Borîya berdest · Ongoing and habitual past
Say what was happening or used to happen.
By the end of this lessonUse di- with past stems and distinguish ongoing background from completed events.
The idea
Add di- to the simple past pattern: ez dihatim (I was coming / used to come), ew diçû (was going / used to go), em diçûn. Context decides whether the action was ongoing or habitual. With transitive verbs, the doer stays oblique and agreement still follows the object: Wê ez didîtim; Min ew didît.
See it in a sentence
Negation keeps di-: ez nedihatim, min ew nedidît. Do not use the present negative na- for this past pattern. Compare Ez diçim (I go), Ez çûm (I went) and Ez diçûm (I was going). For background plus an event: Gava ez diçûm, ew hat.
Build it step by step
- Choose a past ongoing or repeated situation, rather than only a completed event.
- Add di- to the past pattern; retain the same subject/object agreement rules.
- For a negative, put ne- before di-. Connect a background clause to a completed event when useful.
| Role | Affirmative | Negative |
|---|---|---|
| ez | dihatim | nedihatim |
| tu | dihatî | nedihatî |
| ew (singular) | dihat | nedihat |
| em / hûn / ew (plural) | dihatin | nedihatin |
| she → me | Wê ez didîtim. | Wê ez nedidîtim. |
Take a sentence apart
negation
ongoing / habitual aspect
past stem + first-person ending
English separates “was going” and “used to go”; this Kurmanji form can express either, depending on context.
A common trap
Incorrect: Ez nahatim.
Correct: Ez nedihatim.
For “I was not coming”, keep di- and add ne- before it.
Grammar reference: Thackston, §§ 18.1–18.2 · Past progressive and habitual