Case (Linguistics)

**Abbreviations: [L]** Location; **[Mf]** Motion from; **[Mt]** Motion to; **[Mv]** Motion via; **[T]** Time; **[MA]** Morphosyntactic alignment; **[R]** Relation; **[Sem]** Semantics; **[S]** State

## Common Cases

### [R][Mf] Ablative

Ablative case is a case that expresses a variety of meanings including instrument, cause, location, source, and time.

### [MA] Absolutive

Absolutive case is the case of nouns in ergative-absolutive languages that would generally be the subjects of intransitive verbs or the objects of transitive verbs in the translational equivalents of nominative-accusative languages such as English.

### [MA] [T] Accusative

Accusative case is the case in nominative-accusative languages that marks certain syntactic functions, usually direct objects. Also, indicating a duration of time (known as the accusative of duration of time)

### [Mt] Allative

Allative case is a case that expresses motion to or toward the referent of the noun it marks.

### [R] Benefactive

Benefactive case is a case that expresses that the referent of the noun it marks receives the benefit of the situation expressed by the clause.

### [R] Dative

Dative case is a case that marks any of the following: Indirect objects (for languages in which they are held to exist); or Nouns having the role of recipient (as of things given), beneficiary of an action, or possessor of an item

### [MA] Ergative

Ergative case is the case of nouns in ergative-absolutive languages that would generally be the subjects of transitive verbs in the translation equivalents of nominative-accusative languages such as English.

### [R] Genitive

Genitive case is a case in which the referent of the marked noun is the possessor of the referent of another noun.

### [Mt] Illative

Illative case is a case that expresses motion into or direction toward the referent of the noun it marks.

### [MA] Instrumental

Instrumental case is a case indicating that the referent of the noun it marks is the means of the accomplishment of the action expressed by the clause.

### [L] Locative

Locative case is a case that expresses location at the referent of the noun it marks.

### [MA] Nominative

Nominative case is the case that identifies clause subjects in nominative-accusative languages. Nouns used in isolation have this case.

### [Sem] Vocative

Vocative case is a case that marks a noun whose referent is being addressed.

## Less Common Cases

### [S] Abessive

Abessive case is a case that expresses the lack or absence of the referent of the noun it marks. It has the meaning of the English preposition without.

### [L] Adessive

adjacent location; *near/at/by the house*

### [MA] Agentive

agent, specifies or asks about who or what; specific agent that is subset of a general topic or subject

*it was **she** who committed the crime; as for him, his **head** hurts*

### [L] Apudessive

location next to something; *next to the house*

### [R] Causative

Causative case is a case which expresses that the referent of the noun it marks is the cause of the situation expressed by the clause.

### [R] Comitative

Comitative case is a case expressing accompaniment. It carries the meaning "with" or "accompanied by."

### [S] Comparative

similarity with something; *similar to a house*

### [Mf] Delative

Delative case is a case which expresses motion downward from the referent of the noun it marks.

### [Mf] Egressive

marking the beginning of a movement or time; *beginning from the house*

### [Mf] Elative

Elative case is a case expressing motion out of or away from the referent of the noun it marks.

### [S] Equative

Equative case is a case that expresses likeness or identity to the referent of the noun it marks. It can have meaning, such as: as, like, and in the capacity of.

### [S] [T] Essive

Essive case is a case that expresses the temporary state of the referent specified by a noun. The case has the meaning of while, and in the capacity of. Also used for specifying days and dates when something happens

### [S] Exessive

marking a transition from a condition; *from being a house (i.e. it stops being a house)*

### [S] Formal

marking a consition as a quality; *as a house*

### [S] Identical

showing that something is identical; *being the house*

### [L] Inessive

Inessive case is a case that expresses a location within the referent of the noun it marks.

### [Mf] Initiative

starting point of an action; *beginning from the house*

### [MA] Instructive

means, answers question how?; *by means of the house*

### [MA] Intransitive

the subject of an intransitive verb or the logical complement of a transitive verb; *The door opened*

### [Mt] Lative

Lative case is a case that expresses motion up to the location of, or as far as the referent of the noun it marks.

### [MA] Objective

direct or indirect object of verb; *I saw her; I gave her the book.*

### [MA] Oblique

all-round case; any situation except nominative or vocative || *concerning the house*

### [S] Orientative

oriented towards something; *turned toward the house*

### [R] Ornative

endowment with something; *equipped with a house*

### [Sem] Partitive

Partitive case is a case that expresses the partial nature of the referent of the noun it marks, as opposed to expressing the whole unit or class of which the referent is a part. This case may be found in items such as the following: Existential clauses; Nouns that are accompanied by numerals or units of measure; Predications of material from which something is made. It often has a meaning similar to the English word some.

### [MA] Pegative

agent in a clause with a dative argument; *he gave the book to him*

### [Mv] Perlative

movement through or along something; *through/along the house*

### [L] Pertingent

in contact with something; *touching the house*

### [R] Posessed

possession by something; *the house is owned by someone*

### [R] Posessive

direct possession of something; *owned by the house*

### [Mv] Prolative

Prolative case is a case that expresses motion along or by the referent of the noun it marks.

### [S] Revertive

backwards to something; *against the house*

### [R] Semblative

similarity to something; *that tree is like a house*

### [R] Sociative

along with something, together with something; *with the house*

### [Mt] Sublative

movement onto the surface or below something; *on(to) the house, under the house*

### [L] Superessive

Superessive case is a case that expresses location on the referent of the noun it marks. It has the meaning of "on" or "upon."

### [T] Temporal

(used only with time expressions) specifying a time

### [Mt] Terminative

marking the end of a movement or time; *as far as the house*

### [S] Translative

Translative case is a case indicating that the referent of the noun, or the quality of the adjective, that it marks is the result of a process of change.