The Locative Case: -u
When using indefinite numerals like kilka (several/a few), parę (a couple), and wiele (many) with prepositions that require the Locative case (such as o, meaning "about"), they take the -u ending: kilku, paru, and wielu. The nouns that follow them must also be in the Locative plural.
| The participants commented on several questionnaires. | Uczestnicy wypowiadali się o kilku kwestionariuszach. |
| Before we finished, we talked about a few interactions. | Zanim skończyliśmy, rozmawialiśmy o paru interakcjach. |
The Instrumental Case: -oma
In the Instrumental case, wiele, kilka, and parę take the -oma ending: wieloma, kilkoma, and paroma. They agree with the noun, which takes the Instrumental plural.
| Before we started the study, we talked to many target groups. | Zanim zaczęliśmy badanie, rozmawialiśmy z wieloma grupami docelowymi. |
The Instrumental case is triggered not only by prepositions like z (with) but also by verbs like zarządzać (to manage).
| We will be managing several target groups. | Będziemy zarządzali kilkoma grupami docelowymi. |
| He shared his suggestions with a couple of pollsters. | Dzielił się swoimi sugestiami z paroma ankieterami. |
The Dative Case: -u
In the Dative case, these numerals share the exact same -u ending as they do in the Locative: wielu, kilku, and paru. You will often use the Dative with verbs like przyglądać się (to look closely at) or ufać (to trust), followed by a noun in the Dative plural.
| The pollster is looking closely at several new trends. | Ankieter wnikliwie przygląda się kilku nowym tendencjom. |
| We trust many observations from these questionnaires. | Ufamy wielu obserwacjom z tych kwestionariuszy. |