-tu gabe
Without Doing
gabe means without. After a verb, use the plain participle: Ezer esan gabe joan zen (He left without saying anything).
How It Works
With verbs. Use the participle: esan → esan gabe, ikusi → ikusi gabe, ordaindu → ordaindu gabe. The clause keeps its own objects: Sarrera ordaindu gabe sartu zen (He went in without paying for a ticket).
No extra ez. Words like ezer and inor fit naturally, with no ez: Inori ezer esan gabe (without saying anything to anyone).
With egon: a state. Gosaldu gabe nago means I have not had breakfast, literally I am without having breakfast. Lana egin gabe dago means the work is still not done. Some speakers, especially in the south and west, use -tzeke for this: Lana egiteke dago.
With nouns. gabe comes after the noun, which has no article: diru gabe (without money), azukre gabe (without sugar). The partitive is also common: dirurik gabe, azukrerik gabe. As a word ending, -gabe makes adjectives: etxegabe, lotsagabe.
Regional note. In Bizkaian Basque you will also hear barik: esan barik. The standard form is gabe.
Examples (6)
- Ezer esan gabe joan zen.
He left without saying anything.
esan stays in its plain form; joan zen carries person and tense.
- Gosaldu gabe nago.
I have not had breakfast.
Word by Word: I am without having breakfast.
With egon, -tu gabe describes a state.
- Liburua irakurri gabe egin zuen azterketa.
She took the exam without reading the book.
- Ez irten jaka hartu gabe!
Do not go out without taking a jacket!
- Kafea azukrerik gabe hartzen dut.
I take my coffee without sugar.
After a noun, gabe can follow the partitive -rik.
- Diru gabe ezin da bidaiatu.
You cannot travel without money.
Common Mistakes
Using the -tzen form before gabe.
Ezer esaten gabe joan zen.Ezer esan gabe joan zen.gabe follows the participle, the dictionary form: esan, not esaten.
Putting gabe before the noun.
Kafea gabe azukre hartzen dut.Kafea azukre gabe hartzen dut.English and Spanish say without sugar, but Basque puts gabe after the noun: azukre gabe.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Without follows the participle.
Related Patterns
- -dun / -gabeWith and Without: -dun, -gabe
The word ending -gabe, which builds adjectives such as etxegabe.
Level 4 - -tzekeStill to Be Done: -tzeke
Another way to say something is still not done, used especially in southern Basque: egiteke.
Level 6 - -tu aurretikBefore Doing
Another participle clause; before and without both describe something that has not happened yet.
Level 3 - oinez / eginezManner with -z
The positive counterpart for the way something is done: irakurriz (by reading).
Level 3 - -(r)ikAny: -(r)ik
The -rik that nouns often take before gabe: dirurik gabe.
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice -tu gabe in Bubblegum
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