Slovak Language Lessons for Beginners - Lesson 15

[Lesson Overview] [Personal Website]

[Lesson 1] [Lesson 2] [Lesson 3] [Lesson 4] [Lesson 5] [Lesson 6] [Lesson 7] [Lesson 8] [Lesson 9] [Lesson 10]

[Lesson 11] [Lesson 12] [Lesson 13] [Lesson 14] [Lesson 15] [Lesson 16] [Lesson 17] [Lesson 18] [Lesson 19] [Lesson 20]

[Lesson 21] [Lesson 22] [Lesson 23]

zároveň = at the same time

naraz (or súčasne) = concurrently, at the same time, simultaneously

spolu = together

samostatne (or osobitne) = separately

naschvál = deliberately, on purpose

nechtiac = accidentally, unintendedly, unwittingly (i.e., the opposite of naschvál)

náhodou = by coincidence, accidentally; also 'by any chance' in questions

keby niečo = just in case

Daj mi pokoj! = Leave me alone! (literally: 'Give me peace/quiet.')

Poďme! = Let's go!

Ani náhodou! = No way! (literally: 'Not even by coincidence.')

predpokladať (stem: predpokladá-) = to assume

tvrdiť (stem: tvrdí-) = to claim

potvrdiť (stem: potvrdzuje-) = to confirm

veriť (stem: verí-) = to believe

dôverovať (stem: dôveruje-) = to trust

čakať (stem: čaká-) = to wait

očakávať (stem: očakáva-) = to expect

dokázať (stem: dokáže-) = to manage (to do sth), also 'to prove'

tušiť (stem: tuší-) = to have a feeling (that)..., to have a inkling (that)..., to have a sense..., to have an idea...

skúšať (stem: skúša-) = to try

snažiť sa (stem: snaží- sa) = to try hard, to strive (to do sth), to make an effort

zistiť (stem: zisťuje-) = to find out

mýliť sa (stem: mýli- sa) = to be wrong

uskutočniť sa (stem: uskutočniť- sa) = to take place (about events)

zúčastniť sa (stem: zúčastňuje- sa) = to participate, to take part

vyhrať (stem: vyhráva-) = to win

prehrať (stem: prehráva-) = to lose (the opposite of 'to win')

hľadať (stem: hľadá-) = to look for, to search

nájsť (stem: nachádza-, past: našiel/našla som) = to find

stratiť (stem: stráca-) = to lose (the opposite of 'to find')

We learned how to use possessive pronouns in [Lesson 2]. Please note that, in Slovak, we generally use the possessive pronoun svoj (m), svoja (f), svoje (n) when the possessed object belongs to the subject of the sentence. In this way, we can distinguish between:

Náš otec stratil svoju vetrovku. = Our father lost his jacket. (the jacket was his own)

Náš otec stratil jeho vetrovku. = Out father lost his jacket. (the jacket belonged to some other man)

When you want to emphasize that something is one's own, you can use the adjective vlastný ('own'):

Predpokladám, že máš aj svoj vlastný názor. Alebo sa mýlim? = I assume you also have your own opinion. Or am I wrong?

Some more examples:

Skúšal som vyhrať štátnu lotériu, ale stratil som svoj lístok. = I was trying to win the state lottery, but I had lost my ticket.

Neverím, že ten bohatý obchodník naozaj stratil svoju peňaženku. = I don't believe that that wealthy businessman has really lost his wallet.

Vždy som sa snažil hovoriť svojim priateľom len pravdu. = I have always tried to only tell the truth to my friends.

In [Lesson 3], we learned how to use 'this', 'that' and 'that over there' in Slovak. Here, we'll see how to use these words when they are part of the direct object. As usual, we need to use the accusative case. Notice the patterns you see below:

gender: masculine feminine neuter

nominative (subject) accusative (direct object) nominative (subject) accusative (direct object) nominative (subject) accusative (direct object)

this tento tohto táto túto toto toto

that ten toho tá tú to to

that over there tamten tamtoho tamtá tamtú tamto tamto

Chcel by som nájsť tú knihu, ktorú si čítal minulý rok. = I would like to find that ('the') book that you read last year.

Mohli by ste zistiť meno tamtoho starého muža? = Could you find out the name of that old man over there?

Hľadáme toto auto už dva roky, ale stále ho nevieme nájsť. = We have been looking for this car for two years already, but we still can't find it.

Nečakáte náhodou tamtú ženu alebo tohto mladého pána? = Aren't you, by any chance, waiting for that woman over there or this young gentleman?

When possessive pronounce appear as part of the direct object, they need to be put into the accusative case. The relevant forms are:

If direct object is masculine, singular:

nominative (subject) accusative (direct object)

my, mine môj môjho (for persons and animals), môj (for everything else)

your, yours tvoj tvojho (for persons and animals), tvoj (for everything else)

his, his, its jeho jeho

her, hers jej jej

our, ours náš nášho (for persons and animals), náš (for everything else)

your, yours váš vášho (for persons and animals), váš (for everything else)

their, theirs ich ich

'svoj' svoj svojho (for persons and animals), svoj (for everything else)

If direct object is feminine, singular:

nominative (subject) accusative (direct object)

my, mine moja moju

your, yours tvoja tvoju

his, his, its jeho jeho

her, hers jej jej

our, ours naša našu

your, yours vaša vašu

their, theirs ch ich

'svoj' svoja svoju

If direct object is neuter, singular: (Note: In this case, the forms do not change.)

nominative (subject) accusative (direct object)

my, mine moje moje

your, yours tvoje tvoje

his, his, its jeho jeho

her, hers jej jej

our, ours naše naše

your, yours vaše vaše

their, theirs ich ich

'svoj' svoje svoje

Some examples:

Pri dome vidím naše zelené auto, tvoju motorku a ich modrý bicykel. = Next to the house, I see our green car, your motorcycle and their blue bike.

Poznáte už nášho syna, alebo ste zatiaľ stretli iba našu dcéru? = Do you already know our son, or have you only met our daughter so far?

napriek = despite, in spite of, notwithstanding

kvôli = due to... ('bad' causes)

vďaka = thanks to... ('good' causes)

bez ohľadu na... = regardless of..., irrespective of...

každopádne (or v každom prípade) = in any case, in any event

Napriek svojmu krehkému zdraviu sa zúčastnil maratónu. = Despite his fragile health, he participate in the marathon.

Kvôli zlému počasiu sa koncert bude musieť uskutočniť neskôr. = Due to bad weather, the concert will have to take place later.

Vďaka svojej rýchlosti dokázal vyhrať každý svoj pretek. = Thanks to his speed, he managed to win every one of his races.

Chcem túto kvalitnú práčku, bez ohľadu na cenu. = I want this quality washing machine, regardless of (its) price.

V každom prípade musíme najprv zaplatiť nájomné. = In any case, we must pay the rest first.

Každopádne tuším, ktorá odpoveď je správna. = In any case, I have an idea about which answer is the right one.

hoci = although, even though

napriek tomu, že... = despite the fact that...

aj keby = even if (Note: keby is followed by the past tense form of the verb, as shown in [Lesson 14])

aj keď = even when

aj tak = even so, anyway

tak či tak = anyway (literally: 'so or so')

Hoci nikdy nebol dobrý študent, vždy poznal správnu odpoveď. = Although he was never a good student, he always knew the correct answer.

Napriek tomu, že sa na kongrese nezúčastnil, očakával, že ho všetci budú voliť. = Despite the fact that he did not participate in the congress, he expected that everyone would be voting for him.

Aj keby ten dom stál tri milióny, kúpil by som ho. = Even if that house cost three million, I would buy it.

Aj keď ho šéf požiadal, stále nič nechcel robiť. = Even when (his) boss asked him, he still didn't want to do anything.

Nevadí, že sme prehrali. Aj tak sme boli lepší. = It doesn't matter that we lost. We were better, anyway.

Tak či tak zajtra budem potrebovať nejaké peniaze. = I'll need some money tomorrow anyway.

dokonca = even (in affirmative, positive sentences)

ani = even (in negative sentence)

Ten chlap ani nevie, koľko má jeho vlastný syn rokov. = That guy does not even know how old his own son is.

Tú pieseň nielen pozná, ale dokonca ju vie hrať na gitare. = Not only does he/she know that song, but he/she can even play it on the guitar.