Naj bi, baje, pravijo: how to mark words as someone else’s
In the argument unit half the phrases are hearsay. English marks it with 'allegedly', 'supposedly', 'they say'; Slovenian does it with a verb form, and that form is naj bi. For example: “Sosed naj bi prodal hišo, a nihče ne ve zagotovo” — The neighbor allegedly sold the house, but nobody knows for sure. A rule from the Slovenian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
In the argument unit half the phrases are hearsay. English marks it with 'allegedly', 'supposedly', 'they say'; Slovenian does it with a verb form, and that form is naj bi.
Naj bi plus the -l participle means 'by someone else's words, and I do not vouch for it': Naj bi bil bolan — he is allegedly ill. Sosed naj bi prodal hišo — the neighbor, they say, sold the house. The subject stays in place, naj bi stands before the participle, and no 'that' is needed: one short sentence instead of English's two.
The same form has a second meaning — a plan that failed or has not come true: Vlak naj bi prišel ob petih — the train is due at five (by the timetable), Sestanek naj bi trajal uro — the meeting was supposed to last an hour. Only sense tells the two apart: about timetables and arrangements — a plan; about a person and their deeds — rather rumor.
Do not confuse it with naj without bi: that is 'let' and a soft command — Naj pride, Naj počaka. Two letters apart, a whole meaning away.
Simpler words, for speech. Baje — allegedly, one word: Baje se selijo. Menda — supposedly, with a shade of 'I am not sure myself': Menda je že doma. Pravijo, da — they say that: an impersonal third plural with no subject. Po besedah plus the genitive — according to: po besedah zdravnika. And kot je znano — as is well known, for what nobody disputes.
Tenses do not shift in retelling — that was covered in the note on reported speech, and it works the same here: Rekel je, da pride — he said he's coming. Slovenian leaves the verb in the tense it was uttered in.
Table
| the device | example | what it signals |
|---|---|---|
| naj bi + -l | Naj bi bil bolan | hearsay, nobody vouches |
| naj bi + -l | Vlak naj bi prišel ob petih | a plan by the timetable |
| naj (without bi) | Naj pride | let him come |
| baje | Baje se selijo | allegedly, one word |
| menda | Menda je doma | supposedly, unsure myself |
| pravijo, da | Pravijo, da bo zima mrzla | they say that |
| po besedah | Po besedah zdravnika | according to the doctor |
| kot je znano | Kot je znano, praznik pade v sredo | as is well known |
By example
- Sosed naj bi prodal hišo, a nihče ne ve zagotovoThe neighbor allegedly sold the house, but nobody knows for sure
- Vlak naj bi prišel ob petih, prišel pa je ob šestihThe train was due at five, but it came at six
- Po besedah direktorja naj bi se plače dvignile spomladiAccording to the director, wages are supposedly going up in spring
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
Naj bi, baje, pravijo: how does it work in Slovenian?
In the argument unit half the phrases are hearsay. English marks it with 'allegedly', 'supposedly', 'they say'; Slovenian does it with a verb form, and that form is naj bi.
What does it look like in an example sentence Slovenian?
“Sosed naj bi prodal hišo, a nihče ne ve zagotovo” — The neighbor allegedly sold the house, but nobody knows for sure. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.