Nouns of the deed: cuiner, treball, -dor/-dora
Catalan readily builds "nouns of the deed" from verbs, and does it three ways. First, the "doer" word: the verb changes shape slightly and becomes a profession: cuinar — to cook, el cuiner — the cook; vendre — to sell, el venedor — the seller. Second, the name of the action: from the verb the deed itself remains: treballar — to work, el treball — the work; vendre — la venduda — the sale. For example: “El cuiner…
How it works
Catalan readily builds "nouns of the deed" from verbs, and does it three ways. First, the "doer" word: the verb changes shape slightly and becomes a profession: cuinar — to cook, el cuiner — the cook; vendre — to sell, el venedor — the seller. Second, the name of the action: from the verb the deed itself remains: treballar — to work, el treball — the work; vendre — la venduda — the sale.
The third way — the suffix -dor / -dora: it makes "the one who (or that which) does": treballador — worker and hardworking at once, comprador — buyer, jugador — player. The suffix works for machines too: l'assecador — the hair dryer, the "dryer". Meeting an unfamiliar word on "-dor", look for the verb with your eyes — it is almost always in view.
Table
| verb | noun of the deed | translation |
|---|---|---|
| cuinar | el cuiner | the cook |
| vendre | la venduda | the sale |
| treballar | el treball | the work |
| treballar | treballador/-ora | worker, hardworking |
By example
- El cuiner cuina per a tot el barriThe cook cooks for the whole quarter
- La venduda del pis va ser ràpidaThe sale of the flat was quick
- El venedor i el comprador acorden el preuThe seller and the buyer agree on the price
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
Nouns of the deed: how does it work in Valencian?
Catalan readily builds "nouns of the deed" from verbs, and does it three ways. First, the "doer" word: the verb changes shape slightly and becomes a profession: cuinar — to cook, el cuiner — the cook; vendre — to sell, el venedor — the seller. Second, the name of the action: from the verb the deed…
What does it look like in an example sentence Valencian?
“El cuiner cuina per a tot el barri” — The cook cooks for the whole quarter. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.