Cases in Russian
Russian uses six grammatical cases to show the role of nouns in a sentence. Think of cases as different "hats" a noun can wear depending on its job in the sentence.
Why Cases Matter
Unlike English, which relies heavily on word order, Russian uses word endings to show relationships between words. This means Russian word order is more flexible, but you need to master case endings.
Это книга
This is a book
Note: Nominative case - the subject of the sentence
The Six Cases
Russian has six cases, each with its own function:
| Case | Function | Question | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | Subject of sentence | Who? What? | студент читает (student reads) |
| Genitive | Possession, absence | Whose? Of what? | книга студента (student's book) |
| Dative | Indirect object | To whom? To what? | дать студенту (give to student) |
| Accusative | Direct object | Whom? What? | вижу студента (see student) |
| Instrumental | Means, accompaniment | By what? With whom? | со студентом (with student) |
| Prepositional | Location, topic | About what? Where? | о студенте (about student) |
Nominative Case (Именительный падеж)
The nominative case is the "default" form of a noun. It's used for:
- The subject of a sentence
- Predicate nouns (after "to be")
Студент читает книгу
The student is reading a book
Note: Студент (student) is in nominative - it's performing the action
Москва — столица России
Moscow is the capital of Russia
Note: Both Москва and столица are in nominative case
Accusative Case (Винительный падеж)
The accusative case is used for:
- Direct objects (what/whom the action is done to)
- Motion towards a destination (with certain prepositions)
Я вижу книгу
I see a book
Note: Книгу is in accusative case - it's the direct object of 'see'
Accusative Endings
For feminine nouns ending in -а, change to -у:
- книга → книгу (book)
- вода → воду (water)
For masculine animate nouns, use the genitive form:
- студент → студента (student)
- кот → кота (cat)
Я вижу студента
I see the student
Note: Masculine animate noun uses genitive ending in accusative
Genitive Case (Родительный падеж)
The genitive case has many uses:
- Possession (English 's or "of")
- Absence/negation (нет + genitive)
- Quantities (numbers, много, мало)
- After certain prepositions (без, для, из, около, от, у)
Это книга студента
This is the student's book
Note: Студента is in genitive case to show possession
У меня нет времени
I don't have time
Note: Времени (time) is in genitive case after нет (there is no)
Practice Makes Perfect
Mastering Russian cases takes time and practice. Start by recognizing case endings in reading, then gradually work on producing them in your own sentences.
The good news? Once you understand the case system, you can be much more creative with Russian word order!