pats / pati
Emphatic Pats
Pats (for a man) and pati (for a woman) add -self for emphasis: Aš pats padariau (I did it myself). They also mean the very: pats geriausias (the very best).
How It Works
1. The forms.
- Masculine singular: pats, paties, pačiam, patį, pačiu, pačiame
- Feminine singular: pati, pačios, pačiai, pačią, pačia, pačioje
- Masculine plural: patys, pačių, patiems, pačius, pačiais, pačiuose
- Feminine plural: pačios, pačių, pačioms, pačias, pačiomis, pačiose
2. By myself, myself. Next to the subject, pats means that the person did it without help or in person: Aš pats padariau (a man speaking), Aš pati padariau (a woman speaking), Vaikai patys susitvarkė (The children tidied up by themselves).
3. The person himself. Before a noun, pats stresses that it is exactly that person: pats direktorius (the director himself). It takes the noun's case: Kalbėjau su pačiu direktoriumi (I spoke with the director himself).
4. The very place or time. pačiame centre (right in the centre), pačioje pradžioje (at the very beginning), pačiu laiku (at just the right time).
5. The very best. Before a superlative, pats makes it stronger: pats geriausias (the very best), pati gražiausia (the most beautiful of all).
6. Related phrases. Tas pats means the same. Pats also pairs with savęs: Jis kalba pats su savimi (He talks to himself). Do not confuse pats with the particle pat in toks pat, which never changes.
Examples (6)
- Aš pats padariau šį stalą.
I made this table myself.
A man is speaking, so the form is pats.
- Mano dukra jau pati skaito.
My daughter already reads by herself.
Pati agrees with dukra, a feminine noun.
- Mus pasitiko pats direktorius.
The director himself met us.
Pats stresses that it was the director and nobody else.
- Gyvename pačiame miesto centre.
We live right in the city centre.
Word by Word: Live very-in town centre-in.
Pačiame is locative, like centre.
- Tai pats geriausias pyragas!
This is the very best cake!
Pats makes the superlative even stronger.
- Atėjai pačiu laiku.
You came at just the right time.
A fixed phrase in the instrumental.
Common Mistakes
Using pats when a woman is speaking or meant.
Mama pats iškepė tortą.Mama pati iškepė tortą.Pats agrees in gender. For a woman, use pati.
Leaving pats in the nominative next to a noun in another case.
Kalbėjau su pats direktoriumi.Kalbėjau su pačiu direktoriumi.Pats takes the same case as its noun. Su needs the instrumental, so the form is pačiu.
Using pats as the object instead of savęs.
Jis myli tik pats.Jis myli tik save.Pats is nominative here, so it cannot express the intended reflexive object. Use save for “himself” as the object; pats can be added for emphasis.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Pats emphasizes a person or thing and agrees with it.
Related Patterns
- savęs / sau / saveThe Reflexive Pronoun Savęs
Savęs refers back to the subject; pats commonly adds emphasis to a subject or object.
Level 3 - tas pats / ta patiThe Same One
Tas pats uses the same word to mean the same one.
Level 4 - Superlative -iausiasSuperlative Adjectives
Pats before a superlative means the very.
Level 3 - Adjective Agreement
Pats agrees in gender and number just like an adjective.
Level 1 - aš, tu, jis, ji, mes, jūs, jie, josPersonal Pronouns
Pats often stands right after a personal pronoun: aš pats, ji pati.
Level 1
Words in This Pattern
Practice pats / pati in Bubblegum
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