Zmečkan, obrabljen, zbledel: the participle that works as an adjective
Almost all words about the state of a thing are not 'real' adjectives but forms made from verbs. Once you see the seam, you stop learning them one by one. For example: “Srajca je zmečkana, hlače pa so zbledele” — The shirt is crumpled, and the trousers have faded. A rule from the Slovenian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Almost all words about the state of a thing are not 'real' adjectives but forms made from verbs. Once you see the seam, you stop learning them one by one.
A form in -n or -t means 'already done to it'. Zmečkati → zmečkan, obrabiti → obrabljen, odpreti → odprt, zaviti → zavit. Short verbs end in -t, all the rest in -n.
Such a word changes like an adjective: zmečkana srajca, zmečkano perilo, zmečkani hlači — two trouser legs.
The -l form, the same one the past tense uses, can also be an adjective: zbledel — faded, zarjavel — rusty. The difference is simple: zbledel faded by itself, while zmečkan was crumpled by somebody.
Table
| verb | participle | the English | who acted |
|---|---|---|---|
| zmečkati | zmečkan | crumpled | somebody crumpled it |
| obrabiti | obrabljen | worn out | something wore it out |
| ponarediti | ponarejen | fake | somebody faked it |
| odpreti | odprt | open | somebody opened it |
| zbiti | zbit | compacted | something packed it |
| zbledeti | zbledel | faded | it faded by itself |
| zarjaveti | zarjavel | rusty | it rusted by itself |
| usahniti | usahel | dried up | it dried by itself |
By example
- Srajca je zmečkana, hlače pa so zbledeleThe shirt is crumpled, and the trousers have faded
- Zavore so obrabljene, ključavnica pa zarjavelaThe brakes are worn, and the lock has rusted
- Vrata so odprta, okno pa zaprtoThe door is open, and the window is closed
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Zmečkan, obrabljen, zbledel: how does it work in Slovenian?
Almost all words about the state of a thing are not 'real' adjectives but forms made from verbs. Once you see the seam, you stop learning them one by one.
What does it look like in an example sentence Slovenian?
“Srajca je zmečkana, hlače pa so zbledele” — The shirt is crumpled, and the trousers have faded. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.