Allowed: болот

In English, "may" or "can" works both as a question ("May I come in?") and as an answer ("Yes, you may"). In Kyrgyz the verb болот (will be / it's fine / okay) is used for this, but it rarely stands alone.

To ask for permission, a conditional construction is used: "If I do this, will it be (okay)?"

🧠 The Logic and Literal Translation

We take the main action, put it into the conditional form ("if"), add a person ("I", "you", "he") and close the sentence with the word болот (or the question болобу).

🧮 The Formula

Verb root + -са-се-со-сө + -м-ң-к-ңыз (Conditional mood) + болот / болобу?

The conditional suffix — chosen according to vowel harmony:

-са-се-со-сө (бар-са, кир-се, ойло-со, көр-сө)

Personal endings:

Person	Ending	Example	Question
Мен (I)	-м	барсам	Барсам болобу?
Сен (you, sg.)	-ң	барсаң	Барсаң болобу?
Сиз (you, formal)	-ңыз	барсаңыз	Барсаңыз болобу?
Ал (he/she)	—	барса	Барса болобу?
Биз (we)	-к	барсак	Барсак болобу?
Силер (you, pl.)	-ңар	барсаңар	Барсаңар болобу?
Сиздер (you, formal pl.)	-ңыздар	барсаңыздар	Барсаңыздар болобу?
Алар (they)	—	барышса	Барышса болобу?

Note: for the 3rd person (ал, алар) no personal ending is needed!

💡 Examples

Asking for permission (болобу?)

Кир (enter) + се + м + болобу = Кирсем болобу? (May I come in?)

кирсем болобу
кир
root
се
conditional
м
I
болобу
may I? (lit. will it be?)
→ may I come in?

Сура (ask) + са + м + болобу = Сурасам болобу? (May I ask something?)
Ал (take) + са + к + болобу = Алсак болобу? (May we take it?)
Ач (open) + са + болобу = Ачса болобу? (Is it okay to open it?)

Giving permission (болот)

Кирсең болот — You may come in / You're welcome to
Муну жесе болот — This is okay to eat (edible / permitted)
Эртең келсеңиз болот — You can come tomorrow

Mini-dialogues

— Кирсем болобу? — May I come in?

— Болот, кир. — Sure, come in.

— Бул жерде тамеки чексе болобу? — Can you smoke here?

— Жок, болбойт. — No, you can't.

— Телефонуңузду колдонсом болобу? — May I use your phone?

— Албетте, болот. — Of course, go ahead.

⚠️ Important Nuances

1. General permission (without specifying a person)

When you don't need to specify who ("Can you smoke here?", "Is this okay to do?"), the personal ending is simply dropped:

Бул жерде отурса болобу? — Is it okay to sit here?
Карта менен төлөсө болот — You can pay by card
Ушундай кылса болот — It's okay to do it this way

2. Difference from "can" (-а алам)

Construction	Meaning	Example
-са болот	Permission	Кирсем болобу? (Am I allowed to come in?)
-а алам	Ability	Кире алам (I'm physically able to come in)

"Кирсем болобу?" — I'm asking for permission "Кире аламбы?" — I'm asking whether I'm capable

See also:

Conditional Mood — the -са/-се/-со/-сө form
Vowel Harmony — choosing the right suffix variant
Modality "can" — expressing ability
Modality "forbidden" — expressing prohibition

📑Contents