bez + Genitive

Without: Bez

Level 2

Bez means without: kafija bez cukura (coffee without sugar), bez tevis (without you), bez problēmām (without problems).

How It Works

Forms.

  • Singular noun: genitive: cukurs → bez cukura, piens → bez piena, nauda → bez naudas, darbs → bez darba
  • Pronouns: bez manis, bez tevis, bez viņa, bez viņas; in the plural bez mums, bez jums, bez viņiem
  • Plural noun: usually the dative: bez problēmām, bez bērniem, bez brillēm. Some texts keep an older genitive plural, as in bez bēdu (without worries).

Compare ar. Ar (with) and bez (without) are opposites, but their singular cases differ: tēja ar cukuru and tēja bez cukura. In the plural both take the dative: ar bērniem, bez bērniem.

Useful phrases. bez darba (out of work), bez maksas (free of charge), bez šaubām (without a doubt).

Telling the time. Bez also counts the minutes before the hour: Pulkstenis ir bez piecām minūtēm astoņi. (It is five to eight.) See telling the time.

Not counting. Bez can also mean besides: Bez manis tur bija vēl trīs cilvēki. (Besides me, there were three more people there.)

Examples (6)

  1. Es dzeru tēju bez cukura.

    I drink tea without sugar.

    cukurs → bez cukura: genitive singular.

  2. Mēs nevaram sākt bez tevis.

    We cannot start without you.

    After bez, tu becomes tevis.

  3. Es nevaru lasīt bez brillēm.

    I cannot read without my glasses.

    Brilles exists only in the plural, so it takes the dative: brillēm.

  4. Viņš pašlaik ir bez darba.

    He is out of work at the moment.

    Bez darba is a set phrase for having no job.

  5. Ieeja muzejā ir bez maksas.

    Entry to the museum is free.

    Bez maksas means free of charge.

  6. Pulkstenis ir bez piecām minūtēm astoņi.

    It is five to eight.

    Bez counts the minutes still missing before the hour. Minūtes is plural, so it is dative.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the accusative after bez, as after ar.

    Kafiju bez pienu, lūdzu.
    Kafiju bez piena, lūdzu.

    Ar takes the accusative form, but bez takes the genitive: bez piena, bez cukura.

  • Using the dative pronoun man after bez.

    Viņi aizbrauca bez man.
    Viņi aizbrauca bez manis.

    After bez, es becomes manis and tu becomes tevis.

How It Connects

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

bez + GenitiveLevel 2Without: Bez

Learn This First

Bez takes the genitive in the singular and usually the dative in the plural.

Words in This Pattern