23 May 2025

Ukrainian Cases Made Simple: A Beginner’s Introduction

If you're new to the Ukrainian language, you’ve probably heard something like:

“It’s tough because of the cases.”

And while that’s not entirely wrong, cases aren’t as scary as they sound. Once you figure out what cases do and how they shape sentences, things start to make sense.

This is your step-by-step intro to Ukrainian grammatical cases — think of it as Part 1: how they work in real speech. Later, in Part 2, we’ll explore how to form them using correct endings.

So... What Are Cases, Really?

In Ukrainian, it’s not just a word’s place in a sentence that matters — it’s how that word changes to show its role.

This usually means changing the ending.

These changes help express who does what, to whom, where something happens, and more.

In English, we rely on word order. In Ukrainian, case endings carry the meaning.

There are seven grammatical cases, and each one has a job to do.

1. Nominative Case — Називний

Role: Subject of the sentence (the "doer").

This is the dictionary form — the base form of a noun.

🟢 Кіт спить. — The cat is sleeping.

🟢 Дівчина гуляє. — The girl is walking.

Both the English word “nominative” and Ukrainian “називний” come from the idea of naming something.

2. Genitive Case — Родовий

Role: Belonging, absence, quantity.

This case answers the question "Whose?" or shows something missing.

🔴 Це автомобіль Анни. — This is Anna’s car.

🔴 У неї немає роботи. — She doesn’t have a job.

🔴 Багато часу. — A lot of time.

Often appears:

• Possession (like "of" or "'s")

• After "немає"

• After quantity words: багато, мало, пляшка, кілограм, etc.

3. Dative Case — Давальний

Role: Indirect object — someone receiving something.

It answers "To whom?" or "For whom?"

🟢 Мені потрібна кава. — I need coffee.

🟢 Я даю книжку другу. (I give a book to a friend)

Також використовується з:

модальними словами: потрібно, треба, неможна

дієсловами: бажати, писати, говорити, дарувати, рекомендувати

For age: Скільки тобі років? (How old are you?)

4. Accusative Case — Знахідний

Role: Direct object or motion toward something.

This case shows what is directly affected by an action.

🔴 Вона читає цікаву книгу. — She’s reading an interesting book.

🔴 Я йду на виставку. — I’m going to the exhibition.

🔴 Діти грають у футбол. — Kids are playing football.

Також використовується:

з напрямком (куди?)

з днями тижня: у понеділок, у вівторок...

з іграми та спортом: грати у...

5. Instrumental Case — Орудний

Role: The means or tool of action; who/what accompanies someone.

🟢 Я пишу ручкою. — I’m writing with a pen.

🟢 Сашко йде з другом. — Sashko is walking with a friend.

🔔 Важливо:

“з” (with) — використовується для супроводу

інструмент (як?) — використовується без “з”

🟡 Я їм суп ложкою. — I’m eating soup with a spoon (tool).

🔴 Я йду з ложкою. — I’m walking with a spoon (as a companion).

6. Locative Case — Місцевий

Role: Indicates location or time.

Used exclusively with prepositions such as у, на, об, при, перед

🟢 Книга на столі. (The book is on the table)

🔴Вона живе у Львові. — She lives in Lviv.

🟡У Києві, на вокзалі, перед театром.

Also used:

for time: об одинадцятій — at 11

for months: у січні, у вересні..

with instruments: грати на гітарі

7. Vocative Case — Кличний

Role: Used to directly address a person, group, or entity by name.

🔴 Ірино, як справи? — Iryna, how are you?

🔴 Країно, я так сумував! — My country, I missed you!

This case is unique — it shows up mainly in dialogue, speeches, or emotional writing.

Final Thoughts

That’s the first step in mastering Ukrainian cases: understanding what each case means and when it's used.

In Part 2, we’ll dive into the how — learning the exact endings and how to build correct word forms step by step.