Polski — the genitive case
The genitive (dopełniacz) answers kogo? czego? It marks possession (książka Adama), absence and negation (nie ma czasu), and follows the prepositions bez, dla, do, od, u, z.
How it works
Masculine nouns take -a or -u (kot → kota, dom → domu), feminine nouns take -y or -i (mapa → mapy, noc → nocy), neuter nouns take -a (okno → okna). In the plural the ending is -ów, zero, or -i/-y (kotów, kobiet, nocy). Use it for possession (samochód ojca) and after bez, dla, do, od, u, z: kawa bez cukru, prezent dla mamy, idę do domu.
Endings by gender and number
| Gender / number | Ending | Example (nom. → gen.) |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine (animate/concrete) | -a | kot → kota, pan → pana |
| Masculine (many inanimate/abstract) | -u | dom → domu, cukier → cukru |
| Feminine | -y / -i | mapa → mapy, noc → nocy |
| Neuter | -a | okno → okna, morze → morza |
| Plural — most masc. | -ów | koty → kotów, domy → domów |
| Plural — many fem./neut. (zero ending) | -∅ | kobiety → kobiet, okna → okien |
| Plural — soft stems | -i / -y | noce → nocy, kości → kości |
Good to know
A negated verb turns its accusative object into the genitive: mam psa but nie mam psa, widzę kota but nie widzę kota. For masculine nouns the choice between -a and -u is largely lexical and unpredictable (ser → sera, but chleb → chleba, cukier → cukru) — learn it with each word.