Start the new year the Slovak way! In this episode of Slovak Sound Check, Veronika and Lubna explore common New Year’s resolutions — or “novoročné predsavzatia” — and teach you how to talk about starting new habits and giving up old ones in Slovak. Perfect for learners who want to practice also the future tense for the first time.
Vocabulary
novoročné predsavzatia = New Year’s resolutions
začať = to start
Začína sa nový rok. = The new year starts.
(Ja) začínam = I start / I’m starting.
Začnem cvičiť. = I will start exercising.
Začnem jesť zdravo. = I will start eating healthy.
Začnem viac čítať. = I will start reading more.
Začnem viac šetriť. = I will start saving more.
Začnem sa učiť po slovensky. = I will start learning Slovak.
prestať = to stop / give up
Prestanem fajčiť. = I will stop smoking.
Prestanem piť alkohol / kávu. = I will stop drinking alcohol / coffee.
Prestanem jesť sladké. = I will stop eating sweets.
Note 1: The verb “začať”(to start) can be used in a reflexive form when talking about the beginning of something in time — for example “začína sa nový rok” (the new year starts). When you are starting an action yourself, the reflexive pronoun is not used, as in “začínam túto epizódu” (I start this episode).
Note 2: The form “začínam” is present tense (I am starting), while “začnem” is future tense (I will start). Slovak often forms the future tense using the auxiliary verb “byť” (to be), for example “budem viac cvičiť” (I will exercise more). However, verb forms like “začnem” (from verb “začať”) and “prestanem” (from verb “prestať”) already carry a future meaning and do not need an auxiliary verb.
Note 3: When talking about starting or stopping an activity, verbs such as “začnem” (I will start) and “prestanem” (I will stop) are followed by another full-meaning verb in the infinitive, for example “začnem čítať” (I will start reading) or “prestanem fajčiť” (I will stop smoking).
Note 4: The verb “učiť sa” (to learn) is reflexive when it refers to learning something yourself, as in “začnem sa učiť po slovensky” (I will start learning Slovak). If you are teaching someone else, the verb is “učiť” without the reflexive pronoun – “sa”.
Note 5: The adjective “novoročný / novoročná / novoročné” (New Year’s) is derived from the phrase “nový rok” (new year) and is written as one word in Slovak. It agrees in gender and number with the noun it describes, for example “novoročné predsavzatia” (neutral pl. — New Year’s resolutions).
Note 6: The adverb “viac” (more) is often used in resolutions and typically appears between the verb “začnem” and the main verb, for example “začnem viac čítať” (I will start reading more), or “začnem viac šetriť” (I will start saving more).
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