ܐܝܬ

Inherited from Aramaic אִית (ʾîṯ); cognate with Hebrew יֵשׁ (yésh), Akkadian 𒌇 (išûm), Ugaritic 𐎛𐎘 (ỉṯ, “presence, existence”).

• (Standard) IPA^(key): [ʔiːθ]
• (Nineveh Plains) IPA^(key): [ʔiːθ.]
• (Urmia) IPA^(key): [ʔiːt.]

ܐܝܼܬ݂ • (īṯ)

1. there is/are

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܘܲܪܕܵܐ ܓܲܘ ܓܲܢܬ݂ܵܐ. ― īṯ wardā gaw ganṯā. ― There is a rose in the garden.

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܗ݇ܘܵܐ ܪܵܒܵܐ ܐ݇ܢܵܫܹ̈ܐ ܒܫܘܼܩܵܐ. ― īṯ wā rābā nāšē b-šūqā. ― There were many people at the market.

2. to have, own, possess [with ܠ- (l-)]

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܠܝܼ ܟܲܠܒܵܐ. ― īṯ lī kalbā. ― I have a dog (literally, “There is to me a dog.”)

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܗ݇ܘܵܐ ܠܝܼ ܚܲܕ݇ܟ̰ܵܐ ܙܘܼܙܹ̈ܐ. ― īṯ wā lī ḥačā zūzē. ― I had some money. (literally, “There was to me some money.”)

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܠܝܼ ܚܕ݂ܵܐ ܚܵܬ݂ܵܐ ― īṯ lī ḥḏā ḥāṯā ― I have one sister.

3. to be (years) old [+ ܠ- (l-) (age)]

   ܟܡܵܐ ܫܸ̈ܢܹܐ ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܠܘܼܟ݂ ܐܲܢ݇ܬ؟ ― kmā šinnē īṯ lōḵ at? ― How old are you? (literally, “How many years are there to you?”)

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܗ݇ܘܵܐ ܠܹܗ ܬܸܫܥܝܼܢ ܫܸܢܹ̈ܐ ܐܝܼܡܲܢ ܕܡܝܼܬ݂ ܠܹܗ. ― īṯ wā lēh tišˁīn šinnē īman d-mīṯ lēh. ― He was ninety years old when he died. (literally, “There was to him ninety years when he died.”)

4. to have a guest, visitor, one at the door [with ܠ- (l-)]
5. (by extension) to have a phone call [with ܠ- (l-)]
6. Used to indicate a certain amount of time has passed since a certain event; it has been… since… [+ usually with the past participle]

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܠܝܼ ܬܪܹܝܢ ܝܲܘ̈ܡܹܐ ܦܠܝܼܚܬܵܐ ― īṯ lī trēn yawmē plīḥtā ― It has been two days since I [first] worked.

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܗ݇ܘܵܐ ܠܹܗ ܫܲܒܬ݂ܵܐ ܦܠܝܼܛܵܐ ― īṯ wā lēh šabṯā plīṭā ― It had been a week since he had first left.

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܠܲܢ ܫܲܢ݇ܬܵܐ ܐ݇ܙ̈ܝܼܠܹܐ ܬܸܡܵܠܝ ― īṯ lan šattā zīlē timmāl ― Yesterday it has been a year since we went.

   ܨܲܦܪܵܐ ܒܸܕ ܗܵܘܹܐ ܠܲܢ ܝܲܪܚܵܐ ― ṣaprā bid hāwē lan yarḥā ― Tomorrow it will be [for us] a month since (a particular event).

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܠܵܗ̇ ܬܲܪܬܹܝܢ ܫܸ̈ܢܹܐ ܗܘܝܼܬ݂ܵܐ ― īṯ lāh tartēn šinnē hwīṯā ― It has been two years since it happened.

7. to have (a characteristic or internal or inherent feature) [with ܒ- (b-)]

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܗ݇ܘܵܐ ܒܝܼ ܚܲܡܚܲܡܬܵܐ ― īṯ wā bī ḥamḥamtā ― I had a fever. (literally, “There was in me a fever.”)

   ܒܲܝܬܝܼ ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܒܹܗ ܬܪܹܝܢ ܡܲܦܩܹ̈ܐ ― baytī īṯ bēh trēn mapqē ― My house has two exits.

   ܥܲܩܠܵܬ݂ܝܼ̈ ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܒܗܹܝܢ ܟܹܐܒ݂ܵܐ ― ˁaqlāṯī īṯ bhēn kēḇā ― My legs have pain.

8. to be able to [with ܒ- (b-)]

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܒܝܼ ܙܵܡܪܹܢ. ― īṯ bī zāmrēn. ― I can sing (literally, “There is in me to sing.”)

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܗ݇ܘܵܐ ܒܘܼܟ݂ ܙܵܡܪܹܬ. ― īṯ wā bōḵ zāmrēt. ― You could sing (literally, “There was in you to sing.”)

9. (with ܥܲܠ (ˁal)) to be incumbent on, obligatory, expected from, have a duty to do

   ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܥܲܠܵܟ݂ܝ ܕܡܙܲܡܢܲܬܝ ܠܵܗ̇ ܘܐ݇ܚܪܹܢܵܐ ܠܲܝܬ ܕܥܵܒ݂ܕ݂ܲܬܝ ― īṯ ˁallāḵ dmzamnat lāh w-ḥrēnā layt dˁāḇḏat ― There is a duty on you to invite her, and nothing else for you to do.

• (to have, to be possible): While ܐܝܼܬ݂ (īṯ) is an adverb, it is used in much the same way as a present-tense verb. Its corresponding past tense is expressed by ܐܝܼܬ݂ (īṯ) + ܗ݇ܘܵܐ/ܗ݇ܘܵܘ (wā) and its future tense is expressed by ܒܸܬ ܗܵܘܹܐ (bit hāwē)/ܒܸܬ ܗܵܘܝܵܐ (bit hāwyā)/ܒܸܬ ܗܵܘܝܼ (bit hāwī); followed by its suffixes agreeing with the subject in person, gender, and number.

  ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܠܝܼ ܚܲܒܘܼܫܵܐ. ― īṯ lī ḥabūšā. ― I have an apple.

  ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܗ݇ܘܵܐ ܠܝܼ ܚܲܒܘܼܫܵܐ. ― īṯ wā lī ḥabūšā. ― I had an apple.

  ܒܸܬ ܗܵܘܹܐ ܠܝܼ ܚܲܒܘܼܫܵܐ. ― bit hāwē lī ḥabūšā. ― I will have an apple.

  ܒܸܬ ܗܵܘܝܼ ܠܝܼ ܚܲܒܘܼܫܵܐ ܘܦܘܼܪܬܩܵܠܵܐ. ― bit hāwī lī ḥabūšā w-purtqālā. ― I will have an apple and an orange.

• “I have” in English may be translated with either ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܠܝܼ (īṯ lī) or ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܒܝܼ (īṯ bī) depending on context. For “I have” in the sense of owning an item or other possession, physical or not, metaphorical or true, the form ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܠܝܼ (īṯ lī, literally “There is to me”) is used. In all other contexts of “I have,” the form ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܒܝܼ (īṯ bī, literally “There is in me”) is used. In some contexts, it is possible to use both forms with difference in meaning, for example: ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܠܝܼ ܣܲܒ݂ܪܵܐ ― īṯ lī saḇrā ― I possess hope., ܐܝܼܬ݂ ܒܝܼ ܣܲܒ݂ܪܵܐ ― īṯ bī saḇrā ― There is hope in me.

• ܠܲܝܬ (layt)

• ܐܝܼܬ݂ܘܼܬ݂ܵܐ (īṯūṯā, “essence; existence”)
• ܐܝܼܬ݂ܝܵܐ (īṯyā, “entity, being; essence”)

Compare Aramaic אִית (ʾîṯ), Hebrew יֵשׁ (yēš).

• (Classical Edessan, Eastern Syriac, Western Syriac) IPA^(key): [ˈʔiθ]

ܐܝܬ • (ʾīṯ) (peal construction (irregular))

1. there is/are
2. to be, exist
3. (with ܠ- (lə-)) to have
4. (with ܠ- (lə-) or ܕ- (də-)) to be possible, allowable; must
5. (with ܠܘܬ (ləwāṯ)) to be with; have; be found; be found guilty
6. (with ܥܠ (ʿal)) to be incumbent on, obligatory, expected from

This word does not inflect like a regular verb. It mostly occurs as an uninflected particle, though it can take type-II suffixes (as certain prepositions or plural nouns), agreeing with the subject in person, gender, and number. Its past tense is expressed by a following ܗܘܐ ([hə]wā), inflected in the third person and agreeing with the subject in gender and number.

• ܠܝܬ (layt)

• “ˀyt”, in The Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon Project, Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College, 1986–, retrieved 17 July 2021
• Costaz, Louis (2002) Dictionnaire syriaque-français ∙ Syriac–English Dictionary ∙ قاموس سرياني-عربي, 3rd edition, Beirut: Dar El-Machreq, pages 8a–b
• Payne Smith, Jessie (1903) A Compendious Syriac Dictionary Founded Upon the Thesaurus Syriacus of R. Payne Smith, D.D., Oxford: Clarendon Press, pages 14b–15a
• Sokoloff, Michael (2009) A Syriac Lexicon: A Translation from the Latin, Correction, Expansion, and Update of C. Brockelmann's Lexicon Syriacum, Winona Lake, Indiana, Piscataway, New Jersey: Eisenbrauns; Gorgias Press, →ISBN, page 39a