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If Serbian cases give you a headache, you’re not alone. For many learners, it often feels like the more they learn, the more complicated it gets. As you may expect, the instrumental case in Serbian is no different.
But it doesn’t have to be hard! In fact, by the time you finish reading this article, you’ll know how to use the instrumental in 6 different ways. If you like the sound of that, dive right in!
As you probably know (and hate), the Serbian language has seven cases. Among those, the instrumental is the sixth one.
If you’ve read our article on all cases, you also know that you can use some questions to identify each case. Specifically, the instrumental answers the following questions: Sa kim? (Who with?) and Čime? (With what?/By what?).
It’s typically used to describe a tool (instrument) or discuss companionship. For example:
Tool: Jedem kašikom.
(I’m eating with a spoon.)
Companionship: Pijem kafu sa drugaricom.
(I’m having coffee with a friend.)
Additionally, the instrumental comes in handy in various other contexts, but there’ll be more on that later. First, let’s see how to form it.
When it comes to cases and declination, there are three types of words worth mentioning: nouns, adjectives, and pronouns.
Simply put, you get the instrumental by adding a suffix to the noun in the nominative case. For example:
window: prozor + om = prozorom
For nouns that end in a vowel, you should omit the last letter:
picture: slika + om = slikom
Now, the most important (and the trickiest) part is picking the proper suffix. Since this choice will depend on gender, number, and other factors, we’ll show you how it works with a couple of tables.
| nouns – singular | suffix | nominative | instrumental |
| masculine | -om | autobus (bus) | autobusom |
| masculine (ending with a soft consonant)* | -em | prijatelj (friend) | prijateljem |
| feminine (ending with -a) | -om | kašika (spoon) | kašikom |
| feminine (ending with a consonant) | -i | ljubav (love) | ljubavi |
| -ju | ljubav | ljubavlju | |
| neuter | -om |
selo (village) dete (child) |
selom detetom |
| -em | more (sea) | morem |
Pay attention to the following:
|
nouns – plural |
suffix |
nominative (singular) |
instrumental |
|
masculine |
-ima |
autobus (bus) |
autobusima |
|
feminine ( ending with -a) |
-ama |
kašika (spoon) |
kašikama |
|
feminine (ending with a consonant) |
-ima |
ljubav (love) |
ljubavima |
|
neuter |
-ima |
selo (village) |
selima |
Pay attention to the following:
Adjectives always take the gender and number of the nouns they are describing. Because of that, the proper suffix will depend on the noun. The good news is there are only two possible suffixes: -im and -om.
adjectives | suffix | nominative | instrumental | |
masculine | singular | -im | mali dečak (little boy) | malim dečakom |
plural | -im | mali dečaci (little boys) | malim dečacima | |
feminine | singular | -om | mala kašika (little spoon) | malom kašikom |
plural | -im | male kašike (little spoons) | malim kašikama | |
neuter | singular | -im | malo selo (small village) | malim selom |
plural | -im | mala sela (small villages) | malim selima | |
So, as the table suggests, all adjectives except the singular feminine ones take the suffix -im.
When it comes to personal pronouns , there’s no need to memorize rules or suffixes. Just remember them as they are in the table below:
singular pronouns | plural pronouns | |||
nominative | instrumental | nominative | instrumental | |
1. | ja (I) | mnom (me) | mi (we) | nama (us) |
2. | ti (you) | tobom (you) | vi (you) | vama (you) |
3. | on (he) | njim (him) | oni (they) | njima (them) |
ona (she) | njom (her) | one (they) | ||
ono (it) | njim (it) | ona (they) | ||
Finally, bear in mind that you should always use the preposition s/sa (with) in front of the personal pronouns in the instrumental: sa mnom, s/sa tobom, s/sa njim, etc.
At last, it’s time to put all you’ve learned into practice. Here are the typical contexts in which you can use the instrumental case.
As we’ve mentioned earlier, the instrumental is essential for describing tools, instruments, or means of doing something.
Putujem vozom.
(I’m traveling by train.)
Deca se igraju loptom.
(Kids are playing with a ball.)
Jedem sladoled kašikom.
(I’m eating ice cream with a spoon.)
You can see that none of these examples have the preposition sa (with). But for some reason, even many Serbs make this type of mistake:
✘ Idem u školu sa biciklom.
✔ Idem u školu biciklom.
(I go to school by bicycle.)
So, just by memorizing this simple rule, you’ll have a chance to outshine native speakers. If that sounds good, check out this article and learn how to do so in 11 different ways.
If you want to say you’ve hung out with a friend, what case will you use? Yup, it’s the instrumental. Here are a few examples:
Putujem s/sa porodicom.
(I’m traveling with my family.)
Družim se s/sa prijateljima.
(I’m hanging out with friends.)
Idem na kafu s/sa Marijom.
(I’m going to grab a coffee with Marija.)
When talking about companionship, you should always use the preposition sa.
Next, you can use the instrumental case to describe a manner of doing things. For example:
On pije kafu sa užitkom.
(He drinks coffee with pleasure.)
Radim punom parom.
(I’m working at full steam.)
Some sentences will require the preposition sa, while others won’t — just like in the examples above.
Interestingly, the instrumental preceded by different prepositions allows you to describe a location. For instance, if you want to tell someone where a book is, you can say:
Knjiga je pod stolom.
(The book is under the table.)
Knjiga je na polici nad stolom.
(The book is on the shelf above the table.)
Knjiga je među igračkama.
(The book is among toys.)
Similarly, you can also use the instrumental to describe a movement across, along, or through a a place. But, in that case, you shouldn’t use any prepositions.
Šetali smo se parkom.
(We were strolling in the park.)
Brod plovi morem.
(A ship sails along the sea.)
When talking about time, this case can help emphasize a certain duration. In particular, it conveys a negative emotion or frustration when something takes or lasts too long. For example:
Čekam te satima.
(I’ve been waiting for you for hours.)
Mesecima ne mogu da nađem posao.
(I haven’t been able to find a job for months.)
Alternatively, the instrumental case can indicate repetitive or habitual actions or events.
Ponedeljkom idem u teretanu.
(I go to the gym on Mondays.)
Obično idemo u biskop vikendom.
(We usually go to the cinema on weekends.)
As you can see, you shouldn’t use any prepositions here.
We can also use the instrumental to describe features and qualities of people or things.
Devojka s/sa crnom kosom je moja sestra.
(The girl with black hair is my sister.)
Nosila je haljinu s/sa cvetićima.
(She wore a dress with little flowers.)
Obožavam sladoled s/sa vanilom.
(I love vanilla ice cream.)
Želim sobu s/sa pogledom na more.
(I want a room with a sea view.)
Lastly, we’ll show you some verbs that typically require the instrumental case.
(do for work or as a hobby)
Bavim se dizajnom.
(I work in design.)
Moja ćerka se bavi plesom.
(My daughter dances.)
(to boast or brag)
On se hvali novim autom.
(He’s bragging about his new car.)
(roll one’s eyes)
Tinejdžeri stalno prevrću očima.
(Teenagers always roll their eyes.)
(to be proud of)
Ona se ponosi svojim dostignućima.
(She’s proud of her achievements.)
Radujem se budućoj saradnji.
(I’m looking forward to working together in the future.)
Undoubtedly, the instrumental case in Serbian is quite handy. Although the formation and the use of prepositions may seem tricky at first, that’s nothing a bit of practice can’t solve. Once you get the hang of this case, you’ll be able to talk about who you went out with, your favorite ice cream flavor, and so much more.
Finally, if you’d like further assistance with the instrumental, check out this video on our YouTube channel. For other topics, you’ll find loads of explainer videos that make Serbian grammar and vocabulary easier to grasp right there on our channel. Take a look and enjoy studying!
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