palcem

Palcem is the instrumental singular form of the Polish noun palec, meaning finger. It is used in Polish to denote the instrument by which an action is performed, or to describe gestures and indications made with a finger. For example, in the sentence dotknąłem palcem ekranu, palcem denotes that the screen was touched with a finger. The form palcem is common after verbs such as dotknąć (to touch), wskazywać (to indicate), and mierzyć (to measure by finger).

Etymology and cognates

The word palec is of Slavic origin, with cognates in other Slavic languages such as Russian пальцем, Ukrainian пальцем, and Czech prstem, each using a distinct instrumental form to express the same idea of a finger used as an instrument. The instrumental suffix -em in palcem reflects standard Polish word formation for masculine singular nouns in that case.

Usage and functions

Palcem functions primarily as an instrumental case to identify the means or instrument of an action. It can appear in simple statements, descriptions of gestures, or idiomatic phrases involving pointing, touching, or indicating with the finger. The corresponding plural instrumental is palcami, used when referring to multiple fingers or people pointing with fingers.

Limitations

As a grammatical form, palcem is tied to correct case usage in Polish sentences. It is not a separate lexical item beyond the instrumental form of palec, and its meaning depends on the surrounding verb and context.

See also

Palec

Notes

Palcem often appears in everyday language related to touching or pointing, and it shares semantic parallels with similar instrumental forms in other Slavic languages.