Nouns That Never Change
Most Lithuanian nouns change their ending in every case, but a few loanwords never do: taksi, kakao, meniu, interviu, šou. Važiuosiu taksi. (I will go by taxi.) Here taksi is an instrumental, but it looks the same.
How It Works
Which nouns?
They are borrowed words ending in a vowel that does not fit any Lithuanian declension: taksi (taxi), kakao (cocoa), meniu (menu), interviu (interview), šou (show), žiuri (jury), kupė (train compartment).
Same form in every case and in the plural
- Prie viešbučio laukė taksi. (A taxi was waiting by the hotel.) nominative
- Važiuosiu taksi. (I will go by taxi.) instrumental; see Instrumental of Means
- Mieste yra daug taksi. (There are many taxis in the city.) genitive plural after daug
Gender and agreement
Adjectives and pronouns still agree, and they carry the case: many thing-nouns in -i, -u, -o take masculine forms (geltonas taksi, įdomus interviu, naujas meniu), and some in -ė take feminine ones (ankšta kupė). This is not a universal ending rule: ledi is feminine, and atašė can refer to a man or a woman. Check a dictionary for the gender of unfamiliar words. See Adjective Agreement.
Most loans do get endings
This group is small. Most borrowed words are given ordinary Lithuanian endings and decline normally: kinas (cinema), radijas (radio), kompiuteris (computer). Foreign names follow their own rules; see Foreign Names With Lithuanian Endings.
Examples (6)
- Važiuosiu taksi.
I will go by taxi.
Word by Word: I-will-ride taxi.
Taksi is in the instrumental here, but its form does not change.
- Prie viešbučio laukė geltonas taksi.
A yellow taxi was waiting by the hotel.
Word by Word: By hotel waited yellow taxi.
- Ar galiu gauti meniu?
Could I have the menu?
Word by Word: Whether I-can to-get menu?
- Vakare išgėriau puodelį kakao.
In the evening I drank a cup of cocoa.
Word by Word: In-evening I-drank cup cocoa.
- Skaičiau įdomų interviu su rašytoju.
I read an interesting interview with a writer.
Word by Word: I-read interesting interview with writer.
- Mieste yra daug taksi.
There are many taxis in the city.
Word by Word: In-city is many taxis.
Common Mistakes
Adding a case ending to an indeclinable noun.
Važiuosiu taksiu.Važiuosiu taksi.Taksi never changes. The instrumental meaning comes from the sentence, not from an ending.
Using a feminine adjective with a masculine indeclinable noun.
Skaičiau įdomią interviu.Skaičiau įdomų interviu.Interviu ends in -u, so it is treated as masculine: įdomus interviu, accusative įdomų interviu.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Indeclinable nouns keep one shape while surrounding words still express case agreement.
Related Patterns
- The Seven Cases
These nouns still have grammatical case, but use one form for all cases.
Level 1 - Instrumental of Means
Važiuoti taksi uses the instrumental of means, even though taksi does not change.
Level 2 - Adjective Agreement
Adjectives still agree with these nouns and show the case.
Level 1 - Two Noun Genders
Many thing-nouns follow ending-based gender patterns, but person-nouns and other exceptions need individual checking.
Level 1 - Foreign Names With Lithuanian Endings
Foreign names have separate conventions for declining or staying unchanged.
Level 5 - Genitive After Quantity Words
After daug and other quantity words, these nouns keep the same form.
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice Nouns That Never Change in Bubblegum
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