Beach & Activities

1. Hondartza ederra da!

   Hon-dar-tza e-der-ra da!

   What a beautiful beach!

   Usage

   Exclamation of admiration upon arriving at a beautiful beach

   Grammar Note

   When "eder" (beautiful) is predicative, it takes the article "-a" to become "ederra"

2. Hemen igeri egin dezaket?

   He-men i-ge-ri e-gin de-za-ket?

   Can I swim here?

   Usage

   Checking whether it is safe to swim at this spot

   Grammar Note

   "igeri egin" is a compound verb meaning "to swim" (literally "to do swimming")

3. Non aloka dezaket eguzki-aulkia?

   Non a-lo-ka de-za-ket e-guz-ki-aul-ki-a?

   Where can I rent a sun lounger?

   Usage

   Asking where to rent a sun lounger or beach chair

   Grammar Note

   In Basque compounds the first element is the bare stem, so "eguzki-aulkia" (the article -a is not kept on the first element)

4. Kontuz uhin handiekin

   Kon-tuz u-hin han-die-kin

   Be careful of big waves

   Usage

   Warning about dangerous waves, especially in the Bay of Biscay

   Grammar Note

   "kontuz" is a warning word; "-ekin" is the comitative case "with/against"

5. Eguzki-krema behar dut.

   E-guz-ki-kre-ma be-har dut.

   I need sunscreen

   Usage

   Used when you need to buy or borrow sunscreen at the beach

   Grammar Note

   "behar dut" is the standard construction for "I need". As in "eguzki-krema", the first element of a compound is the bare stem

6. Non dago hondartzako komuna?

   Non da-go hon-dar-tza-ko ko-mu-na?

   Where are the beach restrooms?

   Usage

   Asking for the location of beach restroom facilities

   Grammar Note

   "-ko" is the Basque genitive suffix meaning "of/for"

7. Olatuak lasai daude gaur.

   O-la-tu-ak la-sai dau-de gaur.

   The waves are calm today

   Usage

   Commenting on calm sea conditions, good for swimming or kayaking

   Grammar Note

   A sea wave is "olatu" ("uholde" means "flood", not "wave"). Since the subject "olatuak" is plural, "egon" also takes the plural form "daude"

8. Arraina harrapatzen ari dira.

   Ar-rai-na har-ra-pa-tzen a-ri di-ra.

   They are fishing

   Usage

   Describing people fishing along the Basque coast or harbour

   Grammar Note

   "ari dira" is the progressive auxiliary for third person plural, meaning "they are doing"

9. Surfea egiten ikasi nahi dut.

   Sur-fe-a e-gi-ten i-ka-si na-hi dut.

   I want to learn to surf

   Usage

   The Basque coast is world-famous for surfing; asking about surf schools

   Grammar Note

   "nahi dut" is the desiderative construction meaning "I want to"

10. Hondartzan maskor bat hartu dut.

    Hon-dar-tzan mas-kor bat har-tu dut.

    I picked up a seashell on the beach

    Usage

    Describing finding and collecting a seashell during a beach walk

    Grammar Note

    A seashell is "maskor" ("txantxangorri" is the bird "robin", not a shell). "hartu" is transitive, so the auxiliary is the "ukan"-series "dut"

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