celownikowi

Celownikowi is the dative singular form of the Polish noun celownik. The primary sense of celownik in Polish grammar is the dative case itself, one of the seven grammatical cases used to indicate the indirect object or recipient of an action. The dative answers questions such as komu? (to whom) and czemu? (to what), and it marks the recipient, beneficiary, or target of an action within a sentence.

The noun celownik is masculine and belongs to the class of -ownik nouns. In the singular, its forms include: nominative celownik, genitive celownika, dative celownikowi, accusative celownik, instrumental celownikiem, and locative celowniku. The form celownikowi specifically signals the dative case and is used after prepositions or verbs that govern a dative object. The plural forms follow a separate paradigm.

In addition to its grammatical meaning, celownik also refers to a sighting device or reticle used in firearms and optical instruments to help aim at a target. This sense is etymologically related to the same Polish root cel (goal, aim), but it is a distinct semantic domain from the grammatical term.

Usage notes: celownikowi appears in contexts discussing Polish morphology, grammar education, and linguistic analysis when illustrating the dative form of celownik. It is written as a lowercase form and is confined to standard Polish usage.