Belarusian Adjective Agreement with Nouns
In Belarusian, adjectives must match the nouns they describe. This means they need to agree in gender, number, and case. Let's explore how this works.
Nouns in Belarusian can be masculine, feminine, or neuter. Adjectives change their endings to match the gender of the noun.
Examples
- вялікі дом (big house, masculine)
- вялікая машына (big car, feminine)
- вялікае акно (big window, neuter)
Adjectives also change depending on whether the noun is singular or plural. Singular nouns have different adjective endings than plural nouns.
Examples
- вялікі дом (big house, singular)
- вялікія дамы (big houses, plural)
Belarusian has several cases, and adjectives change their endings to match the case of the noun they describe. These cases include nominative, accusative, genitive, dative, instrumental, and prepositional.
Important Points
- Nominative: Used for the subject of the sentence.
- Accusative: Used for the direct object.
- Genitive: Often shows possession.
- Dative: Used for the indirect object.
- Instrumental: Shows 'with' or 'by means of'.
- Prepositional: Used after certain prepositions.
Examples
- вялікі дом (nominative)
- вялікага дома (genitive)
- вялікім домам (instrumental)
Remember, in Belarusian, adjectives must agree with the nouns they describe in gender, number, and case. This helps the sentence make sense and sound right.