Daiktavardiniais

Daiktavardiniais is a term used in Lithuanian linguistics to describe a class of words that function as nouns despite originating as adjectives. In analysis, these words are treated as nominals because they can occupy typical noun positions in a sentence and refer to classes or groups of entities rather than to a single item. They often arise from adjectives or from fixed expressions and may carry noun-like meanings such as “the brave,” “the young,” or “the rich,” when used to denote a category of people or things.

Grammatically, daiktavardiniai usually decline for number and case, like nouns, though their exact inflection pattern can resemble adjectives in some descriptions and noun-like in others. Their use blurs the boundary between adjective and noun, since they can modify a noun when used in non-nominal positions or stand alone as the subject or object when interpreted as a whole class. They frequently appear with numerals, demonstratives, or quantifiers and may participate in predicative constructions.

In the study of Lithuanian grammar, daiktavardiniai are discussed within nominalization and word-class flexibility. They illustrate how language compresses reference by treating certain adjectives as stand-ins for groups or classes of entities. While not part of basic school grammar, the concept is encountered in more advanced grammars and linguistic descriptions of how adjectives can function as nouns in natural language.

See also: nominalization, daiktavardiniai žodžiai, adjectives used as nouns.