The dative case (to / for someone)
The dative marks the indirect object — the recipient or beneficiary ('to/for someone'). Masculine and neuter nouns take -u (brat → bratu), feminine -a nouns take -i (sestra → sestri). It also follows prepositions like 'prema' and 'ka' and appears with verbs like dati, reći, pomoći.
Examples
- Dajem knjigu bratu. I'm giving the book to my brother.
- Pišem sestri. I'm writing to my sister.
- Pomažem prijatelju. I'm helping a friend.
The full lesson
Everything in the video, in text.
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You give someone a book, you write someone a letter, you help someone. But to whom? In Serbian, that „to whom“ has its own case — the dative. Miss it, and the sentence sounds wrong. Let's master it completely.
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The dative is the case of the recipient — the one who gets something or for whom the action is intended. It answers the question „kome?“ (to whom?) or „čemu?“ (to what?). This is the so-called indirect object: not what you give, but the one you give it to.
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Here's how the endings work. Masculine and neuter take the ending „-u“: „brat“ becomes „bratu“, „dete“ becomes „detetu“. Feminine nouns in „-a“ take the ending „-i“: „sestra“ becomes „sestri“. Two endings — that's the heart of the dative.
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Let's start with the clearest example — the verb „dati“, to give. You give a book, but to whom? To „bratu“. Dajem knjigu bratu. I'm giving the book to my brother. „Knjigu“ is what you give — that's the accusative. And „bratu“ is the one you give it to — that's the dative, „brat“ plus „-u“.
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Now the feminine. You write a letter, and the recipient is the sister. „Sestra“ loses its „-a“ and takes „-i“: Pišem sestri. I'm writing to my sister. There isn't even a word for „to“ — the ending „-i“ on „sestri“ alone carries the meaning of the recipient.
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And here's the most important verb to remember — „pomoći“, to help. In Serbian you don't help someone (accusative), you help to someone. The verb „pomoći“ requires the dative: Pomažem prijatelju. I'm helping a friend. „Prijatelj“ becomes „prijatelju“ — dative, not accusative. This is a trap we'll come back to.
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Let's look at the full forms on one masculine and one feminine noun, to burn them into your memory. „Brat“ in the dative gives „bratu“, „sestra“ gives „sestri“, „majka“ gives „majci“ — notice how „k“ before „-i“ turns into „c“.
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The dative doesn't only appear with verbs of giving. It also follows certain prepositions, most often „prema“ and „ka“, which mean movement in someone's direction: Idem ka gradu. I'm going toward the city. „Grad“ becomes „gradu“ after the preposition „ka“. The same would happen with „prema gradu“.
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It's worth memorizing a group of verbs that always require the dative, because English and other languages often translate them with a direct object. These include, among others: „dati“ (give), „reći“ (tell), „pisati“ (write), „pomoći“ (help), „verovati“ (believe) and „zahvaliti“ (thank). With each of them the recipient goes into the dative.
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And now the main trap. The verb „pomoći“ in Serbian requires the dative, not the accusative. That's why it's „pomažem bratu“, not „pomažem brata“. It's easy to slip up, because in many languages „help“ takes a direct object — but in Serbian it's the recipient, so the dative.
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The second trap concerns the feminine. With nouns in „-ka“, the consonant „k“ before the ending „-i“ turns into „c“. „Majka“ doesn't give „majki“, but „majci“. Likewise: „ruka“ gives „ruci“, „devojka“ gives „devojci“.
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And one last example, to bring it all together. Two objects in the same sentence: what you give in the accusative, the one you give it to in the dative. Dajem deci poklone. I'm giving presents to the children. „Poklone“ — accusative, what you give; „deci“ — dative, the recipients.
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Let's recap. The dative is the case of the recipient and answers „kome?“ (to whom?). Masculine and neuter take „-u“, feminine in „-a“ takes „-i“. It's required by verbs like „dati“, „reći“ and „pomoći“, as well as the prepositions „prema“ and „ka“. Remember: you help bratu, not brata. Now you know to whom the action goes.