Adjective Number Agreement

Level 1

In Albanian, when a noun is plural, the adjective describing it must also become plural. This involves changing the linking article (the small word before the adjective) and often adding a suffix to the end of the adjective.

How It Works

When a noun becomes plural, the adjective follows these rules:

1. The Linking Article:
Regardless of gender, the linking article changes to të for indefinite plurals (libra të rinj) and e for definite nominative plurals (librat e rinj).

2. Masculine Adjectives:
Most masculine adjectives do not change their stem in the plural (e.g., i bukur → të bukur). However, a small group has irregular stem changes, such as i ri → të rinj, i vogël → të vegjël, and the very common i madh → të mëdhenj.

3. Feminine Adjectives:
Feminine adjectives usually add -a to the stem (e.g., e mirë → të mira). Exception: Adjectives ending in -shme (like e rëndësishme) take the ending -e in the plural (të rëndësishme).

4. Ambigeneric Nouns:
Many masculine nouns that take the plural endings -e or -ra (like male or fshatra) behave as feminine in the plural. These require the feminine adjective ending -a (e.g., male të larta).

Note: These rules apply to 'articulated' adjectives (those with i/e). Non-articulated adjectives (like interesant) follow different patterns, often remaining unchanged or adding standard plural suffixes.

Examples (4)

  1. Kam blerë disa libra të rinj.

    I bought some new books.

    Word by Word: I-have bought some books [plural-article] new.

    Here, 'libra' is an indefinite masculine plural noun. The article 'i' changes to 'të' and the adjective 'i ri' changes to 'të rinj'.

  2. Vajzat e bukura po kërcejnë.

    The beautiful girls are dancing.

    Word by Word: The-girls [definite-plural-article] beautiful are dancing.

    Because 'vajzat' is a definite plural noun, the article becomes 'e' and the feminine adjective 'e bukur' adds the plural suffix '-a'.

  3. Këta janë djem të vegjël.

    These are small boys.

    Word by Word: These are boys [plural-article] small.

    The adjective 'i vogël' (small) is irregular; it changes its stem to 'të vegjël' in the masculine plural.

  4. Mollët e ëmbla janë në tavolinë.

    The sweet apples are on the table.

    Word by Word: The-apples [definite-plural-article] sweet are on table.

    The definite plural noun 'mollët' triggers the article 'e' and the feminine plural suffix '-a' on the adjective 'e ëmbël'.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the feminine plural suffix '-a' for masculine nouns that don't change gender.

    djem të bukura
    djem të bukur

    For standard masculine nouns, the adjective usually remains the same as the singular form (only the article changes). The '-a' ending is reserved for feminine plurals or specific masculine nouns that switch gender in the plural.

  • Applying the '-a' ending to feminine adjectives ending in '-shme'.

    vajza të rëndësishma
    vajza të rëndësishme

    Feminine adjectives ending in '-shme' (like 'e rëndësishme') do not take '-a' in the plural; they keep the '-e' ending.

  • Forgetting the irregular plural stem for the adjective 'i madh'.

    libra të madh
    libra të mëdhenj

    The adjective 'i madh' (big) is highly irregular and changes its stem to 'të mëdhenj' in the masculine plural.

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Adjective Number AgreementLevel 1

Learn This First

To learn adjective number agreement, you must first understand how Albanian nouns form their plurals. You also need to be familiar with the linking article 'të', which is the universal marker for plural adjectives, and the general rules of how adjectives modify nouns.

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e