-изам / -ист / -ција
International Word Endings
Know the ending and you know the gender: туризмот (the tourism), туристот (the tourist), информацијата (the information).
How It Works
Macedonian shares many words with English and other European languages. English -ism becomes -изам, -ist stays -ист, and -tion becomes -ција. The endings are regular, so once you know the ending, you know the gender, the plural and the article.
-изам: masculine ideas and systems. туризам (tourism), оптимизам (optimism), реализам (realism), организам (organism). They end in a consonant, so they are masculine (see машки род на согласка). The а before the final м disappears when an ending is added, like the vowel in именки со непостојано е: туризам → туризмот, оптимизам → оптимизмот, организам → организми.
-ист: masculine people. турист (tourist), оптимист (optimist), пијанист (pianist), специјалист (specialist). They take regular masculine endings: туристот, туристи, туристите. A woman is usually named with -ка (see женски форми: -ка; -ица): туристка, пијанистка. Many -ист words pair with an -изам word: оптимизам → оптимист, туризам → турист.
-ција: feminine actions and institutions. информација (information), организација (organization), ситуација (situation), традиција (tradition), полиција (police). They end in -а, so they are feminine (see женски род на -а): информацијата, plural информации, информациите. Adjectives and numbers agree in the feminine: важна информација, една организација.
Related words. Verbs from these roots usually end in -ира: организира (organizes), информира (informs). Adjectives take Macedonian endings such as -ски or -ички: туристички, as in туристичка сезона (tourist season). See придавки од именки: -ски; -ен.
Examples (6)
- Туризмот е важен за Охрид.
Tourism is important for Ohrid.
Word by Word: Tourism-the is important for Ohrid.
Туризам is masculine and drops its а before the article: туризмот.
- Во Охрид има многу туристи.
There are many tourists in Ohrid.
Word by Word: In Ohrid has many tourists.
- Ова е многу важна информација.
This is a very important piece of information.
Word by Word: This is very important information.
Nouns in -ција are feminine, so the adjective ends in -а.
- Таа работи во една меѓународна организација.
She works for an international organization.
Word by Word: She works in one international organization.
- Тој е голем оптимист.
He is a great optimist.
Word by Word: He is big optimist.
- Секоја земја има свои традиции.
Every country has its own traditions.
Word by Word: Every country has own traditions.
Common Mistakes
Keeping the а of -изам before an ending.
Туризамот е важен за Охрид.Туризмот е важен за Охрид.The а in -изам drops when an ending is added: туризмот, организми.
Treating a -ција noun as masculine.
Ова е важен информација.Ова е важна информација.Nouns in -ција end in -а and are feminine, so the adjective takes -а too.
How It Connects
Learn This First
International word endings follow abstract nouns.
Related Patterns
- Masculine Nouns Ending in a Consonant
Words in -изам and -ист end in a consonant, so they follow the masculine pattern.
Level 1 - Feminine Nouns in -аFeminine Nouns Ending in a
Words in -ција end in -а, so they follow the feminine pattern.
Level 1 - Nouns With a Disappearing Vowel
Like these nouns, -изам loses a vowel before an ending: туризмот.
Level 3 - Feminine Forms in -ка / -ицаFeminine Job Titles
A woman is named with -ка: туристка, пијанистка.
Level 3 - Adjectives From Nouns in -ски / -енAdjectives from Nouns
Many of these nouns have adjectives with Macedonian endings: туристички.
Level 4
Practice -изам / -ист / -ција in Bubblegum
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