accusative case
- noun
- /əˈkjuːzətɪv keɪs/
- Specialized
:
caso acusativo
- In Latin, the noun 'puellam' is in the accusative case because it functions as the direct object of the verb.
Examples
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In many languages, the accusative case indicates the noun or pronoun that receives the action of the verb.
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Checking of the D feature must occur at the functional category of Object-Agreement where accusative case is assigned, and then at a functional category called Clitic to allow for its preverb position.
Academic text (2013) -
When she said 'I love you', 'you' is in the accusative case as it is the direct object of her affection.
Synonyms
1
7.4
The form words like him or them take when they are objects in a sentence
A form of a noun or pronoun used as the direct object of a verb
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from the constituents: 'accusative' specifies the type (the form used for direct objects) and 'case' names the grammatical category, so together they denote the grammatical case that marks direct objects. This is a compositional, technical term found across many languages, so a learner who knows both constituent meanings will readily understand it.
Etymology
Accusative case comes from an old Latin word meaning accuse, so imagine the verb 'pointing at' the noun that gets the action. That's why the accusative case marks the 'direct object' — the person or thing that gets the action of the verb.