Narzędnik: the with-case and its prepositions z, przed, nad, pod
The with-form lives two lives here. The instrument stands without a preposition: kroję chleb nożem, piszę długopisem. But next to a person or a place it already takes one: rozmawiam z bratem, most nad rzeką. For example: “Kroję chleb nożem” — I cut the bread with a knife. A rule from the Polish course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
The with-form lives two lives here. The instrument stands without a preposition: kroję chleb nożem, piszę długopisem. But next to a person or a place it already takes one: rozmawiam z bratem, most nad rzeką.
S is put before voiceless consonants, z — before all the rest and before vowels: s koleżanką, but z bratem. The same choice as in the familiar z meaning from.
The endings are short. Masculine and neuter take -em: z nożem, metrem. Feminine — -ą: z ręką, z wodą; and a feminine noun ending in a consonant also -ą: z siłą, z klęską. In the plural all genders meet in -ami: z rękami, z nożami.
The prepositions of place przed, nad, pod, za, między demand the same case: przed domem, pod stołem, między nami. It is one and the same case — learn the endings once and put them to work in six different meanings.
Table
| Gender and number | Ending | Example | In English |
|---|---|---|---|
| masculine singular | -em | z nożem | with a knife |
| feminine singular | -ą | z ręką | with a hand |
| feminine on a consonant | -ą | z siłą | with force |
| neuter singular | -em | metrem | with a metre |
| plural masculine | -ami | z nożami | with knives |
| plural feminine | -ami | z rękami | with hands |
| a preposition before a voiceless | s | s koleżanką | with a friend |
| an instrument without a preposition | — | piszę długopisem | I write with a pen |
By example
- Kroję chleb nożemI cut the bread with a knife
- Stół pokryty jest warstwą kurzuThe table is covered with a layer of dust
- Rozmawialiśmy z bratem przed domemWe talked with my brother in front of the house
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Narzędnik: how does it work in Polish?
The with-form lives two lives here. The instrument stands without a preposition: kroję chleb nożem, piszę długopisem. But next to a person or a place it already takes one: rozmawiam z bratem, most nad rzeką.
What does it look like in a Polish example sentence?
“Kroję chleb nożem” — I cut the bread with a knife. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.