The dative case marks the indirect object, the person to whom or for whom something is done.
Can recognize Dative case in a short Latin prompt
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
Fīliae rosam dō.
I give a rose to my daughter.
Amīcō epistulam scrībō.
I write a letter to a friend.
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
The dative case marks the indirect object, the person to whom or for whom something is done. It answers "to whom?" or "for whom?" and often appears with verbs of giving, showing, telling, and speaking.
English usually signals this with the words "to" or "for," or by word order: "I give the boy a book" means I give a book to the boy. Latin drops the little word and marks the receiver with a dative ending instead.
| Declension | Nominative | Dative sing. | Dative pl. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | puella | puellae | puellīs |
| 2nd | servus | servō | servīs |
| 3rd | rēx | rēgī | rēgibus |
Examples:
Two things to watch. English speakers often expect a "to" or "for" and, seeing none, mistake the dative noun for a subject or object; instead let the ending flag it as the receiver. Also note the last example: some Latin verbs (like pāreō, obey) take a dative where English uses a plain object, so "obey the king" is rēgī pārent, not an accusative.
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises
Practice ExercisesFīliae rosam dō.
I give a rose to my daughter.
Filiae is the indirect object. English says 'to my daughter' or moves it before the object; Latin changes the ending instead.
Amīcō epistulam scrībō.
I write a letter to a friend.
Amico is dative even though it looks like the ablative amico. Only the sentence tells them apart.
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Practice in course
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises