Cjelina 3: Moja obitelj
⚙️ 3 | 1 | Lekcija 4: Vjenčanje – Gramatika
Adjective endings in the Accusative
So far you have learned that the adjective endings agree with nouns by gender (masculine, feminine, neuter) and by number (singular, plural). Adjectives will also agree with nouns in terms of case. That is, if a noun is the direct object in the Accusative case, the adjectives that go with that noun will also need to be in the Accusative case. Learning the Accusative endings for nouns will help a lot in learning how to form adjectives in the Accusative form.
You already know this:
FEMININE GENDER
Adjectives agreeing with feminine singular nouns in the Accusative will change their Nominative adjective ending -а to the Accusative ending –u (the same ending for feminine nouns and feminine adjectives). The plural form follows the same endings as in the Nominative plural form.
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | Ovo je lijepa plaža. | Ovo su lijepe plaže. |
| Accusative | Moram posjetiti lijepu plažu. | Moram posjetiti lijepe plaže. |
MASCULINE (inanimate) AND NEUTER GENDER
In the Accusative, adjectives modifying neuter nouns and masculine singular and plural nouns that do not refer to people will keep the same endings as in the Nominative case.
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | Ovo je lijep park. | Ovo su lijepi parkovi. |
| Accusative | Moram posjetiti lijep park. | Moram posjetiti lijepe parkove. |
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | Ovo je lijepo kazalište. | Ovo su lijepa kazališta. |
| Accusative | Moram posjetiti staro kazalište. | Moram posjetiti lijepa kazališta. |
And now, something new:
MASCULINE GENDER (animate)
The only big difference between adjective and noun endings in the Accusative case appears for masculine animate nouns (indicating human beings). Look at the following example:
- Imam zanimljivog, starijeg brata.
While the ending for masculine animate nouns in the Accusative is -a, the adjective ending can be either -og or –eg (depending on how the adjective form ends). If the adjective ends in a palatal consonant (č, ć, đ, dž, lj, nj, j, š, ž) it will have the ending -eg. Otherwise, it will always take the ending –og.
Overview: Adjective endings in the Accusative
| case | masculine | feminine | neuter |
|---|---|---|---|
| N. sing. | zanimljiv | zanimljiva | zanimljivo |
| A. sing. | -og / -eg [animate]
— [inanimate] |
-u | — |
| A. pl. | -e | -e | -a |
3.1 Zadatak 1. Mlađi ili stariji?
Read the dialogues below and note that with animate nouns, the feminine and neuter Accusative adjective forms are the same as those for inanimate nouns. The masculine adjective form, however, changes (see the highlighted ending). To review the Accusative forms of animate nouns, see grammar section in Unit 3 – Module 1 – Lesson 3.
Imaš li sestru ili brata? — Da, imam stariju sestru i mlađeg brata.
Imaš li kućnog ljubimca? — Da, imam kućnog ljubimca
Combine the adjectives below with the most appropriate nouns from the bank to complete the list of people in thirty-year-old Ivana’s immediate circle of family and friends. While some nouns might be logically combined with more than one adjective on the list, there is only one way to best match all the nouns and adjectives.
3.1 Zadatak 2. Igor i njegova obitelj
Mark all nouns in the Accusative case in the text below. Then answer the questions that follow.
Based on the information provided in the text, answer the following questions.
3.1 Zadatak 3. Prijatelji
Complete the dialogue between the two friends using the most appropriate adjectives from the bank. Read the text carefully. There is only one appropriate place for each adjective. Be careful, all adjectives listed below are in the masculine, Nominative form.
Adjectives:
- mlađi
- simpatičan
- stariji
- dobar
- srednji
3.1 Zadatak 4. Kutak za gramatiku
Look through the activities you have just completed and choose the correct statements below to summarize what you have learned.
