Slovak, like most Slavic languages and Latin, is an inflected language, meaning that the endings (and sometimes also the stems) of most words (nouns, adjectives, pronouns and numerals) change depending on the given combination of the grammatical gender, the grammatical number and the grammatical case of the particular word in the particular sentence: a) Gender: There are four grammatical genders in Slovak: animate masculine, inanimate masculine, feminine, and neuter. In popular description, the first two genders are often covered under common masculine gender. Almost all Slovak nouns and adjectives, as well as some pronouns and numerals can be categorized into one of these genders. Exceptions are pluralia tantum (Vianoce – Christmas, though there are rules for deriving the gender), words that are drifting into another gender and are currently neuter (knieža – prince), and masculine animals that are animate in singular and mostly inanimate in plural. b) Number: Like in English, Slovak has singular and plural nouns. Morphological traces of the ancient Indo-European dual number remain, but are not a separate grammar category anymore. A particular case is associated with three distinct groups of numerals associated with nouns: c) Morphological cases: There is also a different form of morphological vocative emerging in spoken language, used with some familiar forms of personal names (Paľo - Pali, Jano, Jana - Jani, Zuza - Zuzi) and familiar forms of kinship words, such as mama – mami (mum, mother), oco – oci (dad, father), tata, tato – tati (dad, daddy), baba, babka – babi (gran, granny, grandmother). This usage is very similar to the "new Russian vocative" (Маш', Петь', мам'), but it is not accepted into standardised codified language. This could have developed out of proper names that were formed using the Hungarian diminutive suffix -i and that are used in spoken Slovak, and therefore is often homonymous with nominative (semi-)diminutive forms of the names. Another possibility is influence from Czech (from common bilingual TV during Czechoslovakia), where Jani / Zuzi as well as mami / tati / babi is part of Common Czech.

Legend

Nouns

For each gender, there are four basic declension paradigms (that is declension models). Note that many nouns (especially those following the paradigm chlap) have different endings than those of the paradigms in one or more grammatical cases. They are neither defined, nor listed in the following. The complete number of different paradigms for nouns is somewhere around 200. A very small number of foreign nouns are not declined (that is the stem and ending never change).

The Masculine Gender

There is also a 5th paradigm for foreign nouns ending in .-i, -y, -e, -í, -é, -ě, -ä (for example pony, kuli, Tököli, Goethe, Krejčí, abbé, Poupě) and foreign personal names ending in -ü, -ö (for example Jenö), which goes as follows: Masculine animal nouns are declined like chlap in the singular, but in plural usually like dub (if they end in a hard or neutral consonant) or like stroj (otherwise). Notes on chlap: Notes on hrdina: ** Notes on dub:** ** Notes on stroj:**

The Feminine Gender

There is also a 5th paradigm for feminine nouns ending in -ná or -ovná (for example princezná), where the singular and N pl and A pl are like pekná (see under adjectives) and the remaining plural is like žena. In the G pl, there are changes in the stem: if the noun ends in -vowel + ná, then this vowel receives an acute (for example švagriná – švagrín), but otherwise -ie- is inserted (for example princezná – princezien). There is also a 6th paradigm for the feminine nouns ending in -ea (idea, Kórea), which goes like žena, except that D sg and Lsg are idei, and G pl is ideí without change in the stem. Notes on žena: ** Notes on ulica:** Notes on dlaň: Notes on kosť:

The Neuter Gender

For (any) neuter nouns ending in -vowel+um/on (for example štúdium, ganglion) there is actually a 5th paradigm (štúdium), which is declined like mesto except that the -um- / -on- is omitted in all cases except N sg and A sg., L sg ends in -u (štúdiu), and G pl in -í (štúdií). Notes on mesto: Notes on srdce: Notes on vysvedčenie: Notes on dievča:

Adjectives

Paradigms

Pekný

This paradigm is used for adjectives ending in a hard or neutral consonant + ý [in masculine]

Cudzí

This paradigm is used for adjectives ending in -a soft consonant + í [in masculine] (including the comparative and superlative, see below); Forms: They are like with pekný, but within the endings (that is in what follows after pekn-) always replace ý by í, é by ie, á by ia, and ú by iu., e.g.: pekný – cudzí, pekné(ho) – cudzie(ho), pekný(m) – cudzí(m), pekná – cudzia, peknú – cudziu.

Otcov

This paradigm is used for adjectives ending in -ov / -in, for example otcov ("father's"), matkin ("mother's"). All of them are possessive adjectives (adjectives in -ov are derived from masculine nouns, adjectives in -in – from feminine nouns).

The Comparative and Superlative

The comparative is formed by replacing the adjective ending -ý/y/i/í by **-ejší ** or -ší. There are exact rules for the choice between these two endings and there are several irregular comparatives. Examples: The comparative forms are declined like cudzí. The superlative (that is biggest, most difficult etc.) is formed as follows: naj+comparative. Examples: pekný – krajší – najkrajší, hrozný – hroznejší – najhroznejší... The comparative and superlative of adverbs (which, by the way, end in -o, -e or -y in the basic form) is formed by simply replacing the -(ej)ší from the adjective by -(ej)šie (for example: pekne – krajšie – najkrajšie, hrozne – hroznejšie – najhroznejšie, teplo – teplejšie – najteplejšie, pomaly – pomalšie – najpomalšie).

Pronouns

Personal pronouns

There is also the reflexive pronoun sa, which is declined as follows: N: –, G: seba, D: sebe / si, A: seba/sa, L: sebe, I: sebou Notes:

Demonstrative Pronouns

like ten (that, the) are declined: tamten (that one), henten (that one), tento (this one), tenže (the same)... like adjectives are declined: for example istý (certain, same), každý (each), iný (other), taký / onaký (such), všetok (all), sám (-self), onen (that one), and žiaden = žiadny (no one)...

Interrogative (and Relative) and Indefinite pronouns

like kto/čo are declined: nikto (nobody), niekto / dakto (someone), niečo / dačo (something), hocikto (who ever), nič (nothing), ktosi (someone), čosi (something)... like adjectives are declined: čí (whose), niečí / dačí / hocičí (someone's), ničí (no one's), ktorý (which), aký (what, which), nejaký / dajaký / (some), nijaký / niktorý (no), čísi (someone's), číkoľvek (whose ever). akýsi (some), ktorýsi (some), ktorýkoľvek (which ever)...

Possessive pronouns

The following are the first person pronouns. like môj (my) are declined: not declined are:

Numerals

Cardinal Numerals

Paradigms

jeden (one): declined like the adjective pekný; **dva (two): **N: dvaja (masc. animate); dva (masc. inanimate); dve (otherwise) – G: dvoch – D: dvom – A: dvoch (masc. animate); dva (masc. inanimate); dve (otherwise) – L: dvoch – I: dvoma; tri (three): N: traja (masc. animate); tri (otherwise) – G: troch – D: trom – A: troch (masc. animate); tri (otherwise) – L: troch – I: troma / tromi. päť (five): N: piati / päť (masc. animate); päť (otherwise) – G: piatich – D: piatim – A: piatich / päť (masc. animate); päť (otherwise) – L: piatich – I: piatimi; 100, 200, 300... 900; 1000, 2000, 3000... 9000: not declined, but 1000 can be declined like päť.

Compound Numerals

Ordinal Numerals

They are declined like adjectives (paradigms pekný and cudzí). Note: Ordinal numerals are formed by adding adjective endings to the (slightly modified) cardinal numbers, for example: