In order to provide a surgical instrument which is particularly simple to manipulate and enables force to be transmitted particularly directly to at least two tool elements wherein the surgical instrument comprises said at least two tool elements which are movable relative to one another and are arranged at a distal end of a guide device of a surgical instrument, and also comprises a force transmission device for transferring an actuating force from a proximal end of the force transmission device to a distal end of the force transmission device for the purposes of moving at least one of the at least two tool elements relative to the guide device, it is proposed that the surgical instrument should comprise a coupling device for selectively coupling the force transmission device directly or indirectly to at least one of the at least two tool elements.
