niezaioke / niezaiokeen

1. Two sets of forms. These are the potential forms of verbs with a receiver (the ezan root with -io-, -ie-, -zu- and so on). They go after the verb radical, like the present forms in diezaioket. The hypothetical set means could in an imagined situation; the past set adds -en and means could or could have in the past. Forms with hari (to him or her):

• nik: niezaioke / niezaiokeen
• zuk: zeniezaioke / zeniezaiokeen
• hark: liezaioke / ziezaiokeen
• guk: geniezaioke / geniezaiokeen
• zuek: zeniezaiokete / zeniezaioketen
• haiek: liezaiokete / ziezaioketen

For haiei (to them), -io- becomes -ie-: niezaieke, niezaiekeen. When the thing given is plural, -zki- appears: niezazkioke, niezazkiokeen. As with the other hypothetical forms, the third person uses l- in the hypothetical (liezaioke) and z- in the past (ziezaiokeen).

2. The verb radical. Standard Basque recommends the verb radical before these forms: idatzi → idatz, erakutsi → erakuts, bidali → bidal. Verbs such as esan, eman and egin keep their whole form. Many Southern writers use the full participle instead (idatzi niezaioke, ezin niezaiokeen ukatu), and the Academy accepts both. See the verb radical.

3. Past: could or could have. The past forms have two readings, and the context decides:

• A possibility that was not used: Esan niezaiokeen, baina ez nuen egin. (I could have told him, but I didn't.)
• An ability in the past, very often with ezin: Ezin niezaiokeen ezer ukatu. (I couldn't refuse him anything.)

4. Hypothetical: could now or later. niezaioke offers an idea or describes what could happen in an imagined case: Amari opari bat eros niezaioke. (I could buy Mum a present.) It often answers an unreal ba- clause: Denbora banu, idatz niezaioke. (If I had time, I could write to him.)

5. Register and region. These forms are most common in careful written Basque. In everyday speech, especially in the centre, most people say the same thing with ahal or ezin and the ordinary auxiliary: esan ahal nion, ezin nion esan, esan ahal izango nioke. In Western and Eastern speech, the hypothetical forms are still used, and there they can also mean would, like the conditional. Learn to recognize them in books and formal texts, even if you rarely say them yourself.

Tip: Do not confuse these with the conditional nioke. In Standard Basque, Esango nioke means I would tell him and esan niezaioke means I could tell him.