Vowels That Come and Go

Level 3

Some vowels come and go. Many masculine nouns lose the e or o in their last syllable when they take an ending: pes → psa (dog), otec → otca (father), deň → dňa (day).

How It Works

A vowel that drops out. In many masculine nouns, the e or o in the last syllable appears only in the nominative singular (and in the accusative for things). As soon as an ending is added, it disappears:

  • pes → psa, psovi (dog)
  • otec → otca, otcovia (father)
  • deň → dňa, dni (day)
  • Peter → Petra
  • zámok → zámku (castle)
  • kúsok → kúska (piece)

Some nouns also change another vowel at the same time: vietor → vetra (wind), stôl → stola (table).

Learn the genitive with the noun. Not every e or o drops out. Compare otec, otca with domček, domčeka (little house) and človek, človeka (person). A dictionary gives the genitive so you can see which kind of noun it is.

A vowel that appears. Feminine and neuter nouns often have no ending in the genitive plural. When the stem would end in two consonants, a vowel is added between them, usually ie, e, o or á:

  • okno → okien (windows)
  • sestra → sestier (sisters)
  • matka → matiek (mothers)
  • hra → hier (games)
  • vojna → vojen (wars)
  • jedlo → jedál (dishes)

After a long syllable the added vowel is short: rozprávka → rozprávok (fairy tales), not rozpráviek.

Where you meet these forms. The genitive plural follows numbers from five up and words of amount: päť okien, veľa hier. See genitive plural endings and five and more.

This is different from the extra vowel in prepositions such as vo and so; see prepositions with an extra vowel.

Examples (6)

  1. Máme doma psa.

    We have a dog at home.

    Word by Word: We-have at-home dog.

    Pes loses its e: the accusative is psa.

  2. To je auto môjho otca.

    That's my father's car.

    Word by Word: That is car my father.

    Otec loses its e: the genitive is otca.

  3. Vidíme sa o dva dni.

    See you in two days.

    Word by Word: We-see ourselves in two days.

    Deň loses its e in every other form: dňa, dni.

  4. Náš byt má šesť okien.

    Our flat has six windows.

    Word by Word: Our flat has six windows.

    The genitive plural of okno gains ie: okien.

  5. Deň matiek je v máji.

    Mother's Day is in May.

    Word by Word: Day of-mothers is in May.

    The genitive plural of matka gains ie: matiek.

  6. Stará mama mi čítala z knihy rozprávok.

    Grandma read to me from a book of fairy tales.

    Word by Word: Old mom me read from book of-fairy-tales.

    After the long syllable -prá-, the added vowel is short o.

Common Mistakes

  • Keeping the vowel that should drop out.

    Nemám pesa.
    Nemám psa.

    The e in pes appears only in the nominative. Every other form is built on ps-.

  • Keeping the vowel in otec.

    To je dom môjho oteca.
    To je dom môjho otca.

    Otec drops its e when it takes an ending: otca, otcovi.

  • Adding a masculine ending instead of a vowel.

    Náš byt má päť oknov.
    Náš byt má päť okien.

    Neuter nouns in -o have no ending in the genitive plural, and okno gains ie: okien.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Vowels That Come and GoLevel 3

Learn This First

Before Vowels That Come and Go, learn Genitive Plural Endings. Mobile vowels often appear in the genitive plural: matka → matiek.