Regular Verb Stems
Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
To conjugate a Gujarati verb, remove the '-vu' suffix from the infinitive to find the stem, then add the appropriate tense ending.
- Find the infinitive: 'khavu' (to eat).
- Remove '-vu': 'kha' is your stem.
- Add endings: 'kha' + 'u' = 'khau' (I eat).
Meanings
The verb stem is the core part of the verb that remains constant before adding tense, mood, or person markers.
Infinitive Root
The base form used to generate all conjugated tenses.
“કરવું (karvu - to do)”
“જવું (javu - to go)”
Simple Present Conjugation (Verb: Bolvu - To Speak)
| Subject | Stem | Ending | Full Form |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hu (I) | bol | u | bolu |
| Tu (You-inf) | bol | e | bole |
| Te (He/She) | bol | e | bole |
| Ame (We) | bol | ie | bolie |
| Tame (You-form) | bol | o | bolo |
| Teo (They) | bol | e chhe | bole chhe |
Reference Table
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Affirmative | Stem + Ending | Hu bolu chhu |
| Negative | Stem + nathi | Hu bolto nathi |
| Interrogative | Shu + Sentence? | Shu tame bolo chho? |
| Past | Stem + ya/i/u | Hu bolyo |
| Future | Stem + she | Hu bolish |
| Imperative | Stem + o | Bolo! |
Espectro de formalidade
હું જમી રહ્યો છું. (Dining)
હું ખાઉં છું. (Dining)
હું ખાઉં છું. (Dining)
હું ખાવું છું. (Dining)
Verb Stem Anatomy
Stem
- Bol Speak
Suffix
- vu to
Examples by Level
હું પાણી પીઉં છું.
I drink water.
તેઓ જાય છે.
They are going.
તમે શું કરો છો?
What are you doing?
હું વાંચું છું.
I am reading.
તેણે સફરજન ખાધું.
He ate an apple.
શું તમે આવશો?
Will you come?
મારે જવું નથી.
I don't want to go.
તેઓ કામ કરે છે.
They work.
મેં પુસ્તક વાંચ્યું હતું.
I had read the book.
તેણે મને બોલાવ્યો.
He called me.
જો હું જાઉં, તો તે આવશે.
If I go, he will come.
તેઓ દોડી રહ્યા છે.
They are running.
તેને જવું પડ્યું.
He had to go.
કામ પૂરું કરી શકાય છે.
The work can be finished.
તેઓ આવતા હશે.
They must be coming.
મેં તેને લખવા કહ્યું.
I told him to write.
તેણે કામ કરાવી લીધું.
He got the work done.
તેઓ આવતા હોત તો સારું થાત.
It would have been good if they had come.
તેને બોલાવી લેવામાં આવ્યો.
He was called in.
તમે જે કહો તે સાચું.
Whatever you say is true.
તેણે લખેલું પત્ર મને મળ્યું.
I received the letter written by him.
તેઓ આવવા તૈયાર હતા.
They were ready to come.
આ કામ થઈ જવું જોઈએ.
This work should get done.
તેણે મને દોડતો જોયો.
He saw me running.
Easily Confused
Learners often use the full infinitive as the verb.
Mixing up the endings.
Using 'tame' with 'tu' endings.
Erros comuns
Hu khavu chhu
Hu khau chhu
Tu khavu
Tu khay chhe
Ame khavu
Ame khaiye chie
Teo khavu
Teo khay chhe
Hu javu
Hu jau chhu
Te javu
Te jay chhe
Tame javu
Tame jao chho
Hu javu hato
Hu jato hato
Teo javu chhe
Teo jay chhe
Ame javu chie
Ame jaine chie
Te javu padshe
Tene javu padshe
Teo javu hota
Teo jata hota
Hu javu kari
Hu jaine kari
Sentence Patterns
હું ___ છું.
તમે ___ છો?
તેણે ___ કર્યું.
મારે ___ છે.
Real World Usage
ક્યારે આવો છો?
મારે પીઝા ખાવું છે.
હું કામ કરી શકું છું.
ટ્રેન ક્યારે જશે?
શું કરી રહ્યા છો?
મેં પત્ર લખ્યો છે.
Practice daily
Watch the suffix
Use flashcards
Listen to locals
Smart Tips
Always write the infinitive first.
Focus on the ending sound.
Double check the subject.
Learn the infinitive and stem together.
Pronúncia
Nasalization
The 'u' in 'khau' is slightly nasalized.
Question
તમે જાવ છો? ↑
Rising intonation at the end indicates a question.
Memorize It
Mnemonic
Think of the '-vu' as a 'velcro' tag on the end of the verb; you must pull it off to stick the verb onto your sentence.
Visual Association
Imagine a tree where the trunk is the 'Stem' and the branches are the different 'Endings' that grow based on the season (tense).
Rhyme
Drop the vu, keep the root, now your verb is ready to shoot!
Story
Meet 'Mr. Vu'. He loves to attach himself to every verb. One day, he went on vacation, and all the verbs were left naked as stems. Now, you have to be Mr. Vu's replacement and add the right endings.
Word Web
Desafio
Take 5 verbs from your daily life, write their infinitives, strip the '-vu', and conjugate them for 'I' (Hu).
Notas culturais
Surati speakers often use a distinct 'chhe' pronunciation.
They often use different auxiliary forms.
Used in media and formal education.
Gujarati verbs derive from Sanskrit roots.
Conversation Starters
તમે શું કરો છો?
તમે શું ખાશો?
તમે ગઈકાલે શું કર્યું?
તમે શું કામ કરવા માંગો છો?
Journal Prompts
Test Yourself
હું ___ છું (to eat).
તમે ___ છો?
Find and fix the mistake:
તેઓ ખાવું છે.
હું જાઉં છું.
બોલવું
Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:
A: તમે ક્યાં જાવ છો? B: હું ___.
હું / કામ / કરું / છું
Score: /8
Exercicios praticos
8 exercisesહું ___ છું (to eat).
તમે ___ છો?
Find and fix the mistake:
તેઓ ખાવું છે.
હું જાઉં છું.
બોલવું
કરવું
A: તમે ક્યાં જાવ છો? B: હું ___.
હું / કામ / કરું / છું
Score: /8
Perguntas frequentes (8)
Gujarati is an inflected language; endings show who is doing the action.
Yes, like 'javu' (to go) which changes to 'gayo' in the past.
In casual speech, yes, but it's better to keep it for clarity.
Yes, the grammar structure is very similar.
Use 'nathi' after the verb stem.
Try to use the most common one, or ask for help.
Mostly, yes, except for some irregular verbs.
Use the exercises provided and speak daily.
In Other Languages
Infinitive -na
The infinitive suffix is the main difference.
Infinitive -ar/-er/-ir
Spanish has three conjugation groups; Gujarati is mostly uniform.
Infinitive -en
German has many strong verbs with stem changes.
Dictionary form -u
Gujarati uses suffix addition, Japanese uses vowel mutation.
Root system
Arabic roots are usually triconsonantal, not stems.
None
Chinese verbs never change form.
