на + Person
Indirect Objects with На
To say to Marko, use на Марко and also put му before the verb: Му дадов книга на Марко. (I gave Marko a book.)
How It Works
English uses word order or to for the receiver: I gave Marko a book. Macedonian uses the preposition на and leaves the noun unchanged: на Марко, на мајка ми, на децата.
Doubling: when the receiver is a specific person, such as a name, a noun with the article, or a family word like мајка ми, a short to-someone pronoun also comes before the verb:
- Му дадов книга на Марко. — му for a man or a neuter noun
- Ѝ пишувам на мајка ми. — ѝ for a woman
- Им реков на децата. — им for more than one
Both the pronoun and the на-phrase point to the same person, and both are needed. Standard Macedonian treats a missing pronoun here as an error.
Word order: the на-phrase can come after the verb or at the start: На Ана ѝ купив цвеќе. The pronoun stays right before the verb either way.
Not the same на: на also shows ownership (куќата на Марко, see на за припадност: куќата на Марко) and place (на пазар). Here it marks the person who receives.
Some verbs take a receiver even when English uses a plain object, such as помага (help) and верува (believe): Му помагам на брат ми. See глаголи со индиректен објект: помага; верува.
Examples (6)
- Му дадов книга на Марко.
I gave Marko a book.
Word by Word: To-him gave-I book to Marko.
- Ѝ пишувам на мајка ми.
I am writing to my mother.
Word by Word: To-her I-write to mother my.
- Им реков на децата.
I told the children.
Word by Word: To-them told-I to the-children.
- На Ана ѝ купив цвеќе.
I bought Ana flowers.
Word by Word: To Ana to-her bought-I flowers.
The на-phrase comes first here, and ѝ still sits right before the verb.
- Ќе му се јавам на Никола.
I will call Nikola.
Word by Word: Will to-him myself call-I to Nikola.
- Што му подари на брат ти?
What did you give your brother?
Word by Word: What to-him gifted-you to brother your?
Common Mistakes
Leaving out the short pronoun before the verb.
Дадов книга на Марко.Му дадов книга на Марко.When the receiver is a specific person, standard Macedonian repeats him or her with a short pronoun. The на-phrase alone sounds incomplete.
Choosing a pronoun that does not match the person.
Му пишувам на мајка ми.Ѝ пишувам на мајка ми.The pronoun matches the receiver: ѝ for a woman, му for a man, им for several people.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Indirect objects combine на and the to-someone pronouns.
Related Patterns
- Doubling a Definite Object
The direct object is doubled in the same way, with го, ја or ги.
Level 2 - помага / веруваVerbs with To-Someone Objects
Some verbs take a на-receiver where English uses a plain object.
Level 3 - кого / комуWhom and to Whom
Кому and на кого ask who receives something.
Level 3 - мајка ми / брат миFamily Words with Short Possessives
Family words like мајка ми are specific people, so they are always doubled.
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice на + Person in Bubblegum
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