Proti, kljub, zahvaljujoč: the dative and the three prepositions that demand it
The dative (dajalnik) appeared in the course so far only with verbs — 'give to whom', 'say to whom'. In the health unit it pops up where English never expects it: cepljenje proti gripi, tableta proti bolečinam. English builds 'against flu' with one all-purpose preposition; Slovenian proti demands the dative, and this is the most frequent mistake at the pharmacy. For example: “Kljub bolečini v hrbtu je prišel na…
How it works
The dative (dajalnik) appeared in the course so far only with verbs — 'give to whom', 'say to whom'. In the health unit it pops up where English never expects it: cepljenje proti gripi, tableta proti bolečinam. English builds 'against flu' with one all-purpose preposition; Slovenian proti demands the dative, and this is the most frequent mistake at the pharmacy.
What it looks like. Masculine and neuter — -u: zdravnik → zdravniku, mesto → mestu. Feminine — -i: sestra → sestri, bolezen → bolezni. Plural — -om for masculine and neuter (otrokom, mestom), -am for feminine (bolečinam, sestram). One irregular, and very frequent: ljudje → ljudem.
Proti — both 'against' and 'toward': proti gripi, proti predlogu, but also hodil je proti mestu — he walked toward town. One word over two English ideas, and only the neighboring word tells them apart.
Kljub — in spite of: kljub bolezni je prišel, kljub dežju. English builds it with a three-word phrase; Slovenian uses one preposition and the dative.
Zahvaljujoč — thanks to: zahvaljujoč sosedom, zahvaljujoč zdravniku. Of the three it is the youngest and the most bookish; in speech people prefer po zaslugi or simply zaradi — but zaradi takes the genitive and serves disasters just as gladly.
Verbs that pull the dative. Six of them in this wave: verjeti (verjeti prijatelju), zahvaliti se (zahvaliti se sosedu), izogibati se (izogibati se sladkorju), sporočiti, ukazati, biti proti. English gives half of them a different pattern — 'avoid sugar', 'thank somebody' — so checking yourself against the Slovenian question komu, čemu is more reliable.
And the exception everyone trips on. A complaint about pain goes NOT into the dative but the accusative: Boli me hrbet, Bolijo ga noge. The dative is for states: Slabo mi je, Vroče mu je. The dividing line: a concrete thing hurts — accusative; you feel bad in general — dative.
Table
| word | what it demands | example | the English |
|---|---|---|---|
| proti | the dative | tableta proti bolečinam | a painkiller tablet |
| proti | the dative | proti predlogu | against the proposal |
| kljub | the dative | kljub dežju | in spite of the rain |
| zahvaljujoč | the dative | zahvaljujoč zdravniku | thanks to the doctor |
| verjeti | the dative | verjeti prijatelju | believe a friend |
| izogibati se | the dative | izogibati se sladkorju | avoid sugar |
| boli | the accusative | boli me želodec | my stomach hurts |
| slabo je | the dative | slabo mi je | I feel bad |
By example
- Kljub bolečini v hrbtu je prišel na pregledIn spite of the back pain, he came in for the examination
- Zdravnik mi je svetoval cepljenje proti gripiThe doctor advised me to get a flu shot
- Zahvaljujoč sosedom je hitro prišel v bolnišnicoThanks to the neighbors he reached the hospital quickly
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
Proti, kljub, zahvaljujoč: how does it work in Slovenian?
The dative (dajalnik) appeared in the course so far only with verbs — 'give to whom', 'say to whom'. In the health unit it pops up where English never expects it: cepljenje proti gripi, tableta proti bolečinam. English builds 'against flu' with one all-purpose preposition; Slovenian proti demands…
What does it look like in an example sentence Slovenian?
“Kljub bolečini v hrbtu je prišel na pregled” — In spite of the back pain, he came in for the examination. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.