Common prepositions

After this page you will know the most common Ukrainian prepositions: words like in, on, to, from, with and without. You will know which case of the noun each one needs, how to tell “in the school” from “into the school”, and when to write у or в, and з, із or зі.

This page uses the cases introduced in Cases, an overview. You don’t need to know every ending yet: the examples show the forms.

Every preposition takes a case

In Ukrainian, the noun after a preposition is always in a particular case. Each preposition needs its own case, and usually the noun’s ending changes to match. Sometimes the form looks the same as the dictionary form, as in в Ки́їв below. Some prepositions take one case. Others can take two, with a difference in meaning.

The best way to learn them is in short phrases: без цу́кру (without sugar), з молоко́м (with milk), у шко́лі (at school). A phrase shows the preposition and the case together.

Place or direction: в/у and на

The prepositions в (also written у) and на each take two cases.

• With the locative, they describe a place: where something is. This answers де? (where?).
• With the accusative, they describe a direction: where something is going. This answers куди́? (where to?).

For many masculine nouns that name things, the accusative looks like the dictionary form: Ми ї́демо в Ки́їв. (We’re going to Kyiv.) Compare the place: Ми живемо́ в Ки́єві. (We live in Kyiv.)

В or на?

Both can mean in, at or to. Some nouns go with в and some with на, and there is no simple rule. Learn the preposition with the noun.

На with the locative also means on: на столі́ (on the table).

For the country, say в Украї́ні (in Ukraine) and в Украї́ну (to Ukraine), the same preposition as with most other countries. The form на Украї́ні is still heard, but usage guides treat it as incorrect in standard Ukrainian [src: goroh-usage].

The most common prepositions

The cases in this table come from the dictionary entries for each preposition [src: goroh-dictionary]. The table shows the main beginner use of each one. Several of these prepositions can take other cases too, with other meanings.

Notice how many of these prepositions take the genitive. That is one reason it is worth learning early.

Two meanings of з

З has two common meanings, and the case shows which one is meant.

To: в/на or до

For to, Ukrainian has в or на with the accusative, and до with the genitive. With people, use до: Я йду до лі́каря. (I’m going to the doctor.) Ми ї́демо до ма́ми. (We’re going to Mum’s.) With places, both are common: Ми ї́демо до Льво́ва. (We’re going to Lviv.)

Under, behind: place or direction

Під (under) and за (behind) work like в and на. With the instrumental they describe a place: Кіт під столо́м. (The cat is under the table.) With the accusative they describe a direction: Кіт пішо́в під стіл. (The cat went under the table.)

У or в?

У and в are the same preposition. Ukrainian chooses between them to avoid awkward runs of consonants or vowels [src: pravopys-2026, §23]. Simplified, the main rules are:

• у between consonants: Брат у шко́лі.
• у before в, ф and clusters like льв-, св-, тв-, хв-: у Льво́ві, у Фра́нції.
• в between vowels: Вона́ в Оде́сі.
• в after a vowel, before most consonants: Ма́ма в шко́лі.
• в after a consonant, before a vowel: Брат в Оде́сі.
• At the start of a sentence: у before a consonant (У ме́не є час.), в before a vowel. The current standard also allows в before a consonant at the start of a sentence [src: pravopys-2026, §23, note 1].

These rules are about sound, so they don’t change the meaning. If you are not sure, choose the form that is easier to say.

З, із or зі?

З is the basic form. The forms із and зі are used to avoid hard runs of consonants [src: pravopys-2026, §25].

• з is the usual form: з Ки́єва, з молоко́м, з бра́том.
• із mostly comes before words starting with з, с, ц, ч, ш or щ: із сестро́ю (with my sister).
• зі comes before words starting with a cluster with з, с or ш, such as зн-, ст-, шк-, and before some other clusters, such as льв-: зі шко́ли, зі Льво́ва. With me is зі мно́ю.

Before some clusters, із and зі are both correct.

Common mistakes and limits