Non-spatial genitive prepositions
In short
These four always take the genitive — no exceptions, no spatial sense.
| Preposition | Means | Example |
|---|---|---|
| bez | without | bez šećera, bez tebe |
| zbog | because of | zbog gužve, zbog njega |
| osim | except | osim nedelje, osim nas |
| umesto | instead of | umesto kafe, umesto mene |
od + genitive, non-spatial:
| Sense | Example |
|---|---|
| material | sto od drveta |
| origin | pismo od majke |
| belonging | ključ od stana |
Stressed pronouns after a preposition: mene, tebe, njega, nje, nas, vas, njih.
zbog + noun phrase · jer + clause.
A2 · Lesson 44 · Genitive prepositions beyond place: bez, zbog, osim, umesto, od
The full explanation, from the lesson that teaches this rule
You have already met prepositions that take the genitive because of where something is: iza kuće, pored škole, do centra. That can leave the impression that the genitive is the "place case" — and then, when a preposition has nothing to do with place, you start guessing.
Stop guessing. The preposition decides the case, not the meaning. These four prepositions have no spatial sense at all, and every one of them still takes the genitive, always:
| Preposition | Means | Example |
|---|---|---|
| bez | without | Ne mogu da radim bez kafe. |
| zbog | because of | Kasnim zbog gužve. |
| osim | except, apart from | Radim svaki dan osim nedelje. |
| umesto | instead of | Popio je čaj umesto kafe. |
Nothing new happens to the noun: it is the same genitive you already build. Singular or plural, all three genders, it makes no difference — the ending comes from the noun, the case comes from the preposition.
| masculine | feminine | neuter | |
|---|---|---|---|
| singular | bez šećera | bez vode | bez mleka |
| plural | bez prijatelja | bez sestara | bez kola |
Pronouns after these prepositions
A pronoun after a preposition takes its stressed form, never a clitic — exactly as in lesson 1. The genitive-accusative stressed forms are the ones you need here: mene, tebe, njega, nje, nas, vas, njih.
- Ne idem bez tebe. — I'm not going without you.
- Kasnimo zbog njega. — We are late because of him.
- Svi su došli osim nas. — Everyone came except us.
- Idi ti umesto mene. — You go instead of me.
od when it is not about place
od is the one you already know from od kuće do škole — and from comparisons, viši od mene. It has three more everyday jobs, and in all of them it still takes the genitive:
| Sense | Example | English |
|---|---|---|
| what a thing is made of | sto od drveta | a wooden table |
| who something comes from | pismo od majke | a letter from mother |
| what something belongs to | ključ od stana | the key to the flat |
zbog and jer are not interchangeable. zbog is followed by a noun phrase — Ne radim zbog kiše. jer is followed by a whole clause with its own verb — Ne radim jer pada kiša. If what follows has a verb in it, you need jer (or zato što), not zbog.
You will also hear umesto da plus a verb — Umesto da spava, gleda film. ("Instead of sleeping, he's watching a film.") Recognise it; you don't need to build it yet. With a noun, umesto + genitive is all you need.
One reminder, no new work: the spatial and time prepositions you already have — iz, kod, do, iza, ispred, pored, između, pre, posle, oko, tokom — take the genitive too. So do bez, zbog, osim and umesto. There is no genitive preposition that suddenly takes something else.
Check what you read
3 of the 17 questions this lesson asks in the app. Type the form or pick the answer.
Volim kafu ___ šećera.
Ne izlazi ___ kaputa, hladno je.
Autobus ne radi ___ štrajka.
Examples from the course
The marked word is where the rule applies. Press play to hear the sentence.
Kasnim zbog gužve.
I'm late because of the traffic.
Ne idem bez tebe.
I'm not going without you.
Izašao je bez jakne.
He went out without a jacket.
Izvinila se zbog kašnjenja.
She apologised for being late.
Umesto mesa naručila je ribu.
She ordered fish instead of meat.
Svi su došli osim nas.
Everyone came except us.
Umesto autobusa uzeli smo taksi.
We took a taxi instead of the bus.
Radim svaki dan osim nedelje.
I work every day except Sunday.
Zbog dece smo promenili planove.
We changed our plans because of the children.
Popio je čaj umesto kafe.
He drank tea instead of coffee.
Sentences in the course that use this rule: 44
Try it yourself
Translate a sentence that uses this rule. The check marks the word that went wrong and names the rule behind it, as in the app.
Sentences
Write it in Serbian
I'm late because of the traffic.