abi / abas

Both: Abi and Abas

Level 3

Abi means both for a masculine or mixed pair, and abas for a feminine pair: abi brāļi, abas māsas. They take case endings: ar abām rokām.

How It Works

1. Agreement. Choose abi or abas by the gender of the noun, just like adjectives: abi brāļi, abas māsas, abi vecāki (both parents). For a mixed pair, use abi: Pēteris un Anna abi strādā Rīgā. (Pēteris and Anna both work in Riga.)

2. Cases.

  • Genitive: abu bērnu vārdi (both children's names)
  • Dative, and after prepositions: ar abām rokām, ar abiem vecākiem
  • Accusative: Es pazīstu abus brāļus. (I know both brothers.)
  • Locative: abos gadījumos (in both cases)

3. With pronouns. mēs abi, jūs abas, viņi abi: Mēs abi esam no Liepājas. (We are both from Liepāja.) In everyday speech you will also hear abi divi for extra emphasis: Nāciet abi divi! (Come here, both of you!)

4. Both ... and. To join two different things, Latvian uses gan ... gan, not abi: Man garšo gan tēja, gan kafija. (I like both tea and coffee.)

Examples (6)

  1. Abi brāļi dzīvo Rīgā.

    Both brothers live in Riga.

    Brāļi is masculine, so the word is abi.

  2. Abas māsas ir skolotājas.

    Both sisters are teachers.

    Māsas is feminine, so the word is abas.

  3. Turi to ar abām rokām!

    Hold it with both hands!

    After ar, abas becomes dative: abām rokām.

  4. Mēs abi esam no Liepājas.

    We are both from Liepāja.

    Abi can follow a pronoun. A pair of two women would say mēs abas.

  5. Es pazīstu abus brāļus.

    I know both brothers.

    Accusative plural: abus brāļus.

  6. Abos gadījumos atbilde ir tā pati.

    In both cases the answer is the same.

    Locative plural: abos gadījumos.

Common Mistakes

  • Using masculine abi with a feminine noun.

    Abi māsas ir skolotājas.
    Abas māsas ir skolotājas.

    Abi and abas agree with the noun. Māsas is feminine.

  • Leaving abas in the nominative after a preposition.

    Turi to ar abas rokas!
    Turi to ar abām rokām!

    After ar, a plural takes the dative, and abas changes to abām.

  • Using abi to mean both ... and.

    Man garšo abi tēja un kafija.
    Man garšo gan tēja, gan kafija.

    Abi goes with one plural noun. To join two different things, use gan ... gan.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

abi / abasLevel 3Both: Abi and Abas

Learn This First

Abi means both.

Words in This Pattern

abiabasabiemabāmabosabās