имам / немам + -но / -то
The Have-Perfect
Macedonian also builds a perfect with има (have) and a frozen verb form in -но or -то: Имам прочитано три книги (I have read three books).
How It Works
Form. Take the verbal adjective in its neuter form, ending in -но or -то: прочитано, видено, јадено, одено, започнато. Put the present of има before it: имам прочитано, имаш прочитано, има прочитано, имаме прочитано, имате прочитано, имаат прочитано.
It never agrees. The -но or -то form stays neuter singular whatever the subject or object is: Таа има прочитано, Ја имам прочитано книгата, never прочитана.
Meaning. The have-perfect says that an action has happened and its result or the experience still counts now: Имам прочитано три книги од него (I have read three of his books). It also works with verbs that take no object: Имам одено во Париз (I have been to Paris). This form grew up in Western Macedonia and is part of the standard language. It is a plain statement, so it suits he, she and they better than the perfect with сум, whose third person often sounds reported.
Negative and pronouns. Не and имам always merge into немам: Немам видено таков филм. A short pronoun goes before имам: Ја имаме платено сметката. A definite object is doubled as usual: see doubling a definite object.
Other tenses. The same pattern with имав gives a past perfect (the past have-perfect) and with ќе имам a future perfect (the future have-perfect).
Examples (6)
- Имам прочитано три книги од него.
I have read three of his books.
Word by Word: Have-I read three books from him.
Прочитано stays in the -но form.
- Дали имаш јадено тавче гравче?
Have you ever eaten tavče gravče?
Only имаш shows the person.
- Имам одено во Париз.
I have been to Paris.
The have-perfect also works with verbs that take no object.
- Немам видено таков филм.
I have never seen a film like that.
Не and имам merge into немам.
- Таа има работено во банка.
She has worked in a bank.
A plain statement about someone else, with no reported feel.
- Веќе ја имаме платено сметката.
We have already paid the bill.
The short pronoun ја doubles the definite object and stands before имаме, but платено does not change.
Common Mistakes
Making the -но form agree with the object.
Ја имам прочитана книгата.Ја имам прочитано книгата.In the standard have-perfect the verb form is frozen in -но or -то. Прочитана would describe the book, not the action.
Using the l-form after имам.
Имам видел таков филм.Имам видено таков филм.The l-form goes with сум, as in Сум видел. Имам always takes the -но or -то form.
Writing не имам.
Не имам јадено денес.Немам јадено денес.Не and имам always join into one word, немам, in every use of имам.
How It Connects
Learn This First
The have-perfect combines the verbal adjective, the сум perfect and има.
Related Patterns
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice имам / немам + -но / -то in Bubblegum
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