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- "У меня вода и яблоки."
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What is the logic behind using <<у меня>> in this example, rather than <<у меня есть>>?
У меня already implies possession. Есть would be optional in this case, though still permissible.
Here's what they say in Tips & Notes for Basics 2:
Omit ”есть” if the existence of the object is obvious or not the point — very typical for describing traits (“Tom has a beautiful smile/large eyes”, “She has a very fat cat”). Also when expressing temporary states and illnesses (“She has a migraine”).
I am internalizing that "У меня есть..." is like learning "I have got..." For ESL learners it is taught like a fixed formula, when in practice the "got" is usually omitted. I bet that "есть" is omitted as well as it is implied by the context
When you click on a lesson in your language tree, a tips & notes secton is at the bottom. (Only for some lessons.) It's indeed easy to miss if you have a small screen.
Today I asked a native Russian speaker, who got two more native speakers involved about whether it is okay to omit the есть or not, and the consensus was that it is !not! okay to omit the есть here unless this was a response to someone who already introduced the topic of water and apples. So as a general translation, this is incorrect, but as a reply to someone asking (i.e.) what you have, omitting the есть is okay because it is already known you have (or do not have) something.
У means like by/at. So the scentence can literally mean "By me is water and coffee" or "I have water and coffee" if it's obvious.
The Tips & notes say that the possession is the subject and therefore in indicative.
No, вода is actually the subject of the sentence, hence it is in the nominative case.
1562
@Tony Shark, SashaMsf
Я = "I" or, sometimes, "me" it's me! Малдер, это я!)
У = at, by: у окна - by the window; у ворот - at the gate.
So "У меня вода и яблоки" literally means
By me (there are) water and apples.
Я is always "I", not "me". When you say, "It's me" in English, you are using incorrect grammar. Correct English would be, "It is I", but we just don't say it that way because it sounds pretentious.
"It is I" is actually the grammatically incorrect form of this statement. "It's me," is the "correct English" phrasing. You wouldn't say, "It is he," but instead you would use "him." It is the same with "me." Я is different and can actually refer to both "I" and "me," depending on the context. (Sorry, the only thing worse than linguistic prescriptivism is factually unsound linguistic prescriptivism.)
- 1261
It really isn't grammatically incorrect to say "it is I" I am not sure where you got that idea. I would never say that but it is correct just like "It is me"
- 219
would it still be acceptable if i said у меня есть or would native speakers see that as off
- 1562
@Tony Shark, SashaMsf
Я = "I" or, sometimes, "me" it's me! Малдер, это я!)
У = at, by: у окна - by the window; у ворот - at the gate.
So "У меня вода и яблоки" literally means
By me (there are) water and apples.
