The Definite Adjective

Geras and Gerasis: the Two Series

173.Every qualitative adjective in Lithuanian has two full paradigms. The short form — geras, gera — is the ordinary one taught at ¶17: it describes. The long form — gerasis, geroji — is called įvardžiuotinis, the pronominal or definite adjective: it identifies. English has only the article to mark the difference (a good teacher against the good teacher); Lithuanian writes the difference into the adjective itself.

Geras mokytojas padeda.

A good teacher helps. — any good teacher: short form

Gerasis mokytojas padeda.

The good teacher helps. — the particular one already known: long form

Naujas direktorius atėjo.

A new director has come.

Naujasis direktorius atėjo.

The new director has come.

• [1] The long form is historically the short adjective plus a worn-down demonstrative. The learner need not reconstruct the history: what matters is that the two series are kept distinct in every case.

How the Long Form is Made

174.The long endings are added to the stem of the short adjective. From -as the masculine nominative singular is -asis and the feminine -oji; from -us, -usis and -ioji; from -is, -ysis and -ėji is not the pattern — -is adjectives give -ysis, -ioji. The stem softens where the short form already softens: žalias gives žaliasis, gražus gives gražusis.

Senasis miestas yra gražus.

The old town is beautiful.

Didžioji salė pilna.

The great hall is full.

The Long Form Declines in Full

175.The definite adjective agrees with its noun in gender, number and case, exactly as the short one does. What changes is only the ending series: the long endings are longer in every case, and they must be recognised in reading as readily as produced. A sample of gerasis shows the pattern; the other stems follow it.

Aš kalbu su naujuoju mokytoju.

I am speaking with the new teacher. — instrumental long form

Gyvenu senojoje gatvėje.

I live in the old street. — locative feminine

Ar matei gerąjį filmą?

Did you see the good film?

When the Long Form is Required

176.Use the definite adjective when the quality picks out a particular, already identifiable person or thing — the one the speaker and hearer can both point to. The short form remains the default for ordinary description, for predicates (jis geras), and for anything newly introduced. A useful test: if English would want the because the adjective itself is doing the identifying, Lithuanian wants the long form.

Kur yra senasis tiltas?

Where is the old bridge?

Naujasis studentas kalba lietuviškai.

The new student speaks Lithuanian.

Filmas buvo geras.

The film was good. — predicate: short form only

• [1] Speech often prefers the short form where careful writing keeps the long one. The learner should recognise both and produce the long form in the clear cases of ¶177 and in fixed names (¶178).

The Adjective Standing Alone

177.When the noun is left out and the adjective stands for it — the red one, the old one — Lithuanian almost always uses the long form. The ending then carries gender and case as a pronoun would, which is why the series is called pronominal.

Noriu raudonosios.

I want the red one. — feminine genitive after norėti (¶39)

Duok man naująjį.

Give me the new one. — masculine accusative

Senoji jau išėjo.

The old woman (the old one) has already left.

Fixed Names and Titles

178.A number of proper names and set titles are built on the long form and are not optional: Naujieji metai (New Year), street and institution names (Senoji gatvė), chapter headings, and many book titles. Here the long form is part of the name, not a choice of style — the short form would simply be a different phrase.

Naujieji metai prasideda sausio pirmą.

New Year begins on the first of January.

Gyvenu Senosiose Vilniaus gatvėse.

I live in the Old Streets of Vilnius. — a fixed local name may keep the long plural

Skaitau Didžiąją knygą.

I am reading the Great Book.

• [1] Ordinals and superlatives often look definite (pirmasis, geriausiasis) in older or elevated style; the everyday superlative of ¶122 (geriausias) is already enough for A2 production.