There are many words in our everyday usage that we assume to be Armenian, and they come down from generation to generation. This is how we find those same words used by people who have never set foot in an Armenian school and those who have finished an Armenian elementary or high school, both by people who barely speak Armenian and those who speak it as their primary language.
In the end, when people hear the actual Armenian equivalent of those same words, they are prone to complain: “You speak very pure Armenian,” “That’s a hard word,” “Nobody can understand you,” “Where do you find those words?” One may even wonder whether they show the same self-respect for the level of their English vocabulary.
Children may even become defensive and say, “I have learned this word at home,” or, if confronted with a repetitive series of common words they believe are “Armenian,” come to the bitter and self-defeating conclusion: “Have we really learned Armenian?"
Here is a randomly compiled list of frequent words that people “think” they are Armenian, only because they do not care to look for their actual origin or to make a real effort to enrich their vocabulary. The list is indeed extremely short, and does not claim to be a representative sample. But it may give an idea of where we stand.
| “Armenian” | Armenian | English |
| զէվզէկ (zevzeg) | շատախօս (shadakhos) | charlatan |
| թոմաթէս (tomates) | լոլիկ (lolig) | tomato |
| իշտէ (ishde) (1) | ահա (aha) | there |
| հէչ/հիչ (hech/hich) (2) | բնաւ (pnav) / ոչինչ (vochinch) | at all, ever, anything |
| մահանայ (mahana) | պատրուակ (badrvag) | pretext |
| մաղտանոս (maghdanos) | ազատքեղ (azadkegh) | parsley |
| չօճուխ (chojukh) | պզտիկ (bzdig) / երեխայ (yerekha) | child |
| պաճանաղ (bajanagh) | քենեկալ (kenegal) | brother-in-law (*) |
| պայաթ (bayat) | օթեկ (oteg) | stale |
| պէլքի (belki) | թերեւս (terevs) | perhaps |
| պիլէ (bile) (3) | նոյնիսկ (nooynisg) | even |
| սալաթ (salat), սալաթա (salata) | աղցան (aghtsan) | salad |
| տահա (daha) (4) | դեռ (ter), տակաւին (dagaveen) | still |
| րէզիլ (rezil), քէփէզէ (kepezeh) (5) | խայտառակ (khaydarag) | shame |
| փաթաթէս (patates) | գետնախնձոր (kednakhntzor) | potato |
| փիս (pis) | գէշ (kesh), աղտոտ (aghdod) | bad / dirty |
| քի (ki) (6) | թէ (te)/ որ (vor) | what / that |
| օրթալըխ (ortalekh) (7) | մէջտեղ (mechdegh) | middle |
(2) For example: Հէչ չեմ գիտեր (Hech chem kider, “I don’t know at all”), instead of Բնաւ չեմ գիտեր (Pnav chem kider); Հէչ մտածե՞ր ես այդ մասին (Hech mdadzer es ayt masin?, “Have you ever thought about that?”), instead of Բնաւ մտածեր ես այդ մասին (Pnav mdadzer es ayt masin); Հէչ բան գիտե՞ս (Hech pan kides?, “Do you know anything?”).
(3) For example: Չեմ գիտեր պիլէմ (Chem kider bilem, “I don’t even know”), instead of Չեմ գիտեր նոյնիսկ (Chem kider nooynisg).
(4) For example: Ռեզիլ եղանք (Rezil yeghank, “We were ashamed”) or Քէփէզէ եղանք (Kepezeh yeghank), instead of Խայտառակ եղանք (Khaydarag yeghank).
(5) For example: Տահա չեմ գիտեր (Daha chem kider, “I still don’t know”), instead of Դեռ չեմ գիտեր (Ter chem kider) or Տակաւին չեմ գիտեր (Dagaveen chem kider):
(6) For example: Ես չեմ գիտեր քի ի՞նչ ըսեմ (Yes chem kider ki inch esem?, “I don’t even know what to say”), instead of Ես չեմ գիտեր թէ ի՞նչ ըսեմ (Yes chem kider te inch esem?); Կը խորհիմ քի... (Ge khorhim ki..., “I think that”), instead of Կը խորհիմ որ (Ge khorhim vor...).
(7) For example: Կեցեր է փողոցին օրթալըխը (Getser eh poghotsin ortalekhe), instead of Կեցեր է փողոցին մէջտեղը (Getser eh poghotsin mechdeghe)
(*) The Armenian term – which has no exact equivalent in English – refers to the relationship between the husbands of two sisters. The sister of a man’s wife is his քենի (keni), which makes the latter’s husband a kenegal.
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