Genitive Subjects Meaning Some

Level 5

verb + subject in the genitive = some, an open number: Atėjo svečių. (Some guests came.)

How It Works

1. Some or the whole group. Compare:

  • Atėjo svečių. (Some guests came. We do not say how many or who.)
  • Atėjo svečiai. (The guests came, the ones we expected.)

2. Which verbs. This genitive goes with verbs that bring something into the scene or say that it is there:

  • coming and gathering: ateiti, atvažiuoti, atvykti, susirinkti
  • appearing: atsirasti, kilti, pasitaikyti
  • being there or changing in number: būti, gyventi, daugėti, mažėti

3. Examples.

  • Susirinko žmonių. (Some people gathered.)
  • Atsirado problemų. (Some problems came up.)
  • Po paskaitos kilo klausimų. (After the lecture, some questions came up.)
  • Šiame tekste gali būti klaidų. (There may be some mistakes in this text.)

4. Nouns for substances. Mass nouns work the same way: Ant grindų prilašėjo vandens. (Some water dripped onto the floor.)

5. One genitive, two jobs. This is the subject version of the partitive genitive in Nusipirkau duonos. With existential nėra (there is not), use the genitive: see absence with nėra.

Examples (6)

  1. Atėjo svečių.

    Some guests came.

    Word by Word: Came guests(GEN).

  2. Susirinko žmonių.

    Some people gathered.

    Word by Word: Gathered people(GEN).

  3. Atsirado problemų.

    Some problems came up.

    Word by Word: Appeared problems(GEN).

  4. Po paskaitos kilo klausimų.

    After the lecture, some questions came up.

    Word by Word: After lecture arose questions(GEN).

  5. Šiame tekste gali būti klaidų.

    There may be some mistakes in this text.

    Word by Word: In-this text can be mistakes(GEN).

  6. Vasarą į pajūrį atvažiuoja turistų iš visos Europos.

    In summer, tourists come to the seaside from all over Europe.

    Word by Word: In-summer to seaside come tourists(GEN) from all Europe.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the nominative when the number is open.

    Šiame tekste gali būti klaidos.
    Šiame tekste gali būti klaidų.

    The intended meaning is "some mistakes, we do not know how many", so the subject goes in the genitive. The nominative sounds like particular mistakes that are already known.

  • Using the genitive for a known, whole group.

    Į vestuves atvažiavo mano tėvų.
    Į vestuves atvažiavo mano tėvai.

    Your parents are a known, whole group, so the subject is in the nominative. The genitive would mean "some of my parents".

How It Connects

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Genitive Subjects Meaning SomeLevel 5

Learn This First

A genitive subject presents an unspecified amount rather than a whole identified group.