, and bus routes — and they're the quickest vocabulary win you'll get.
When you need help
The course's practical set covers the everyday side of help: აფთიაქი (aptiaki, "pharmacy") and ექიმი (ekimi, "doctor"). Pair them with the "where is" pattern and you can ask for what you need: ბოდიში, სად არის აფთიაქი? — "Excuse me, where is the pharmacy?" For a serious emergency you'll want more than a phrasebook, but these two words plus the alphabet will get you further than you'd think.
The honest bottom line: Georgian rewards travelers who try. The alphabet is learnable in a week, the phrases above are the ones locals actually use, and every one of them has native audio in KartWheel's free course — listen, repeat, and you'll be greeted with genuine delight in Tbilisi.
Next steps: learn to read the alphabet, get the grammar overview when you're ready for more, and set honest expectations with how long it takes.