Instrumental singular
s kamarádem, vlakem, před školou
In short
Use it after s (with), před (in front of), and to say how you do something: by train, with a pen. Masculine and neuter words take -em, and feminine -a becomes -ou.
- s kamarádemwith a friend
- s mámouwith Mum
- Jedu vlakem.I'm going by train.
- před školouin front of the school
Full explanation
The instrumental answers s kým? čím? (with whom? with what?). You'll need it:
- after s / se (with), před (in front of), za (behind), nad (above), pod (under) and mezi (between)
- to say what you use or how you travel, with no preposition at all: jedu vlakem (I go by train), píšu tužkou (I write with a pencil)
- after být or stát se when talking about jobs: Chci být lékařem. (I want to be a doctor.)
| Gender | Ending | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine (all) | -em · -a → -ou | kamarád → kamarádem, táta → tátou |
| Feminine -a | -ou | máma → mámou |
| Feminine -e / consonant | -í | Marie → Marií, tramvaj → tramvají |
| Neuter | -em · -í → -ím | auto → autem, dítě → dítětem |
Use se instead of s when the next word starts with s, z, š or ž. It's simply easier to say: se sestrou, se zmrzlinou.