Dative Case (Dativ)

Question: Komu? Čemu? (To whom? To what?)

The Dative is the "To/For" case. It is primarily used for the Indirect Object.

Core Concept: The Dative = RECIPIENT / BENEFICIARY

The dative has one fundamental meaning: it identifies who receives or benefits from an action:

• Indirect Object: who receives? Dám Petrovi dárek (I'll give Peter a gift)
• Beneficiary: for whose sake? Líbí se mi (It pleases me = I like it)
• Direction toward: approaching whom? Jdu k lékaři (I'm going to the doctor)

The key insight: Dative answers "to/for whom?"

At a Glance (Singular)

Which Ending? Follow the Flowchart

The key to dative is knowing -ovi is the special animate ending:

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Memory Aids (Mnemonics)

Use these tricks to remember the patterns you just saw in the cheatsheets above.

The "-ovi" Safety Net

For masculine animate nouns, -ovi is always safe:

• pán → pánovi ✓
• muž → mužovi ✓
• student → studentovi ✓
• Petr → Petrovi ✓

Memory: "-ovi loves people" (animate = -ovi)

The alternative -u/-i exists but -ovi is never wrong for people.

Dative and Locative Are Twins (for most nouns!)

Notice how dative and locative endings are identical for many patterns:

Gender/Type	Dative	Locative	They match!
Masc Inanimate (hard)	hradu	o hradu	✓
Masc Inanimate (soft)	stroji	o stroji	✓
Feminine (soft)	růži	o růži	✓
Feminine (píseň)	písni	o písni	✓
Neuter (město)	městu	o městu	✓
Neuter (moře)	moři	o moři	✓

Memory: "Dative and Locative are BFFs"

Exception: Feminine žena type differs: dative ženě but the pattern is similar to locative.

Feminine -a → -ě (with Softening!)

For žena-type feminines:

• žena → ženě (to the woman)
• Praha → Praze (h → z softening!)
• maminka → mamince (k → c softening!)

Memory: "Giving TO a woman = -ě" (same softening as locative)

Plural: Long Vowel + M

All dative plural endings end in a long vowel + m:

• Masculine/Neuter: -ům (pánům, hradům, městům)
• Feminine -a: -ám (ženám)
• Soft stems: -ím (mužům, růžím, mořím)

Memory: "Dative plural hums: ůůům, ááám, ííím"

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K vs Ke — The Preposition Deep Dive

The most common dative preposition is k/ke (to/toward). Here's when to use which form:

Basic Rule

Form	When to Use	Example
k	Before most consonants	k domu, k lékaři, k večeři
ke	Before difficult clusters	ke škole, ke mně, ke zdi

Use "Ke" Before:

1. k, g, h clusters: ke kamarádovi, ke gauči
2. The word "mně": ke mně (to me) — always!
3. Words starting with multiple consonants: ke škole, ke zdi, ke zprávě
4. Difficult pronunciation: if k + word is hard to say, use ke

Pro Tip

When in doubt, say it out loud. If "k + word" feels awkward, use "ke".

Common Expressions with K/Ke

Czech	English
k snídani, k obědu, k večeři	for breakfast, lunch, dinner
k narozeninám	for (someone's) birthday
k Vánocům	for Christmas
k dispozici	at (your) disposal
k čemu to je?	what's this for?
ke konci	toward the end
ke všemu	on top of everything

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Dative of Interest — The Hidden Use

Czech uses dative to show who is affected by an action, even when they're not directly involved. This is called the "dative of interest" or "ethical dative."

Possessive Dative

Instead of possessive pronouns, Czech often uses dative:

Czech (Dative)	Literal	Natural English
Bolí mě hlava.	The head hurts to-me.	My head hurts.
Vzal mi tašku.	He took to-me the bag.	He took my bag.
Umyl jí auto.	He washed to-her car.	He washed her car.

Experiencer Dative

When someone experiences something (rather than doing it):

Czech	Literal	Natural English
Je mi zima.	It is to-me cold.	I'm cold.
Je ti dobře?	Is it to-you well?	Are you okay?
Bylo nám smutno.	It was to-us sad.	We felt sad.
Zdá se mi, že...	It seems to-me that...	I think that...

This Is Very Common!

The experiencer dative is used constantly in Czech. Whenever someone feels or experiences something rather than doing it, look for the dative.

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Usage

1. Indirect Object (Recipient)

• Dám Petrovi dárek. (I will give Peter a gift.)
• Píšu babičce dopis. (I am writing a letter to grandma.)
• Řekni mi pravdu. (Tell me the truth.)

2. Prepositions

• K/Ke (to/towards): Jdu k lékaři. (I am going to the doctor.)
• Proti (against): Proti větru. (Against the wind.)
• Naproti (opposite): Naproti poště. (Opposite the post office.)
• Díky (thanks to): Díky tobě. (Thanks to you.)
• Kvůli (because of - often negative): Kvůli dešti. (Because of the rain.)
• Navzdory (despite): Navzdory problémům. (Despite the problems.)
• Vstříc (toward): Vstříc budoucnosti. (Toward the future.)

3. Expressing Physical/Emotional States

• Je mi špatně. (I feel sick.)
• Je ti teplo? (Are you warm?)
• Bylo jim líto. (They were sorry.)

4. Age Expressions

• Je mi dvacet let. (I am twenty years old — lit. "to me are 20 years")
• Kolik ti je? (How old are you?)

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Detailed Reference Tables

Singular Endings

Gender	Model	Ending	Example (Nom → Dat)
Masc Animate	pán	-ovi / -u	pán → pánovi
	muž	-ovi / -i	muž → mužovi
	předseda	-ovi	předseda → předsedovi
	soudce	-ovi	soudce → soudcovi
Masc Inanimate	hrad	-u	hrad → hradu
	stroj	-i	stroj → stroji
Feminine	žena	-ě / -e	žena → ženě
	růže	-i	růže → růži
	píseň	-i	píseň → písni
	kost	-i	kost → kosti
Neuter	město	-u	město → městu
	moře	-i	moře → moři
	kuře	-eti	kuře → kuřeti
	stavení	-í	stavení → stavení

About -ovi vs -u/-i

For Masculine Animate, the ending -ovi is the standard modern form and always correct. The alternatives -u (hard stems) or -i (soft stems) are used:

• In formal/literary style with titles: Panu Novákovi (but panu řediteli)
• When listing multiple recipients
• In fixed expressions

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Plural Endings

Good news: Dative Plural is very regular! The pattern is simple.

At a Glance (Plural)

Endings by Gender

Gender	Hard Stem	Soft Stem	Examples
Masculine	-ům	-ům	pánům, hradům, mužům, strojům
Feminine	-ám (-a type)	-ím	ženám, růžím, písním, kostem
Neuter	-ům	-ím	městům, mořím, kuřatům

Simple Pattern

• Masculine & Neuter hard: -ům
• Feminine -a type: -ám
• Soft stems (all genders): -ím

The long vowel (ů/á/í) + m is the dative plural marker!

Examples

Masculine:

• Dám to studentům. (I'll give it to the students.)
• Pomáhám mužům. (I help the men.)

Feminine:

• Píšu ženám. (I write to the women.)
• Volám kamarádkám. (I call my friends [fem].)

Neuter:

• Díky městům. (Thanks to the cities.)
• Blíží se k mořím. (It approaches the seas.)

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Verbs That Require Dative

Many common Czech verbs require the dative case. These are essential to memorize.

Verbs of Giving/Communicating

Verb	Meaning	Example
dát	to give	Dám ti to. (I'll give it to you.)
říct/říkat	to say/tell	Řekni mi to. (Tell me.)
psát	to write	Píšu mamince. (I write to mom.)
volat	to call	Volám kamarádovi. (I'm calling a friend.)
poslat	to send	Pošlu ti email. (I'll send you an email.)
ukázat	to show	Ukážu vám cestu. (I'll show you the way.)

Verbs of Helping/Serving

Verb	Meaning	Example
pomáhat/pomoct	to help	Pomůžu ti. (I'll help you.)
sloužit	to serve	Slouží lidem. (It serves people.)
radit	to advise	Radím ti to nedělat. (I advise you not to do it.)
bránit	to prevent/defend	Bráním dětem v přístupu. (I prevent children's access.)

Verbs of Understanding/Believing

Verb	Meaning	Example
rozumět	to understand	Nerozumím tomu. (I don't understand it.)
věřit	to believe	Věřím ti. (I believe you.)
důvěřovat	to trust	Důvěřuji mu. (I trust him.)

Verbs of Liking/Feeling

Verb	Meaning	Example
líbit se	to like (please)	Líbí se mi to. (I like it.)
chutnat	to taste good	Chutná mi to. (It tastes good to me.)
vadit	to bother	Vadí ti to? (Does it bother you?)
vyhovovat	to suit	Vyhovuje mi to. (It suits me.)
stačit	to be enough	Stačí mi to. (It's enough for me.)

Verbs with K + Dative

Verb	Meaning	Example
patřit k	to belong to (group)	Patří k nám. (He belongs with us.)
přistupovat k	to approach	Přistupuju k problému. (I approach the problem.)
vést k	to lead to	Vede to k ničemu. (It leads to nothing.)

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Common Errors and How to Avoid Them

1. Forgetting -ovi for Animate Nouns

❌ Dám to Petru. → ✅ Dám to Petrovi. (-ovi is safer) ❌ Řekl jsem studentu. → ✅ Řekl jsem studentovi.

2. Wrong Softening with Feminine -ě

❌ k maminke → ✅ k mamince (k → c before -e) ❌ k babičke → ✅ k babičce (k → c) ❌ k Prahe → ✅ k Praze (h → z)

3. Confusing K (Dative) vs Do (Genitive)

❌ Jdu k Prahy → ✅ Jdu do Prahy (motion into = do + genitive) ❌ Jdu do lékaře → ✅ Jdu k lékaři (toward a person = k + dative)

Rule: k for approaching people/things; do for entering places

4. Using Nominative Instead of Dative

❌ Je já zima. → ✅ Je mi zima. (experiencer = dative) ❌ Kolik je ty? → ✅ Kolik je ti? (age = dative)

5. Wrong Plural Ending

❌ Dám to studentám. → ✅ Dám to studentům. (masculine = -ům) ❌ Píšu ženům. → ✅ Píšu ženám. (feminine -a type = -ám)