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Slovak cases

Dative

Komu? Čomu? · To whom? To what?

The dative marks the person or thing that receives, benefits from, or is affected by an action.

What it does

Role in a sentence

Use dative for an indirect object: the person or thing something is given, said, or done to.

Some verbs and expressions select the dative without a visible preposition. Learn the form with the verb that governs it.

Annotated examples

What this shows

  1. Dám Petrovi knihu. I will give Peter a book. Petrovi is the recipient.
  2. Pomáham mame. I am helping my mother. mame is the person receiving help.

Practice prompts

Try this next

  • Find a verb that takes a person in the dative.
  • Compare a dative recipient with an accusative object.

Source

Reference

Jazykovedný ústav Ľudovíta Štúra SAV ↗

Full attribution on References.