Locative case — in, at, on (-да/-де/-та/-те)

Beginner

Where English uses the prepositions in, at and on, Kazakh puts one ending on the noun itself: үйде — at home, мектепте — at school.

Explanation

Add -да/-де after a vowel or voiced sound, -та/-те after a voiceless consonant. Vowel harmony picks а or е:

қала → қалада (in the city)
үй → үйде (at home / in the house)
жұмыс → жұмыста (at work)
мектеп → мектепте (at school)

One ending covers in, at AND on — context does the rest: үстелде = "on the table", Алматыда = "in Almaty".

Explanation

Combine it with бар (there is) and жоқ (there is not) and you can already say a lot:

Үйде кім бар? — Who is at home?
Дүкенде нан бар. — There is bread in the shop.
Мектепте ешкім жоқ. — There is nobody at school.

With a person it means "at their place" or "on them": Менде ақша бар — I have money (literally "on me money exists").

Examples

Practice

8 sentences · multiple choice · English → Kazakh