Verbal Adverb in -јќи

The Verbal Adverb

Level 4Sounds Like glagolski prilog: -ǰḱi

The verbal adverb ends in -јќи and never changes: читајќи (reading), одејќи (walking), зборувајќи (talking). It adds a background action done by the same person at the same time as the main verb.

How It Works

The verbal adverb (глаголски прилог) works like English "-ing" in walking home, I met a friend. It has one form for every person, gender and number.

How to build it. Start from the he/she form of the imperfect (see имперфект: читав; одев; носев), drop -ше and add -јќи:

  • чита → читаше → читајќи (reading)
  • оди → одеше → одејќи (walking, going)
  • зборува → зборуваше → зборувајќи (talking)
  • работи → работеше → работејќи (working)
  • пее → пееше → пеејќи (singing)
  • знае → знаеше → знаејќи (knowing)

Stress always falls on the syllable right before -ќи: читајќи, зборувајќи. This breaks the usual rule in акцент на третиот слог од крајот.

Only imperfective verbs. A perfective verb such as прочита or купи has no verbal adverb, because the form describes an action that is still going on (see глаголски вид: свршен и несвршен). The one old exception is бидејќи, which today simply means "because".

Same subject, same time. The verbal adverb normally describes something the subject of the main verb is doing while the main action happens. It can also show the way or means: Работејќи напорно, успеа. (By working hard, he succeeded.) You will sometimes hear a verbal adverb whose doer is not the subject, as in Одејќи по улицата, ми падна чантата ("walking down the street, my bag fell"), but careful speakers and writers avoid it. Say Додека одев по улицата, ми падна чантата instead, using додека.

Negation goes in front: не знаејќи (not knowing). Short pronouns come after the verbal adverb, as explained in кратки заменки по глаголски прилог.

The form is most common in writing and careful speech. In everyday conversation, a clause with додека often does the same job.

Examples (5)

  1. Одејќи по улицата, сретнав пријател.

    While walking down the street, I met a friend.

    Word by Word: Walking along street-the, I-met friend.

    The walker and the person who met the friend are the same: "I".

  2. Зборувајќи со него, сфатив дека е во право.

    Talking with him, I realized that he was right.

    Word by Word: Talking with him, I-realized that is in right.

  3. Таа влезе во собата пеејќи.

    She came into the room singing.

    Word by Word: She entered into room-the singing.

    The verbal adverb can also follow the main verb.

  4. Работејќи напорно, успеа да заврши навреме.

    By working hard, he managed to finish on time.

    Word by Word: Working hard, he-managed to finish on-time.

    Here the verbal adverb shows how he succeeded.

  5. Не знаејќи што да каже, тој молчеше.

    Not knowing what to say, he stayed silent.

    Word by Word: Not knowing what to say, he was-silent.

Common Mistakes

  • Making a verbal adverb from a perfective verb.

    Прочитајќи го писмото, заплака.
    Читајќи го писмото, заплака.

    Прочита is perfective, so it has no verbal adverb. Use the imperfective читајќи ("while reading"), or say Откако го прочита писмото, заплака for "after reading".

  • Building the verbal adverb from the present of an и-verb.

    Работијќи напорно, успеа да заврши навреме.
    Работејќи напорно, успеа да заврши навреме.

    The verbal adverb comes from the imperfect, not the present. Работи has the imperfect работеше, so its verbal adverb is работејќи, with е before -јќи.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Verbal Adverb in -јќиLevel 4The Verbal Adverb

Learn This First

The verbal adverb combines verb stems and simultaneous time.

Words in This Pattern

-јќи