LingoflyDobrota, lenjost, poštenje: what the nouns of character are made of
The names of character traits are drawn out of adjectives and verbs by four suffixes. Know the suffix and you can read a new word, or build one yourself. For example: “Његова (Njegova) доброта (dobrota) и (i) поштење (poštenje) свима (svima) су (su) познати” — His kindness and honesty are known to everyone. A rule from the Serbian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
The names of character traits are drawn out of adjectives and verbs by four suffixes. Know the suffix and you can read a new word, or build one yourself.
-ost is the commonest and the most dependable: sebičan → sebičnost, tvrdoglav → tvrdoglavost, snalažljiv → snalažljivost. The fleeting a drops out, and every such word is feminine.
-ota is older and prettier, and it fits few words: dobar → dobrota, lep → lepota, topao → toplota.
-stvo names the property of a group, or an occupation: prijateljstvo, bogatstvo, siromaštvo. And -nje comes off a verb: strpeti se → strpljenje, poveriti → poverenje.
Table
| the suffix | from what | the word | in English |
|---|---|---|---|
| -ost | sebičan | sebičnost | selfishness |
| -ost | tvrdoglav | tvrdoglavost | stubbornness |
| -ost | nemaran | nemarnost | negligence |
| -ota | dobar | dobrota | kindness |
| -ota | lep | lepota | beauty |
| -stvo | bogat | bogatstvo | wealth |
| -nje | strpeti se | strpljenje | patience |
| -nje | poveriti | poverenje | trust |
By example
- Tvrdoglavost bez strpljenja ne vodi nikudaStubbornness without patience gets you nowhere
- Ценим сналажљивост више од дипломеCenim snalažljivost više od diplomeI value resourcefulness more than a diploma
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
Dobrota, lenjost, poštenje: how does it work in Serbian?
The names of character traits are drawn out of adjectives and verbs by four suffixes. Know the suffix and you can read a new word, or build one yourself.
What does it look like in a Serbian example sentence?
“Његова (Njegova) доброта (dobrota) и (i) поштење (poštenje) свима (svima) су (su) познати” (Njegova dobrota i poštenje svima su poznati) — His kindness and honesty are known to everyone. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.