Breakdown of Kakvo neočekivano uništenje!
kakav
what kind of / what a (exclamatory)
neočekivan
unexpected
uništenje
destruction
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Questions & Answers about Kakvo neočekivano uništenje!
Why do we use Kakvo here instead of Kako, since the word right after it is an adjective?
Even though there is an adjective (neočekivano), the exclamation is about the noun uništenje (destruction). Whenever you have a noun phrase, you must use a form of kakav ('What a...!'). You only use kako ('How...!') if you are exclaiming about an adjective or adverb on its own, for example: Kako neočekivano! (How unexpected!).
Why does the exclamatory word take the form Kakvo?
Kakav behaves like an adjective, meaning it must match the gender, number, and case of the noun it points to. Since uništenje is a neuter noun in the nominative case, both the question word and the adjective take their neuter singular endings: kakvo and neočekivano.
How is the adjective neočekivano formed?
Does the ending of uništenje tell us its gender?
Yes! The -nje ending is used to make nouns out of verbs, much like the English '-tion' or '-ing'. Nouns that end in -nje, like uništenje (from uništiti, to destroy), are almost always neuter. That is your clue to use Kakvo.