Instrumental and Other Cases in Basque

Overview

Beyond the core cases (absolutive, ergative, dative, genitive, and locative), Basque has several additional cases that expand your expressive range at the B1 level. The most important are the instrumental (-z, by means of), destinative (-entzat, for someone), motivative (-gatik, because of), and prolative (-tzat, as/in the capacity of).

These cases let you express the instrument or means of an action, the beneficiary, the cause or reason, and the role or capacity of someone. They are essential for more nuanced, natural-sounding Basque and appear frequently in everyday conversation.

Each suffix attaches to the noun in predictable ways, following the same patterns you have learned with other case suffixes. Mastering them gives you access to a much wider range of expression.

How It Works

Case	Suffix	Meaning	Example
Instrumental	-z	by means of, about	autobusez (by bus)
Destinative	-(r)entzat	for (someone)	zuretzat (for you)
Motivative	-(a)gatik	because of	eurigatik (because of rain)
Prolative	-tzat	as, in the role of	irakasle-tzat (as a teacher)
Comitative	-(r)ekin	with (accompaniment)	lagunekin (with friends)
Sociative	-kide	fellow, co-	lankidea (colleague)

Instrumental (-z) usage:

Context	Example	Translation
Means of transport	Autobusez etorri naiz.	I came by bus.
Instrument/tool	Arkatzez idatzi du.	He/She wrote with a pencil.
Topic (about)	Horretaz hitz egin dugu.	We talked about that.
Material	Egurrez egina.	Made of wood.

Destinative (-entzat):

Example	Translation
Zuretzat da hau.	This is for you.
Umeentzat da.	It is for children.
Niretzat kafea, mesedez.	Coffee for me, please.

Examples in Context

Basque	English	Note
Autobusez etorri naiz.	I came by bus.	Instrumental: means
Zuretzat da hau.	This is for you.	Destinative: beneficiary
Eurigatik ez gara joan.	We didn't go because of the rain.	Motivative: cause
Irakasle-tzat lan egiten du.	He/She works as a teacher.	Prolative: role
Lagunekin joan naiz.	I went with friends.	Comitative
Horretaz hitz egin nahi dut.	I want to talk about that.	Instrumental: topic
Egurrez egindako mahaia.	A table made of wood.	Instrumental: material
Haurrentzat joko bat erosi dut.	I bought a game for the children.	Destinative
Horregatik ez dut sinesten.	That's why I don't believe it.	Motivative as pronoun
Telefonoz hitz egin dugu.	We spoke by phone.	Instrumental: means

Common Mistakes

Confusing -z (instrumental) with -rekin (comitative)

• Wrong: Autobusarekin etorri naiz. (by bus)
• Right: Autobusez etorri naiz.
• Why: -z is for means/instrument (by bus, with a pencil). -rekin is for accompaniment (with a friend). You travel "by means of" a bus, not "accompanied by" one.

Using -entzat where -ri (dative) is needed

• Wrong: Amari zuretzat eman diot. (confusing recipient and beneficiary)
• Right: Amari eman diot. (I gave it to mother) vs. Amarentzat erosi dut. (I bought it for mother)
• Why: -ri (dative) marks the direct recipient of an action. -entzat marks the beneficiary for whom something is intended. "I gave it to her" = dative. "I bought it for her" = destinative.

Forgetting -gatik for expressing reasons

• Wrong: Euria ez gara joan. (incomplete)
• Right: Eurigatik ez gara joan. (Because of rain we didn't go)
• Why: To express the cause or reason, use -gatik on the noun: eurigatik (because of rain), horregatik (because of that/that's why).

Usage Notes

The instrumental case -z is particularly versatile. Beyond means and instruments, it is used to express the topic of conversation (horretaz — about that), the material something is made of (egurrez — of wood), and even manner (oinez — on foot). The motivative -gatik is closely related to the conjunction -(e)lako (because) but attaches to nouns rather than clauses. In spoken Basque, horregatik (because of that / that's why) is one of the most frequently used connectors.

Practice Tips

1. Describe how you get to different places using the instrumental: Autobusez, trenez, oinez, bizikletaz, autoz. Then build full sentences: Lanera autobusez joaten naiz.
2. Practice destinative with gifts and intentions: Hau niretzat da? Ez, zuretzat da! Umeentzat opari bat erosi dut.
3. Give reasons using -gatik: Eurigatik, lanagatik, osasungatik.

Related Concepts

• Locative Cases