gaireben

Almost

Level 3

Gaireben means almost: Es gaireben miègjorn.

How It Works

Gaireben sits before the word it modifies. It works with a time, an adjective, a verb or a quantity.

A time: Es gaireben miègjorn.
An adjective: Lo veire es gaireben void.
A verb: Ai gaireben acabat. It comes between the auxiliary and the participle.
A quantity: Gaireben totes los amics son aquí.

With a number of years, it means close to that age: Maria a gaireben vint ans.

Do not mix it up with gaire. Gaire means much and appears in pas gaire, not much. Gaireben means almost. The dictionaries also list quasi as a synonym.

Examples (5)

Es gaireben miègjorn.
It is almost noon.
Gaireben comes before the time.
Lo veire es gaireben void.
The glass is almost empty.
Gaireben comes before the adjective.
Ai gaireben acabat lo trabalh.
I have almost finished the work.
Gaireben sits between ai and the participle.
Gaireben totes los amics son aquí.
Almost all the friends are here.
Gaireben comes before totes.
Maria a gaireben vint ans.
Maria is almost twenty.
Gaireben comes before the number.

Common Mistakes

Using the French presque.
Es presque miègjorn.
Es gaireben miègjorn.
Presque is French. Occitan says gaireben, or quasi.
Using gaire for almost.
Es gaire miègjorn.
Es gaireben miègjorn.
Gaire means much and goes with pas. Almost is gaireben.

How It Connects

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

gairebenLevel 3Almost

Learn This First

Gaireben comes from the quantity words, so they come first.

plan, fòrça, pro, tròp, gaireQuantity Adverbs
Know the quantity adverbs, because gaireben is a close relative of gaire and goes before the word it softens: Es gaireben miègjorn.
Level 2

Words in This Pattern