ته چېرته اوسېږې؟
tə chērta osēgē?
In Pashto, "where do you live?" is said as ته چېرته اوسېږې؟ (tə chērta osēgē?).
This phrase is a question used to ask someone about the location of their home.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase ته چېرته اوسېږې؟ is composed of ته (you), چېرته (where) and اوسېږې (live).
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase changes from the informal ته چېرته اوسېږې؟ to the formal/polite تاسو چېرته اوسېږئ؟ when addressing someone with respect or a stranger.
How do you pronounce it?
tə chērta osēgē?
Did you know?
- In many contexts, instead of asking where someone lives, a Pashto speaker might ask which 'tribe' or 'clan' someone belongs to as a way of identifying their home.
- The word ته is a distant linguistic cousin to the English word 'thou', both tracing back to the same ancient Indo-European roots.
- Pashto uses a complex system of ergativity where the verb changes based on the tense. While اوسېږې is used for 'live' in the present, the structure of the sentence shifts entirely when talking about where someone lived in the past.
Examples in context
- بښنه غواړم، ته چېرته اوسېږې؟bakhshana ghwaram, ta cherta osege?Excuse me, where do you live?
- دا راته ووایه چې ته چېرته اوسېږې؟da rata wawa che ta cherta osege?Tell me where you live.
Example conversation
Two new acquaintances are chatting at a cafe.
- زلمای Zalmayته چېرته اوسېږې؟Ta cherte osege?Where do you live?
- زالا Zalaزه په کابل کې اوسېږم.Ze pa Kabul ke osegam.I live in Kabul.
- زلمای Zalmayدا ډیره ښه ده.Da dera kha da.That is very good.
- زالا Zalaمننه، زلمای.Manana, Zalmay.Thank you, Zalmay.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ته, CC BY-SA 4.0.
