bide

Apparently: Bide

Level 5

Galdu bide da. He must have got lost. With bide, you did not see it happen and nobody told you: you are working it out.

How It Works

1. What it means. bide is also the noun for road, but as a particle it means something like it seems or most likely. The speaker has a reason to believe it:

  • Kaleak bustita daude: euria egin bide du. The streets are wet: it must have rained.

2. Where it goes. Right before the auxiliary or the one-word verb, and after ez in a negative sentence: etorri bide da, ez bide daki, ez bide dira etorriko. It only works with a conjugated verb.

3. bide, omen and ote. These particles fill the same slot, and only one can appear at a time:

  • Etorri omen da. Someone told me he has come.
  • Etorri bide da. I work out that he must have come.
  • Etorri ote da? I wonder whether he has come. (See ote.)

4. Register. bide is found mostly in written texts and in Northern Basque; it is rare in everyday speech in the South. Learn to recognize it when you read.

Tip: Think of bide as a detective's word: from the clues, this must be true.

Examples (6)

  1. Kaleak bustita daude: euria egin bide du.

    The streets are wet: it must have rained.

    The wet streets are the clue.

  2. Miren ez bide da etorriko.

    It seems Miren will not come.

    bide comes after ez and before the auxiliary.

  3. Mendian galdu bide dira.

    They must have got lost on the mountain.

  4. Ez bide daki ezer.

    Apparently he knows nothing.

    bide also goes before a one-word verb like daki.

  5. Lan handia egin bide duzu.

    You must have done a lot of work.

  6. Etxean bide dago; argia piztuta dago.

    He must be at home; the light is on.

Common Mistakes

  • Putting bide after the auxiliary.

    Galdu da bide.
    Galdu bide da.

    bide goes right before the auxiliary or the one-word verb, never after it.

  • Combining bide with omen.

    Euria egin omen bide du.
    Euria egin bide du.

    bide, omen and ote cannot appear together. Choose one: bide if you work it out yourself, omen if someone told you.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

bideLevel 5Apparently: Bide

Learn This First

bide follows omen.

Words in This Pattern

bide