Lingofly-nje and -ost: a noun from a verb, a noun from an adjective
Grown-up speech leans on nouns the language did not start with: they are made out of verbs and adjectives. Two suffixes do that work, and both behave without surprises. For example: “Ажурирање (ažuriranje) је (je) стигло (Stiglo) ноћас (Noćas) и (i) променило (promenilo) подешавања” (podešavanja) — The update arrived overnight and changed the settings. A rule from the Serbian course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Grown-up speech leans on nouns the language did not start with: they are made out of verbs and adjectives. Two suffixes do that work, and both behave without surprises.
From a verb comes -nje: ažurirati → ažuriranje (an update), ponašati se → ponašanje, saosećati → saosećanje. All of them are neuter and bend like polje.
From an adjective comes -ost: usamljen → usamljenost (loneliness), pouzdan → pouzdanost, moguć → mogućnost. All of them are feminine: bez mogućnosti, o usamljenosti.
Why that is worth knowing. Meeting an unfamiliar uverenje, you know straight away it is neuter. Meeting pouzdanost, you know it is feminine and gives pouzdanosti.
Table
| the source word | the noun | gender | in English |
|---|---|---|---|
| ažurirati | ažuriranje | neuter | update (the act) |
| podešavati | podešavanja | neuter, pl. | settings |
| saosećati | saosećanje | neuter | sympathy |
| ponašati se | ponašanje | neuter | behavior |
| obavestiti | obaveštenje | neuter | a notification |
| usamljen | usamljenost | feminine | loneliness |
| moguć | mogućnost | feminine | possibility |
| drzak | drskost | feminine | audacity |
By example
- Ažuriranje je stiglo noćas i promenilo podešavanjaThe update arrived overnight and changed the settings
- Njegovo ponašanje je bilo veliko razočaranje za sve nasHis behavior was a huge disappointment to all of us
- Usamljenost u novom gradu prođe za nekoliko meseciThe loneliness of a new city wears off in a few months
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
-nje and -ost: how does it work in Serbian?
Grown-up speech leans on nouns the language did not start with: they are made out of verbs and adjectives. Two suffixes do that work, and both behave without surprises.
What does it look like in a Serbian example sentence?
“Ажурирање (ažuriranje) је (je) стигло (Stiglo) ноћас (Noćas) и (i) променило (promenilo) подешавања” (podešavanja) (Ažuriranje je stiglo noćas i promenilo podešavanja) — The update arrived overnight and changed the settings. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.