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ablative case

ablative case

9.9
A noun form in some languages that shows movement away or how something is done
  • noun
  • /ˈeɪblətɪv keɪs/
  • Specialized
translation icon : caso ablativo
  • To show movement away from a location, many languages utilize the ablative case in their grammar.

Examples

  • In Latin, the ablative case is often used to express the means by which an action is performed.

  • "If I could, Miss Jefferson, just direct your considerable powers to the ablative case, we might do great things."

    Fiction book (1995)
  • When studying Latin, you will encounter the ablative case frequently in various contexts.

Synonyms

ablative
vsablative case
  • Specialized
9.9

A word form in some languages that shows movement away from a place, origin, or means

has identical meaning but is the fuller two-word form

Surface Forms

ablative case singular

Morphology

ablative + case

The phrase is simply the grammatical label 'case' specified by the modifier 'ablative', so a learner who knows 'ablative' (a case expressing origin, separation, instrument/manner) and 'case' (grammatical category) can derive the meaning directly. This is a compositional, technical noun phrase found across many languages' grammatical terminology, making it immediately interpretable rather than idiomatic.

Etymology

Ablative case comes from the Latin part ab meaning 'away', so imagine someone moving away from a place. That's why it marks 'from' or the way or tool used to do something.