I can say who I am and where I'm from, ask where someone is from and how they are, and use som, si, je in every such sentence: “Som z Austrálie”, “Nie som zo Slovenska”.
Som, si, je: the verb byť
Som, si, je: the verb byť
Why: to say who you are and where you're from. byť works like English “am / are / is”: in the present it is never left out. Som z Austrálie.
The forms are in the table: ja som, ty si, on / ona / ono je, my sme, vy ste, oni / ony sú. Vy is polite to one person, or for several people. Oni is for men or a mixed group, ony for women.
The pronoun is usually left out: the form already shows who. Som Anna. Ja som… adds stress, as English does with a stressed “I”: Ja som Austrálčanka, a vy? Both are correct.
The negative is the separate word nie before the form: nie som, nie je, nie sú. It's written as two words.
A yes/no question keeps the word order; the voice goes up at the end, and writing adds “?”: Ste z Poľska? — Áno, som. / Nie, nie som.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “Ja z Austrálie.” → Som z Austrálie. (som can't be left out)
• NOT “Lucia zo Slovenska.” → Lucia je zo Slovenska.
• NOT “Nesom z Česka.” → Nie som z Česka. (two words)
• NOT “Nejsem” (that's Czech) → Nie som.
The verb byť in the present tense
The negative is the separate word nie before the form.
| Who | Affirmative | Negative |
|---|---|---|
| ja | som | nie som |
| ty | si | nie si |
| on / ona / ono | je | nie je |
| my | sme | nie sme |
| vy | ste | nie ste |
| oni / ony | sú | nie sú |
Lesson notes
Som, si, je: the verb byť
Why: to say who you are and where you're from. byť works like English “am / are / is”: in the present it is never left out. Som z Austrálie.
The forms are in the table: ja som, ty si, on / ona / ono je, my sme, vy ste, oni / ony sú. Vy is polite to one person, or for several people. Oni is for men or a mixed group, ony for women.
The pronoun is usually left out: the form already shows who. Som Anna. Ja som… adds stress, as English does with a stressed “I”: Ja som Austrálčanka, a vy? Both are correct.
The negative is the separate word nie before the form: nie som, nie je, nie sú. It's written as two words.
A yes/no question keeps the word order; the voice goes up at the end, and writing adds “?”: Ste z Poľska? — Áno, som. / Nie, nie som.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “Ja z Austrálie.” → Som z Austrálie. (som can't be left out)
• NOT “Lucia zo Slovenska.” → Lucia je zo Slovenska.
• NOT “Nesom z Česka.” → Nie som z Česka. (two words)
• NOT “Nejsem” (that's Czech) → Nie som.
Odkiaľ ste? Countries, z / zo, and capital letters
Two set questions. Odkiaľ? means “where from?”: Odkiaľ ste? — Som z Austrálie. Ako? means “how?”: Ako sa voláte? — Volám sa Anna. Ako sa máte? — Mám sa dobre. With ty: voláš, máš; with vy: voláte, máte. Learn them as a whole.
“From a country” is z + the country in a special form (see the table): z Ruska, z Ukrajiny, z USA, z Austrálie. Before s-, z-, š-, ž- it's zo: zo Slovenska. Learn the form after z together with the country. Slovak names: Slovensko (Slovakia), Česko (the Czech Republic), Rakúsko (Austria), Nemecko (Germany), Rusko (Russia), Austrália (Australia).
People from a country: Slovák — Slovenka, Rus — Ruska, Austrálčan — Austrálčanka (the second word is for a woman).
Capital letters go on first names, last names, countries, and people from a country: Anna, Slovensko, Slovák, Ruska. Everything else inside a sentence is lowercase. The checker ignores capitals, so watch them yourself.
When you meet someone: Teší ma. — Aj mňa. (Nice to meet you. — Me too.)
Common mistakes:
• NOT “Som z Slovenska.” → Som zo Slovenska.
• NOT “Ivan je rus.” → Ivan je Rus. (a person from a country takes a capital)
• NOT “Ako sa máš, pani Šimková?” → Ako sa máte, pani Šimková? (use vy with pani)