-те/-та

The Plural Articles -те and -та

Level 1Sounds Like členuvane -te/-ta v množestveno čislo

Plurals ending in -и or -е add -те: книгите, мъжете. Plurals ending in -а or -я add -та: селата, братята.

How It Works

Plurals in -и or -е → -те

  • книги → книгите (the books)
  • столове → столовете (the chairs)
  • мъже → мъжете (the men)
  • учители → учителите (the teachers)

Plurals in -а or -я → -та

  • села → селата (the villages)
  • деца → децата (the children)
  • момичета → момичетата (the girls)
  • братя → братята (the brothers)
  • хора → хората (the people)

Why gender does not decide

Most neuter plurals end in -а, so they usually take -та. See Neuter Plurals. Most masculine and feminine plurals end in -и or -е, so they usually take -те. See Plural Ending -и and Plural Ending -ове. A few irregular plurals break the pattern, such as братя and хора, and they simply follow their last letter. See Irregular Plurals.

Build the plural first

The article always comes after the plural ending: стол → столове → столовете. Learn each noun with its plural, and the article follows from the last letter.

Examples (6)

  1. Книгите са на рафта.

    The books are on the shelf.

    Книги ends in -и, so it takes -те.

  2. Мъжете играят футбол.

    The men are playing football.

  3. Децата спят.

    The children are asleep.

    Деца ends in -а, so it takes -та.

  4. Хората тук са много мили.

    The people here are very kind.

  5. Братята ми живеят в Пловдив.

    My brothers live in Plovdiv.

    Братя is masculine but ends in -я, so it takes -та.

  6. Селата в планината са малки.

    The villages in the mountains are small.

Common Mistakes

  • Choosing the article by gender instead of by the last letter.

    Братяте ми живеят в Пловдив.
    Братята ми живеят в Пловдив.

    Братя ends in -я. Every plural ending in -а or -я takes -та, even a masculine one.

  • Adding -те to a plural in -а.

    Децате спят.
    Децата спят.

    Деца ends in -а, so the article is -та. Use -те only after a plural in -и or -е.

How It Connects

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

-те/-таLevel 1The Plural Articles -те and -та

Learn This First

Plural articles need the plural forms and the article idea.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

-те-та