Module 10 · Prepositions and the sentence · Prievārdi un teikums · Level A1
Sentence Structure: Word Order, Questions, Conjunctions
Teikuma uzbūve
Word order — free, but with habits
The neutral order is subject — verb — object: Es lasu grāmatu. (I am reading a book.) A time adverbial likes to lead: Vakar es lasīju grāmatu. (Yesterday I read a book.) As in English, word order shifts for emphasis: Grāmatu es lasīju vakar (the book I read yesterday — emphasizing "yesterday," not today).
Adjectives and possessives go before the noun: mana liela māja (my big house). A genitive modifier also goes before: tēva māja (father's house), Rīgas centrs (the center of Riga), kafijas tase (a cup of coffee).
Questions
- Yes/no — the particle vai at the start, word order unchanged: Vai tu runā latviski? (Do you speak Latvian?) Vai jums ir laiks? (Do you have time?) Without vai, the question is marked by intonation alone (colloquial).
- With a question word — the question word leads: Kur tu dzīvo? (Where do you live?) Ko tu dari? (What are you doing?) Kad sākas? (When does it start?) Kāpēc ne? (Why not?)
- Negative question: Vai tu nezini? (Don't you know?) — answered Zinu (I know) / Nezinu (I don't know).
Negation
ne- attaches directly to the verb, and ir becomes nav: Es nerunāju. (I don't speak.) Tā nav mana grāmata. (That's not my book.) Double negation is required: Es nekad neeju. (I never go — literally "I never not-go.") Neviens nezina. (No one knows.) Short answer: Nē. (No.) / Jā. (Yes.)
Conjunctions
| Conjunction | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| un | and | tēja un kafija |
| bet | but | Es gribu, bet nevaru. |
| vai | or | Tēja vai kafija? |
| jo | because | Palieku mājās, jo līst. |
| tāpēc | therefore | Līst, tāpēc palieku. |
| tāpēc, ka | because | Palieku, tāpēc ka līst. |
| ka | that | Es zinu, ka tu vari. |
| kad | when | Kad beigšu, atnākšu. |
| ja | if | Ja būs laiks, atnākšu. |
| lai | so that | Mācos, lai runātu. |
| kaut gan / lai gan | although | Lai gan līst, ejam. |
| tomēr | still, however | Bija grūti, tomēr izdarīju. |
| vai … vai | either … or | vai šodien, vai rīt |
| ne … ne | neither … nor | ne šodien, ne rīt |
| gan … gan | both … and | gan tēja, gan kafija |
A comma is placed before ka, kad, ja, lai, jo, bet, tāpēc ka, kas, kurš — much like before "that," "when," "if," etc. in careful English punctuation.
ka / kad / kā / kas
Four similar-looking words: ka — "that" (conjunction), kad — "when," kā — "how" (or genitive "what's"), kas — "who/what." Es zinu, ka tu nāksi. (I know that you'll come.) Es zinu, kad tu nāksi. (I know when you'll come.) Es zinu, kā tu nāksi. (I know how you'll come.) Es zinu, kas nāks. (I know who will come.)
Exercise
1) Do you know where he lives? 2) I'm staying home because I'm tired. 3) Although it's expensive, I'll buy it. 4) Neither me nor you.
Answers
1) Vai tu zini, kur viņš dzīvo? 2) Es palieku mājās, jo esmu noguris. 3) Lai gan dārgi, es nopirkšu. 4) Ne es, ne tu.Open the lesson in the trainer — with exercises and a “done” mark →Module test 10