Animate masculine accusative (-a)

Direct Objects and the Accusative Case

When a noun is the direct object of a sentence (the person or thing receiving the action), it takes the accusative case.

Animate Masculine Nouns

Masculine nouns usually end in a consonant. If a masculine noun refers to a living being—like a person, profession, or animal—it is considered animate.

To form the accusative singular of an animate masculine noun, add -a to the end of the word.

• konobar (waiter) -> konobara
• vozač (driver) -> vozača
• sin (son) -> sina

The Fleeting "a"

Some masculine nouns have an "a" in their dictionary form that drops out when you add an ending. A common example is pas (dog). When you add the -a for the accusative, the first "a" disappears, making it psa.

Putting It Together

You can list multiple animate nouns as objects, or use them alongside pronouns. Every animate masculine noun in the object position takes the -a ending.