Let’s review the uses of the Accusative case in Russian:
- Direct object – the thing/person directly affected by the action
Я съел торт.
I ate a cake.
- Destination or direction – where someone is going (after the prepositions ‘в’ or ‘на’
Я еду в Россию.
I am going to Russia.
- Days of the week – on which day something happens (after the preposition ‘в’)
В среду у меня встреча.
On Wednesday, I have a meeting.
When a noun is inanimate (it names a thing, not a person or animal), the Accusative case usually looks the same as the Nominative case.
For example:
1. Я купил красивый свитер.
I bought a beautiful sweater.
2. Вчера мы ходили в новое кафе.
Yesterday, we went to a new cafe.
3. Он читает интересные книги.
He reads interesting books.
The exception is feminine nouns. They usually change their ending to -у or -ю. And the adjectives that describe them change too. Take a look at some examples:
Nominative | Accusative |
тёплая куртка | Я купила тёплую куртку. I bought a warm jacket. |
синяя сумка | Я ищу синюю сумку. I’m looking for a blue bag. |
Третьяковская галерея | Я иду в Третьяковскую галерею. I’m going to the Tretyakov Gallery. |
Красная площадь | Мы ходили на Красную площадь. We went to Red Square. |
Note!
The feminine nouns ending in -ь don't change in the Accusative case (like in the last example).
The table below shows how to make the Accusative case forms of the feminine nouns and adjectives that describe them.
ACCUSATIVE CASE (FEMININE) | |||
Nominative → Accusative | Example | ||
Nouns | -а → -у -я → -ю ☝️ -ь → -ь (no change) | сумка → сумку песня → песню соль → соль | |
Adjectives | -ая → -ую -яя → -юю | красивая → красивую синяя → синюю | |
Listen to the audio to hear the correct answers
Listen to the audio to hear the correct answers
Listen to the audio to hear the correct answers