Who Does It in a Causative

Level 5

In a causative, the person made to act is in the dative: დედა ბავშვს საჭმელს აჭმევს (Mom is feeding the child).

How It Works

A causative such as აჭმევს (feeds, literally makes eat) can have three people or things in it: the one who causes the action, the one who does it, and the thing it is done to.

PresentPast
causerდედა (nominative)დედამ (ergative)
person made to actბავშვს (dative)ბავშვს (dative)
thingსაჭმელს (dative)საჭმელი (nominative)

So: დედა ბავშვს საჭმელს აჭმევს (Mom is feeding the child), and დედამ ბავშვს საჭმელი აჭამა (Mom fed the child).

The person made to act is treated like the receiver in giving: ბავშვს stays in the dative in both tenses. Other verbs of this kind are აწერინებს (makes write) and აცმევს (dresses someone).

When the first verb has no object, as with laughing or sleeping, the person is the plain object: ბებიამ ბავშვი დააძინა. See the Causative topic.

Examples (5)

  1. დედა ბავშვს საჭმელს აჭმევს.

    Mom is feeding the child.

    Present: both ბავშვს and საჭმელს in the dative.

  2. დედამ ბავშვს ფაფა აჭამა.

    Mom fed the child porridge.

    In the past, ბავშვს is still dative.

  3. ექიმმა ავადმყოფს წამალი დაალევინა.

    The doctor had the patient take the medicine.

    The patient is the one made to drink.

  4. მასწავლებელმა მოსწავლეებს წერილი დააწერინა.

    The teacher had the students write a letter.

    მოსწავლეებს: the dative plural.

  5. ბებია შვილიშვილებს ახალ ტანსაცმელს აცმევს.

    Grandma is dressing the grandchildren in new clothes.

    აცმევს: dresses someone.

Common Mistakes

  • Making the person nominative in the past.

    დედამ ბავშვი ფაფა აჭამა.
    დედამ ბავშვს ფაფა აჭამა.

    Only the thing becomes nominative in the past. The person made to act stays in the dative.

How It Connects

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

Who Does It in a CausativeLevel 5

Learn This First

In a causative the one made to act is in the dative.