# auto je opravené - auto je opraveno



## The Machine of Zhu

Hello, I can't seem to work out the difference between these to sentences/constructions:

*a) Auto je opravené.
b) Auto je opraveno.*

I know 'opravené' is a passive adjective made from a verb (opravit in this case), and the second is the passive. My question is whether there is a substantial difference between the two sentences and can they be used interchangeably. 

And one additional question about the passive. Is the 'ending' (koncovka) *-i* only used with masculine animated words in the plural? 

Thanks,

Zhu.


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## ilocas2

The Machine of Zhu said:


> And one additional question about the passive. Is the 'ending' (koncovka) *-i* only used with masculine animated words in the plural?


 
Yes

I'm not able to answer the rest of the question


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## The Machine of Zhu

ilocas2 said:


> Yes
> 
> I'm not able to answer the rest of the question



Thanks!

Perhaps another native speaker will be able to tackle the rest.


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## jazyk

I think it can be similar to Dutch:

Auto je opravené - De auto is gerepareerd.
Auto je opraveno - De auto wordt gerepareerd.


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## ency

I'll try to explain it 

a) Auto je opravené.
b) Auto je opraveno.

So a) is about pattern "mladý" and "Střední rod", but some adjectives have shorter form called as "Jmenný tvar" or "Krátký tvar"
eg. Honza je mladý. x Honza je mlád.

It means same, you can read somethink about it here hxxp://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Česká_přídavná_jména


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## texpert

The Machine of Zhu said:


> Hello, I can't seem to work out the difference between these to sentences/constructions:
> 
> *a) Auto je opravené.*
> *b) Auto je opraveno.*
> 
> I know 'opravené' is a passive adjective made from a verb (opravit in this case), and the second is the passive. My question is whether there is a substantial difference between the two sentences and can they be used interchangeably.
> 
> And one additional question about the passive. Is the 'ending' (koncovka) *-i* only used with masculine animated words in the plural?
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Zhu.


 
In most cases, there is no difference apart from the style (the passive is predominantly used in cultivated speech). However, the difference could be rather significant when past tense is used:  

*auto bylo právě opravené *= the car was repaired at certain moment, indicating it might not be fixed anymore
*auto bylo právě opraveno *= the car was repaired (exactly) at certain moment

As to the second question, the answer is *yes*.


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## werrr

The Machine of Zhu said:


> I know 'opravené' is a passive adjective made from a verb (opravit in this case), and the second is the passive.


With this you are halfway to understand the difference. Adjectives, including the verbal ones, are used to assign a property and could be used even in non-verbal constructions:

auto je opravené  × opravené auto 
auto je malé  × malé auto ​
That means that the phrase *auto je opravené* assigns a property to the car, it says what is the car like, what is the state of the car:

auto je malé = the car is small
malé auto = small car
auto je opravené ~ the car is after repair
opravené auto ~ car after repair​
Any construction with verb, including passive participles, is verbal by definition, so you can’t use the participle in non-verbal sense:

auto je opraveno  × opraveno auto ​
Verbs describe an action/event, so the phrase *auto je opraveno* says what happened to the car, what is the state of the action:

auto je opraveno ~ repair (of the car) is finished​


> My question is whether there is a substantial difference between the two sentences and can they be used interchangeably.


There is a difference, but often it is so subtle that both makes sense in given situation. The difference is most obscure for perfective verbs in present tense, because present perfectiveness is always quirky concept. Even natives commonly confuse this. Texpert is right the difference becomes apparent in past (or future) tense:

ve třináctém století bylo město založeno 
   ~
the act of establishing the town happened in the 13th century


ve třináctém století bylo město založené
   ~
the state of the town in the 13th century was that it was after the act of its establishing​
Based on my limited knowledge of German I guess that this concurs with the jazyk’s Dutch example.


And one additional warning, while the participles carry the same meaning as the original verb, the adjectives of verbal origin commonly acquire a secondary meaning which could eventually replace the original meaning to the extend that the natives don’t perceive the adjective as verbal anymore:

krysy jsou hubeny = rats are being exterminated
krysy jsou hubené = rats are lean (as result of being exterminated)​


> And one additional question about the passive. Is the 'ending' (koncovka) *-i* only used with masculine animated words in the plural?


It is used for and only for the plural subjects which include at least one masculine animate entity.


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## The Machine of Zhu

Thanks everyone, especially werrr for that elaborate explanation! It's very helpful!


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