Dothraki Grammar Complete — Cases, Verbs, Word Order Explained

Dothraki Grammar Complete

Quick Answer: Dothraki grammar has 5 noun cases (nominative, accusative, genitive, allative, ablative), 5 verb tenses (present, past, future, imperative, remote past), SVO word order, and no articles. Most plurals end in -i. Cases are suffix-marked. Most learners reach basic fluency in 3-6 months. Peterson built it to feel harsh and warrior-like through consonant clusters and tight phonotactic rules.

David J. Peterson built Dothraki for HBO's Game of Thrones in 2009. Unlike Tolkien's Elvish (50+ years of refinement) or Marc Okrand's Klingon (limited but mature), Dothraki is a fully designed conlang from day one — every grammatical rule decided up front by a working linguist.

This is the complete grammar reference. For pronunciation see Dothraki language basics. For vocabulary see Dothraki vocabulary list — 100 words.

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Quick map of Dothraki grammar

Feature	Dothraki pattern	Example
Articles	None	khal = "lord" or "the lord" depending on context
Plurals	-i suffix (most)	khal → khali
Cases	5 cases via suffix	khal, khali, khalaan, khalo, khalat
Verb tenses	5 marked by suffix	dothralat (to ride) → dothraki (we ride)
Word order	Subject-Verb-Object (most common)	Khal dothrae hrazef — lord rides horse
Adjective position	After the noun	hrazef vezhven — magnificent horse
No definite article	Context determines	Khal = "(a/the) lord"
Negation	ma prefix on verb	ma dothrae — does not ride

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Noun cases — the central feature

Dothraki has 5 noun cases, each marking a different grammatical role.

1. Nominative (subject) — the base form

The dictionary entry. Used for the subject of the sentence.

Khal dothrae — "The lord rides"

2. Accusative (direct object) — -es suffix (typical)

What the verb acts on.

Drogo addrivat khalakka — "Drogo will kill the heir" (khalakka in accusative form, no suffix change here)

Some nouns shift internally, others take -es or -i depending on stem type.

3. Genitive (possession) — -i suffix

"Of X" — possession or relationship.

Khali eveth — "The lord's water" (literally "water of-the-lord") Khaleesi atti hrazef — "The khaleesi of the horse-flesh" (Daenerys's title implies this structure)

4. Allative (motion toward) — -aan suffix

"To X" — direction.

Dothrae Vaes Dothrakaan — "They ride to Vaes Dothrak" Khalakka tihat ayyeyaan! — "The heir will see the city!"

5. Ablative (motion from) — -oon suffix

"From X" — origin.

Drogo dothrae shieraki gori-oon — "Drogo rides from the raging stars" (metaphorical context) Khaleesi vekha rivaan-oon — "The khaleesi comes from the river"

Case suffix summary table

Case	Function	Suffix pattern
Nominative	Subject	Base form (no suffix)
Accusative	Direct object	-es or internal change
Genitive	Possessive	-i
Allative	To / toward	-aan
Ablative	From / away from	-oon

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Verb conjugation

Dothraki verbs change ending based on tense and person.

The five tenses

Present tense (basic action)

• 1st person: -ak (I), -aki (we)
• 2nd person: -ee (you sg), -eesi (you pl)
• 3rd person: -(s)e (he/she), -(s)e (they)

Example with dothralat (to ride):

• dothrak (I ride)
• dothraki (we ride)
• dothrae (you ride sg or he/she rides)
• dothraesi (you ride pl or they ride)

Khal dothrae — "The lord rides" Hash yer dothrae chek? — "Are you riding well?"

Past tense (completed action) — -(a)é suffix

Khal dothralé — "The lord rode" Drogo zhili — "Drogo died" (irregular, internal change)

Future tense (will-do) — vo- prefix + verb

Khal vodothrae — "The lord will ride" Khalakka vodothrae rhaeshes Andahli! — "A khalakka will ride to the lands of the Andals!"

Imperative (command) — base verb

Dothrae! — "Ride!" (to one person) Dothradesi! — "Ride!" (to many people)

Remote past (ancient events) — -th suffix

Khali dothrath sajo — "Long ago, lords rode horses"

Used in proverbs, prophecies, oral history. Rare in daily speech.

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Word order

Dothraki is primarily Subject-Verb-Object, like English.

Basic SVO pattern

Khal dothrae hrazef — "The lord rides the horse" Khaleesi vekha rivaan — "The khaleesi comes from the river"

Adjective position

Adjectives come after the noun (unlike English):

Hrazef vezhven — "Magnificent horse" (literally "horse magnificent") Khali zhavvorsi — "Dragon-lord" (literally "lord of dragon")

Verb-first for emphasis

Dothrae! Khalakka shafka! — "Ride! Your khalakka!" (urgent, emphatic)

Pronoun absence

Dothraki often drops pronouns when context is clear:

Dothrak — "I ride" (full: Anha dothrak) Dothraki — "We ride" (full: Kisha dothraki)

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Pronouns

Person	Subject	Object	Possessive
1st sg (I)	anha	anna	anni
2nd sg (you)	yer	yeraan	yeri
3rd sg (he/she/it)	me / mae	moon	mae
1st pl (we)	kisha	kishaan	kishi
2nd pl (you)	yeri	yeraan	yeri
3rd pl (they)	mori	moraan	mori

Famous pronoun examples

Anha jalanak — "I am the moon" (Daenerys's identity) Anha vazhak yeraan thirat... — "I would let you live..." (Daenerys to her dosh khaleen) Hash yer jalan atthirari anni? — "Are you the moon of my life?"

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Plural formation

Most nouns add -i for the plural:

Singular	Plural
khal (lord)	khali (lords)
hrazef (horse)	hrazef (irregular — same form) or hrazefi in some contexts
vezh (stallion)	vezhi (stallions)
qora (hand)	qorae (hands)
havzhi (meat)	(uncountable, no plural)

Some nouns are uncountable (mass nouns):

• qoy — blood
• havzhi — meat (the substance)
• eveth — water (general)

For these, "many bloods" doesn't make sense; you'd say zhokwa qoyi (a lot of blood, using the genitive).

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Negation

Negate a verb with ma- prefix:

Dothrae — "rides" → Madothrae — "does not ride" Anha vekha — "I come" → Anha mavekha — "I do not come"

Stronger negation uses vosma (not at all):

Vosma anha dothrae — "I do not ride at all"

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Questions

Three patterns:

Question word at the front

Hash yer dothrae chek? — "Are you riding well?" (hash + verb) Hash khaleesi tihat ayyeyat? — "Will the khaleesi see today?"

Yes-no questions via rising tone

Dothrae? — "Are you riding?" (intonation alone)

Vekh prefix for emphasis

Vekh khali dothrae? — "Indeed, do the lords ride?"

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Common question words

Dothraki	English
hash	(yes-no marker)
mahrazh	what (thing)
mahaj	how
kifin	when
kifindi	how many
vekh	how / what (emphatic)

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Compound nouns and word formation

Dothraki productively forms compounds:

• Khal (lord) + eesi (woman of) = Khaleesi (lord's woman)
• Khalakka (heir, from khal + akka "person of")
• Vaes (city) + Dothrak (the riders) = Vaes Dothrak (City of the riders)
• Dosh (council) + khaleen (widow-khaleesis) = dosh khaleen (council of widows)

This compound-rich structure means Dothraki vocabulary is smaller than English but flexible.

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Cultural grammar — what the language tells you about the Dothraki

Three grammatical features reveal Dothraki cultural values:

1. No word for "thank you"

Dothraki literally has no canonical word for "thank you" — Peterson's design choice. To express gratitude, you say San athchomari yeraan — "much respect to you." Respect is the cultural unit; mere "thanks" isn't a Dothraki concept.

2. The verb dothralat (to ride) is foundational

"To ride" is the most-used verb in Dothraki. It's also metaphorical — jalan atthirari anni dothrak doesn't literally mean "my moon-of-life rides" but rather "my moon-of-life lives" (using the riding metaphor for existence).

3. Body and horse share vocabulary

The Dothraki share words between human and horse bodies (tih heart, qora hand/hoof, shieraki eye). See Dothraki body vocabulary. This grammatical decision reveals the cultural identity: Dothraki think of themselves and their horses as one extended being.

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Practice exercises

Try translating English to Dothraki:

1. "The lord rides the horse." (Hint: SVO, accusative for horse)
2. "I am the khaleesi." (Hint: Anha + nominative form)
3. "She speaks of the dragons." (Hint: genitive for "of dragons")
4. "We ride to the city." (Hint: allative for "to city")
5. "Drogo will not ride." (Hint: ma- + future)

Compare answers with our Dothraki language basics and Dothraki vocabulary list.

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Resources for going deeper

• Living Language Dothraki (book/course) — David Peterson's official course
• Dothraki Wiki — community-maintained resource
• Our free Dothraki lessons — gamified daily drill
• Our AI tutor — grammar questions with citations

For broader Dothraki context:

• Daenerys Dothraki phrases
• Dothraki proverbs
• Dothraki greetings complete guide
• Dothraki battle cries

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Further reading

• Dothraki language basics
• Dothraki vocabulary list — 100 words
• Dothraki grammar guide — older, simpler version
• David J. Peterson — Dothraki creator
• Dothraki body parts vocabulary
• Dothraki words for food and cooking
• Dothraki weather and seasons vocabulary
• How to learn Dothraki
• House of the Dragon × Dothraki connections

Hash yer dothrae chek? — Are you riding well? Yes, you are. The grammar is yours now.