-kam / -ke / -ka

Present Admirative Mood

Level 2

The Present Admirative (Mënyra Habitore) is a unique Albanian verb form used when you discover something unexpected. Instead of just saying 'It is raining,' you use this mood to say '(Wow), it's raining!' or 'It turns out it's raining!'

How It Works

The Present Admirative allows speakers to encode their emotional reaction directly into the verb. While the indicative mood is for neutral facts, the admirative is for reactive facts.

1. Formation Rules:
To form the stem, use the truncated participle (the participle without the final -r, -rë, -ur, or -ë suffix):

  • -oj verbs: punuar → punua- + kam = punuakam
  • Consonant stems: hapur → hap- + kam = hapkam
  • -i verbs: pirë → pi- + kam = pikam
  • -ë stems: thënë → thën- + kam = thënkam

2. Full Conjugation Endings:
The endings are attached directly to the stem:

  • Unë: -kam
  • Ti: -ke
  • Ai/Ajo: -ka
  • Ne: -kemi
  • Ju: -keni
  • Ata/Ato: -kanë

3. Key Irregularities:
Several high-frequency verbs have unique stems in this mood:

  • jam (to be) → qenkam (from qenë)
  • kam (to have) → paskam (from pasur)
  • shoh (to see) → pakam (from parë)
  • vij (to come) → ardhkam (from ardhur)
  • them (to say) → thënkam (from thënë)
  • jap (to give) → dhënkam (from dhënë)

4. Usage and Context:
Beyond simple surprise, it is frequently used for irony or to report information you haven't personally verified (evidentiality). Note that while this is the Present Admirative, the mood also exists in the imperfect, perfect, and pluperfect tenses.

Examples (5)

  1. Qenka shumë ftohtë jashtë!

    (Wow), it's really cold outside!

    Word by Word: It-is-surprisingly very cold outside!

    Uses 'qenka' (admirative of jam) because the speaker just stepped outside and realized the temperature.

  2. Sa shumë libra paske!

    How many books you [apparently] have!

    Word by Word: How many books you-have-surprisingly!

    Uses 'paske' (admirative of kam) to express surprise upon seeing someone's large library for the first time.

  3. Ti folke shqip?!

    You speak Albanian?!

    Word by Word: You speak-surprisingly Albanian?!

    Expresses disbelief or surprise that the listener is capable of speaking the language using the 2nd person singular form 'folke'.

  4. Punuakan shumë këta njerëz.

    These people [it turns out] work a lot.

    Word by Word: Work-surprisingly a-lot these people.

    The speaker is observing a work site and noting their surprise at the level of activity.

  5. Tani u bëke edhe ti i mençur!

    So now you've become wise too! [Sarcastic]

    Word by Word: Now you-become-surprisingly also you wise!

    Demonstrates the use of the admirative for irony or mockery.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the full participle instead of the short participle.

    Unë punuarkam këtu.
    Unë punuakam këtu.

    You must drop the final '-r' from the participle 'punuar' before adding the endings.

  • Using the indicative mood for a sudden discovery.

    Different MeaningOh, jashtë është shi!
    Oh, jashtë qenka shi!

    The plain indicative is correct and states a fact. 'Qenka' adds the 'Oh, so it is!' feeling of sudden discovery.

  • Conjugating 'jam' directly with admirative endings.

    Ti jamke i lodhur.
    Ti qenke i lodhur.

    The verb 'jam' must use its participle stem 'qen-' to form the admirative.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

-kam / -ke / -kaLevel 2Present Admirative Mood

Learn This First

To learn the Present Admirative, you must first understand how to form the past participle of verbs, as this serves as the base. Additionally, you need to be familiar with the present tense conjugation of the verb 'kam' (to have), because its forms are shortened and attached as suffixes to create the admirative endings.

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Patterns that build on this one.