Becoming With -ėti

Verbs of Becoming in -ėti

Level 6

Oras gerėja. means The weather is getting better. The weather changes; nobody is named as making it better.

How It Works

From a quality. Compare geras → gerėti, blogas → blogėti and šviesus → šviesėti. The adjective describes a state; the verb describes moving toward it.

Principal parts. The examples use gerėti, gerėja, gerėjo and blogėti, blogėja, blogėjo. Learn the full verb because -ėti also occurs in other verb classes, such as mylėti.

Changing versus causing. Kokybė gerėja says the quality improves. Mes geriname kokybę says we improve the quality. The second construction has a person causing the change and an object.

Examples (4)

  1. Oras gerėja.

    The weather is getting better.

  2. Jo sveikata blogėja.

    His health is getting worse.

  3. Pavasarį dienos ilgėja.

    In spring the days grow longer.

  4. Lauke jau šviesėja.

    It is already getting light outside.

Common Mistakes

  • Using gerėti with an object that someone makes better.

    Mes gerėjame kokybę.
    Mes geriname kokybę.

    To say we improve the quality, use the causative gerinti. Gerėti describes the subject’s own change.

How It Connects

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

Becoming With -ėtiLevel 6Verbs of Becoming in -ėti

Learn This First

Some -ėti verbs describe a change in the subject's quality.

Words in This Pattern

blogėti