súdiac podľa + Genitive
Judging by
Súdiac podľa + genitive means judging by: Súdiac podľa oblakov bude pršať (Judging by the clouds, it's going to rain). The phrase names the evidence, and the rest of the sentence gives the conclusion.
How It Works
Form. Súdiac is the transgressive of súdiť (to judge). Together with podľa, it has become a fixed preposition with the genitive: súdiac podľa príznakov, súdiac podľa výsledkov. The noun follows the rules of podľa.
Meaning. The phrase names evidence and the main clause states a conclusion drawn from it, often a guess: Súdiac podľa prízvuku je z východného Slovenska. It is common in written and careful spoken Slovak. In everyday speech, podľa alone often does the same job: Podľa oblakov bude pršať.
With a clause. To judge by a whole statement, use súdiac podľa toho, čo ...: Súdiac podľa toho, čo hovoril, s návrhom nesúhlasí.
Commas. Because súdiac podľa is no longer treated as a verb form, Slovak language guides do not require a comma after the phrase. You will still see one in some texts.
Examples (5)
- Súdiac podľa oblakov bude pršať.
Judging by the clouds, it's going to rain.
Word by Word: Judging by clouds will-be raining.
- Súdiac podľa jeho prízvuku je z východného Slovenska.
Judging by his accent, he's from eastern Slovakia.
Word by Word: Judging by his accent he-is from eastern Slovakia.
- Súdiac podľa výsledkov prieskumu ľudia chcú v meste viac zelene.
Judging by the survey results, people want more greenery in the city.
Word by Word: Judging by results of-survey people want in city more of-greenery.
- Súdiac podľa toho, čo hovoril, s návrhom nesúhlasí.
Judging by what he said, he doesn't agree with the proposal.
Word by Word: Judging by that, what he-said, with proposal he-doesn't-agree.
- Súdiac podľa príznakov je to chrípka.
Judging by the symptoms, it's the flu.
Word by Word: Judging by symptoms is it flu.
Common Mistakes
Leaving the noun in the nominative.
Súdiac podľa oblaky bude pršať.Súdiac podľa oblakov bude pršať.Podľa takes the genitive: oblaky → oblakov.
Using po as in Polish or Russian.
Súdiac po oblakoch bude pršať.Súdiac podľa oblakov bude pršať.Polish sądząc po and Russian судя по use po, but Slovak uses podľa with the genitive.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Before Judging By, learn The Transgressive and According To, Instead Of and Except. súdiac is a frozen transgressive. podľa takes the genitive.
Related Patterns
- nehovoriac o + LocativeNot to Mention
Another frozen transgressive used as a preposition.
Level 6 - musieť / môcť (Likelihood)Must and May for Likelihood
Conclusions drawn from evidence are often expressed with musieť and môcť.
Level 4 - Genitive Plural Endings
The evidence is often a plural noun in the genitive: oblakov, výsledkov.
Level 2