vaicaitis wrote:
How do "lithuanians" do it? When they are learning new words, or referring to words in the dictionary, how is it that they know which case to use? I have several book-dictionaries and none of them include case information. Additionally,
www.lkz.lt, which I thought was considered the "definitive" online lithuanian dictionary doesnt have case information either. So is it just another native-speaker magical power that they are able to deem the correct case just from seeing the word? Its all a bit frustrating. I suppose I will try Alkonas and see if that may be of some use. Thanks for the help.
I am afraid to say there are two factors against students of Lithuanian in particular.
1. Comparatively, very few non-natives learn the language. As a consequence, study aids are adequately scarce.
2. Although I have no stats handy, absolute majority of such students begin learnig late in their lives
Before I share my other insight, I would like to merge "native" with "practicing in live environment every waking moment."
When Lithuanian kids go to grade school, they bring a barrage of misused declensions etc. from home. It is only during the first six years that they get "cleaned up."
Summing up, whereas a notable portion of Lithuanian can be learned outside of daily "native" practice, available methodology is inadequate to accomplish that. The remaining portion is indeed a matter of practicing in native environment.
In case of Vaicaitis, the situation is paradoxal. In theory, he could go to vicinity of Lemont or Willow Brook, hook up with his age peers whose native is Lithuanian, and get the "native" part. In practice, those age peers have their language heavily bastardized by English loan words at least, and are trying to leave Lithuanian behind bound on the opposite direction making English their first - at most.
P.S. "klausyti muzikos", but to make matters worse, "padėti gėles" ir "padėti gėlių" both are correct, yet are governed by another set of rules ascribing when tu use kilimininkas and when to use galininkas.
If you can use article "the", then galininkas. If you can omit article, then kilmininkas.
"Jeigu gėlių skaičius nusakytinas, vartojamas galininkas. Jeigu aprašomas pats pagarbos pareiškimo veiksmas, vartotinas kilmininkas."
Gents, I had to learn the "gelių/geles" case while a secondary school student in Lithuania. "Native" would have been of no help, no contribution.