Lesson 3. Cases. An Overview of the 7 Cases: Mianownik, Biernik, Dopełniacz and More

Cases in the Polish language 

Polish has 7 cases that change the form of nouns, pronouns and adjectives in a sentence. Each case answers certain questions and has its own functions.

1.Mianownik (Nominative case)

Question: kto? co? (who? what?)
Used for the subject of a sentence.

Example:
              Książka leży na stole. — The book is lying on the table.

2.Dopełniacz (Genitive case)

Question: kogo? czego? (whom? of what?)
Expresses possession, negation, a part of a whole.

Example:
              Nie mam książki. — I don't have a book.
               Szklanka wody. — A glass of water.

3.Celownik (Dative case)

Question: komu? czemu? (to whom? to what?)
Indicates the recipient of an action or its purpose.

Example:
              Daję prezent przyjacielowi. — I am giving a present to my friend.

4.Biernik (Accusative case)

Question: kogo? co? (whom? what?)

Marks the direct object, the object of the action.

Example:
                Widzę kota. — I see a cat.

5.Narzędnik (Instrumental case)

Question: z kim? z czym? (with whom? with what?)
Indicates the means of an action or a joint action.

Example:
         Piszę długopisem. — I write with a pen.
         Idę z kolegą. — I am going with a friend.

6.Miejscownik (Locative case)

Question: o kim? o czym? (about whom? about what?)
Used with prepositions to indicate a place or the topic of a conversation.

Example:
               Mówię o szkole. — I am talking about school.

7.Wołacz (Vocative case)

Used to address someone.

Example:
               Kochany przyjacielu! — Dear friend!

Table 1. Cases in the singular

Table 2. Cases in the plural