English «with» does two completely different jobs, and it does them with the same little word: «I write with a pen» (the tool) and «I went with a friend» (the companion). Ukrainian refuses to blur these. The tool / means goes in the bare instrumental — no preposition at all (пишу́ ру́чкою). The companion / accompaniment goes in з + instrumental (йду з дру́гом). So the single English «with» splits cleanly down the middle, decided by one question: is X the instrument you use, or the company you keep? This is the consolidation page; for the full range of instrumental jobs see instrumental uses, and for the other meanings of з see the three meanings of з.
The quick answer
| «with» means… | Construction | Example | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| the TOOL / MEANS (by means of) | bare instrumental | рі́жу ноже́м | I cut with a knife |
| the COMPANION (together with) | з + instrumental | прийшо́в з ноже́м | he came with a knife (carrying it) |
| an INGREDIENT / addition | з + instrumental | ка́ва з молоко́м | coffee with milk |
The minimal pair says it all: рі́жу ноже́м «I cut with (using) a knife» — the knife is the instrument, so bare instrumental — versus прийшо́в з ноже́м «he came with a knife» — here the knife is what he's carrying alongside him, an accompaniment, so з + instrumental. Same noun, same English «with», two different grammars.
Bare instrumental — the tool, means, or manner
When X is what you do something with — the instrument, the vehicle, the means — it takes the instrumental case with no preposition. This is the instrument-of-action: you write by means of a pen, travel by means of a bus, cut by means of a knife.
Я підпи́сую докуме́нти ті́льки си́ньою ру́чкою.
I sign documents only with a blue pen. (The pen is the instrument — bare instrumental ру́чкою.)
До це́нтру шви́дше дої́хати метро́, ніж авто́бусом.
It's faster to get to the centre by metro than by bus. (Means of transport — bare instrumental, no preposition.)
Не рі́ж хліб цим ноже́м — він тупи́й.
Don't cut the bread with this knife — it's blunt. (The knife as instrument — bare instrumental ноже́м.)
The same bare instrumental covers a few neighbouring «means» senses you'll meet constantly. Speaking a language is the instrument-of-means par excellence — говорю́ украї́нською «I speak (by means of) Ukrainian», covered on the speech-verbs page. And the bare instrumental also marks manner and the path you travel along.
Вона́ розмовля́є двома́ мо́вами без жо́дного акце́нту.
She speaks two languages without any accent. (Language as means — bare instrumental двома́ мо́вами.)
Ми пішли́ додо́му дале́кою доро́гою, бо ве́чір був те́плий.
We walked home the long way, because the evening was warm. (Path / route — bare instrumental доро́гою.)
З + instrumental — the companion or ingredient
When X is whom or what you're together with — a companion, a co-participant, or an added ingredient — you need з (or зі / зо before certain consonant clusters) + the instrumental. This is the «accompaniment» «with»: you go together with a friend, you drink coffee together with milk in it.
Я ї́ду на ви́хідні до мо́ря з усіє́ю сім’є́ю.
I'm going to the seaside for the weekend with the whole family. (Companions — з + instrumental сім’є́ю.)
Мені́, будь ла́ска, ка́ву з молоко́м і без цу́кру.
A coffee with milk and no sugar for me, please. (An ingredient — з + instrumental молоко́м.)
Він прийшо́в на зу́стріч з товсто́ю те́кою докуме́нтів.
He came to the meeting with a thick folder of documents. (Carrying it alongside — accompaniment, з + instrumental.)
Notice the form зі appears before awkward clusters — зі сметано́ю «with sour cream», зі мно́ю «with me» — for euphony; it's the same preposition. This euphonic alternation is the same family treated under euphonic variants.
Борщ смачні́ший зі сметано́ю та з па́мпушками.
Borshch is tastier with sour cream and with garlic rolls. (Ingredients — зі / з + instrumental.)
The decisive contrast: ноже́м vs з ноже́м
Put the minimal pair under a microscope. The same noun, ніж «knife», takes two different grammars depending on its role:
Він наріза́в са́ло го́стрим ноже́м.
He was slicing the salo with a sharp knife. (The knife is the tool doing the cutting — bare instrumental.)
Він зайшо́в на ку́хню з ноже́м у руці́.
He walked into the kitchen with a knife in his hand. (The knife is just being carried alongside him — з + instrumental.)
The first is instrument (the knife performs the action); the second is accompaniment (the knife is a companion object he has on him). If you can paraphrase «with X» as «using X» or «by X», it's bare; if you can paraphrase it as «carrying / accompanied by X» or «together with X», it's з. The verb is a strong clue, too: action verbs like рі́зати, писа́ти, ї́хати, би́ти pull toward the bare instrument; verbs of coming, going, sitting, being pull toward з + accompaniment.
Six worked cases — decide before you check
Cover the right column. Ask: is X the tool / means (→ bare) or the company / ingredient (→ з)?
| Sentence (English) | Role of X | Construction |
|---|---|---|
| "I eat with a fork" | tool | їм ви́делкою |
| "I eat with my friend" | companion | їм з дру́гом |
| "I write with a pencil" | tool | пишу́ олівце́м |
| "tea with lemon" | ingredient | чай з лимо́ном |
| "I'm going by train" | means of transport | ї́ду по́тягом |
| "a sandwich with cheese" | ingredient | бутербро́д із си́ром |
The pair to burn in is the first two: «I eat with a fork» is the tool → їм ви́делкою (bare instrumental), while «I eat with my friend» is the companion → їм з дру́гом (з + instrumental). English uses the identical «with» for both; Ukrainian forces you to decide which «with» you mean before you build the phrase. And note «by train» — English even swaps the preposition to «by» for transport, but Ukrainian keeps it firmly in the bare instrumental: ї́ду по́тягом, no preposition.
Source-language comparison
For an English speaker, this is a place where English actively misleads you, because «with» covers both the instrument and the companion and never makes you choose. The single most common transfer error is inserting з before a tool: пишу́ з ру́чкою for «I write with a pen». That literally reads as «I write *accompanied by a pen», as if the pen were a friend walking beside you. The fix is mechanical: a tool / means takes NO preposition — пишу́ ру́чкою, рі́жу ноже́м, ї́ду авто́бусом, говорю́ украї́нською. Reserve з for a companion or an ingredient. A useful self-test: if you'd say «by X» or «using X» in careful English, drop the preposition in Ukrainian.
For a Russian speaker, the split is identical in shape (instrumental for the tool, с + instrumental for the companion), so the concept transfers directly. The only adjustments are the Ukrainian preposition з / зі / зо (not с / со) and the euphonic choice among them; the underlying tool-vs-companion logic is the same.
Common Mistakes
❌ Я пишу́ з ру́чкою.
Incorrect — a tool takes the bare instrumental, no preposition: Я пишу́ ру́чкою. (З ру́чкою would mean 'accompanied by a pen'.)
✅ Я пишу́ ру́чкою.
I write with a pen — bare instrumental, the instrument of action.
❌ Я рі́жу з ноже́м.
Incorrect — the knife is the instrument doing the cutting: Я рі́жу ноже́м. (З ноже́м = carrying a knife, not cutting with it.)
✅ Я рі́жу ноже́м.
I cut with a knife — bare instrumental.
❌ Я ї́ду з авто́бусом до робо́ти.
Incorrect — a means of transport is the bare instrumental: Я ї́ду авто́бусом до робо́ти. (З авто́бусом would mean travelling alongside a bus.)
✅ Я ї́ду авто́бусом до робо́ти.
I go to work by bus — bare instrumental of means.
❌ Я живу́ дру́гом у це́нтрі.
Incorrect — a companion needs з: Я живу́ з дру́гом у це́нтрі. (The bare instrumental here would read as 'I live by means of a friend'.)
✅ Я живу́ з дру́гом у це́нтрі.
I live with a friend in the centre — з + instrumental, accompaniment.
❌ Дай мені́, будь ла́ска, чай лимо́ном.
Incorrect — an ingredient added to something needs з: чай з лимо́ном. (Bare лимо́ном would suggest the lemon is a tool used to make the tea.)
✅ Дай мені́, будь ла́ска, чай з лимо́ном.
Give me tea with lemon, please — з + instrumental, an ingredient.
Key Takeaways
- English «with» splits in Ukrainian by role: the tool / means → bare instrumental (пишу́ ру́чкою, ї́ду по́тягом); the companion / ingredient → з + instrumental (йду з дру́гом, ка́ва з молоко́м).
- The minimal pair: рі́жу ноже́м (cut using a knife — instrument) vs прийшо́в з ноже́м (came carrying a knife — accompaniment).
- The classic transfer error is пишу́ з ру́чкою — a tool takes *no preposition.
- Self-test: «using X / by X» → bare; «together with X» → з.
- Speaking a language is a means, so it is bare too: говорю́ украї́нською.
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Start learning Ukrainian→Related Topics
- Instrumental: Core UsesA2 — What the instrumental does — the bare 'by means of' (писа́ти ру́чкою, ї́хати авто́бусом, говори́ти украї́нською) with no preposition, the predicate noun after past/future/infinitive of бу́ти and after ста́ти/працюва́ти (він був учи́телем, хо́чу ста́ти лі́карем), companionship with з (з дру́гом, чай з цу́кром), route (іти́ лі́сом), and time adverbials (вра́нці, весно́ю).
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- The Instrumental of Agent in PassivesB2 — In a Ukrainian passive, the 'by X' agent is the bare INSTRUMENTAL — no preposition: рома́н, напи́саний Шевче́нком 'a novel written by Shevchenko', буди́нок, збудо́ваний робітника́ми. This overlaps in form with the instrumental of MEANS (напи́сано ру́чкою 'written with a pen'), but they differ in role; the -но/-то impersonal is agentless and the -ся passive usually drops the agent — so a NAMED agent appears mostly with the -ний participle.
- Говорити vs Казати vs РозмовлятиB1 — The decision page for the speech verbs. говори́ти = speak/talk in general and speak a language (+ bare instrumental: говорю́ украї́нською). розмовля́ти = have a conversation, talk with someone (+ з + instrumental). каза́ти / сказа́ти = say/tell a specific utterance (+ dative + що-clause). розповіда́ти = recount a story. Two questions sort all four: ongoing activity vs single utterance, and monologue vs two-way conversation.