82 Visible and Unreadable: Potential Adjectives

There’s a group of adjectives derived from many verbs (but not all!) that stand for potential. They are kind of similar to passive adjectives. English has such adjectives too: examples are visible and readable.

They are usually derived by adding -ljiv to the verb root (that is, the infinitive form without -ati, -iti, -jeti, etc.):

čitati read → čit- → čitljiv readable
vidjeti see → vid- → vidljiv visible

They are frequently derived from perf. verbs:

prihvatiti perf. accept → prihvatljiv acceptable
shvatiti inch. understand → shvatljiv understandable
uzbuditi («) perf. excite → uzbudljiv exciting
zapaliti («) perf. ignite → zapaljiv flammable

(Here I have used inch. as short for inchoative verbs, a kind of perfective verbs introduced in the previous chapter.)

The stress of such adjectives seems to be always on the syllable just before the last one (that is, one before -ljiv).

Few verbs that end in -siti or -sati have pot. adj. ending only in -siv. Common ones are:

podesiti perf. adjust → podesiv adjustable
prenositi transport → prenosiv portable

If the consonant that would come before -ljiv is n or nj, it gets fused with lj; some adjectives have both forms:

promijeniti perf. change → promjenjiv / promjenljiv variable
hraniti feed → hranjiv nutritious
sumnjati suspect → sumnjiv suspicious

(You will sometimes see the spelling sumljiv; that’s considered non-standard and a gross error by some people.)

Verbs that have pres-3 ending in -e usually don’t derive such adjectives with -ljiv, but with -iv, and they appear more similar to the infinitive form:

jesti (jede) eat → jestiv eatable
opisati (opiše) perf. describe → opisiv describable
saviti (savije) perf. bend → savitljiv flexible

If the verb contains a sequence -ije-, it’s shortened in the potential adjective to -je- or just -e- (after r, preceded by another consonant):

dijeliti divide, share → djeljiv divisible
lijepiti glue, stick → ljepljiv sticky

As in English, negated versions of some potential adjectives are more common then non-negated. The negation is done by simply appending ne- to the front. Common negated potential adjectives are:

nerazumljiv incomprehensible
neshvatljiv inexplicable
neuništiv indestructible
nevidljiv invisible

The verb piti (pije) drink doesn’t have a regular potential adjective, but a specific adjective is used:

pitak (pitk-) drinkable, potable

Also, a frequent negative potential adj. has an unexpected form:

nezaboravan (nezaboravn-) unforgettable

Some potential adjectives stand for active ability, especially when someone likes to do something, or often does something; this happens mostly for verbs related to talking. For example:

paziti take care → pažljiv careful
pričati tell (stories) → pričljiv talkative
šaliti se² joke → šaljiv funny, humorous
šutjeti / šutiti be silent → šutljiv silent

Few more adjectives have (apparently) non-potential meaning:

dirati touch → dirljiv touching, emotional
hraniti feed → hranjiv nutritious
osjetiti inch. feel → osjetljiv sensitive
smrdjeti / smrditi stink → smrdljiv foul-smelling
strpiti se² perf. be patient → strpljiv patient
zanimati («) be interesting → zanimljiv interesting

Unlike passive adjectives, most potential adjectives are comparable (and always use the -iji suffix). The stress moves to the suffix (ljiv):

pažljiv careful → pažljiviji more careful
vidljiv visible → vidljiviji more visible

However, you should remember that not all verbs have potential adjectives, even if it would make sense.

Similar in form to potential adjectives – but not in meaning – are adjectives derived by adding -av. There are only a couple of them derived from verbs in frequent use:

brbljati chit-chat → brbljav chatty
prljati soil, pollute → prljav dirty

This suffix is used to derive adjectives from certain nouns:

dlaka body hair, animal hair → dlakav hairy
hrđa rust → hrđav rusty ®
krv f blood → krvav bloody
mišić muscle → mišićav muscular

These adjectives never have a case-base with the -a- dropped, while adjectives which end in -av for other reasons sometimes have, e.g. mrtav (mrtv-) dead.

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® In Serbia and Bosnia, words for rust and rusty don’t have the initial h: they have forms rđa and rđav.

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