ktorého / ktorej / ktorých (Whose)

Whose in Relative Clauses

Level 4

For "whose" after a noun, use ktorého (masculine or neuter owner), ktorej (feminine owner) or ktorých (plural owners): žena, ktorej syn študuje v Prahe.

How It Works

Whose = the genitive of ktorý. Slovak has no separate relative word for "whose". It uses the possessive genitive of ktorý:

  • ktorého: the owner is masculine or neuter singular: muž, ktorého auto stojí vonku
  • ktorej: the owner is feminine singular: žena, ktorej syn študuje v Prahe
  • ktorých: the owners are plural: susedia, ktorých deti sa s nami hrajú

Look at the owner. The form depends only on the owner, the noun before the comma. The thing owned does not change it: muž, ktorého sestra, muž, ktorého auto, muž, ktorého deti. Because it is a genitive, it also stays the same whatever case the owned noun is in: dievča, ktorého mamu poznám (the girl whose mother I know). The endings are those of adjectives like pekný.

Word order. The owner comes first, then a comma, then ktorého / ktorej / ktorých, and right after it the noun it owns. A preposition goes in front of the whole group: dom, v ktorého záhrade rástla lipa; kolegyňa, s ktorej bratom som chodil do školy.

Čí is different. The question word čí / čia / čie asks "whose?" and agrees with the thing owned: Čie je to auto? In a relative clause after a noun, use ktorého / ktorej / ktorých.

Examples (6)

  1. To je muž, ktorého auto stojí vonku.

    That's the man whose car is parked outside.

    Word by Word: That is man, of-whom car stands outside.

  2. Poznám ženu, ktorej syn študuje v Prahe.

    I know a woman whose son studies in Prague.

    Word by Word: I-know woman, of-whom son studies in Prague.

    Žena is feminine, so the form is ktorej.

  3. Hľadáme rodinu, ktorej pes sa stratil.

    We're looking for the family whose dog got lost.

    Word by Word: We-look-for family, of-which dog self lost.

  4. Susedia, ktorých deti sa s nami hrajú, sú z Košíc.

    The neighbours whose children play with us are from Košice.

    Word by Word: Neighbours, of-whom children self with us play, are from Košice.

  5. Bývali sme v dome, v ktorého záhrade rástla stará lipa.

    We lived in a house in whose garden an old linden tree grew.

    Word by Word: We-lived in house, in of-which garden grew old linden.

    The preposition v comes before ktorého.

  6. To je kolegyňa, s ktorej bratom som chodil do školy.

    That's the colleague whose brother I went to school with.

    Word by Word: That is colleague, with of-whom brother I-went to school.

Common Mistakes

  • Choosing the form by the thing owned instead of the owner.

    Poznám ženu, ktorého syn študuje v Prahe.
    Poznám ženu, ktorej syn študuje v Prahe.

    The owner is žena, which is feminine, so use ktorej. Syn does not decide the form.

  • Using the nominative ktorý instead of the genitive.

    To je muž, ktorý auto stojí vonku.
    To je muž, ktorého auto stojí vonku.

    To mean "whose", ktorý must be in the genitive: ktorého.

  • Putting the preposition after ktorého.

    Bývali sme v dome, ktorého v záhrade rástla lipa.
    Bývali sme v dome, v ktorého záhrade rástla lipa.

    The preposition goes in front of the whole group: v ktorého záhrade.

How It Connects

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

ktorého / ktorej / ktorých (Whose)Level 4Whose in Relative Clauses

Learn This First

Before Whose in Relative Clauses, learn Relative Pronoun ktorý and Possession With the Genitive. ktorého and ktorej are genitive forms of the relative ktorý. The genitive expresses the owner.

Words in This Pattern