A1 Basic Verbs 1 min read Fácil

Stative Verbs as Adjectives

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Pratique

Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds

In Khmer, many words that translate to English adjectives are actually verbs, so you don't need a 'to be' verb.

  • Use the verb directly after the subject: 'The house is big' becomes 'House big'.
  • Negate with 'min... te': 'House not big' becomes 'ផ្ទះមិនធំទេ'.
  • Ask questions by adding 'te' at the end: 'House big?' becomes 'ផ្ទះធំទេ?'.
Noun + Stative Verb (+ ទេ for negation/question)

Meanings

Khmer uses stative verbs to express qualities or states of being. Unlike English, these verbs function as the main predicate without a copula.

1

Describing qualities

Expressing physical or abstract attributes of a noun.

“ផ្ទះនេះធំ (This house is big)”

“អាហារនេះឆ្ងាញ់ (This food is delicious)”

Stative Verb Sentence Structure

Type Structure Example
Affirmative Subject + Verb ផ្ទះធំ (House big)
Negative Subject + មិន + Verb + ទេ ផ្ទះមិនធំទេ (House not big)
Question Subject + Verb + ទេ? ផ្ទះធំទេ? (House big?)
Very Subject + Verb + ខ្លាំង ផ្ទះធំខ្លាំង (House very big)
Not very Subject + មិនសូវ + Verb + ទេ ផ្ទះមិនសូវធំទេ (House not very big)
Comparison Subject + Verb + ជាង ផ្ទះធំជាង (House bigger)

Reference Table

Reference table for Stative Verbs as Adjectives
Form Structure Example
Affirmative S + V ខ្ញុំសប្បាយ (I am happy)
Negative S + មិន + V + ទេ ខ្ញុំមិនសប្បាយទេ (I am not happy)
Question S + V + ទេ? អ្នកសប្បាយទេ? (Are you happy?)
Intensifier S + V + ខ្លាំង ខ្ញុំសប្បាយខ្លាំង (I am very happy)
Comparison S + V + ជាង ខ្ញុំសប្បាយជាង (I am happier)
Softened S + មិនសូវ + V + ទេ ខ្ញុំមិនសូវសប្បាយទេ (I am not very happy)

Espectro de formalidade

Formal
អាហារនេះឆ្ងាញ់ពិសា។

អាហារនេះឆ្ងាញ់ពិសា។ (Dining)

Neutro
អាហារនេះឆ្ងាញ់។

អាហារនេះឆ្ងាញ់។ (Dining)

Informal
ម្ហូបនេះឆ្ងាញ់។

ម្ហូបនេះឆ្ងាញ់។ (Dining)

Gíria
ម្ហូបនេះម៉ាអែម!

ម្ហូបនេះម៉ាអែម! (Dining)

Stative Verb Clusters

Stative Verbs

Size

  • ធំ big
  • តូច small

Taste

  • ឆ្ងាញ់ delicious
  • ជូរ sour
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Exemplos por nível

1

ផ្ទះនេះធំ។

This house is big.

2

សៀវភៅនេះល្អ។

This book is good.

3

គាត់ស្អាត។

She is beautiful.

4

អាហារនេះឆ្ងាញ់។

This food is delicious.

1

ផ្ទះនេះមិនធំទេ។

This house is not big.

2

សៀវភៅនេះល្អទេ?

Is this book good?

3

គាត់មិនស្អាតទេ។

She is not beautiful.

4

អាហារនេះឆ្ងាញ់ទេ?

Is this food delicious?

1

ផ្ទះនេះធំខ្លាំងណាស់។

This house is very big.

2

សៀវភៅនេះល្អជាងសៀវភៅនោះ។

This book is better than that one.

3

គាត់មិនសូវស្អាតទេ។

She is not very beautiful.

4

អាហារនេះឆ្ងាញ់បន្តិច។

This food is a little delicious.

1

ផ្ទះនេះធំល្មមសម្រាប់គ្រួសារខ្ញុំ។

This house is big enough for my family.

2

សៀវភៅនេះល្អគួរឱ្យចាប់អារម្មណ៍។

This book is interestingly good.

3

គាត់ស្អាតបែបធម្មជាតិ។

She is naturally beautiful.

4

អាហារនេះឆ្ងាញ់លើសពីការរំពឹងទុក។

This food is delicious beyond expectations.

1

ផ្ទះនេះធំធេងណាស់។

This house is immense.

2

សៀវភៅនេះល្អឥតខ្ចោះ។

This book is perfect.

3

គាត់ស្អាតប្រៀបដូចជាទេពអប្សរ។

She is as beautiful as an Apsara.

4

អាហារនេះឆ្ងាញ់កម្ររកបាន។

This food is rarely delicious.

1

ផ្ទះនេះធំសម្បើមអស្ចារ្យ។

This house is magnificently huge.

2

សៀវភៅនេះល្អលើសលប់។

This book is overwhelmingly good.

3

គាត់ស្អាតផូរផង់។

She is radiantly beautiful.

4

អាហារនេះឆ្ងាញ់ពិសា។

This food is exquisite.

Fácil de confundir

Stative Verbs as Adjectives vs Stative vs Dynamic Verbs

Learners often try to use 'កំពុង' with stative verbs.

Stative Verbs as Adjectives vs គឺ vs Stative Verbs

Learners think 'គឺ' is mandatory for all sentences.

Stative Verbs as Adjectives vs ទេ vs ដែរ

Learners mix up the negative particle and the 'also' particle.

Erros comuns

✗

ផ្ទះគឺធំ

✓

ផ្ទះធំ

Do not use 'គឺ' (is) with stative verbs.
✗

ផ្ទះមិនធំ

✓

ផ្ទះមិនធំទេ

Negation requires 'ទេ' at the end.
✗

ផ្ទះធំ?

✓

ផ្ទះធំទេ?

Questions need the 'ទេ' particle.
✗

ខ្ញុំកំពុងធំ

✓

ខ្ញុំធំ

Stative verbs don't take 'កំពុង' (progressive).
✗

ផ្ទះនេះគឺធំ

✓

ផ្ទះនេះធំ

Still adding 'គឺ' unnecessarily.
✗

ផ្ទះមិនធំខ្លាំង

✓

ផ្ទះមិនធំខ្លាំងទេ

Negation must enclose the verb phrase.
✗

ផ្ទះនេះធំជាងនោះទេ

✓

ផ្ទះនេះធំជាងនោះ

Don't add 'ទេ' to comparisons.
✗

ផ្ទះនេះធំជាងគឺផ្ទះនោះ

✓

ផ្ទះនេះធំជាងផ្ទះនោះ

Avoid unnecessary copulas in comparisons.
✗

ផ្ទះនេះធំខ្លាំងណាស់ទេ

✓

ផ្ទះនេះធំខ្លាំងណាស់

Don't add 'ទេ' to intensifiers.
✗

ផ្ទះនេះធំដែរ

✓

ផ្ទះនេះធំដែរ

This is actually correct, but often misused.
✗

ផ្ទះនេះធំឥតខ្ចោះទេ

✓

ផ្ទះនេះធំឥតខ្ចោះ

Absolute adjectives don't take negation.
✗

ផ្ទះនេះធំសម្បើមគឺ

✓

ផ្ទះនេះធំសម្បើម

Avoid dangling copulas.
✗

ផ្ទះនេះធំប្រៀបដូចជាទេ

✓

ផ្ទះនេះធំប្រៀបដូចជា...

Incomplete comparison.

Padrões de frases

___ នេះ ___ ។

___ នេះមិន ___ ទេ ។

___ នេះ ___ ទេ?

___ នេះ ___ ជាង ___ ។

Real World Usage

Texting constant

ផ្ទះធំ!

Social Media very common

ស្អាតណាស់!

Job Interview common

ខ្ញុំល្អសម្រាប់ការងារនេះ។

Ordering Food very common

ឆ្ងាញ់ទេ?

Travel common

បន្ទប់នេះថ្លៃ។

Food Delivery App common

ឆ្ងាញ់ខ្លាំង។

Cadastre-se grátis para ver todos os exemplos
💡

Drop the 'is'

Whenever you want to say 'is [adjective]', just say the adjective. Your brain will want to add 'is', but stop it!
⚠️

Don't forget 'ទេ'

In negative sentences, 'ទេ' is like the closing bracket. If you don't include it, the sentence feels incomplete.
🎯

Use intensifiers

Add 'ខ្លាំង' (very) after the verb to sound more natural and expressive.
💬

Be humble

When describing yourself, it's often better to use 'មិនសូវ' (not very) to avoid sounding boastful.

Smart Tips

Don't translate 'is'. Just say the noun and the quality.

ផ្ទះគឺធំ → ផ្ទះធំ

Always remember the 'ទេ' at the end.

ផ្ទះមិនធំ → ផ្ទះមិនធំទេ

Add 'ទេ' at the end of the statement.

ផ្ទះធំ → ផ្ទះធំទេ?

Use 'ជាង' after the verb.

ផ្ទះធំជាង → ផ្ទះនេះធំជាងផ្ទះនោះ

Pronúncia

ធំ (thum) - low tone

Stative Verb Intonation

Stative verbs usually carry a falling or level tone depending on the vowel.

Question

ផ្ទះធំទេ? ↗

Rising intonation at the end indicates a question.

Memorize

Mnemônico

Think of the stative verb as a 'sticky' label you just slap onto the noun.

Associação visual

Imagine a big house with a giant sticker on it that says 'BIG' (ធំ). You don't need a glue stick (the word 'is') because the sticker is already sticky.

Rhyme

No 'is' or 'are' in the Khmer land, just put the verb right at hand.

Story

Sok is a builder. He looks at a house and says 'House big' (ផ្ទះធំ). He looks at a small hut and says 'House not big' (ផ្ទះមិនធំទេ). He asks his friend 'House big?' (ផ្ទះធំទេ?).

Word Web

ធំតូចល្អឆ្ងាញ់ស្អាតថ្លៃថោក

Desafio

Look at 5 objects in your room and describe them using [Noun] + [Stative Verb] in 5 minutes.

Notas culturais

In Cambodia, modesty is valued. Over-describing oneself as 'good' (ល្អ) can be seen as arrogant.

Khmer stative verbs are indigenous to the Austroasiatic language family.

Iniciadores de conversa

“

អាហារនេះឆ្ងាញ់ទេ?

“

ផ្ទះអ្នកធំទេ?

“

សៀវភៅនេះល្អទេ?

“

ថ្ងៃនេះអាកាសធាតុល្អទេ?

Temas para diário

Describe your room.
Describe your favorite food.
Describe your best friend.
Compare your city to another city.
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Test Yourself

Fill in the blank.

ផ្ទះនេះ ___ ។ (big)

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ធំ
Stative verbs follow the noun directly.
Correct the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

ផ្ទះគឺធំ។

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ផ្ទះធំ។
Remove 'គឺ'.
Choose the correct negative form. Múltipla escolha

ផ្ទះនេះ ___ ។

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: មិនធំទេ
Negation needs 'មិន' and 'ទេ'.
Reorder the words. Sentence Reorder

Arrange the words in the correct order:

All words placed

Click words above to build the sentence

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ផ្ទះមិនធំទេ
Subject + Negation + Verb + Particle.
Translate to Khmer. Tradução

Is it delicious?

Answer starts with: ឆ្ង...

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ឆ្ងាញ់ទេ?
Add 'ទេ' for questions.
Build a sentence. Sentence Building

Subject: អាហារ, Verb: ឆ្ងាញ់

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: អាហារឆ្ងាញ់
Simple Subject + Verb.
Sort the words. Grammar Sorting

Positive vs Negative

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ផ្ទះធំ, ផ្ទះតូច
Positive sentences.
Match the adjective. Match Pairs

Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Small
Vocabulary match.

Score: /8

Exercicios praticos

8 exercises
Fill in the blank.

ផ្ទះនេះ ___ ។ (big)

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ធំ
Stative verbs follow the noun directly.
Correct the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

ផ្ទះគឺធំ។

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ផ្ទះធំ។
Remove 'គឺ'.
Choose the correct negative form. Múltipla escolha

ផ្ទះនេះ ___ ។

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: មិនធំទេ
Negation needs 'មិន' and 'ទេ'.
Reorder the words. Sentence Reorder

ទេ / ធំ / ផ្ទះ / មិន

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ផ្ទះមិនធំទេ
Subject + Negation + Verb + Particle.
Translate to Khmer. Tradução

Is it delicious?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ឆ្ងាញ់ទេ?
Add 'ទេ' for questions.
Build a sentence. Sentence Building

Subject: អាហារ, Verb: ឆ្ងាញ់

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: អាហារឆ្ងាញ់
Simple Subject + Verb.
Sort the words. Grammar Sorting

Positive vs Negative

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ផ្ទះធំ, ផ្ទះតូច
Positive sentences.
Match the adjective. Match Pairs

ធំ - Big, តូច - ?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Small
Vocabulary match.

Score: /8

Perguntas frequentes (8)

No, stative verbs act as the verb.

Use 'មិន' before and 'ទេ' after.

Only for equating nouns, not adjectives.

Add 'ទេ' at the end.

They are verbs that function like adjectives.

Yes, they are standard.

It sounds incomplete or like a question.

No, Khmer has no gender agreement.

Scaffolded Practice

1

1

2

2

3

3

4

4

Mastery Progress

Needs Practice

Improving

Strong

Mastered

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In Other Languages

Japanese high

i-adjectives

Japanese has a specific class of adjectives, whereas Khmer treats them as verbs.

Chinese high

Adjectival verbs

Chinese requires 'hen' before the adjective in positive sentences.

Spanish low

Ser + Adjective

Spanish requires a copula verb.

French low

Être + Adjective

French requires a copula verb.

German low

Sein + Adjektiv

German requires a copula verb.

Arabic moderate

Nominal sentence

Arabic uses gender/number agreement, which Khmer does not.

Learning Path

Prerequisites

Previous
Adjectives after Nouns

Related Grammar Rules

A1

Common Action Verbs
A2

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B1

Reciprocal Actions with 'knea' (Each other)

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