Russian lesson of the day
Russian Lesson of the Day allows you to practice the vocabulary you learn with us using the method of spaced repetitions.
Case | Singular | Plural |
---|---|---|
Nominative Nom. | толпа́ | то́лпы |
Genitive Gen. | толпы́ | толп |
Dative Dat. | толпе́ | то́лпам |
Accusative Acc. | толпу́ | то́лпы |
Instrumental Inst. | толпо́й | то́лпами |
Prepositional Prep. | толпе́ | то́лпах |
Russian Lesson of the Day allows you to practice the vocabulary you learn with us using the method of spaced repetitions.
Anita says:
Hello, in the first example, недово́льных isn’t followed by a noun (people). Under what circumstances could the noun be omitted after an adjective? Can I say недово́льная толпа́ instead of толпа́ недово́льных? In the second example, can I use кого́-нибудь instead? What’s the difference between -ли́бо and -нибудь? Thanks.
Learn Russian Words says:
Hi Anita,
In Russian, unlike in English, you can easily omit the noun after the adjective as long as it’s clear what you are talking about. For example:
– Давай купим яблок. Я хочу зеленых.
Let’s buy apples. I want green ones.
While in English you have to add “ones”, in Russian you can simply omit the noun mentioned earlier.
Also, many adjectives in Russian are often used as nouns. For example:
– больной (patient)
– гостиная (living room)
– острое (spicy food)
Can I say недово́льная толпа́ instead of толпа́ недово́льных?
Yes, you can. It’s a little bit different as now you talking about толпа as “one” instead of many individuals that are unhappy.
In the second example, can I use кого́-нибудь instead? What’s the difference between -ли́бо and -нибудь?
Yes, you can. There is a slight difference, we explain it here: Some and any in Russian.
Anita says:
Thanks. Your new example has generated some questions though.
Давай купим яблок. Я хочу зеленых.
Why is genitive plural used and not accusative plural я́блоки and зелёные?
Learn Russian Words says:
Хотеть can be used with Genitive or Accusative case. It’s a bit tricky but there are many places online that explain how it works.
For example, there are some explanations here or here.