The Seven Cases

Level 1

A Latvian noun changes its ending to show its job: kafija (subject), kafiju (object), ar pienu (with milk). There are seven cases.

How It Works

Here are the seven cases, each with its main job:

  • Nominative: the subject and the dictionary form. Māja ir liela. (The house is big.) See the nominative.
  • Genitive: "of", owners, and after words like no (from). mājas durvis (the door of the house), Esmu no Rīgas. (I'm from Riga.) See the genitive.
  • Dative: "to" or "for" a person, and the person in man patīk and man ir. Man patīk kafija. (I like coffee.) See the dative.
  • Accusative: the direct object. Es gribu kafiju. (I want coffee.) See the accusative.
  • Instrumental: "with", usually after ar. kafija ar pienu (coffee with milk). It looks like the accusative in the singular and like the dative in the plural. See with ar.
  • Locative: "in" or "at", with no preposition at all. Es dzīvoju Rīgā. (I live in Riga.) See the locative.
  • Vocative: calling someone by name. Labrīt, Jāni! (Good morning, Jānis!) See calling someone.

Some forms look alike. Mājas can mean "of the house" or "houses", and the rest of the sentence tells you which.

Because the endings show the roles, word order is freer than in English. Anna gaida Jāni and Jāni gaida Anna both mean that Anna is waiting for Jānis. The endings, Anna (nominative) and Jāni (accusative), say who waits for whom. The second order puts the focus on Anna.

In the singular, the preposition decides the case: no Rīgas (genitive), uz Rīgu (accusative). In the plural, every preposition takes the dative: no mājām, ar draugiem. See prepositions with plural nouns.

The endings also depend on the noun's group, called a declension. Latvian has six: three mostly masculine (galds, brālis, tirgus) and three mostly feminine (māja, upe, pils). Start with the first declension.

Examples (6)

  1. Kafija ir karsta.

    The coffee is hot.

    Word by Word: Coffee is hot.

    Nominative: kafija is the subject.

  2. Es gribu kafiju ar pienu.

    I want coffee with milk.

    Word by Word: I want coffee with milk.

    Kafiju is the object, in the accusative. After ar, pienu is instrumental, which looks like the accusative.

  3. Man patīk kafija.

    I like coffee.

    Word by Word: To-me pleases coffee.

    Dative man is the person who likes it. The coffee stays nominative.

  4. Esmu no Rīgas.

    I'm from Riga.

    Word by Word: (I) am from Riga.

    Genitive: no (from) is followed by Rīgas.

  5. Es dzīvoju Rīgā.

    I live in Riga.

    Word by Word: I live in-Riga.

    Locative: the long -ā ending means in.

  6. Labrīt, Jāni!

    Good morning, Jānis!

    Word by Word: Good-morning, Jānis!

    Vocative: when you call Jānis by name, his name ends in -i.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the dictionary form for the object.

    Es gribu kafija.
    Es gribu kafiju.

    Kafija is the thing you want, so it takes the accusative ending -u.

  • Putting the thing you like in the accusative.

    Man patīk kafiju.
    Man patīk kafija.

    With patīk the person is dative and the thing you like stays nominative.

How It Connects

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

The Seven CasesLevel 1

Learn This First

The case overview builds on noun gender.