15. Was doing, used to do: the past progressive
🟡 Intermediate · Lesson 15 of 23
Form
di- + past stem + ending; negative nedi-
The ergativity rules of lesson 14 apply exactly as in the simple past: with a transitive verb the agent is oblique and the verb agrees with the object.
hatin (هاتن) "to come": present stem ê, past stem hat, intransitive
| person | pronoun | Past progressive | Past progressive negative |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | ez | dihatim دهاتم | nedihatim نەدهاتم |
| 2sg | tu | dihatî دهاتی | nedihatî نەدهاتی |
| 3sg | ew | dihat دهات | nedihat نەدهات |
| 1pl | em | dihatin دهاتن | nedihatin نەدهاتن |
| 2pl | hûn | dihatin دهاتن | nedihatin نەدهاتن |
| 3pl | ew | dihatin دهاتن | nedihatin نەدهاتن |
xwarin (خوارن) "to eat": present stem xw, past stem xwar, transitive
| person | agent (oblique) | object (direct) | Past progressive | Past progressive negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | min | ez | dixwarim دخوارم | nedixwarim نەدخوارم |
| 2sg | te | tu | dixwarî دخواری | nedixwarî نەدخواری |
| 3sg | wî / wê | ew | dixwar دخوار | nedixwar نەدخوار |
| 1pl | me | em | dixwarin دخوارن | nedixwarin نەدخوارن |
| 2pl | we | hûn | dixwarin دخوارن | nedixwarin نەدخوارن |
| 3pl | wan | ew | dixwarin دخوارن | nedixwarin نەدخوارن |
Past tenses of a transitive verb are ergative: the agent is oblique and the verb agrees with the object (the object column), e.g. min tu dîtî "I saw you".
xwendin (خوەندن) "to read, to study": present stem xwîn, past stem xwend, transitive
| person | agent (oblique) | object (direct) | Past progressive | Past progressive negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | min | ez | dixwendim دخوەندم | nedixwendim نەدخوەندم |
| 2sg | te | tu | dixwendî دخوەندی | nedixwendî نەدخوەندی |
| 3sg | wî / wê | ew | dixwend دخوەند | nedixwend نەدخوەند |
| 1pl | me | em | dixwendin دخوەندن | nedixwendin نەدخوەندن |
| 2pl | we | hûn | dixwendin دخوەندن | nedixwendin نەدخوەندن |
| 3pl | wan | ew | dixwendin دخوەندن | nedixwendin نەدخوەندن |
Past tenses of a transitive verb are ergative: the agent is oblique and the verb agrees with the object (the object column), e.g. min tu dîtî "I saw you".
Meaning
- an action in progress in the past: I was eating when he came;
- a past habit: I used to read every evening;
- would in unreal conditions.
| # | Kurdish | Arabic script | IPA | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dema ew hat, min nan dixwar. | دەما ئەو هات، من نان دخوار. | /dɛmaː ɛw haːt mɪn naːn dɪxʷaːɾ/ | When he came, I was eating. |
| 2 | Her êvar min pirtûk dixwend. | هەر ئێڤار من پرتووک دخوەند. | /hɛɾ eːvaːɾ mɪn pɪɾtuːk dɪxʷɛnd/ | I used to read every evening. |
| 3 | Em li Amedê diman. | ئەم ل ئامەدێ دمان. | /ɛm lɪ aːmɛdeː dɪmaːn/ | We used to live (stay) in Amed. |
| 4 | Ez diçûm dibistanê. | ئەز دچووم دبستانێ. | /ɛz dɪtʃuːm dɪbɪstaːneː/ | I was going / used to go to school. |
All past forms side by side
kirin (کرن) "to do, to make": present stem k, past stem kir, transitive
| person | agent (oblique) | object (direct) | Simple past | Past negative | Past progressive | Past progressive negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | min | ez | kirim کرم | nekirim نەکرم | dikirim دکرم | nedikirim نەدکرم |
| 2sg | te | tu | kirî کری | nekirî نەکری | dikirî دکری | nedikirî نەدکری |
| 3sg | wî / wê | ew | kir کر | nekir نەکر | dikir دکر | nedikir نەدکر |
| 1pl | me | em | kirin کرن | nekirin نەکرن | dikirin دکرن | nedikirin نەدکرن |
| 2pl | we | hûn | kirin کرن | nekirin نەکرن | dikirin دکرن | nedikirin نەدکرن |
| 3pl | wan | ew | kirin کرن | nekirin نەکرن | dikirin دکرن | nedikirin نەدکرن |
Past tenses of a transitive verb are ergative: the agent is oblique and the verb agrees with the object (the object column), e.g. min tu dîtî "I saw you".
Practice
- I was coming.
- She used to write letters (name).
- We weren’t going.
Answers
- Ez dihatim.
- Wê name dinivîsîn. (plural object → plural verb; with one letter: name dinivîsî)
- Em nediçûn.
Summary
- Past progressive = di- + past stem; negative nedi-.
- Ergative with transitive verbs, like every past tense.