puse / trešdaļa / pusotra
Halves and Fractions
puse (half), trešdaļa (a third), ceturtdaļa (a quarter) and pusotrs, pusotra (one and a half): puse kūkas (half the cake), pusotru stundu (for an hour and a half).
How It Works
1. Fraction nouns. Most fractions are an ordinal stem + daļa (part), a fourth-declension noun:
- trešdaļa (a third), ceturtdaļa (a quarter), piektdaļa (a fifth), desmitdaļa (a tenth), simtdaļa (a hundredth)
- puse (a half) is a fifth-declension noun.
2. Counting fractions. Because daļa is feminine, the number is feminine too. From two up, the fraction is plural: viena trešdaļa, divas trešdaļas, trīs ceturtdaļas.
3. Of what? What is divided goes in the genitive, as in amounts: puse kūkas (half the cake), trešdaļa studentu (a third of the students). No + genitive is also common: ceturtdaļa no algas (a quarter of the salary).
4. Pus- in compounds. Pus- joins a noun to make one word: pusstunda (half an hour), pusgads (half a year), puslitrs (half a litre). Es atnākšu pēc pusstundas. (I'll come in half an hour.)
5. Pusotrs, pusotra: one and a half. It agrees with a singular noun in gender and case, like an adjective:
- pusotra stunda (an hour and a half), and in the accusative pusotru stundu: Es gaidīju pusotru stundu.
- pusotra gada (genitive of pusotrs gads): pēc pusotra gada (in a year and a half)
Examples (6)
- Puse kūkas jau ir apēsta.
Half the cake has already been eaten.
Word by Word: Half of-cake already is eaten.
- Trešdaļa studentu dzīvo kopmītnēs.
A third of the students live in dormitories.
Word by Word: Third of-students lives in-dormitories.
- Par to nobalsoja divas trešdaļas deputātu.
Two thirds of the members of parliament voted for it.
Word by Word: For it voted two thirds of-deputies.
- Es gaidīju pusotru stundu.
I waited for an hour and a half.
Word by Word: I waited one-and-a-half hour.
Pusotru agrees with stundu in the accusative.
- Pusotra gada laikā viņš iemācījās latviski.
He learned Latvian in a year and a half.
Word by Word: Of-one-and-a-half year in-time he learned Latvian.
- Ceturtdaļa no algas aiziet dzīvokļa īrei.
A quarter of the salary goes on the flat rent.
Word by Word: Quarter from salary goes to-flat rent.
Common Mistakes
Keeping the fraction singular after divas or trīs.
Divas trešdaļa studentu dzīvo kopmītnēs.Divas trešdaļas studentu dzīvo kopmītnēs.Two or more thirds are plural: divas trešdaļas.
Not making pusotrs agree with its noun.
Es gaidīju pusotra stundu.Es gaidīju pusotru stundu.Pusotrs agrees with the noun like an adjective. Stundu is accusative, so pusotru is too.
Leaving what is divided in the nominative.
Puse kūka jau ir apēsta.Puse kūkas jau ir apēsta.What a fraction divides goes in the genitive: kūkas.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Fractions use ordinals and the genitive.
Related Patterns
- Fourth Declension: -aFourth Declension: Nouns in -a
Trešdaļa and the other -daļa words decline like fourth-declension nouns.
Level 1 - Fifth Declension: -eFifth Declension: Nouns in -e
Puse declines like a fifth-declension noun.
Level 1 - Numbers That Agree
The number before a fraction is feminine: divas trešdaļas.
Level 2 - desmit / simts / tūkstotis + Genitive PluralTen, A Hundred and a Thousand with the Genitive
Large numbers also take a genitive of what is counted.
Level 4
Words in This Pattern
Practice puse / trešdaļa / pusotra in Bubblegum
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