Genitive Endings for Masculine Nouns
Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
To show possession or absence in Croatian, add -a to masculine nouns ending in a consonant.
- Add -a to masculine nouns ending in a consonant: 'stol' (table) becomes 'stola'.
- If the noun ends in -o or -e, change it to -a: 'auto' becomes 'auta'.
- Use this case after numbers like 'dva', 'tri', 'četiri' and for negation.
Masculine Genitive Formation
| Nominative | Genitive | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
|
Stol
|
Stola
|
Table
|
|
Grad
|
Grada
|
City
|
|
Auto
|
Auta
|
Car
|
|
Pas
|
Pasa
|
Dog
|
|
Muzej
|
Muzeja
|
Museum
|
|
Prijatelj
|
Prijatelja
|
Friend
|
Meanings
The Genitive case is used to indicate possession, origin, or absence. It is the most frequent case in Croatian after the Nominative.
Possession
Indicating ownership of an object.
“Knjiga Ivana.”
“Auto prijatelja.”
Negation
Used after the verb 'nemati' (to not have).
“Nemam novca.”
“Nema stola.”
Quantification
Used after numbers 2, 3, 4.
“Dva stola.”
“Tri prijatelja.”
Reference Table
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Affirmative
|
Noun + -a
|
Imam stola (rare)
|
|
Negative
|
Nemam + Noun-a
|
Nemam stola
|
|
Question
|
Imaš li + Noun-a?
|
Imaš li stola?
|
|
Possession
|
Noun + Noun-a
|
Auto brata
|
|
Quantity
|
Number + Noun-a
|
Dva stola
|
|
Preposition
|
Bez + Noun-a
|
Bez stola
|
Formalitätsspektrum
Ne posjedujem automobil. (Daily life)
Nemam auta. (Daily life)
Nemam auto. (Daily life)
Nema auta. (Daily life)
Genitive Usage Map
Negation
- Nemam I don't have
Possession
- Auto Car of
Quantity
- Dva Two
Nominative vs Genitive
Genitive Decision Tree
Is the sentence negative?
When to use Genitive
Negation
- • Nemam
- • Ne vidim
Numbers
- • Dva
- • Tri
- • Četiri
Prepositions
- • Bez
- • Blizu
- • Iz
Beispiele nach Niveau
Nemam stola.
I don't have a table.
Nemam auta.
I don't have a car.
Nemam novca.
I don't have money.
Nemam prijatelja.
I don't have a friend.
Dva stola su ovdje.
Two tables are here.
Tri prijatelja dolaze.
Three friends are coming.
Auto moga brata.
My brother's car.
Četiri sata rada.
Four hours of work.
Bez novca ne mogu putovati.
Without money, I cannot travel.
Blizu muzeja je park.
Near the museum is a park.
Iz grada dolazim.
I am coming from the city.
Puno stola je zauzeto.
A lot of the table is occupied.
Nema traga zločina.
There is no trace of the crime.
Dio moga plana.
Part of my plan.
Nedostatak vremena.
Lack of time.
Boja moga auta.
The color of my car.
Središte grada je puno ljudi.
The city center is full of people.
Osim moga brata, nitko ne zna.
Except for my brother, no one knows.
Pored moga stola stoji knjiga.
Next to my table stands a book.
Dno moga srca.
The bottom of my heart.
Radi moga mira, šutim.
For the sake of my peace, I am silent.
Usred moga puta.
In the middle of my journey.
Niti traga moga doma.
Not a trace of my home.
Sve zbog moga ponosa.
All because of my pride.
Leicht verwechselbar
Both can be direct objects.
Both can end in -a.
Both involve noun changes.
Häufige Fehler
Nemam stol
Nemam stola
Auto Ivan
Auto Ivana
Dva stol
Dva stola
Bez stol
Bez stola
Imam stola
Imam stol
Tri prijatelj
Tri prijatelja
Blizu grad
Blizu grada
Iz muzej
Iz muzeja
Puno novac
Puno novca
Dio plan
Dio plana
Radi mir
Radi mira
Usred put
Usred puta
Dno srce
Dno srca
Satzmuster
Nemam ___.
Dva ___ su ovdje.
Bez ___ ne mogu.
Blizu ___ je park.
Real World Usage
Nemam vremena za ovo.
Nema problema.
Nemam iskustva.
Blizu muzeja.
Bez umaka.
Nemam sitnog novca.
Check the verb
Don't over-apply
Numbers 2, 3, 4
Natural speech
Smart Tips
Always add -a to the noun.
Use the Genitive singular.
The following noun must be Genitive.
Use Genitive for the owner.
Aussprache
Genitive ending
The -a ending is always short and clear.
Statement
Nemam stola. ↘
Falling intonation for simple statements.
Einprägen
Eselsbrücke
Think of the 'a' as an 'absence' marker. If it's missing, add an 'a'.
Visuelle Assoziation
Imagine a table (stol) that is missing its legs, so you have to add an 'a' to hold it together.
Rhyme
If you don't have it, don't be a fool, just add an 'a' to your masculine noun, like 'stola' for 'stol'.
Story
Ivan wanted a car (auto). He went to the shop, but they had none. He told his friend: 'Nemam auta'. His friend replied: 'Ali imaš dva stola'. Ivan sighed.
Word Web
Herausforderung
Write 5 sentences using 'Nemam' and different masculine nouns.
Kulturelle Hinweise
Croatians are very precise with their cases. Using the wrong case can sound like a child speaking.
In some coastal dialects, the Genitive is used even more frequently in colloquial speech.
Standard Croatian is strictly followed in formal settings in Slavonia.
The Genitive case is a Proto-Slavic inheritance.
Gesprächseinstiege
Imaš li auta?
Koliko prijatelja imaš?
Gdje je blizu muzeja?
Što radiš bez novca?
Tagebuch-Impulse
Häufige Fehler
Test Yourself
Nemam ___.
Imam ___.
Find and fix the mistake:
Nemam prijatelj.
Arrange the words in the correct order:
All words placed
Click words above to build the sentence
Without money.
Answer starts with: Bez...
Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:
Muzej -> ?
True or False?
Score: /8
Ubungsaufgaben
8 exercisesNemam ___.
Imam ___.
Find and fix the mistake:
Nemam prijatelj.
stola / dva / su / ovdje
Without money.
Match: Grad, Auto, Pas
Muzej -> ?
True or False?
Score: /8
FAQ (8)
Croatian uses cases to show the function of a word in a sentence.
No, all genders have a Genitive case, but the endings differ.
Use it for negation, possession, and after certain numbers.
You will be understood, but you will sound like a beginner.
No, the plural Genitive has different endings.
Yes, it is standard grammar.
Some nouns have irregular Genitive forms.
Try to narrate your day in Croatian, focusing on what you don't have.
Scaffolded Practice
1
2
3
4
Mastery Progress
Needs Practice
Improving
Strong
Mastered
In Other Languages
Genitiv
German uses articles (des/eines) while Croatian changes the noun ending.
de + noun
French does not change the noun itself.
de + noun
Spanish nouns remain unchanged.
no
Japanese is an agglutinative language, not an inflected one.
Idafa
Arabic changes the ending of the first noun, not the second.
de
Chinese has no case system.
