-(i)m

My: -(i)m

Level 1

To say my, Uzbek puts an ending on the thing you own: ota → otam (my father), kitob → kitobim (my book).

How It Works

English uses a separate word, my. Uzbek puts the owner on the end of the noun as an ending. The ending has two shapes:

  • After a vowel: -m. ota + -m → otam (my father), aka + -m → akam (my older brother), xona + -m → xonam (my room).
  • After a consonant: -im. kitob + -im → kitobim (my book), uy + -im → uyim (my house), ism + -im → ismim (my name). The letter y counts as a consonant, so uy and choy take -im.

Because Uzbek has no vowel harmony, the ending never changes its vowel: uyim, kitobim and gulim all use -im.

Mening is optional. The ending already says whose it is, so Ismim Dilnoza (My name is Dilnoza) is the everyday way to speak. Add mening only to stress the owner: Bu mening kitobim (This is my book). When you do use mening, the noun still keeps -im; see -ning (qaratqich kelishigi).

Changes at the seam. Two small changes happen before -im:

  • Many longer words ending in k or q switch to g or gʻ: yurak → yuragim (my heart), oyoq → oyogʻim (my foot). See k > g, q > gʻ almashuvi.
  • A few nouns lose the vowel of their last syllable: singil → singlim (my younger sister), ogʻiz → ogʻzim (my mouth). See unli tushishi.

More endings can follow. A case ending comes after -im: uyimga (to my house), uyimda (in my house). A plural comes before it: kitob + -lar + -im → kitoblarim (my books). To say I have, add bor: Akam bor (I have an older brother).

Examples (5)

  1. Ismim Dilnoza.

    My name is Dilnoza.

    Word by Word: Name-my Dilnoza.

    ism + -im → ismim. No word for "is" is needed.

  2. Otam shifokor.

    My father is a doctor.

    Word by Word: Father-my doctor.

    ota ends in a vowel, so it takes -m: otam.

  3. Uyim Toshkentda.

    My house is in Tashkent.

    Word by Word: House-my Tashkent-in.

    uy ends in the consonant y, so it takes -im: uyim.

  4. Akam bor.

    I have an older brother.

    Word by Word: Older-brother-my exists.

    A possessive ending plus bor is how Uzbek says "I have".

  5. Bu mening kitobim.

    This is my book.

    Word by Word: This my book-my.

    mening adds emphasis, and kitobim still keeps its -im.

Common Mistakes

  • Adding -im after a vowel.

    Otaim shifokor.
    Otam shifokor.

    After a vowel only -m is added: ota → otam, aka → akam. The i appears only after a consonant.

  • Using mening without the ending.

    Bu mening kitob.
    Bu mening kitobim.

    Mening does not replace the ending. The owned noun still needs -im, so say kitobim, or simply Bu kitobim.

  • Keeping the vowel that drops out.

    Singilim maktabda.
    Singlim maktabda.

    In singil the last i drops before -im: singlim (my younger sister). Oʻgʻil → oʻgʻlim and ogʻiz → ogʻzim work the same way.

How It Connects

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

-(i)mLevel 1My: -(i)m

Learn This First

Builds on Having With bor.

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Patterns that build on this one.