A2 · Elementary Chapter 23

The Genitive Case

2 Total Rules
1 min
Rules in This Chapter Quick Practice

Chapter in 30 Seconds

Unlock the power of possession and quantity by mastering the Czech genitive case.

  • Identify the correct endings for masculine and neuter nouns.
  • Apply genitive markers to feminine nouns.
  • Express relationships like 'the car of my father' or 'a glass of water'.
Master the art of belonging and quantity.

What You'll Learn

Expressing possession, quantity, and origin. Learn the singular endings for the genitive case.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

  1. 1
    By the end you will be able to: correctly modify masculine and neuter nouns to show possession or origin.
  2. 2
    By the end you will be able to: use the genitive case with feminine nouns to accurately describe quantities.

Tips & Tricks (2)

💡

Animate vs Inanimate

Remember: people/animals take -a, things take -u.
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Genitive Singular: Masculine and Neuter
💡

Check the preposition

Always look for 'do', 'od', 'z' before the noun.
frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Genitive Singular: Feminine

Key Vocabulary (6)

pán gentleman auto car kniha book sklenice glass konec end voda water

Real-World Preview

coffee

At the Café

Review Summary

  • Noun + a/u
  • Noun -a + y/i

Common Mistakes

You forgot to decline the noun. Possession always requires the genitive case ending.

Wrong: To je auto pán.
Correct: To je auto pána.

Quantity requires the genitive case for the following noun.

Wrong: Sklenice voda.
Correct: Sklenice vody.

Even though it is the end of an object, the object itself must be in the genitive case.

Wrong: Konec kniha.
Correct: Konec knihy.

Next Steps

You are doing amazing. Every case you learn makes you sound more like a native speaker!

Label objects in your house and write down their 'genitive' form.

Continue to: The Dative Case

Quick Practice (8)

Choose the correct sentence.

Which is correct?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Nemám tužky.
Nemám + Genitive.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Genitive Singular: Feminine

Fill in the correct form.

Potřebuji pomoc ___ (otec).

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: otce
Possession requires Genitive.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Genitive Singular: Masculine and Neuter

Find the error.

Find and fix the mistake:

Nemám auto.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Nemám auta
Negated verbs require Genitive.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Genitive Singular: Masculine and Neuter

Choose the correct form.

To je auto ___ (bratr).

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: bratra
Possession requires Genitive.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Genitive Singular: Masculine and Neuter

Fill in the correct form.

Jdu do ___ (škola).

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: školy
Do + Genitive.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Genitive Singular: Feminine

Fill in the correct Genitive form.

Nemám ___ (pes).

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: psa
Animate masculine takes -a.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Genitive Singular: Masculine and Neuter

Fix the error.

Find and fix the mistake:

Jsem z Praha.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Jsem z Prahy.
Z + Genitive.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Genitive Singular: Feminine

Choose the correct preposition.

___ (bez) mého psa.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Bez
Bez takes Genitive.

frontend.learn_grammar.from_rule: Genitive Singular: Masculine and Neuter

Score: /8

Common Questions (4)

Because it is a masculine animate noun, which takes the -a ending in the Genitive.
Use -u for masculine inanimate nouns (things).
It's a historical rule to mark possession and specific prepositions.
No, -e stays -e.
Previous Chapter
The Future Tense
Next Chapter
The Dative Case
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