Food and drink in Georgian
23 words
პურიp'uri— bread
khachapuri: You may know this one from inside another word. Khachapuri = ხაჭო (khach'o, curd cheese) + პური (p'uri, bread): cheese bread.
ღვინოghvino— wine
vino: Say it out loud: gh-VINO. Vino, wine: the very thing you've been filling your qvevri with.
წყალიts'q'ali— water
squally: A SQUALLY storm dumps buckets of water on you: ts'-q'ALI. Two clicked sounds, წ and ყ, like rain slapping a roof.
ჩაიchai— tea
chai: You already know CHAI, but here it's no spiced latte: it's any plain cup of tea. Say both syllables: CHA-i.
ყველიq'veli— cheese
smelly: Good cheese gets gloriously SMELLY: q'-VELI. Start it with a clipped q' that pops deep in your throat.
ყავაq'ava— coffee
coffee: Same root as coffee: Arabic qahwa, via Turkish kahve. Georgian kept it close: Q'AVA, opened with a throaty, clipped q'.
ხორციkhortsi— meat
horse: A HORSE peers at your plate of MEAT and backs away in horror: “KHORTS-i? Not for me, I eat hay.” Rasp the kh like a snort.
ხილიkhili— fruit
hill: At the market, a whole HILL of FRUIT: peaches, figs, grapes piled high. KHIL-i, with a raspy kh.
რძეrdze— milk
fridge: The MILK lives in the fRIDGE. Drop the f and the i and you're left with R-DZE: milk.
ლუდიludi— beer
ludicrous: The barman slides over a LUDIcrously huge BEER, foam spilling everywhere: LU-di!
ხაჭაპურიkhach'ap'uri— khachapuri (cheese bread)
khachapuri: You already know this one: KHACHAPURI. It's ხაჭო (curd cheese) + პური (bread), cheese bread. Mind the clipped ჭ and პ: kha-CH'A-P'U-ri.
ხინკალიkhink'ali— khinkali
khinkali: The English name is just the Georgian: KHINKALI, twisted soup dumplings. Say it Georgian-style: KH as in “Bach”, a clipped k'. Hold by the knot, slurp, leave the knot.
შაქარიshakari— sugar
sugar: SUGAR's long-lost cousin: both go back to Sanskrit śarkarā (Georgian via Persian šakar). Say them side by side: SHAKAR-i, SHUGAR.
კვერცხიk'vertskhi— egg
quartz: A hen proudly lays a sparkling QUARTZ EGG. The farmer leans in and sneezes: “k'-VERTS-khi!”
მარილიmarili— salt
Ma, really?: Ma tips a whole cup of SALT into the soup. “MA, REALLY?” — ma-RI-li.
ვაშლიvashli— apple
wash: You WASH an apple under the tap until it squeaks and shines like a mirror: VASH-li.
თევზიtevzi— fish
tweezers: You pick a tiny bone out of your FISH with TWEEZers, very carefully: TEV-zi.
სადილიsadili— lunch
saddle: Cowboys eat their LUNCH without getting off the horse, beans balanced on the SADDLE: SA-DI-li.
ყურძენიq'urdzeni— grapes
curds: On the cheese board, fresh CURDS sit beside a fat bunch of grapes: Q'URDZ-eni — grapes.
წვენიts'veni— juice
veni, vidi, vici: Caesar's lesser-known boast, raising a glass of orange: “VENI, vidi… juice!” ts'-VENI — juice.
საუზმეsauzme— breakfast
sauce me: Your breakfast pancakes beg from the plate: “SAUCE ME!” You drown them in syrup: SAU-ZME — breakfast.
ქათამიkatami— chicken
cat, am I?: A confused chicken stares at its reflection: “CAT, AM I?” No: KA-TAM-i, a chicken.
სუფრაsupra— feast table (supra)
supper: A SUPra is SUPPER times ten: a table groaning with food, wine and a toastmaster raising toast after toast.
Read them yourself
Learn the 33 letters first, in one or two evenings. Then the app teaches these words, each read letter by letter, and brings each one back just before you would forget it.