Lesson One · Lehenengo Ikasgaia

Basque Language Lesson 1 · 1go ikasgaia

Greetings · Agurrak
Kaixo! (Hi, hello)
Arratsaldeon! (Good afternoon, good evening)
Ni Mikel naiz.
Nor zara zu? (Who are you?)
Ni Nerea naiz. (I’m Nerea.)
Eta zu? Zu Txomin zara? (And you? Are you Txomin?)
Ez, ni ez naiz Txomin. (No, I’m not Txomin.)
Ni Gorka naiz. (I’m Gorka.)
Bera Txomin da. (He’s Txomin.)
Eskerrik asko! (Thanks a lot!)
Ez horregatik. (You’re welcome. Literally: not because of that)

Phrases · Esaldiak
Zer da hau? · What is this?
Zer da hori? · What is that?
Zer da hura? · What is that over there?

Hau emakumea da. · This is a woman.

Hori gizona da. · That is a man.
Hura etxea da. · That over there is a house.

Ni Bilbokoa naiz. (I’m from Bilbao.)

Nongoa zara zu? (Where are you from?)
Gu Texasekoak gara. (We are from Texas.)
Zuek Europakoak zarete? (Are you all from Europe?)
Bera Errusiakoa da. (He/she is from Russia.)
Haiek Txinakoak dira. (They are from China.)

The Verb · Aditza

To Be · Izan

I am ni naiz
You are zu zara
We are gu gara
You all are zuek zarete
He is, she is bera da
They are haiek dira

Numbers · Zenbakiak

1 bat 11 hamaika
2 bi 12 hamabi
3 hiru 13 hamairu
4 lau 14 hamalau
5 bost 15 hamabost
6 sei 16 hamasei
7 zazpi 17 hamazazpi
8 zortzi 18 hemezortzi
9 bederatzi 19 hemeretzi
10 hamar 20 hogei

1 house · etxe bat

2 houses · bi etxe (note the change in word order)
3 houses · hiru etxe
4 houses · lau etxe (et cetera)

(Note: In Basque, a noun does not carry a plural marker when used with numbers.)

Vocabulary · Hiztegia
Basque Language Lesson 1 · 1go ikasgaia

aho(a) · (the, a) mouth

ate(a) · (the, a) door
begi(a)·(the, an) eye
emakume(a) · (the) woman, (a) woman

(Note: The Basque suffix a is literally “the” but is often translated as “a” in English.)

eliza · church, or (the, a) church

etxe(a) · house (you get the idea...the house, a house)
giltz(a) · key
gizon(a) · man
herri(a) · town, or people
ibai(a) · river
kotxe(a) · car
leiho(a) · window
lore(a) · flower
mutil(a) · boy
neska · girl
sutegi(a) · fireplace
telefono(a) · telephone
txakur(ra) · dog
zigarro(a) · cigarrette
zubi(a) · bridge

In order to make the plurals, instead of a, add the suffix ak to the noun.
emakumeak, gizonak, neskak, elizak, etc.

hau · this
hori · that
hura · that over there
(Note: “Hura” is farther away than “hori”.)
hauek · these
horiek · those
haiek · those over there
(Note: “haiek” is also “they”.)

Lesson Two · Bigarren Ikasgaia

Lesson 2 · 2garren ikasgaia

Sentences · Esaldiak
Hau etxea da. · This is a house.
Zer da hori? · What is that?
Hori eliza da. · That is a church.
Eta zer da hura? · And what is that over there?
Hura kotxea da. · That’s a car.
Nongoa zara? Martitzkoa? · Where are you from? Mars?

Nor da hura? · Who is that (over there)?

Nor? Emakume hura? · Who? That woman (over there)?
Ez, gizon hura. · No, that man.
Hura Antton Goikoetxea da. · That is Antton Goikoetxea.
Eta zer da Antton? Irakaslea? · And what is Antton? A teacher?
Ez. Antton ez da irakaslea. Antton politikaria da. · No. Antton isn’t a teacher. Antton is a politician.
Eta zu? Nor zara zu? · And you? Who are you?
Ni Edurne naiz. · I’m Edurne.
Edurne?! Zu ez zara Begoña? · Edurne?! You’re not Begoña?
Ez, ni ez naiz Bego, Edurne naiz. · No, I’m not Bego, I’m Edurne.
Ai ene! Barkatu! Nor da Bego? · Oh, my! Forgive me! Who is Bego?
Emakume hura. Erizaina. · That woman over there. The nurse.
Bera erizaina da? Ez da ileapaintzailea? · She’s a nurse? She’s not a hairdresser?
Ez, ez da ileapaintzailea. Bego erizaina da. · No, she’s not a hairdresser. Bego is a nurse.
Baina zu ileapaintzailea zara, ez da? · But you’re a hairdresser, right?
Ez, ni ez naiz ileapaintzailea. Ni irakaslea naiz. · No, I’m not a hairdresser. I’m a teacher.

Negatives · Ezezkoak
Notice how the verb changes location in the sentence when you make a negative:

Ni irakaslea naiz. · I’m a teacher.

Ni ez naiz irakaslea. · I’m not a teacher.

Gu astronautak gara. · We are astronauts.

Gu ez gara astronautak! · We aren’t astronauts!

Haiek mekanikariak dira, baina hauek ez dira mekanikariak.

They (those) are mechanics, but these (folks) are not mechanics.

People and professions

abeslari(a) · singer
aktore(a) · actor
astronauta · astronaut
azafata · airline stewardess
emakume(a) · woman
erizain(a) · nurse
esnesaltzaile(a) · milkman (or woman)
etxekoandre(a) · housewife
gizon(a) · man
ikasle(a) · student
ileapaintzaile(a) · hairdresser
irakasle(a) · teacher
lehendakari(a) · president (of the Basque Country)
mekanikari(a) · mechanic
mutil(a) · boy
neska · girl
politikari(a) · politician
postari(a) · postman (or woman)
presidente(a) · president
taxista · taxi driver

Animals · Abereak
elefante(a) · elephant
jirafa · giraffe
katu(a) · cat
lehoi(a) · lion (don’t confuse it with “leiho(a)”, window!)
pinguino(a) · penguin
txakur(ra) · dog

Adjectives · Adjektiboak (Izenlagunak)

ahul(a) · weak, in poor health
alfer(ra) · lazy
altu(a) · tall
argal(a) · thin
bizkor(ra) · energetic
garbi(a) · clean
gazte(a) · young
handi(a) · big
itsusi(a) · ugly
lodi(a) · fat
polit(a) · pretty
sendo(a) · strong, healthy
txiki(a) · short
zahar(ra) · old
zikin(a) · dirty

In order to make the plurals, instead of a, add the suffix ak to the noun.
emakumeak, gizonak, neskak, elizak, etc.

Review these demonstratives every lesson.

hau · this
hori · that
hura · that over there
(Note: “Hura” is farther away than “hori”.)
hauek · these
horiek · those
haiek · those over there
(Note: “haiek” is also “they”.)

Emakumea itsusia al da? · Is the woman ugly? (bai)

Bai, emakumea itsusia da!
Gizona lodia al da? (bai)
Bai, gizona lodia da!
Laguna gaztea al da? (bai)
Bai, laguna gaztea da.
Ikaslea zaharra al da? (ez)
Ez, ikaslea ez da zaharra.
Neska itsusia al da? (ez)
Ez, neska ez da itsusia.
Etxea handia al da? (ez)
Ez, etxea ez da handia. Txikia da!
Etxea txikia al da? (bai)
Bai, txikia da!
Kotxea zaharra al da? (ez)
Ez, kotxea ez da zaharra. Kotxe hau, ez. Kotxe hori, bai.
Kotxea berria al da? (bai)
Bai, kotxea berria da. Kotxe hau berria da. Kotxe hori ez da berria.

Zubia itsusia ala polita da? · Is the bridge ugly or pretty?

Zubia itsusia da!
Ikaslea zaharra ala gaztea da?
Ikaslea gaztea da.
Polizia sendoa ala ahula da?
Polizia sendoa da.
Taxista lodia ala argala da?
Taxista argala da.
Erizaina gizona ala emakumea da?
Erizaina gizona da. Emakume hori sendagilea (doctor) da.
Loreak politak ala itsusiak dira?
Loreak politak dira.
Lagunak gazteak ala zaharrak dira?
Lagunak gazteak dira.
Aktoreak Nevadakoak ala Californiakoak dira?
Aktoreak Californiakoak dira.
Abeslariak bizkorrak ala alferrak dira?
Abeslari hauek bizkorrak dira, baina (but) horiek alferrak dira!

Nor zara zu? · Who are you?

Zu Edurne zara? Mikel? Wanda zara?
Ni Linda naiz. Ni ez naiz Edurne, ez naiz Mikel. Eta ni ez naiz Wanda. (Wanda?! Nor da Wanda?)

Zer zara zu? · What are you? (What do you do?)

Zu mekanikaria zara? irakaslea? ikaslea? taxista?
Ni irakaslea naiz. Ni ez naiz mekanikaria. Ni ez naiz taxista.

Nolakoa zara zu? · What are you like?

Zu bizkorra zara? alferra? ahula? sendoa? polita? itsusia? altua? txikia?
Ni altu eta sendoa naiz. (Also: Ni altua eta sendoa naiz.)
Ni ez naiz alferra, bizkorra baizik (but rather...).
Nongoa zara zu? · Where are you from?
Texasekoa zara? Bilbokoa? Donostiakoa?
Ni Nevadakoa naiz. Ni ez naiz Texasekoa, ez Bilbokoa, ez Donostiakoa. Baina nire (my) lagunak Bilbokoak
eta Donostiakoak dira.

Question Words: NOR, NONGOA, NOLAKO, ZER

The question words NOR, NONGO(A) and NOLAKO(A) have plural forms: NORTZU, NONGOAK,
NOLAKOAK.
Nor zara zu? Nortzu zarete zuek?
Nongoa zara zu? Nongoak zarete zuek?
Nolakoa zara zu? Nolakoak zarete zuek?

BUT
Zer zara zu? Zer zarete zuek?

Modifiers
Modifiers are either singular or plural, depending on the nouns they modify. However, in Basque a modifier can be a
phrase (noun and adjective, or two or more adjectives). If the modifier is a phrase, the article and plural marker (ak)
appear only at the end of the phrase, not on all its individual parts.

Example:
They are ugly actors.
Haiek aktore itsusiak dira.

The modifier is aktore itsusiak. Notice the article and plural marker (ak) are used only with the last word in the
phrase (itsusi). This holds true for longer phrases as well.

Example:
We are strong, energetic old women.
Gu emakume zahar, sendo eta bizkorrak gara.

The modifying phrase is emakume zahar, sendo eta bizkorrak. The plural marker occurs with the last word in the
phrase. (Note: “bizkor” ends in an “r” which is doubled when the article “a” is added: bizkor, bizkorra, bizkorrak.)

Where do you live? · Non bizi zara zu?

To answer this question in Basque, you must use the inessive case, represented by the suffix -(e)n. If the proper noun
(name of a place) ends in a vowel sound, add the suffix -n.

Examples:
in the Basque Country · Euskal Herrian
in Euskadi · Euskadin
in Reno · Renon
in California · Californian
in Ohio · Ohion
in Philadelphia · Philadelphian
in Iowa · Iowan
in Canada · Canadan
in Sacramento · Sacramenton
in Albuquerque --Albuquerquen
in New Mexico · New Mexicon
in Arizona · Arizonan

If the proper noun ends in a consonant sound, add the suffix -en (or -n with a bridging vowel -e-).

Examples:
in Texas · Texasen
in New York · New Yorken
in Oregon · Oregonen
in Seattle · Seattle-en*
in Portland · Portlanden
in Los Angeles · Los Angelesen
in Phoenix · Phoenixen
in Salt Lake · Salt Lake-en*

Note: Seattle and Salt Lake end in a consonant sound, even though they are written with ending vowels. Selection of
the suffix depends on the sound, not the spelling.

In English · Ingelesez
Basque Language Lesson 3 · 3garren ikasgaia

First dialog

Ainara eta Iker hitz egiten ari dira (are talking).

Ainara and Iker are talking.
Ainara emakumea da. Iker gizona da.
Ainara is a woman. Iker is a man.
Ainara etxekoanderea da. Iker pixkat arraroa da.
Ainara is a housewife. Iker is a little strange.
Zer da Iker? Batek daki!
What does Iker do? (literally: what is Iker) Who knows?!

Iker: Nortzu dira ileapaintzaile adimentsu horiek?

Who are those intelligent hairdressers?
Ainara: Haiek ez dira ileapaintzaileak. Haiek taxistak dira.
They aren’t hairdressers. They are taxi drivers.
Iker: Baina, emakumeak dira!
But, they’re women!
Ainara: Bai, eta indartsuak dira, eta barregarriak. Taxistak.
Yes, and they are strong and funny. Taxi drivers.
Iker: Nongoak dira?
Where are they from?
Ainara: New Yorkekoak.
New York. (literally: New Yorkers.)
Iker: Nolakoak dira New Yorkeko gizonak?
What are New York men like?
Ainara: Zer galdera! Zu oso pertsona arraroa zara!
What a question! You’re a very strange person!

Second dialog

Iker eta Gotzon hitz egiten ari dira.

Iker and Gotzon are talking.
Gotzon mutila da. Ikaslea. Bere unibertsitatea Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea da.
Gotzon is a boy. A student. His university is the University of the Basque Country

Iker: Kaixo, Gotzon! Zer moduz?

Hi, Gotzon! How are you?
Gotzon: Ondo esan beharko. Ai ene! Emakume hori nire irakaslea da!
Fine, I guess. Good grief! That woman is my teacher!
Iker: Bere izena?
Her name?
Gotzon: Maialen Goiherri Zapalategi.
(Note: Basques use two last names. Goiherri is Maialen’s father’s name and Zapalategi is her mother’s name. If we
get technical, they have four last names, the father’s father and mother, and the mother’s father and mother, but two
is enough for now!)
Iker: Nolakoa da?
What is she like?
Gotzon: Klasean, oso interesgarria. Barregarria. Adimentsua. Baina batzutan ulertezina.
In class, very interesting. Funny. Intelligent. But sometimes, incomprehensible.Iker: Ondo. (idazten) Irakaslea.
Ulertezina. Barkatu, Gotzon? Nongoa da Maialen?
Fine. (writing) A teacher. Incomprehensible. Excuse me, Gotzon? Where is Maialen from?
Gotzon: Nongoa? Ba, Ondarrakoa. Bai, Ondartarra. Hori.
Where (is she) from? Umm, from Ondarroa. Yes, she’s a native of Ondarroa. That’s it.
Iker: Non bizi da?
Where does she live?
Gotzon: Hemen, Donostian. Hemen dago unibertsitatea. Ez Ondarroan.
Here, in San Sebastian. The university is here. Not in Ondarroa.
Iker: Zenbat ikasle zure klasean?
How many students in your class?
Gotzon: Beno, beharbada larrogei. Bai, hori. Larrogei ikasle.
Well, perhaps eighty. Yes, that’s it. Eighty students.
Iker: (idazten) Larrogei ikasle. Haien irakaslea Maialen da, eta bera ulertezina da.
(writing) Eighty students. Their teacher is Maialen, and she is incomprehensible.
Gotzon: Batzutan.
Sometimes.
Iker: Bai, batzutan.
Yes, sometimes.
Gotzon: Beste batzutan, oso interesgarria, oso barregarria.
At other times, (she’s) very interesting, very funny.
Iker: Mila esker!
Thanks a lot! (literally: a thousand thanks)

Vocabulary · Hiztegia
Basque Language Lesson 3 · 3garren ikasgaia

Basque names
Here are some common Basque names that you will meet in the lessons here and among your Basque friends.
Sometimes an English equivalent is available, and sometimes not.

Adjectives · Adjektiboak (Izenlagunak)

motz(a) · short (length); not to bright (mentally)
luze(a) · long
indartsu(a) · strong, powerful
adimentsu(a) · intelligent
kirten(a) · stupid
barregarri(a) · funny
triste(a) · sad
hunkigarri(a) · moving (emotionally), touching
argi(a) · clear; light
ilun(a) · dark
ulertezin(a) · incomprehensible

Greetings · Agurrak
Kaixo! · Hi!
Zer moduz? · How are you?
Ondo, ta zu? · I’m fine, and you?
Ni ere bai. · Me, too.
Ondo esan beharko. · Fine. (I have to say fine.)
Agur! · Goodbye!
Gero arte! · See you later!
Ikusi arte! · See you!

Numbers · Zenbakiak
In Basque counting is done by twenties. Now that you can count from one to twenty, counting to 99 will be easy.
Beginning with 21, in Basque you count “twenty and one”, “twenty and two”, etc. Thirty is “twenty and ten”, 31 is
“twenty and eleven” and so on.
Forty is “two twenties”, 41 is “two twenties and one”, etc.

20 hogei
21 hogei ta bat
22 hogei ta bi
······
29 hogei ta bederatzi

30 hogei ta hamar
31 hogei ta hamaika
32 hogei ta hamabi
······
39 hogei ta hemeretzi (twenty and nineteen)

40 berrogei (a contraction of “bi” and “hogei”) 41 berrogei ta bat

42 berrogei ta bi
······
49 berrogi ta bederatzi

50 berrogi ta hamar (two twenties and ten)

51 berrogei ta hamaika
52 berrogei ta hamabi

60 hirurogei (three twenties)

Follow the same pattern as above.

70 hirurogei ta hamar (three twenties and ten)

71 hirurogei ta hamaika (three twenties and eleven)

80 larrogei (four twenties; sometimes spelled laurogei)

81 larrogei ta bat
85 larrogei ta bost

90 larrogei ta hamar (four twenties and ten)

99 larrogei ta hemeretzi
100 ehun

abeslari(a) · singer
aktore(a) · actor
astronauta · astronaut
azafata · airline stewardess
emakume(a) · woman
erizain(a) · nurse
esnesaltzaile(a) · milkman (or woman)
etxekoandre(a) · housewife
gizon(a) · man
ikasle(a) · student
ileapaintzaile(a) · hairdresser
irakasle(a) · teacher
lehendakari(a) · president (of the Basque Country)
mekanikari(a) · mechanic
mutil(a) · boy
neska · girl
politikari(a) · politician
postari(a) · postman (or woman)
presidente(a) · president
taxista · taxi driver

Animals · Abereak
elefante(a) · elephant
jirafa · giraffe
katu(a) · cat
lehoi(a) · lion (don’t confuse it with “leiho(a)”, window!)
pinguino(a) · penguin
txakur(ra) · dog

Adjectives · Adjektiboak (Izenlagunak)

ahul(a) · weak, in poor health
alfer(ra) · lazy
altu(a) · tall
argal(a) · thin
bizkor(ra) · energetic
garbi(a) · clean
gazte(a) · young
handi(a) · big
itsusi(a) · ugly
lodi(a) · fat
polit(a) · pretty
sendo(a) · strong, healthy
txiki(a) · short
zahar(ra) · old
zikin(a) · dirty

In order to make the plurals, instead of a, add the suffix ak to the noun.
emakumeak, gizonak, neskak, elizak, etc.

Review these demonstratives every lesson.

hau · this
hori · that
hura · that over there
(Note: “Hura” is farther away than “hori”.)
hauek · these
horiek · those
haiek · those over there
(Note: “haiek” is also “they”.)

Lesson lau · laugarren ikasgaia

Command forms in Basque can be very simple and extraordinarily useful. The verb forms listed here are also past
participles! Used in this form, with no auxiliary verb, however, they are commands.

Eseri! · sit down!

Jaiki! · stand up! Get up!
Etorri! · come!
Joan! · go!
Jan! · eat!
Edan! · drink!
Hitz egin! · speak!
Ireki atea! · open the door!
Itxi leihoa! · close the window!
Piztu argia! · turn on the light!
Itzali telebista! · turn off the t.v.!
Atera liburuak! · take out your books!
Hartu klariona! · take the chalk!
Sartu liburuak motxilan! · Put the books in the backpack!
Isildu! · shut up!
Esnatu! · wake up!
Idatzi gutuna! · write a letter!
Irakurri egunkaria! · read the newspaper!

Negative commands
In order to make the commands negative, use EZ + command form:

Ez eseri! · Don’t sit down!

Ez joan! · Don’t go!
Ez ireki atea! · Don’t open the door!
Ez piztu argia! · Don’t turn on the light!

Auxiliary Verb UKAN

The forms of UKAN are vital to your ability to speak Basque. Learn them thoroughly, and review them often.
UKAN means “to have”.

nik dut · I have (it)

zuk duzu · you have (it)
guk dugu · we have (it)
zuek duzue · you (all) have (it)
berak du · he/she has (it)
haiek dute · they have (it)

Notice that the English translation includes a parenthetical “it”. This pronoun may be expressed in the sentence and
it may not, but it is always there, even when it is “invisible”. Thus, in Basque you can say:

Nik liburua dut. · I have the book.

and
Nik dut. · I have it.

Nik ez dut liburua. · I don’t have the book.

and
Nik ez dut. · I don’t have it.

We can think of the du part of the auxiliary as containing the meaning “it”. The rest of the verb form can be called
the “ending”. The “nik” ending is “-t”, the “zuk” ending is “-zu”, and so on. Notice that the “berak” form (he/she/it)
has no ending!

But often you have more than one thing. What happens then? Well, in English, not much. But in Basque, you have to
express the plurality of your object within the auxiliary verb. So instead of “du” use “ditu” to express a plural object.
The forms of the auxiliary verb now become:

nik ditut · I have (them)

zuk dituzu · you have (them)
guk ditugu · we have (them)
zuek dituzue · you (all) have (them)
berak ditu · he/she/it has (them)
haiek dituzte · they have (them)

Recent Past
Every language has its own way of expressing the speaker’s relationship to time. In Basque, the past is viewed as
recent and distant. The recent past is generally considered to be from the time you woke up this morning to the
present moment. The distant past is reserved for events that transpired before you woke up this morning, such as
yesterday, last week, last year, or a hundred years ago.

The recent past is the first form we will learn. It consists of a past participle and the present tense of the verb
UKAN, the auxiliary verb. The past participle in Basque just happens to be the same form as the simple command
form.

The auxiliary verb UKAN means “to have”. Some speakers use it to express simple possession (as in “I have a
book”) but many others use it primarily as an auxiliary verb. We will also use it as an auxiliary verb. Soon we will
learn a different verb to express simple possession, but for now, you may use UKAN for that purpose as well.

Commands · Aginduak
Basque Language Lesson 4 · 4garren ikasgaia

Verb · English translations

Ireki atea! · Open the door!
Piztu argiak! · Turn on the lights!
Itxi atea! · Close the door!
Ireki leihoa! · Open the window!
Eseri aulki handi hartan! · Sit down in that big chair!
Itzali irratia! · Turn off the radio!
Piztu telebista! · Turn on the television!
Hartu boligrafoa eta papera! · Take the ballpoint and the paper!
Idatzi gutuna! · Write a letter!
Ipini gutuna gutunazalean! · Put the letter in the envelope!
Joan postetxera! · Go to the post office!

Practicing the Recent Past · English translation

Zer egin dut? (Or: Zer egin dut nik?) · What did I do?
Gaur goizean esnatu naiz. · This morning I woke up.
Jaiki naiz. Ni jaiki naiz. · I got up.
Sukaldera joan naiz. Ni sukaldera joan naiz. · I went to the kitchen.
Komunera joan naiz. Ni komunera joan naiz. · I went to the bathroom.

Kafea hartu dut. Nik kafea hartu dut. · I had coffee.

Note: In Basque, you say “I took coffee” but you mean “I had coffee, I drank some coffee”.
Gosaldu dut. Nik gosaldu dut. · I ate breakfast. (I breakfasted.)
Telebista piztu dut. Nik telebista piztu dut. · I turned on the television.
Papera hartu dut. Nik papera hartu dut. · I took (the piece of) paper.
Gutuna idatzi dut. Nik gutuna idatzi dut. · I wrote a letter.
Note: This sentence can also mean, “I wrote the letter”, depending on context.

Making Negatives · English translation

Gaur goizean ez naiz esnatu. Gaur goizean ni ez naiz esnatu.
This morning I did not wake up.

Ez naiz jaiki. Ni ez naiz jaiki.

I did not get up.

Ez naiz sukaldera joan. Ni ez naiz sukaldera joan.

I did not go to the kitchen.

Ez naiz komunera joan. Ni ez naiz komunera joan.

I didn’t go to the bathroom.

Ez dut kafea hartu. Nik ez dut kafea hartu.

I didn’t have any coffee. (Literally: I did not take coffee.)

Ez dut gosaldu. Nik ez dut gosaldu.

I didn’t eat breakfast. (Literally: I did not breakfast....but we never say that in English!

Ez dut telebista piztu. Nik ez dut telebista piztu.

I did not turn on the television.

Ez dut papera hartu. Nik ez dut papera hartu.

I didn’t take (the piece of) paper.
Note: We have not yet learned how to say, “I didn’t take any paper.” Also, “paper” here is the kind you write on.
“Newspaper” is “egunkaria”.

Ez dut gutuna idatzi. Nik ez dut gutuna idatzi.

I didn’t write the letter.

Galderak eta erantzunak · Questions and answers

The English translation
Esnatu zara gaur goizean? (Bai,...) · Did you wake up this morning? (Yes,...)
Jaiki zara zu? (Bai,...) · Did you get up? (Yes,...)
Zu sukaldera joan zara? (Ez,....) · Did you go to the kitchen? (No,...)
Komunera joan zara? (Bai,....) · Did you go to the bathroom? (toilet) (Yes,...)
Unibertsitatera joan zara zu? (Ez,...)· Did you go to the university? (No,...)

Gosaldu duzu? (Ez,...) · Did you have breakfast? Did you eat breakfast?
Zuk kafea hartu duzu? (Bai,...) · Did you have coffee? (Did you drink coffee?)
Telebista piztu duzu? (Ez,...) · Did you turn on the television?
Irratia piztu duzu zuk? (Bai,...) · Did you turn on the radio?
Zuk papera hartu duzu? (Bai,...) · Did you take (a piece of) paper?
Boligrafoa hartu duzu? (Ez,...) · Did you take a ballpoint pen?
Gutuna idatzi duzu? (Ez,....) · Did you write the letter?

Zer egin duzu? · What did you do?

Nik ez dut ezer egin! · I didn’t do anything!

Negative Commands -- Ezezko Aginduak

Basque Language Lesson 4 · 4garren ikasgaia

Ez ireki atea!
Ez piztu argiak!
Ez itxi atea!
Ez ireki leihoa!
Ez eseri aulki handi hartan!
Ez itzali irratia!
Ez piztu telebista!
Ez hartu boligrafoa eta papera!
Ez idatzi gutuna!
Ez ipini gutuna gutunazalean!
Ez joan postetxera!