Expressing 'To Have' with 'Allä'
Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
In Amharic, you don't 'have' things; things 'exist' for you using the verb 'allä'.
- Use the root 'allä' with possessive suffixes: 'allä-ñ' (I have).
- The thing you possess comes first, followed by the conjugated verb.
- For negatives, use 'yälläm' (does not exist for me).
Possessive Suffixes with Allä
| Person | Affirmative | Negative |
|---|---|---|
|
I
|
አለኝ (allä-ñ)
|
የለኝም (yällä-ñ-m)
|
|
You (m)
|
አለህ (allä-h)
|
የለህም (yällä-h-m)
|
|
You (f)
|
አለሽ (allä-sh)
|
የለሽም (yällä-sh-m)
|
|
He
|
አለው (allä-w)
|
የለውም (yällä-w-m)
|
|
She
|
አላት (allä-at)
|
የላትም (yällä-at-m)
|
|
We
|
አለን (allä-n)
|
የለንም (yällä-n-m)
|
|
You (pl)
|
አላችሁ (allä-chu)
|
የላችሁም (yällä-chu-m)
|
|
They
|
አላቸው (allä-chäw)
|
የላቸውም (yällä-chäw-m)
|
Meanings
The verb 'allä' is used to express existence and possession. When used with object suffixes, it indicates that something exists in relation to a person.
Possession
Indicating ownership or having something in one's possession.
“ገንዘብ አለኝ (I have money)”
“ቤት አለው (He has a house)”
Reference Table
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Affirmative
|
Object + allä + suffix
|
መጽሐፍ አለኝ
|
|
Negative
|
Object + yällä + suffix + m
|
መጽሐፍ የለኝም
|
|
Question
|
Object + allä + suffix + ni?
|
መጽሐፍ አለህ?
|
|
Past
|
Object + näbbär + suffix
|
መጽሐፍ ነበረኝ
|
|
Future
|
Object + yino-r-ä-ñ-al
|
መጽሐፍ ይኖረኛል
|
औपचारिकता का स्तर
መኪና አለኝ። (Daily life)
መኪና አለኝ። (Daily life)
መኪና አለኝ! (Daily life)
መኪና አለኝኮ! (Daily life)
The Allä Universe
Possession
- አለኝ I have
Location
- እዚህ አለ It is here
Existence
- አለ It exists
स्तर के अनुसार उदाहरण
መጽሐፍ አለኝ
I have a book.
ውሃ አለህ?
Do you (masc) have water?
ቤት አላት
She has a house.
ጊዜ የለኝም
I don't have time.
ስልክ የለንም
We don't have a phone.
ገንዘብ አላችሁ?
Do you (plural) have money?
እህት አለችው
He has a sister.
መኪና የላቸውም
They don't have a car.
ጥያቄ ካለህ ጠይቀኝ
If you have a question, ask me.
የሚበላ ነገር አለ?
Is there something to eat?
ምንም የለኝም
I have nothing.
እቅድ አላቸው
They have a plan.
ያለኝን ሁሉ ሰጠሁት
I gave him everything I had.
እሱ የሌለውን ነገር አትጠይቀው
Don't ask him for what he doesn't have.
ምርጫ የለንም
We have no choice.
ችግር ካለ ንገረኝ
If there is a problem, tell me.
ያለችው ብቸኛ አማራጭ ይህ ነው
The only option she has is this.
የነበረን ጊዜ አጭር ነበር
The time we had was short.
ምንም ቢኖርህ አትኩራራ
Whatever you have, don't be arrogant.
የሌለውን ነገር መመኘት ከንቱ ነው
Wishing for what one doesn't have is futile.
ያላቸው ሀብት ለትውልድ የሚተርፍ ነው
The wealth they possess will last for generations.
የማይኖረን ነገር የለም
There is nothing we won't have.
ባለህበት ቦታ ሁሉ ደስታ ይኑርህ
May you have happiness wherever you are.
የነበረውና ያለው አንድ ነው
What was and what is are the same.
आसानी से भ्रमित होने वाले
Learners mix up 'to have' (allä) and 'to be' (näw).
Forgetting the '-m' in negative.
Mixing up masc/fem suffixes.
सामान्य गलतियाँ
እኔ አለኝ መጽሐፍ
መጽሐፍ አለኝ
አለኝም መጽሐፍ
መጽሐፍ የለኝም
መጽሐፍ አለውኝ
መጽሐፍ አለኝ
መጽሐፍ አለ
መጽሐፍ አለኝ
መጽሐፍ የለኝ
መጽሐፍ የለኝም
መጽሐፍ አለሽ (to a man)
መጽሐፍ አለህ
መጽሐፍ አለች
መጽሐፍ አላት
መጽሐፍ ነበረ አለኝ
መጽሐፍ ነበረኝ
መጽሐፍ ይኖራል አለኝ
መጽሐፍ ይኖረኛል
መጽሐፍ የለኝም ነበር
መጽሐፍ አልነበረኝም
ያለኝ መጽሐፍ ጥሩ ነው
ያለኝ መጽሐፍ ጥሩ ነው (Wait, this is correct, but check context)
የሌለውን ነገር አትፈልግ
የሌለህን ነገር አትፈልግ
ምንም የለኝ
ምንም የለኝም
वाक्य संरचनाएँ
___ አለኝ
___ የለኝም
___ አለው
___ ካለህ ንገረኝ
Real World Usage
ሜኑ አለህ?
ጊዜ የለኝም
ልምድ አለኝ
ካርታ አለህ?
ይህ አለዎት?
አዲስ ሀሳብ አለኝ!
Drop the subject
Don't forget the -m
Use it for everything
Politeness
Smart Tips
Always put the object first.
Don't forget the '-m' at the end.
Use rising intonation.
Use the polite suffix.
उच्चारण
Suffix stress
The stress usually falls on the root 'allä', but the suffix is pronounced clearly.
Question
መጽሐፍ አለህ↗?
Rising intonation at the end indicates a question.
याद करें
स्मृति सहायक
Think of 'Allä' as 'All-there'. If it's 'all there' for me, I have it.
दृश्य संबंध
Imagine a giant magnet (the verb) pulling objects (the nouns) toward a person (the suffix).
Rhyme
When you have a thing to show, add the suffix to the 'allä' flow.
Story
A traveler arrives in Addis. He asks 'Menu allä-h?' (Do you have a menu?). The waiter smiles and says 'Allä-ñ' (I have it). The traveler is happy because he now has food.
Word Web
चैलेंज
Look around your room and name 5 things you have using 'allä-ñ'.
सांस्कृतिक नोट्स
In Ethiopian culture, asking 'Do you have?' is often a polite way to start a request for help or service.
Younger speakers often drop the final '-m' in very casual text messages, though it is technically incorrect.
In some rural areas, the pronunciation of the suffix might be slightly elongated for emphasis.
The verb 'allä' comes from the Proto-Semitic root *h-w-y, which relates to existence.
बातचीत की शुरुआत
ስልክ አለህ?
ጊዜ አለሽ?
መኪና አላቸው?
ምን አይነት ችግር አለብህ?
डायरी विषय
सामान्य गलतियाँ
Test Yourself
መጽሐፍ አለ___
መጽሐፍ ___
Find and fix the mistake:
እኔ መጽሐፍ አለኝ (Remove unnecessary word)
ስልክ አለኝ
He has
Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:
አለኝ / መኪና
መጽሐፍ አለሽ (to a man)
Score: /8
अभ्यास प्रश्न
8 exercisesመጽሐፍ አለ___
መጽሐፍ ___
Find and fix the mistake:
እኔ መጽሐፍ አለኝ (Remove unnecessary word)
ስልክ አለኝ
He has
We have
አለኝ / መኪና
መጽሐፍ አለሽ (to a man)
Score: /8
अक्सर पूछे जाने वाले सवाल (8)
Yes, you can say 'እህት አለችኝ' (I have a sister).
It is the negative form of 'allä'.
No, it also means 'to be present' or 'to exist'.
Use rising intonation or add '-ni'.
Use 'ምንም የለኝም'.
It is neutral and used in all registers.
Yes, 'ጊዜ አለኝ' (I have time).
It identifies the possessor clearly.
Scaffolded Practice
1
2
3
4
Mastery Progress
Needs Practice
Improving
Strong
Mastered
In Other Languages
Tener
Amharic uses existence, Spanish uses a transitive verb.
Avoir
Amharic uses existence, French uses a transitive verb.
Haben
Amharic uses existence, German uses a transitive verb.
Aru/Iru
Japanese uses particles, Amharic uses suffixes.
Indi
Arabic uses a prepositional phrase, Amharic uses a verb suffix.
You
Chinese 'you' is a verb, Amharic 'allä' is existential.
