LingoflyKi and kateri: how to say 'the one who'
A thing can be described with an adjective: zahteven izpit. But 'the teacher who taught history' needs a second half of the sentence, and ki brings it in. For example: “To je sošolec, ki mi je posodil zvezek” — This is the classmate who lent me a notebook. A rule from the Slovenian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
A thing can be described with an adjective: zahteven izpit. But 'the teacher who taught history' needs a second half of the sentence, and ki brings it in.
Ki never changes, and that is its trap. English hides the role in word order: 'the classmate I know'. Slovenian pulls it out into a short word right after ki.
In the plain shape there is no such word: učitelj, ki je učil zgodovino. Everywhere else it is obligatory. Sošolec, ki ga poznam — the classmate I know. Sošolec, ki mu verjamem — the one I trust. Stanovanje, ki v njem živim — the flat I live in.
The second word is kateri. It changes by itself and suits contracts and textbooks: sošolec, katerega poznam. The comma before ki and kateri is always there.
Table
| the case of 'which' | spoken with ki | bookish with kateri |
|---|---|---|
| plain form | ki je prišel | kateri je prišel |
| of what | ki ga ni | katerega ni |
| to whom | ki mu pišem | kateremu pišem |
| object | ki ga poznam | katerega poznam |
| where at | ki v njem živim | v katerem živim |
| with what | ki z njim delam | s katerim delam |
| feminine | ki jo poznam | katero poznam |
| dual | ki ju poznam | katera poznam |
By example
- Stanovanje, ki sva si ga ogledala, je predragoThe apartment the two of us viewed is too expensive
- Podpišite pogodbo, v kateri so navedene vse zadolžitveSign the contract in which all obligations are listed
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
Ki vs kateri in Slovenian?
Ki never changes, and that is its trap. English hides the role in word order: 'the classmate I know'. Slovenian pulls it out into a short word right after ki.
How to say which in Slovenian?
Ki never changes, and that is its trap. English hides the role in word order: 'the classmate I know'. Slovenian pulls it out into a short word right after ki.
Why ga, mu and jo follow ki?
In the plain shape there is no such word: učitelj, ki je učil zgodovino. Everywhere else it is obligatory. Sošolec, ki ga poznam — the classmate I know. Sošolec, ki mu verjamem — the one I trust. Stanovanje, ki v njem živim — the flat I live in.
Is a comma needed before ki in Slovenian?
The second word is kateri. It changes by itself and suits contracts and textbooks: sošolec, katerega poznam. The comma before ki and kateri is always there.
How to say the flat I live in in Slovenian?
In the plain shape there is no such word: učitelj, ki je učil zgodovino. Everywhere else it is obligatory. Sošolec, ki ga poznam — the classmate I know. Sošolec, ki mu verjamem — the one I trust. Stanovanje, ki v njem živim — the flat I live in.
What does it look like in a Slovenian example sentence?
“To je sošolec, ki mi je posodil zvezek” — This is the classmate who lent me a notebook. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.