What does "with" mean in Lithuanian, as in "Come with me", "coffee with milk", "I live with my mother", "I'm writing with a pencil"?
English "with" is a preposition of company and of means. It says who is together with whom (with my mother), what goes together with what (coffee with milk), and what something is done with (with a pencil, with a knife).
Lithuanian says su, and su is always followed by the instrumental case (įnagininkas). You have already met it twice: su juo "with him" (Lesson 16) and Ką darysime su tiek pyrago? "What shall we do with so much cake?" (Lesson 15).
- su + instrumental, for company: su mama "with Mum", su draugais "with friends", su manimi "with me". - su + instrumental, for what goes with something: kava su pienu "coffee with milk". - the instrumental alone, with no su, for the tool or the means: rašau pieštuku "I write with a pencil", važiuoju autobusu "I go by bus".
This is the great difference from English. English needs "with" for both company and tools. Lithuanian has a whole case for the tool, so the tool needs no preposition: the ending does the work. Su is above all the word of company: "together with".
Etymology: su is an old Baltic preposition. It is related to the prefix su- "together", which you will find in many verbs: susitikti "to meet (each other)", sueiti "to come together".
Orthographic points: su never changes. The words after it carry the instrumental endings: -u (draugu, pienu), -iu (broliu), -a (mama), -e (močiute), -imi (manimi, šunimi), and in the plural -ais (draugais), -omis (mamomis), -ėmis (bitėmis).
FAQ: How do you say "with" in Lithuanian? su, followed by the instrumental: su draugu "with a friend".
FAQ: How do you say "with me" and "with you" in Lithuanian? su manimi "with me", su tavimi "with you" (one person, familiar), su jumis "with you" (polite, or more than one), su mumis "with us".
FAQ: Do you say su for "with a pencil", "with a knife"? Normally not. Lithuanian uses the instrumental on its own: rašau pieštuku, pjaustau peiliu. And for travel: važiuoju traukiniu "I go by train", not su traukiniu.
- su "with" always takes the instrumental: su draugu, su mama, su manimi. - The tool or means is the instrumental without su: rašau pieštuku, važiuoju autobusu. - The pronouns after su: manimi, tavimi, juo, ja, mumis, jumis, jais, jomis. - Mes su Tomu means "Tomas and I", literally "we with Tomas". - The opposite of su is be "without", with the genitive: su pienu / be pieno.
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The IPA follows the broad transcription used in this course (see Lesson 10): short a /ɐ/, long a/ą /aː/, ė /eː/, y/į /iː/, o /oː/, short u /ʊ/, ū/ų /uː/, ie /iɛ/, uo /uɔ/. Palatalised consonants are marked ʲ. The stressed syllable is marked ˈ.
- su /sʊ/ — "with": a short /ʊ/, like English soot without the t. It is never stressed; it leans on the next word: su manimi sounds like one word. - manimi /mɐnʲɪˈmʲɪ/ — "(with) me": stress on the last syllable. - tavimi /tɐvʲɪˈmʲɪ/ — "(with) you": the same pattern. - juo /juɔ/ — "(with) him"; ja /jɐ/ — "(with) her". - mumis /mʊˈmʲɪs/ — "(with) us"; jumis /jʊˈmʲɪs/ — "(with) you (polite or plural)". - jais /jɐɪs/ — "(with) them (m.)"; jomis /joːˈmʲɪs/ — "(with) them (f.)". - pienu /ˈpʲiɛnʊ/ — "(with) milk": the final -u of the instrumental is short.
The s of su is always a hard /s/, never a /z/, and the u stays short: "soo" with a long vowel is wrong.
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Duplex Method. Line a: every Lithuanian word in bold, followed by its meaning in italic. Line b: the same words with IPA and grammatical glosses. Abbreviations: NOM GEN DAT ACC INST LOC VOC = cases; M F N = gender; SG PL; PRES PAST FUT COND; HAB = habitual past; IMP = imperative; INF = infinitive; PFV = perfective prefix; REFL = reflexive; NEG = negative; Q = question particle; DEM = demonstrative; INT = interrogative; CONJ = conjunction; PREP+GEN / PREP+ACC / PREP+INST = preposition governing the genitive / accusative / instrumental.
17.1a Eik go su with manimi me
17.1b Eik /ɛɪk/ go.2SG.IMP su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST manimi /mɐnʲɪˈmʲɪ/ I.INST
17.2a Kava coffee su with pienu milk
17.2b Kava /kɐˈvɐ/ coffee.F.NOM.SG su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST pienu /ˈpʲiɛnʊ/ milk.M.INST.SG
17.3a Aš I su with tavimi you
17.3b Aš /ɐʃ/ I.NOM su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST tavimi /tɐvʲɪˈmʲɪ/ you.INST.SG
17.4a Ji she gyvena lives su with mama her-mother
17.4b Ji /jɪ/ she.NOM gyvena /ɡʲiːˈvʲæːnɐ/ live.3.PRES su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST mama /ˈmaːmɐ/ mother.F.INST.SG
17.5a Rašau I-write pieštuku with-a-pencil
17.5b Rašau /rɐˈʃɐʊ/ write.1SG.PRES pieštuku /pʲiɛʃtʊˈkʊ/ pencil.M.INST.SG
17.6a Rytoj tomorrow su with draugais friends važiuosime we-will-go prie to jūros the-sea
17.6b Rytoj /riːˈtoːj/ tomorrow su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST draugais /drɐʊˈɡɐɪs/ friend.M.INST.PL važiuosime /vɐˈʒʲuɔsʲɪmʲɛ/ go.1PL.FUT prie /prʲiɛ/ by.PREP+GEN jūros /ˈjuːroːs/ sea.F.GEN.SG
17.7a Ar Q nori you-want eiti to-go su with mumis us į to parką the-park
17.7b Ar /ɐr/ Q nori /ˈnoːrʲɪ/ want.2SG.PRES eiti /ˈɛɪtʲɪ/ go.INF su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST mumis /mʊˈmʲɪs/ we.INST į /iː/ into.PREP+ACC parką /ˈpɐrkaː/ park.M.ACC.SG
17.8a Tomas Tomas kalbėjo talked telefonu on-the-phone su with močiute Grandma
17.8b Tomas /ˈtoːmɐs/ Tomas.M.NOM.SG kalbėjo /kɐlʲˈbʲeːjoː/ talk.3.PAST telefonu /tʲɛlʲɛfoːˈnʊ/ telephone.M.INST.SG su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST močiute /moːˈtʃʊtʲɛ/ grandmother.F.INST.SG
17.9a Ji she atėjo came su with savo her-own broliu brother ir and jo his draugu friend
17.9b Ji /jɪ/ she.NOM atėjo /ɐˈtʲeːjoː/ come.3.PAST su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST savo /ˈsaːvoː/ own.REFL.POSS broliu /ˈbroːlʲʊ/ brother.M.INST.SG ir /ɪr/ and jo /joː/ he.M.GEN.SG draugu /drɐʊˈɡʊ/ friend.M.INST.SG
17.10a Vakarais in-the-evenings jis he su with šunimi the-dog vaikšto walks parke in-the-park
17.10b Vakarais /vɐkɐˈrɐɪs/ evening.M.INST.PL jis /jɪs/ he.M.NOM.SG su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST šunimi /ʃʊnʲɪˈmʲɪ/ dog.M.INST.SG vaikšto /ˈvɐɪkʃtoː/ walk.3.PRES parke /pɐrˈkʲɛ/ park.M.LOC.SG
17.11a Su with kuo whom kalbėjai you-talked Su with mokytoju the-teacher
17.11b Su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST kuo /kuɔ/ who.INT.INST kalbėjai /kɐlʲˈbʲeːjɐɪ/ talk.2SG.PAST Su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST mokytoju /ˈmoːkʲiːtoːjʊ/ teacher.M.INST.SG
17.12a Kai when buvau I-was mažas little kiekvieną every vasarą summer su with tėvais my-parents važiuodavau I-used-to-go pas to močiutę Grandma
17.12b Kai /kɐɪ/ when buvau /bʊˈvɐʊ/ be.1SG.PAST mažas /ˈmaːʒɐs/ small.M.NOM.SG kiekvieną /kʲiɛkˈvʲiɛnaː/ every.F.ACC.SG vasarą /ˈvaːsɐraː/ summer.F.ACC.SG su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST tėvais /tʲeːˈvɐɪs/ parent.M.INST.PL važiuodavau /vɐˈʒʲuɔdɐvɐʊ/ go.1SG.PAST.HAB pas /pɐs/ to.PREP+ACC močiutę /moːˈtʃʊtʲæː/ grandmother.F.ACC.SG
17.13a Duoną bread pjaustome we-slice peiliu with-a-knife o and sriubą soup valgome we-eat šaukštu with-a-spoon
17.13b Duoną /ˈduɔnaː/ bread.F.ACC.SG pjaustome /ˈpʲɐʊstoːmʲɛ/ slice.1PL.PRES peiliu /pʲɛɪˈlʲʊ/ knife.M.INST.SG o /oː/ and.CONJ sriubą /ˈsrʲʊbaː/ soup.F.ACC.SG valgome /ˈvaːlɡoːmʲɛ/ eat.1PL.PRES šaukštu /ʃɐʊkʃˈtʊ/ spoon.M.INST.SG
17.14a Vakar yesterday susitikau I-met su with draugais friends kavinėje in-a-café ir and ilgai for-a-long-time kalbėjomės we-talked
17.14b Vakar /ˈvaːkɐr/ yesterday susitikau /sʊsʲɪtʲɪˈkɐʊ/ PFV-REFL-meet.1SG.PAST su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST draugais /drɐʊˈɡɐɪs/ friend.M.INST.PL kavinėje /kɐˈvʲɪnʲeːjɛ/ café.F.LOC.SG ir /ɪr/ and ilgai /ɪlʲˈɡɐɪ/ long kalbėjomės /kɐlʲˈbʲeːjoːmʲeːs/ talk.1PL.PAST.REFL
17.15a Tu you man to-me nė not-even karto once nedavei didn't-give nė not-even ožiuko a-young-goat pasilinksminti to-make-merry su with draugais my-friends
17.15b Tu /tʊ/ you.NOM.SG man /mɐn/ I.DAT nė /nʲeː/ not-even karto /ˈkaːrtoː/ time.M.GEN.SG nedavei /nʲɛdɐˈvʲɛɪ/ NEG-give.2SG.PAST nė /nʲeː/ not-even ožiuko /oːˈʒʲʊkoː/ kid.M.GEN.SG pasilinksminti /pɐsʲɪˈlʲɪŋksʲmʲɪntʲɪ/ PFV-REFL-make-merry.INF su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST draugais /drɐʊˈɡɐɪs/ friend.M.INST.PL
(17.15 is Luke 15:29, from the parable of the Prodigal Son, in the Lithuanian Catholic text given in the online Bible at charity.lt/biblija: the elder son's complaint to his father, o tu man nė karto nedavei nė ožiuko pasilinksminti su draugais. The opening o "but" is left off here. The same parable gives Section F, as it did in Lesson 16. Examples 17.1–17.14 are pedagogical sentences built from verified vocabulary and patterns.)
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17.1 Eik su manimi. → "Come with me."
17.2 Kava su pienu. → "Coffee with milk."
17.3 Aš su tavimi. → "I'm with you."
17.4 Ji gyvena su mama. → "She lives with her mother."
17.5 Rašau pieštuku. → "I'm writing with a pencil."
17.6 Rytoj su draugais važiuosime prie jūros. → "Tomorrow we're going to the seaside with friends."
17.7 Ar nori eiti su mumis į parką? → "Do you want to come to the park with us?"
17.8 Tomas kalbėjo telefonu su močiute. → "Tomas was talking to Grandma on the phone."
17.9 Ji atėjo su savo broliu ir jo draugu. → "She came with her brother and his friend."
17.10 Vakarais jis su šunimi vaikšto parke. → "In the evenings he walks in the park with the dog."
17.11 Su kuo kalbėjai? Su mokytoju. → "Who were you talking to? The teacher."
17.12 Kai buvau mažas, kiekvieną vasarą su tėvais važiuodavau pas močiutę. → "When I was little, every summer I used to go to my grandmother's with my parents."
17.13 Duoną pjaustome peiliu, o sriubą valgome šaukštu. → "We cut bread with a knife and eat soup with a spoon."
17.14 Vakar susitikau su draugais kavinėje ir ilgai kalbėjomės. → "Yesterday I met some friends in a café and we talked for a long time."
17.15 Tu man nė karto nedavei nė ožiuko pasilinksminti su draugais. → "You never once gave me so much as a young goat to celebrate with my friends."
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17.1 Eik su manimi.
17.2 Kava su pienu.
17.3 Aš su tavimi.
17.4 Ji gyvena su mama.
17.5 Rašau pieštuku.
17.6 Rytoj su draugais važiuosime prie jūros.
17.7 Ar nori eiti su mumis į parką?
17.8 Tomas kalbėjo telefonu su močiute.
17.9 Ji atėjo su savo broliu ir jo draugu.
17.10 Vakarais jis su šunimi vaikšto parke.
17.11 Su kuo kalbėjai? Su mokytoju.
17.12 Kai buvau mažas, kiekvieną vasarą su tėvais važiuodavau pas močiutę.
17.13 Duoną pjaustome peiliu, o sriubą valgome šaukštu.
17.14 Vakar susitikau su draugais kavinėje ir ilgai kalbėjomės.
17.15 Tu man nė karto nedavei nė ožiuko pasilinksminti su draugais.
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These are the grammar rules for "with" in Lithuanian:
1. su + instrumental
Su is always followed by the instrumental case. It never takes any other case, and it never changes itself.
2. The instrumental of nouns
Singular: -as nouns: draugas → su draugu "with a friend" (17.9); pienas → su pienu (17.2) -is nouns: brolis → su broliu "with a brother" (17.9) -a nouns: mama → su mama "with Mum" (17.4); žmona → su žmona "with a wife" -ė nouns: močiutė → su močiute "with Grandma" (17.8) -us nouns: sūnus → su sūnumi "with a son" irregular: šuo → su šunimi "with the dog" (17.10); sesuo → su seserimi "with a sister"; duktė → su dukterimi "with a daughter"
Plural: -as and -is nouns: draugai → su draugais (17.6, 17.14); tėvai → su tėvais "with my parents" (17.12) -a nouns: mamos → su mamomis -ė nouns: bitės → su bitėmis "with the bees" (17.24)
Note that in the feminine -a nouns the instrumental mama is spelt like the nominative mama: only the word su in front tells you the case.
3. The instrumental of the pronouns
aš → su manimi "with me" (17.1) tu → su tavimi "with you" (17.3) jis → su juo "with him" (Lesson 16) ji → su ja "with her" mes → su mumis "with us" (17.7) jūs → su jumis "with you (polite or plural)" (17.20, 17.25, 17.30) jie → su jais "with them (m.)" jos → su jomis "with them (f.)" savęs → su savimi "with oneself": Pasiimk skėtį su savimi. "Take an umbrella with you." kas → su kuo "with whom?" (17.11)
In speech manimi and tavimi are often shortened to manim, tavim. In writing use the full forms.
4. Company: who with whom
The core meaning of su is "together with": gyventi su mama (17.4), eiti su mumis (17.7), važiuoti su draugais (17.6). Many verbs of doing something with another person take su: - kalbėti su kuo "to talk with someone" (17.8, 17.11) - susitikti su kuo "to meet (up with) someone", by arrangement (17.14). Running into someone by chance is sutikti with the accusative and no su: Gatvėje sutikau mokytoją. "I met the teacher in the street." - šokti su kuo "to dance with someone" - dirbti su kuo "to work with someone" (17.24, 17.25)
5. What goes with something
Su also describes a thing or a person by what goes with them: kava su pienu (17.2), arbata su citrina "tea with lemon", kepurės su tinkleliais "hats with nets" (17.21).
6. The tool and the means: no su
When "with" means the tool you do something with, Lithuanian uses the instrumental alone: - Rašau pieštuku. (17.5) "I write with a pencil." - Duoną pjaustome peiliu, o sriubą valgome šaukštu. (17.13) "We cut bread with a knife and eat soup with a spoon." - Dūmais raminame bites. (17.23) "We calm the bees with smoke."
The same instrumental gives the means of travel and of contact, where English says "by" or "on": važiuoti autobusu "to go by bus", važiuoti traukiniu "to go by train", kalbėti telefonu "to talk on the phone" (17.8). You will also hear su with a tool (rašyti su pieštuku) in everyday speech, and it is not wrong; but the plain instrumental is the better Lithuanian, and for travel it is the rule.
The instrumental without su also tells you when: vakarais "in the evenings" (17.10).
7. Mes su Tomu: "Tomas and I"
Where English says "Tomas and I", Lithuanian very often says mes su Tomu, literally "we with Tomas": Mes su broliu gyvename Kaune. "My brother and I live in Kaunas." The verb is plural, because mes "we" is the subject. In the same way jie su draugais is "they and their friends".
8. su and be
The opposite of su is be "without", which takes the genitive (Lesson 16: be jo "without him"): kava su pienu "coffee with milk", kava be pieno "coffee without milk".
Common Mistakes
- Mistake: the nominative or accusative after su. su draugas, su mane. Correct: su draugu, su manimi. - Mistake: the genitive jo after su. su jo for "with him". Correct: su juo. (Su jo draugu is right, but it means "with his friend", 17.9.) - Mistake: su with a means of transport. važiuoju su autobusu. Correct: važiuoju autobusu. - Mistake: "my brother and I" word for word. Aš ir mano brolis is possible, but Mes su broliu is what Lithuanians usually say. - Mistake: dropping the -i of the pronoun in writing. su manim is spoken; written Lithuanian prefers su manimi.
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Sudie: "with God"
The Lithuanian farewell sudie "goodbye" is su Dievu "with God" run together into one word, as English goodbye is "God be with you". It is a warm, slightly old-fashioned farewell, more final than the everyday viso gero "all the best".
Bees and friends
Beekeeping (bitininkystė) is one of the oldest crafts of the Lithuanian countryside, and the bee (bitė) holds a special place in its folk culture. The everyday word bičiulis "friend" is traditionally explained as coming from bitė: two men who shared a swarm of bees became bičiuliai, bound to help one another. Old Lithuanian belief gave the bees their own guardian goddess, Austėja.
Mes su…
The construction mes su Tomu "Tomas and I" (Section D, 7) is everywhere in Lithuanian conversation, and learners who use it sound natural at once. It puts the speaker first and the companion after su: Mes su mama, "Mum and I"; Mes su vyru, "my husband and I".
The neighbour's bees
In the Genre Section Tomas and Rūta keep the promise they made in Lesson 16 and go back to Mr Antanas, who loves savo sodą, savo bites ir saldumynus "his garden, his bees and anything sweet" (16.23).
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Source: Evangelija pagal Luką (the Gospel of Luke) 15:31, from the parable of the Prodigal Son, in the Lithuanian Catholic text given in the online Bible at charity.lt/biblija (as in Lessons 11, 15 and 16).
Context: In Lesson 16 the younger son came home and his father ran to meet him. Now the elder son comes in from the fields, hears music and dancing, and is angry. He reproaches his father: all these years he has served him, and he has never been given so much as a young goat to celebrate su draugais "with my friends" (17.15). Verse 31 is the father's answer. Its heart is two words of this lesson, su manimi "with me".
F-A: Interlinear Construed Text
F.1a Tėvas the-father atsakė answered Sūnau son
F.1b Tėvas /ˈtʲeːvɐs/ father.M.NOM.SG atsakė /ɐtˈsaːkʲeː/ answer.3.PAST Sūnau /suːˈnɐʊ/ son.M.VOC.SG
F.2a tu you visuomet always su with manimi me
F.2b tu /tʊ/ you.NOM.SG visuomet /vʲɪˈsuɔmʲɛt/ always su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST manimi /mɐnʲɪˈmʲɪ/ I.INST
F.3a ir and visa all kas that mano mine yra is ir also tavo yours
F.3b ir /ɪr/ and visa /vʲɪˈsɐ/ all.N kas /kɐs/ what.REL.NOM mano /ˈmaːnoː/ my yra /iːˈrɐ/ be.3.PRES ir /ɪr/ also tavo /ˈtaːvoː/ your.SG
F-B: Original Text with Translation
31 Tėvas atsakė: Sūnau, tu visuomet su manimi, ir visa, kas mano, yra ir tavo.
"31 The father answered: Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours too."
(Our translation, following the Lithuanian closely. On the website the father's words open with a quotation mark that closes only at the end of verse 32; it is left out here.)
F-C: Original Text Only
31 Tėvas atsakė: Sūnau, tu visuomet su manimi, ir visa, kas mano, yra ir tavo.
F-D: Grammar and Literary Commentary
- su manimi (F.2): su with the instrumental of aš. Company in its fullest sense: "you have always been at my side". - tu visuomet su manimi (F.2): there is no verb. The present of būti "to be" (esi "you are") is left out, as it often is in Lithuanian when the meaning is plain (Lesson 13). The other Lithuanian version printed beside this one on the same website keeps it: tu visada esi su manimi. - Sūnau (F.1): the vocative of sūnus "son", a noun in -us: sūnus → sūnau! Compare pone Antanai in Lesson 16. - visuomet (F.2): "always", a more literary word than the everyday visada; the two mean the same. - visa, kas mano (F.3): "all that (is) mine". Visa is the bookish "all, everything" met in Lesson 15 (F.1); everyday speech says viskas. Again yra is left out after mano, then used: yra ir tavo "is yours too". - ir … ir (F.3): the first ir is "and", the second "also, too", as in 16.30 ir mūsų kaimynas. - mano, tavo (F.3): "mine, yours". Like jo (Lesson 16), they never change, and they stand alone as well as before a noun. - The two sons and su (17.15, F.2): the elder son complains that he could never make merry su draugais "with his friends"; the father answers that he has always been su manimi "with me". The parable sets one su against the other.
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The next day Rūta and Tomas drop in on Mr Antanas again, as they promised (16.28–16.29). Tomas has offered to help in the garden, and today the work is at the beehives. A preposition is best learned in conversation and in instructions, and this dialogue has both: who came with whom, who works with whom, and what the bees are calmed with. It also shows where English has "with" and Lithuanian only the instrumental (17.23). Direct speech opens with a dash. The speakers are: Mr Antanas (17.16), Rūta (17.17), Tomas (17.18), Mr Antanas (17.19), Rūta (17.20), Mr Antanas (17.21), Tomas (17.22), Mr Antanas (17.23), Rūta (17.24), Mr Antanas (17.25), Tomas (17.26), Mr Antanas (17.27), Rūta (17.28), Mr Antanas (17.29), Tomas (17.30).
Part A: Interlinear Construed Text
17.16a Labas hello vaikai children Ar Q atėjote you-came su with močiute Grandma
17.16b Labas /ˈlaːbɐs/ hello vaikai /vɐɪˈkɐɪ/ child.M.VOC.PL Ar /ɐr/ Q atėjote /ɐˈtʲeːjoːtʲɛ/ come.2PL.PAST su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST močiute /moːˈtʃʊtʲɛ/ grandmother.F.INST.SG
17.17a Ne no šiandien today atėjome we-came vieni on-our-own Močiutė Grandma liko stayed namie at-home su with katinu the-cat
17.17b Ne /nʲɛ/ no šiandien /ˈʃɛndʲiɛn/ today atėjome /ɐˈtʲeːjoːmʲɛ/ come.1PL.PAST vieni /vʲiɛˈnʲɪ/ alone.M.NOM.PL Močiutė /moːˈtʃʊtʲeː/ grandmother.F.NOM.SG liko /ˈlʲɪkoː/ stay.3.PAST namie /nɐˈmʲiɛ/ at-home su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST katinu /kɐtʲɪˈnʊ/ cat.M.INST.SG
17.18a Pone Mr Antanai Antanas ar Q galiu I-can jums you padėti help sode in-the-garden
17.18b Pone /ˈpoːnʲɛ/ Mr.M.VOC.SG Antanai /ˈaːntɐnɐɪ/ Antanas.M.VOC.SG ar /ɐr/ Q galiu /ɡɐˈlʲʊ/ can.1SG.PRES jums /jʊms/ you.DAT.PL padėti /pɐˈdʲeːtʲɪ/ help.INF sode /soːˈdʲɛ/ garden.M.LOC.SG
17.19a Gali you-can Šiandien today eisime we-will-go prie to avilių the-hives Ar Q nebijote you-aren't-afraid
17.19b Gali /ɡɐˈlʲɪ/ can.2SG.PRES Šiandien /ˈʃɛndʲiɛn/ today eisime /ˈɛɪsʲɪmʲɛ/ go.1PL.FUT prie /prʲiɛ/ by.PREP+GEN avilių /ɐvʲɪˈlʲuː/ beehive.M.GEN.PL Ar /ɐr/ Q nebijote /nʲɛˈbʲɪjoːtʲɛ/ NEG-fear.2PL.PRES
17.20a Su with jumis you nebijome we-aren't-afraid
17.20b Su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST jumis /jʊˈmʲɪs/ you.INST.PL nebijome /nʲɛˈbʲɪjoːmʲɛ/ NEG-fear.1PL.PRES
17.21a Tada then užsidėkite put-on šitas these kepures hats su with tinkleliais nets
17.21b Tada /tɐˈdɐ/ then užsidėkite /ʊʒsʲɪˈdʲeːkʲɪtʲɛ/ PFV-REFL-put.2PL.IMP šitas /ʃʲɪˈtɐs/ this.DEM.F.ACC.PL kepures /kʲɛpʊˈrʲɛs/ hat.F.ACC.PL su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST tinkleliais /tʲɪŋklʲɛˈlʲɛɪs/ net.M.INST.PL
17.22a Kam what-for tie that dūmai smoke
17.22b Kam /kɐm/ what.INT.DAT tie /tʲiɛ/ that.DEM.M.NOM.PL dūmai /ˈduːmɐɪ/ smoke.M.NOM.PL
17.23a Dūmais with-smoke raminame we-calm bites the-bees Tada then jos they negelia don't-sting
17.23b Dūmais /duːˈmɐɪs/ smoke.M.INST.PL raminame /ˈraːmʲɪnɐmʲɛ/ calm.1PL.PRES bites /ˈbʲɪtʲɛs/ bee.F.ACC.PL Tada /tɐˈdɐ/ then jos /joːs/ they.F.NOM negelia /nʲɛˈɡʲælʲɛ/ NEG-sting.3.PRES
17.24a Ar Q jūs you visada always dirbate work su with bitėmis the-bees vienas alone
17.24b Ar /ɐr/ Q jūs /juːs/ you.NOM.PL visada /vʲɪsɐˈdɐ/ always dirbate /ˈdʲɪrbɐtʲɛ/ work.2PL.PRES su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST bitėmis /ˈbʲɪtʲeːmʲɪs/ bee.F.INST.PL vienas /ˈvʲiɛnɐs/ alone.M.NOM.SG
17.25a Anksčiau before dirbdavau I-used-to-work su with žmona my-wife Dabar now dirbu I-work vienas alone bet but šiandien today su with jumis you
17.25b Anksčiau /ɐŋksʲˈtʃʲɛʊ/ earlier dirbdavau /ˈdʲɪrbdɐvɐʊ/ work.1SG.PAST.HAB su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST žmona /ʒmoːˈnɐ/ wife.F.INST.SG Dabar /dɐˈbɐr/ now dirbu /ˈdʲɪrbʊ/ work.1SG.PRES vienas /ˈvʲiɛnɐs/ alone.M.NOM.SG bet /bʲɛt/ but šiandien /ˈʃɛndʲiɛn/ today su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST jumis /jʊˈmʲɪs/ you.INST.PL
17.26a O and kur where bitės the-bees skraido fly
17.26b O /oː/ and.CONJ kur /kʊr/ where bitės /ˈbʲɪtʲeːs/ bee.F.NOM.PL skraido /ˈskrɐɪdoː/ fly-about.3.PRES
17.27a Į to pievą the-meadow Iš from ten there grįžta they-come-back su with nektaru nectar
17.27b Į /iː/ into.PREP+ACC pievą /ˈpʲiɛvaː/ meadow.F.ACC.SG Iš /ɪʃ/ from.PREP+GEN ten /tʲɛn/ there grįžta /ˈɡrʲiːʒtɐ/ return.3.PRES su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST nektaru /ˈnʲɛktɐrʊ/ nectar.M.INST.SG
17.28a O and ar Q mes we galėsime will-be-able grįžti to-go-back namo home su with medumi honey
17.28b O /oː/ and.CONJ ar /ɐr/ Q mes /mʲɛs/ we.NOM galėsime /ɡɐˈlʲeːsʲɪmʲɛ/ can.1PL.FUT grįžti /ˈɡrʲiːʒtʲɪ/ return.INF namo /nɐˈmoː/ home(ward) su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST medumi /mʲɛdʊˈmʲɪ/ honey.M.INST.SG
17.29a Žinoma of-course Nunešite you-will-take stiklainį a-jar medaus of-honey močiutei to-Grandma ir and pasakysite you-will-say jai to-her ačiū thank-you už for pyragą the-cake
17.29b Žinoma /ˈʒʲɪnoːmɐ/ of-course Nunešite /nʊˈnʲɛʃʲɪtʲɛ/ carry-off.2PL.FUT stiklainį /sʲtʲɪkˈlɐɪnʲiː/ jar.M.ACC.SG medaus /mʲɛˈdɐʊs/ honey.M.GEN.SG močiutei /moːˈtʃʊtʲɛɪ/ grandmother.F.DAT.SG ir /ɪr/ and pasakysite /pɐsɐˈkʲiːsʲɪtʲɛ/ say.2PL.FUT jai /jɐɪ/ she.DAT ačiū /ˈaːtʃʲuː/ thanks už /ʊʒ/ for.PREP+ACC pyragą /pʲiːˈraːɡaː/ cake.M.ACC.SG
17.30a Ačiū thank-you Su with jumis you pone Mr Antanai Antanas net even bitės the-bees nebaisios aren't-frightening
17.30b Ačiū /ˈaːtʃʲuː/ thanks Su /sʊ/ with.PREP+INST jumis /jʊˈmʲɪs/ you.INST.PL pone /ˈpoːnʲɛ/ Mr.M.VOC.SG Antanai /ˈaːntɐnɐɪ/ Antanas.M.VOC.SG net /nʲɛt/ even bitės /ˈbʲɪtʲeːs/ bee.F.NOM.PL nebaisios /nʲɛˈbɐɪsʲoːs/ NEG-frightening.F.NOM.PL
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Part B: Dialogue with Idiomatic Translation
17.16 – Labas, vaikai! Ar atėjote su močiute? → "Hello, children! Have you come with your grandmother?"
17.17 – Ne, šiandien atėjome vieni. Močiutė liko namie su katinu. → "No, today we came on our own. Grandma stayed at home with the cat."
17.18 – Pone Antanai, ar galiu jums padėti sode? → "Mr Antanas, can I help you in the garden?"
17.19 – Gali. Šiandien eisime prie avilių. Ar nebijote? → "You can. Today we're going to the hives. You're not afraid?"
17.20 – Su jumis nebijome. → "Not with you."
17.21 – Tada užsidėkite šitas kepures su tinkleliais. → "Then put on these hats with the nets."
17.22 – Kam tie dūmai? → "What's the smoke for?"
17.23 – Dūmais raminame bites. Tada jos negelia. → "We calm the bees with smoke. Then they don't sting."
17.24 – Ar jūs visada dirbate su bitėmis vienas? → "Do you always work with the bees on your own?"
17.25 – Anksčiau dirbdavau su žmona. Dabar dirbu vienas, bet šiandien – su jumis. → "I used to work with my wife. Now I work alone. But today, with you."
17.26 – O kur bitės skraido? → "And where do the bees fly to?"
17.27 – Į pievą. Iš ten grįžta su nektaru. → "To the meadow. They come back from there with nectar."
17.28 – O ar mes galėsime grįžti namo su medumi? → "And will we be able to go home with some honey?"
17.29 – Žinoma! Nunešite stiklainį medaus močiutei ir pasakysite jai ačiū už pyragą. → "Of course! You'll take a jar of honey to your grandmother and tell her thank you for the cake."
17.30 – Ačiū! Su jumis, pone Antanai, net bitės nebaisios. → "Thank you! With you, Mr Antanas, even the bees aren't frightening."
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Part C: Dialogue in Lithuanian Only
– Labas, vaikai! Ar atėjote su močiute?
– Ne, šiandien atėjome vieni. Močiutė liko namie su katinu.
– Pone Antanai, ar galiu jums padėti sode?
– Gali. Šiandien eisime prie avilių. Ar nebijote?
– Su jumis nebijome.
– Tada užsidėkite šitas kepures su tinkleliais.
– Kam tie dūmai?
– Dūmais raminame bites. Tada jos negelia.
– Ar jūs visada dirbate su bitėmis vienas?
– Anksčiau dirbdavau su žmona. Dabar dirbu vienas, bet šiandien – su jumis.
– O kur bitės skraido?
– Į pievą. Iš ten grįžta su nektaru.
– O ar mes galėsime grįžti namo su medumi?
– Žinoma! Nunešite stiklainį medaus močiutei ir pasakysite jai ačiū už pyragą.
– Ačiū! Su jumis, pone Antanai, net bitės nebaisios.
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Part D: Grammar Notes for the Genre Section
- su in company. su močiute (17.16), su katinu (17.17), su jumis (17.20, 17.25, 17.30), su bitėmis (17.24), su žmona (17.25): who is together with whom. - su for what goes with something. kepures su tinkleliais (17.21) "hats with nets"; grįžta su nektaru (17.27), grįžti su medumi (17.28): coming back carrying something. - The instrumental without su. Dūmais raminame bites (17.23): the smoke is the tool, so there is no su. English says "with smoke"; Lithuanian says "smoke-INST". - Polite jūs to one man. The children say jums (17.18), su jumis (17.20, 17.30) and Ar jūs … dirbate (17.24) to Mr Antanas, but the adjective stays singular and masculine: vienas "alone" (17.24), because it is one man. He answers with tu to Tomas (Gali, 17.19) and with the plural jūs to both children (atėjote, 17.16; nebijote, 17.19; užsidėkite, 17.21; nunešite, 17.29). - vieni (17.17): "on our own", the masculine plural of vienas "alone", agreeing with the boy and girl together. - namie / namo (17.17, 17.28): namie "at home" (place where), namo "home(wards)" (place to which). - The habitual past (17.25): dirbdavau "I used to work", formed with -dav-, as važiuodavau in 17.12. It is the past of things that happened again and again. - Kam? (17.22): the dative of kas, "for what? what for?". - šitas kepures (17.21): šitas is the accusative plural of feminine šita "this", agreeing with kepures. - The dash for a pause (17.25): bet šiandien – su jumis "but today, with you": the dash stands for the verb left out (dirbu). - ačiū už (17.29): "thanks for", už + accusative, as in Lesson 14. - nebaisios (17.30): ne + the adjective baisus "frightening", feminine plural to agree with bitės; the verb yra is left out.
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- The key forms: su /sʊ/; manimi /mɐnʲɪˈmʲɪ/, tavimi /tɐvʲɪˈmʲɪ/, juo /juɔ/, ja /jɐ/, mumis /mʊˈmʲɪs/, jumis /jʊˈmʲɪs/, jais /jɐɪs/, jomis /joːˈmʲɪs/, savimi /sɐvʲɪˈmʲɪ/; kuo /kuɔ/. - su is unstressed: it is said together with the next word, su manimi /sʊmɐnʲɪˈmʲɪ/, su draugais /sʊdrɐʊˈɡɐɪs/. - The instrumental endings are short: pienu /ˈpʲiɛnʊ/, broliu /ˈbroːlʲʊ/, močiute /moːˈtʃʊtʲɛ/. Compare the nominative močiutė with its long ė /eː/: on the page the dot on the e is the whole difference. - -ais, -omis, -ėmis: the plural instrumentals: draugais /drɐʊˈɡɐɪs/, bitėmis /ˈbʲɪtʲeːmʲɪs/. - Letters with diacritics in this lesson: į ą ę ų (ogonek), ė (dot above), ū (macron), š ž č (háček): į parką, močiutę, avilių, bitėmis, dūmais, šunimi, žmona, Ačiū. - nė and ne: nė /nʲeː/ "not even" (17.15) has a long ė; ne /nʲɛ/ "no, not" is short. Nė karto "not even once". - Final devoicing: kad /kɐt/, daug /dɐʊk/. The spelling does not change. - Commas: a comma stands after a kai-clause that comes first (17.12), before o "and, whereas" (17.13) and before bet (17.25). A vocative is set off by commas: Labas, vaikai! (17.16), Su jumis, pone Antanai, net bitės nebaisios (17.30).
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Course Index: [latinum.substack.com/p/index](https://latinum.substack.com/p/index)