Exam preparation: cases, adjectives, and agreement in Latvian
How it works
In Latvian, adjectives must agree with the noun they describe in case, number, and gender. In school usage, one usually works with six basic cases plus the vocative; forms with ‹ar› are often described as having an instrumental function, but in many forms they are identical to other cases. There are also indefinite and definite endings for attributive adjectives. For example: ‹liels zēns› (big boy), ‹lielā zēna grāmata› (the book of the big boy, genitive), and ‹tajā lielajā mājā› (in that big house, locative). Agreement is important for recognizing the grammatical relationship in the sentence. The correct form therefore depends not only on case, number, and gender, but often also on whether the definite or indefinite adjective ending is needed.
Adjectives must agree in case, number, and gender with the noun they belong to. For attributive adjectives, the correct indefinite or definite ending must also be chosen; after demonstratives such as ‹tas›, ‹tā›, ‹tie›, ‹tās›, the definite form is usually used. The case ending depends on the sentence function.
An example
Which adjective is correct in the sentence ‹Es redzu to ___ māju.›?
Try it yourself now
50 Exercises
To the learning unit →Own explanation and own practice exercises by AmyMath. Subject reference framework: Latvian. The topic assignment may vary by federal state.