cijeloj

Cijeloj is a feminine singular inflected form of the Croatian, Bosnian, and Serbian adjective cijeli, meaning "whole" or "entire." It appears when an adjective modifying a feminine noun expresses totality or extent, and its exact form depends on the case required by the sentence.

Grammatical notes: The base adjective cijeli has gendered forms such as masculine nominative cijeli, feminine nominative cijela, and neuter nominative cijelo. In the feminine singular, cijeloj is used for the dative and locative cases (to/for the whole something, and in the whole something, respectively). In other cases, the feminine singular forms are cijela (nominative), cijelu (accusative), and cijele (genitive). The instrumental feminine singular form is separate and used with appropriate constructions.

Usage and examples: Cijeloj modifies feminine nouns, often to emphasize totality. Examples include “u cijeloj kući” (in the whole house), “na cijeloj planeti” (on the whole planet), and “cijeloj sobi” (in the whole room). The form is common in standard BCS grammar and appears in both formal and informal contexts.

Etymology and relation: The word cijeli derives from Proto-Slavic roots meaning “whole.” It has cognates across Slavic languages and is used in similar ways to express totality with feminine nouns. Cijeloj is one of several inflected forms that allow agreement with gender and case in Croatian, Bosnian, and Serbian.