When it follows an animate being, the ablative may also assume the role of the ergative, and thus becomes a marker for the agent of the action. Used in this way, it is the same as the agentive case. While this usage is common in Literary Tibetan, it is rare in the spoken language.

• རིན་པོ་ཆེ་ནས་བཀའ་སློབ་གནང་སོང་། “Rinpoché gave a teaching.”
• གཞུང་ནས་ཁོང་ལ་ཕོགས་ག་ཚོད་རྒྱག་གི་འདུག “What salary does the government give him?” (Literally: “How much salary....”)