-a

Masculine Animate Accusative in -a

Level 1

Masculine nouns for people and animals add -a when they are the direct object: Mám brata, Vidím učiteľa, Máme psa.

How It Works

When a masculine noun for a person or animal is the direct object, it takes the ending -a:

  • brat → Mám brata. (I have a brother.)
  • učiteľ → Vidím učiteľa. (I see the teacher.)
  • Peter → Poznáš Petra? (Do you know Peter?)

Some nouns change their stem when the ending is added:

  • A short e or o can drop out: pes → psa (dog), otec → otca (father).
  • ô becomes o: kôň → koňa (horse).

Masculine nouns for people that end in -o work the same way: dedo → deda, Janko → Janka.

Masculine nouns for people that end in -a, like hrdina (hero) and kolega (colleague), take -u instead: hrdinu, kolegu.

The words that go with the noun change too: nového kamaráta (a new friend), môjho brata (my brother), toho učiteľa (that teacher).

This form looks exactly like the genitive, which you will meet later. Nouns for things do not take -a: Mám stôl, not stola.

Examples (6)

  1. Mám brata.

    I have a brother.

    Brat adds -a.

  2. Vidím učiteľa.

    I see the teacher.

    Učiteľ adds -a.

  3. Máme psa.

    We have a dog.

    The e in pes drops out: psa.

  4. Čakám otca.

    I am waiting for my father.

    The e in otec drops out: otca.

  5. Poznáš Petra?

    Do you know Peter?

    The e in Peter drops out: Petra.

  6. Hľadám kolegu.

    I am looking for my colleague.

    Kolega ends in -a, so it takes -u.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving an animate masculine noun unchanged.

    Mám brat.
    Mám brata.

    Brat names a person, so it takes -a as an object.

  • Keeping the short e when adding -a.

    Máme pesa.
    Máme psa.

    In pes, the e drops out when an ending is added.

  • Changing the noun but not the adjective.

    Poznám nový učiteľ.
    Poznám nového učiteľa.

    Both words change with an animate object: nový becomes nového and učiteľ becomes učiteľa.

How It Connects

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-aLevel 1Masculine Animate Accusative in -a

Learn This First

Before Masculine Animate Accusative in -a, learn The Accusative Case for Objects and Animate and Inanimate Masculine Nouns. -a is how animate masculine nouns mark the accusative. Only animate masculine nouns take this ending.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.