The Verbal Adjective
The verbal adjective is a verb turned into an adjective: отвори → отворен (opened, open), напише → напишан (written), покани → поканет (invited).
How It Works
Endings. The masculine ends in -ен, -ан, -ет or -ат, and the rest follow adjective agreement: прочитан, прочитана, прочитано, прочитани.
How it is made. If the past stem ends in -а, add the ending to it: прочита → прочитан, напише → напишан. Otherwise the stem ends in -е: отвори → отворен, затвори → затворен, купи → купен, испие → испиен. After н or њ the ending is -т: покани → поканет, започне → започнат.
Се drops. Verbs with се lose it: се роди → роден (born), се облече → облечен (dressed).
Uses. Before a noun it works like any adjective and can take the article: отворената врата, поканетите гости (see the article on adjectives). After a noun it can carry more words: книга напишана на македонски. With сум it describes a state: states with сум. Its neuter form -но or -то builds the have-perfect.
Not the l-form. Прочитан describes what was read. The l-form прочитал describes the person who read.
Examples (6)
- Влеговме низ отворената врата.
We went in through the open door.
Word by Word: Entered-we through opened-the door.
Отворена agrees with врата and takes the article like an adjective.
- Поканетите гости дојдоа во осум.
The invited guests arrived at eight.
Покани makes поканет with -т because the stem ends in н.
- Ова е книга напишана на македонски.
This is a book written in Macedonian.
After the noun, the verbal adjective can take more words.
- Роден сум во Скопје.
I was born in Skopje.
Се роди loses се: роден. A woman says родена сум.
- Децата се веќе облечени.
The children are already dressed.
Облечени is plural to agree with децата.
- Купените билети не се враќаат.
Tickets that have been bought cannot be returned.
Купи gives купен; here it is plural with the article.
Common Mistakes
Forgetting to make the verbal adjective agree.
Вратата е отворен.Вратата е отворена.Врата is feminine, so the verbal adjective takes -а, just like нова врата.
Using the l-form as an adjective.
Ова е прочитала книга.Ова е прочитана книга.The l-form describes who did the action. To describe the thing that was acted on, use the -н or -т form.
How It Connects
Learn This First
The verbal adjective combines verb stems and agreement.
Related Patterns
- сум + Verbal AdjectiveStates with Сум
With сум, the verbal adjective describes a resulting state.
Level 3 - имам / немам + -но / -тоThe Have-Perfect
The neuter -но and -то forms build the have-perfect.
Level 3 - сум + Verbal Adjective + одThe Passive with Од
Adds the doer with од: Писмото е напишано од Ана.
Level 4 - новиот / новатаThe Article on Adjectives
A verbal adjective before a noun takes the article: отворената врата.
Level 2
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice The Verbal Adjective in Bubblegum
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