You know the instrumental endings; now meet what they do. The instrumental is the busiest "by means of" case in Ukrainian, and it works in two ways English speakers consistently underestimate. First, it expresses means and instrument with no preposition at all — where English says "with a pen" or "by bus," Ukrainian just inflects the noun. Second, it is the case of the predicate noun in every tense except the present: "he was a teacher" puts teacher in the instrumental. Master these two, and the rest — companionship, route, time — follows naturally.
1. Means and instrument — the bare instrumental
The core job of the instrumental is to name the tool, vehicle, or means by which something is done, and it does this without any preposition. The noun in the instrumental is the "with/by." This is the use that feels most foreign to English speakers, who reflexively want to insert a word for "with."
| Ukrainian | Literal | English |
|---|---|---|
| писа́ти ру́чкою | write pen-INSTR | write with a pen |
| ї́хати авто́бусом | go bus-INSTR | go by bus |
| рі́зати ноже́м | cut knife-INSTR | cut with a knife |
| милува́тися за́ходом | admire sunset-INSTR | admire the sunset |
Не маши́ною, а велосипе́дом — так і шви́дше, і веселі́ше.
Not by car, by bike — that way it's both faster and more fun.
Він підписа́в листа́ ста́рою чорни́льною ру́чкою.
He signed the letter with an old fountain pen.
A special, very high-frequency case of this is languages: to speak in a language, you put the language adjective in the instrumental — говори́ти украї́нською (мо́вою) "to speak (in) Ukrainian." The word мо́вою is usually dropped.
Із ба́бусею ми завжди́ розмовля́ємо украї́нською.
With grandma we always speak Ukrainian.
Ти вмі́єш чита́ти по́льською?
Can you read Polish?
2. The predicate instrumental — the big one
Here is the use that trips up everyone. When you say what someone is, was, will be, or becomes — their profession, role, or identity — Ukrainian puts that predicate noun in the instrumental in every tense except the simple present. In the present, "to be" is normally omitted and the predicate stays nominative; the moment you move to past, future, infinitive, or a verb like become / work as, the predicate flips to instrumental.
| Tense / verb | Ukrainian | Predicate case |
|---|---|---|
| present (бу́ти dropped) | Він студе́нт. | nominative (студе́нт) |
| past | Він був студе́нтом. | instrumental (студе́нтом) |
| future | Він бу́де лі́карем. | instrumental (лі́карем) |
| infinitive (ста́ти) | Він хо́че ста́ти лі́карем. | instrumental (лі́карем) |
| працюва́ти "work as" | Вона́ працю́є перекла́дачем. | instrumental (перекла́дачем) |
Коли́сь я хоті́в ста́ти космона́втом, а став бухга́лтером.
I once wanted to become an astronaut, and I became an accountant.
Її́ ма́ма три́дцять ро́ків працюва́ла вчи́телькою матема́тики.
Her mum worked as a maths teacher for thirty years.
Не хвилю́йся — усе бу́де до́бре, і ти ще бу́деш чемпіо́ном.
Don't worry — everything will be fine, and you'll be a champion yet.
This even reaches бу́ти used impersonally about life and seasons and verbs of appearing / seeming / considering: вважа́ти когось дурне́м "to consider someone a fool," здава́тися ди́вним "to seem strange," назива́тися "to be called."
Спе́ршу він здава́вся суво́рим, а вияви́вся найдобрі́шою люди́ною.
At first he seemed stern, but he turned out to be the kindest person.
3. Companionship and accompaniment — з + instrumental
When the instrumental means together with somebody or something — a companion, not a tool — Ukrainian does use a preposition: з (with). The contrast matters: ноже́м (bare) = "with a knife" as a tool; з дру́гом (з + instr) = "with a friend" as company. Food and drink "with" something also use з.
| Ukrainian | English | Type |
|---|---|---|
| з дру́гом | with a friend | companion → з |
| чай з цу́кром | tea with sugar | added ingredient → з |
| ка́ва з молоко́м | coffee with milk | added ingredient → з |
| рі́зати ноже́м | cut with a knife | tool → bare, NO з |
Я бу́ду ка́ву з молоко́м, а він — чай без цу́кру.
I'll have a coffee with milk, and he'll have tea without sugar.
Учо́ра ходи́ли в кіно́ з друзя́ми — дав но́рм фільм.
Yesterday we went to the cinema with friends — decent film.
The line is meaning-based: if you could replace "with" by "by means of," it's the bare instrumental (a tool); if "with" means "in the company of / together with," it's з + instrumental. The full decision is on the bare instrumental vs з + instrumental page.
4. Route — "through, along, by way of"
A neat, often-overlooked use: the bare instrumental names the path or surface along which motion happens — "through the forest," "along the shore," "down the street."
Ході́мо лі́сом — там зати́шніше й коро́тше.
Let's go through the forest — it's cosier and shorter.
Вони́ йшли бе́регом, аж по́ки не споночі́ло.
They walked along the shore until it grew dark.
5. Time — instrumental adverbials
A closed but everyday set of time words sits in a frozen instrumental, working as adverbs: вра́нці (in the morning), вве́чері (in the evening), вно́чі (at night), весно́ю (in spring), лі́том (in summer), ра́нком, ве́чором. You don't build these on the fly — you learn them as set adverbs — but recognising the instrumental ending helps you remember them. (More on these on the instrumental time and manner page.)
Вра́нці хо́лодно, а вдень ще по-лі́тньому те́пло.
In the morning it's cold, but during the day it's still summery warm.
Весно́ю тут усе́ цвіте́ — ра́дій, що приї́хав.
In spring everything blooms here — be glad you came.
Source-language comparison
For an English speaker, two habits must change. First, stop reaching for a word to translate "with/by" in tool and means phrases — Ukrainian builds it into the ending: ру́чкою, авто́бусом, no preposition. Second, and harder: English keeps the predicate noun unchanged ("he is / was a teacher" — teacher never moves), but Ukrainian flips it to the instrumental outside the present ("він був учи́телем"). There is simply no English analogue; you must remember that was a teacher and is a teacher use different cases.
For a learner from Russian, the functions transfer almost perfectly — Russian has the same bare instrumental of means, the same predicate instrumental (был учителем), and з/с + instrumental for company. The differences are in the forms (see the forms page: -ою not -ой, doubling in ні́ччю), and in the preposition shape: Ukrainian companionship uses з (and its euphonic variants із / зі), never Russian с.
Common Mistakes
❌ писа́ти з ру́чкою (preposition on a pure tool)
Incorrect — a tool/means takes the bare instrumental, no з: писа́ти ру́чкою.
✅ писа́ти ру́чкою
to write with a pen — bare instrumental.
❌ Він був учи́тель. (nominative predicate in the past)
Incorrect — outside the present, the predicate role goes instrumental: Він був учи́телем.
✅ Він був учи́телем.
He was a teacher — predicate instrumental in the past.
❌ ста́ти лі́кар (nominative after ста́ти)
Incorrect — ста́ти 'become' takes an instrumental predicate: ста́ти лі́карем.
✅ ста́ти лі́карем
to become a doctor — instrumental after ста́ти.
❌ ка́ва молоко́м (companion/ingredient without з)
Incorrect — an added ingredient or companion takes з: ка́ва з молоко́м.
✅ ка́ва з молоко́м
coffee with milk — companionship з + instrumental.
❌ розмовля́ти на украї́нській (Russian-style 'на + language')
Incorrect — to speak a language uses the bare instrumental: розмовля́ти украї́нською.
✅ розмовля́ти украї́нською
to speak Ukrainian — instrumental of the language adjective.
Key Takeaways
- Means / tool: bare instrumental, NO preposition — ру́чкою, авто́бусом, ноже́м; languages too — говори́ти украї́нською.
- Predicate noun: instrumental in past, future, infinitive, and after ста́ти/працюва́ти (був учи́телем, ста́ти лі́карем), but nominative in the bare present (він студе́нт).
- Companionship / added ingredient: з + instrumental — з дру́гом, чай з цу́кром (contrast the bare tool instrumental).
- Route: bare instrumental of the path — іти́ лі́сом, бе́регом.
- Time adverbials: frozen instrumentals — вра́нці, вве́чері, весно́ю, лі́том.
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- Instrumental: FormsA2 — The instrumental (орудний) endings — feminine -ою/-ею (кни́гою, земле́ю), masculine and neuter -ом/-ем (столо́м, коне́м, ноже́м, ві́кном, мо́рем), and the dramatic Declension III feminine -ю with consonant DOUBLING (ні́ччю, сі́ллю, по́дорожжю) — plus the one labial exception, любо́в → любо́в’ю, that takes an apostrophe instead of a geminate.
- Predicate Nouns: Nominative vs InstrumentalB1 — The case of the noun after 'to be' and its relatives flips with the verb form: in the present zero-copula it is NOMINATIVE (Він лі́кар), but with an overt бути in the past, future, or infinitive it goes INSTRUMENTAL (Він був лі́карем, Вона́ бу́де вчи́телькою, хо́чу бу́ти лі́карем). The same instrumental follows ста́ти/става́ти 'become,' працюва́ти 'work as,' залиша́тися 'remain,' назива́тися 'be called,' вважа́тися 'be considered' — so the same role changes case with the verb, a pattern English (which keeps 'a doctor' invariant) has no analogue for.
- Prepositions Governing the InstrumentalA2 — The instrumental governs the prepositions of accompaniment and static relative position: з/із/зі 'with, together with' (з дру́гом, чай з молоко́м), над 'above', під 'under (located)', за 'behind / at' (за столо́м), пе́ред 'in front of', між/поміж 'between', по́за 'outside', and поряд з / поруч з 'next to'. Two insights anchor the page: the preposition з is BOTH 'with' (+ instrumental) and 'from' (+ genitive) — the case alone disambiguates з дру́гом 'with a friend' from з дру́га 'from a friend'; and over/under/behind/in-front take the instrumental for STATIC location but the accusative for motion-toward.
- Bare Instrumental vs З + InstrumentalB1 — The decision page for English 'with'. The BARE instrumental (no preposition) marks the instrument or means BY which something is done: пишу́ ру́чкою, ї́ду авто́бусом, рі́жу ноже́м. З + instrumental marks accompaniment — being together with a companion or an added ingredient: йду з дру́гом, ка́ва з молоко́м. One question resolves the English 'with': is X the tool you use, or the company you keep?
- Instrumental of Time, Manner, and RouteB2 — Beyond means, the bare instrumental works as an adverb: it says WHEN (ра́нком, ве́чором, ні́ччю; весно́ю, лі́том — alongside the adverbs навесні́, влі́тку), HOW (швидки́ми кро́ками, го́лосом), and ROUTE (іти́ лі́сом, доро́гою, спуска́тися схо́дами) — so 'I walk through the park' is Я йду па́рком with no preposition where English needs 'through'.
- З/Із/Зі: 'from', 'with', and 'off'B1 — З is three prepositions in one word, separated by case: з + GENITIVE = 'from / out of / off / since' (з Ки́єва, зі столу́, з ра́нку, одна́ з книг), з + INSTRUMENTAL = 'with' (з дру́гом, ка́ва з молоко́м), з + ACCUSATIVE = 'about / approximately' (з годи́ну) — and the із/зі shapes are chosen purely by the surrounding sounds.