Instrumental of Route

Level 3

To say which way you go, put the route in the instrumental with no preposition: Eik tiesiai šia gatve. (Go straight along this street.)

How It Works

The route in the instrumental

One way to name the route of movement is the instrumental without a preposition.

  • gatvė → gatve: Eik tiesiai šia gatve. (Go straight along this street.)
  • kelias → keliu: Grįžome tuo pačiu keliu. (We came back the same way.)
  • miškas → mišku: Ėjome mišku. (We walked through the forest.)
  • upė → upe: Laivas plaukė upe. (The boat sailed along the river.)
  • laiptai → laiptais: Lipkite laiptais. (Please take the stairs.)

Words that go with the noun agree with it: ši → šia gatve, tas pats → tuo pačiu keliu.

Route or means

The same case also names the vehicle you use: važiuoti autobusu (to go by bus). See Instrumental of Means. In Važiuosime greitkeliu the motorway is the way you take; in Važiuosime autobusu the bus is how you travel. The question tells them apart: Kuriuo keliu? (Which way?) or Kuo? (By what?).

Where, which way, or across

  • The locative says where something is: Gyvenu šioje gatvėje. (I live on this street.) See Locative of Place.
  • The instrumental says which way you move: Eik šia gatve. (Go along this street.)
  • Per + accusative means across or through, from one side to the other: Perėjome per gatvę. (We crossed the street.) See Through, Across and During With Per.

Both Ėjome mišku and Ėjome per mišką are correct. Per mišką puts more weight on crossing the forest to the other side.

Examples (6)

  1. Eik tiesiai šia gatve.

    Go straight along this street.

    Word by Word: Go straight this street-INS.

    Gatvė becomes gatve, and feminine ši takes its instrumental form šia.

  2. Ėjome mišku iki ežero.

    We walked through the forest to the lake.

    Word by Word: We-walked forest-INS until lake-GEN.

    mišku is the way; iki ežero is the end point.

  3. Važiuosime greitkeliu, nes taip greičiau.

    We'll take the motorway, because it's faster that way.

    Word by Word: We-will-drive motorway-INS, because so faster.

  4. Liftas neveikia, todėl lipkite laiptais.

    The lift isn't working, so please take the stairs.

    Word by Word: Lift not-works, so climb stairs-INS.

    laiptai is plural only, so its instrumental is laiptais.

  5. Laivas lėtai plaukė upe.

    The boat was sailing slowly along the river.

    Word by Word: Boat slowly sailed river-INS.

  6. Grįžome tuo pačiu keliu.

    We came back the same way.

    Word by Word: We-returned that same road-INS.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the locative for the way you go.

    Važiuokite tiesiai šiame kelyje.
    Važiuokite tiesiai šiuo keliu.

    The locative šiame kelyje says where something is, as in Šiame kelyje daug duobių (There are many potholes on this road). To tell someone which way to drive, use the instrumental: šiuo keliu.

  • Using per when you mean along.

    Eik tiesiai per šią gatvę.
    Eik tiesiai šia gatve.

    If you mean "go straight along this street", per is the wrong word: per šią gatvę means across the street, from one side to the other. For "along", use the instrumental.

How It Connects

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

Instrumental of RouteLevel 3

Learn This First

The instrumental can name the route taken during movement.