Genitive Nouns as Descriptions
Where English puts two nouns together, Lithuanian puts the describing noun in the genitive first: sporto klubas (a sports club), aukso žiedas (a gold ring).
How It Works
1. Kind or field. The genitive tells what kind of thing it is:
- sporto klubas (a sports club), istorijos knyga (a history book)
- lietuvių kalbos mokytoja (a teacher of Lithuanian), gimimo diena (a birthday)
2. Purpose. It can say what something is for: autobusų stotis (a bus station), vaikų darželis (a kindergarten, literally a children's garden), kavos puodelis (a coffee cup).
3. Material. It can name what something is made of: aukso žiedas (a gold ring), šilko suknelė (a silk dress). Many materials also have adjectives in -inis: auksinis žiedas means the same as aukso žiedas.
4. Only the main noun changes. When the phrase changes case, the genitive stays as it is:
- Einu į sporto klubą. (I am going to the sports club.)
- Susitikime prie autobusų stoties. (Let's meet at the bus station.)
5. Word order changes the meaning. Kavos puodelis (genitive first) can identify a coffee cup, a kind of cup. Puodelis kavos (genitive after) is a cup of coffee, an amount, like the genitive after quantity words.
Examples (6)
- Mama nešioja aukso žiedą.
Mom wears a gold ring.
Aukso (of gold) names the material.
- Einu į sporto klubą.
I am going to the sports club.
Only klubą changes case; sporto stays genitive.
- Mano sesuo yra lietuvių kalbos mokytoja.
My sister is a teacher of Lithuanian.
Lietuvių kalbos (of the Lithuanian language) names the subject she teaches.
- Susitikime prie autobusų stoties.
Let's meet at the bus station.
Autobusų is genitive plural: a station for buses.
- Man reikia naujo kavos puodelio.
I need a new coffee cup.
Here naujo kavos puodelio means a new cup for coffee. Context helps distinguish a cup as an object from a serving of coffee.
- Šiandien mano gimimo diena.
Today is my birthday.
Word by Word: Today my birth day.
Common Mistakes
Using the nominative for the describing noun, as in English.
Einu į sportas klubą.Einu į sporto klubą.In Lithuanian the describing noun must be in the genitive: sporto, not sportas.
Changing the case of the genitive noun together with the main noun.
Nusipirkau auksą žiedą.Nusipirkau aukso žiedą.Only the main noun žiedas takes the accusative. The describing noun stays in the genitive, aukso, in every case.
How It Connects
Learn This First
A genitive noun can classify another noun rather than name its owner.
Related Patterns
- Genitive After Quantity Words
A genitive after a measure word gives an amount: puodelis kavos (a cup of coffee).
Level 2 - lietuvių kalba / lietuviškaiNaming and Speaking Languages
Language names like lietuvių kalba use a genitive plural before kalba.
Level 1 - Adjectives: -inis, -iškasAdjectives in -inis and -iškas
Adjectives in -inis, like auksinis, can replace a genitive of material.
Level 5 - Genitive of Quality
At a higher level, the genitive also describes qualities, as in a person of great talent.
Level 5
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Practice Genitive Nouns as Descriptions in Bubblegum
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