Masculine Nouns
Most nouns that end in a consonant are masculine: dom (house), stroj (machine), chlap (man), učiteľ (teacher).
How It Works
The usual shape: a consonant at the end: dom (house), obchod (shop), stroj (machine), čaj (tea), brat (brother), učiteľ (teacher).
Nouns for men in -a and -o: hrdina (hero), kolega (colleague), turista (tourist), dedo (grandpa), strýko (uncle). Their meaning makes them masculine: môj kolega, ten turista.
Living or not: Masculine nouns come in two groups. Nouns for people and animals are animate (chlap, hrdina, pes), and nouns for things are inanimate (dom, stroj). The difference shows up in the cases, for example Vidím brata but Vidím dom (see mužský rod životný a neživotný).
Four model words: Slovak grammars sort masculine nouns by four model words: chlap and hrdina for living beings, dub (oak) and stroj for things. You will learn their endings later (see vzory mužského rodu: chlap, hrdina, dub, stroj).
Not every consonant ending: A few nouns that end in a consonant are feminine, such as kosť (bone) and noc (night).
Examples (6)
- Ten dom je nový.
That house is new.
Word by Word: That house is new.
- Môj brat je učiteľ.
My brother is a teacher.
Word by Word: My brother is teacher.
- Náš stroj nefunguje.
Our machine isn't working.
Word by Word: Our machine not-works.
- Ten hrdina je odvážny.
That hero is brave.
Word by Word: That hero is brave.
Hrdina ends in -a, but it names a man, so it takes ten and odvážny.
- Môj dedo je doma.
My grandpa is at home.
Word by Word: My grandpa is at-home.
- Ten čaj je horúci.
That tea is hot.
Word by Word: That tea is hot.
Common Mistakes
Treating a noun for a man as feminine because it ends in -a.
Tá hrdina je odvážna.Ten hrdina je odvážny.Hrdina names a man, so it is masculine: ten hrdina, odvážny.
Using feminine forms with a masculine noun that ends in a consonant.
Tá čaj je horúca.Ten čaj je horúci.Čaj ends in a consonant and is masculine, so it takes ten and a masculine adjective.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Before Masculine Nouns, learn Noun Gender. Masculine is one of the three noun genders.
Related Patterns
- Animate and Inanimate Masculine Nouns
Explains the living and non-living groups of masculine nouns.
Level 1 - Masculine Declension Types
Gives the case endings of the four masculine model words.
Level 3 - Adjective Agreement
Shows the masculine adjective endings -ý and -í.
Level 1 - ten / tá / toThat One by Gender
Ten is the masculine pointing word.
Level 1 - -aMasculine Animate Accusative in -a
Shows the first place where living masculine nouns behave differently.
Level 1
Practice Masculine Nouns in Bubblegum
Poppy, your AI tutor, writes Slovak lessons at your level. Tap any grammar point in a lesson to see its full explanation.
