Umanjenje iznosa je veliko.

to be

Breakdown of Umanjenje iznosa je veliko.

• velik: big
• iznos: an amount
• umanjenje: a reduction

Questions & Answers about Umanjenje iznosa je veliko.

What does each word in Umanjenje iznosa je veliko mean grammatically?

• umanjenje = reduction / decrease; it is a noun
• iznosa = of the amount / sum; this is also a noun, here in the genitive singular
• je = is; 3rd person singular of biti (to be)
• veliko = large / great; an adjective in the form that agrees with umanjenje

So the structure is basically:

[noun] + [genitive noun] + [is] + [adjective]

That is, reduction of the amount is large.

Why is it iznosa and not iznos?

Because iznosa is in the genitive case.

In Serbian, when one noun specifies another noun, the second noun is often put in the genitive:

• umanjenje iznosa = reduction of the amount
• literally: reduction amount-of

The base form is iznos (amount, sum), but after umanjenje, Serbian uses the genitive:

• nominative: iznos
• genitive singular: iznosa

This is very common with abstract nouns:

• povećanje cene = increase in price
• smanjenje troškova = reduction of costs
• promena plana =