Directions on the street

When someone asks you how to get somewhere — or when you get lost and have to ask — you need a handful of imperative verbs and adverbs of direction. In this lesson, we’ll cover the essentials.

Basic Imperatives

In Basque, the affirmative imperative of movement verbs is very direct:

Form	Base verb	Meaning
Jo	jo	hit / head (jo ezkerrera = turn left)
Segi / Jarraitu	segitu / jarraitu	follow, continue
Hartu	hartu	take (hartu kale hau = take this street)
Igo	igo	go up
Jaitsi	jaitsi	go down
Sartu	sartu	enter
Irten	irten	exit
Zeharkatu	zeharkatu	cross
Iritsi / heldu	iritsi / heldu	arrive (… arte = “until…”)

Jo literally means “to hit,” but it’s used metaphorically as “to head towards”: jo ezkerrera = “turn left.”

Adverbs and Directional References

Basque	English
ezkerra	the left
eskuina	the right
aurrera	forward
atzera	backward
zuzen	straight
gora	upward
behera	downward

Note: to indicate direction towards, the suffix -ra is used (which you’ll see in depth in lesson 03): ezkerre-ra (to the left), aurre-ra (forward), atze-ra (backward). The same goes for gora and behera.

Typical Landmarks

Basque	English
semaforoa	traffic light
bidegurutzea	crossing, intersection
zebrabidea	crosswalk
biribilgunea / errotonda	roundabout
aldapa	hill, slope
eskailerak	stairs
zubia	bridge
errepidea	road
kalea	street

Example Phrases

• Jo ezkerrera bidegurutzean. — Turn left at the crossing.
• Segi aurrera semaforora arte. — Go straight until the traffic light.
• Zeharkatu zebrabidea. — Cross the crosswalk.
• Igo eskailerak eta sartu eraikinean. — Go up the stairs and enter the building.
• Jaitsi aldapa, eta gero jo eskuinera. — Go down the hill, and then turn right.
• Egin atzera; gehiegi joan zara. — Go back; you’ve gone too far.

Asking for and Giving Directions

— Barkatu, non dago udaletxea? — Excuse me, where is the town hall?

— Segi aurrera semaforora arte. Han jo eskuinera eta zeharkatu plaza. Udaletxea elizaren ondoan dago. — Go straight until the traffic light. There, turn right and cross the square. The town hall is next to the church.

— Eta gertu dago? — And is it nearby?

— Bai, oso gertu. Bost minutu oinez. — Yes, very close. A five-minute walk.

Tip: many directions follow a fixed pattern: imperative (jo, segi, zeharkatu) + place with a suffix (ezkerrera, semaforora, zebrabidea). If you memorize the pattern, you can chain long instructions by combining pieces.