Short Verb Forms and Expressions

This unit introduces the short form of /madreg/ (“to do/make”), the noun /giddeta/ (“obligation”), and their use with the auxiliary verbs /allebb-/, /honebb-/, and /nebberebb-/.

Basic Sentences (መሠረታዊ ዓረፍተ ነገሮች)

Amharic (Romanized)	English
sira-w-in madreg allebbiNNi.	I must do the work.
min madregg tifelligalehi?	What do you want to do?
yih-in giddeta allegNNi.	I have this obligation.
madreg honebbiNNi.	I was supposed to do it.
mamTat nebberebb-ot.	He was supposed to come.
meTTahif-u-n manbeb allebbiNNi.	I must read the book.
mahed honebbihi.	You were supposed to go.
bizu sira madreg nebberebb-ot.	He had to do a lot of work.
sira-w-in aTTirto madreg allebbiNNi.	I must finish doing the work.
yigiddeta-w Tebbiqu new.	The obligation is strict.

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Key Vocabulary

Amharic	English		Amharic	English
madreg	to do, to make		mamTat	to come
mahed	to go		manbeb	to read
masserat	to work		masfat	to write
giddeta	obligation, duty		allebb-	must (present)
honebb-	was supposed to		nebberebb-	had to (past)
aTTirto	finishing		madregiya	way of doing

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Grammar Notes

1. Short Form of /madreg/

The infinitive /madreg/ (“to do”) can appear in short form when combined with auxiliary verbs. This pattern extends to other infinitives:

Full Infinitive	Short Form	English
madreg	dreg	to do
mamTat	mTat	to come
mahed	hed	to go
manbeb	nbeb	to read
masserat	srat	to work

2. Obligation with /allebb-/

/allebb-/ expresses present obligation (“must,” “have to”). It takes personal suffixes:

Subject	Form	English
ine	allebbiNNi	I must
anta	allebbihi	you (m.) must
anči	allebbiši	you (f.) must
isswo	allebb-ot	he must
isswa	allebbaččew	she must
innya	allebbin	we must
innassu	allebbaččew	they must

Examples:

Amharic	English
madreg allebbiNNi.	I must do (it).
manbeb allebbihi.	You must read.
mamTat allebb-ot.	He must come.
masserat allebbin.	We must work.

3. Past Obligation with /honebb-/

/honebb-/ expresses a past obligation that may or may not have been fulfilled (“was supposed to”):

Subject	Form	English
ine	honebbiNNi	I was supposed to
anta	honebbihi	you (m.) were supposed to
isswo	honebb-ot	he was supposed to
innya	honebbin	we were supposed to

Examples:

Amharic	English
madreg honebbiNNi.	I was supposed to do (it).
mahed honebbihi.	You were supposed to go.
mamTat honebb-ot.	He was supposed to come.

4. Past Necessity with /nebberebb-/

/nebberebb-/ expresses a past necessity or compulsion (“had to”):

Subject	Form	English
ine	nebberebbiNNi	I had to
anta	nebberebbihi	you (m.) had to
isswo	nebberebb-ot	he had to
innya	nebberebbin	we had to

Examples:

Amharic	English
bizu sira madreg nebberebbiNNi.	I had to do a lot of work.
mamTat nebberebb-ot.	He had to come.

5. /giddeta/ — Obligation

The noun /giddeta/ means “obligation” or “duty”:

Amharic	English
yih giddeta-ye new.	This is my obligation.
giddeta allegNNi.	I have an obligation.
giddeta-w Tebbiqu new.	The obligation is strict.

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Drills (ልምምዶች)

Drill 1 — Express Present Obligation

Prompt	Response
ine / madreg	madreg allebbiNNi.
anta / manbeb	manbeb allebbihi.
isswo / mahed	mahed allebb-ot.
innya / masserat	masserat allebbin.
innassu / mamTat	mamTat allebbaččew.

Drill 2 — Express Past Obligation

Prompt	Response
ine / madreg	madreg honebbiNNi.
anta / mahed	mahed honebbihi.
isswo / mamTat	mamTat honebb-ot.
innya / masserat	masserat honebbin.

Drill 3 — Express Past Necessity

Prompt	Response
ine / bizu sira madreg	bizu sira madreg nebberebbiNNi.
isswo / mamTat	mamTat nebberebb-ot.
innya / manbeb	manbeb nebberebbin.

Drill 4 — Translation

1. I must read the book. — /meTTahif-u-n manbeb allebbiNNi./
2. You were supposed to come. — /mamTat honebbihi./
3. He had to do a lot of work. — /bizu sira madreg nebberebb-ot./
4. We must go tomorrow. — /nege mahed allebbin./
5. She was supposed to write. — /masfat honebbaččew./
6. What must you do? — /min madreg allebbihi?/

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Narrative

ato tadesse bizu giddeta allegNNi. sira-w-in aTTirto madreg allebb-ot. keza debdabe-woč-in masfat allebb-ot. tilant mamTat honebb-ot — gina almeTTam. zare-ma masserat nebberebb-ot inna meTTa. “bizu sira madreg allebbiNNi” ale. siraw-in aTTirto adrige inna wede bet hede. nege-m manbeb allebb-ot — gina yih giddeta-w-in-im yidregal.

Translation: Mr. Tadesse has many obligations. He must finish the work. Then he must write letters. Yesterday he was supposed to come — but he didn’t come. Today he had to work, and he came. “I must do a lot of work,” he said. He finished his work and went home. Tomorrow he must also read — but he will do this obligation too.