Often express momentary, beginning, or single-occurrence actions. Many perfective verbs belong to this class.
How to Identify
Infinitives ending in -nout: začít/začnout (begin), zapomenout (forget), tisknout (press), kliknout (click).
Remove -nout to get the stem, which ends in -n-. 'Zapomenout' → 'zapomen-', conjugated as 'zapomenu'. Some verbs drop letters: 'začít' → 'začn-'.
Why Endings Encode the Subject
The -nout suffix historically indicated inchoative (beginning) or semelfactive (single occurrence) actions. This meaning persists: 'kliknout' means 'to click once', while a hypothetical 'klikat' would mean 'to click repeatedly'.
Two sub-patterns exist: verbs keeping the -n- (zapomenu, zapomeneš) and verbs losing it (začnu, začneš from začít). The past tense may drop the -nu- entirely: zapomněl (not zapomenul).
| Person | Pronoun | English | Ending |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st sg. | já | I | -nu/-u |
| 2nd sg. | ty | you (sg.) | -neš/-eš |
| 3rd sg. | on/ona/ono | he/she/it | -ne/-e |
| 1st pl. | my | we | -neme/-eme |
| 2nd pl. | vy | you (pl./formal) | -nete/-ete |
| 3rd pl. | oni/ony/ona | they | -nou/-ou |
Past participle: -nul/-nula/-nulo (or -l/-la/-lo)
Example Verbs4
Present Tense
Past Tense (with gender)
zapomen-Remove -out: zapomenout → zapomen-. The -n- is part of the stem.
Present Tense
Past Tense (with gender)
začn-Irregular stem: začít → začn-. The infinitive hides the -n- that appears in conjugation.
Present Tense
Past Tense (with gender)
vrát-Remove -it: vrátit → vrát-. This is actually an -it verb but with -nout-like perfective meaning.
Present Tense
Past Tense (with gender)
sedn-Remove -out: sednout → sedn-. Typical -nout pattern.