Odgovorio

Odgovorio is the masculine singular past participle of the verb odgovoriti, used in Croatian, Serbian, and Bosnian (BCS) to mean “to answer” or “to respond.” As a participle it forms part of perfect tenses with the auxiliary biti (to be), for example: ja sam odgovorio, on je odgovorio. It also serves as a verbal adjective that agrees with the subject in gender and number: ona je odgovorila (feminine), ono bi se moglo reći kao oblik neutre ili korištenje u specifičnim konstrukcijama.

Etymology and morphology

The verb odgovoriti is derived from the noun odgovor (an answer) combined with the verbatic base govoriti (to speak). The prefix od- contributes to the sense of giving a response back or completing the act of speaking. The participle odgovorio follows standard Slavic patterning: odgovorio (m. sing.), odgovorila (f. sing.), odgovorilo (n. sing.), odgovorili (m. pl.), odgovorile (f. pl.), odgovorila (n. pl.). In usage, it is primarily a verbal form rather than a standalone noun.

Usage

Odgovorio is used to indicate a completed act of answering in the past. It appears in sentences with a finite subject and the appropriate auxiliary or as a standalone past tense form in casual speech: On je odgovorio na pitanje. Ona je odgovorila na pitanje. The form agrees with the subject’s gender and number. While closely related forms exist for other genders and numbers, odgovorio itself is not used as a noun; the related noun is odgovor (the answer). The word is common across BCS languages and is cognate with Slovenian odgovorio and other South Slavic equivalents.

See also

odgovor, odgovoriti, govoriti, etymology of odgovor.