Masculine Plural -ovi / -evi
Expanded Masculine Plurals
Some masculine plural stems grow before the ending.
How It Works
These are often called long or expanded plurals. Compare gradovi, gradova, gradovima and brojevi, brojeva, brojevima. The extension belongs to the plural stem.
Many short masculine nouns use this pattern, but word length alone does not predict it. Prst has prsti, for example. Some nouns have more than one attested plural with differences in meaning or use.
Learn the nominative plural alongside a noun. It gives a useful starting point for its other plural forms without inventing an extension where one is not used.
Examples (3)
- Ti su gradovi blizu mora.
Those cities are near the sea.
Grad uses the expanded stem gradov-.
- Zapisujem telefonske brojeve.
I am writing down telephone numbers.
Brojeve is accusative plural with -ev-.
- U tim gradovima žive moji prijatelji.
My friends live in those cities.
Gradovima keeps -ov- before the locative plural ending.
How It Connects
Learn This First
The extended plural builds on consonant-final masculine nouns and plural number.
Related Patterns
Practice Masculine Plural -ovi / -evi in Bubblegum
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