I can say how I'm traveling — autobusom, vlakom, električkou — and ask about departures and arrivals.
Autobusom, električkou: the instrumental
Autobusom, električkou: the instrumental
Why: to say HOW you travel. English says “by bus”; Slovak uses the instrumental (inštrumentál) with no preposition: Idem autobusom. Don't add na or s here.
The form: masculine and neuter -om (vlak → vlakom, lietadlo → lietadlom), feminine -ou (električka → električkou). bicykel → bicyklom: the e drops. Adjectives: masculine and neuter -ým (modrým autobusom), feminine -ou (modrou električkou). In taxíkom the stress is on ta-; the long -í- is not stressed.
For a bike or a scooter you can say bicyklom or na bicykli (“sitting on”). On foot: pešo, with no case ending.
električka is a streetcar; a train, including a commuter train, is vlak.
cestovať is conjugated like pracovať: cestujem, cestuješ … cestujú.
Common mistakes:
• דIdem na autobuse” → Idem autobusom (English “on the bus”).
• דIdem električkom” → električkou (feminine: -ou).
• דCestujem taxík” → Cestujem taxíkom.
How do you travel? The instrumental
No preposition: English “by bus” is just autobusom.
| Gender | Ending | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| masculine | -om | autobus → autobusom; trolejbus → trolejbusom |
| neuter | -om | auto → autom; metro → metrom |
| feminine | -ou | električka → električkou; mestská doprava → mestskou dopravou |
| adjective | masc. and neut. -ým, fem. -ou | zeleným autom; bielou električkou |
Lesson notes
Autobusom, električkou: the instrumental
Why: to say HOW you travel. English says “by bus”; Slovak uses the instrumental (inštrumentál) with no preposition: Idem autobusom. Don't add na or s here.
The form: masculine and neuter -om (vlak → vlakom, lietadlo → lietadlom), feminine -ou (električka → električkou). bicykel → bicyklom: the e drops. Adjectives: masculine and neuter -ým (modrým autobusom), feminine -ou (modrou električkou). In taxíkom the stress is on ta-; the long -í- is not stressed.
For a bike or a scooter you can say bicyklom or na bicykli (“sitting on”). On foot: pešo, with no case ending.
električka is a streetcar; a train, including a commuter train, is vlak.
cestovať is conjugated like pracovať: cestujem, cestuješ … cestujú.
Common mistakes:
• דIdem na autobuse” → Idem autobusom (English “on the bus”).
• דIdem električkom” → električkou (feminine: -ou).
• דCestujem taxík” → Cestujem taxíkom.