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- Topic: Russian >
- "Том — мой кот."
37 Comments
I wonder who is that Jenny who kept forgetting her luggage in the taxi.
I always wondered what was the name of the lady who howled "Thomas..." in the show
Since when does a dash mean 'is'?! This is positioned like an introduction, in which case we would not use 'is', we would pause and gesture towards the object
474
Russian dropped the equivalent of “is” in most cases, and the dash (representing a slight pause) is a substitute for it in situations like this one.
yea right? at least they should give the option to leave it out, because its not really clear at all that "is" is needed here
- 37
There are a few languages, like Russian or Hebrew, which don't use copulas at predicative sentences.
What is a predicative sentence? It declares some predicament about something, like "The sun IS yellow" or "The sky IS blue" or "I AM Tarzan" or "You ARE Jane".
The verbs in caps don't indicate any real action, they only link the subject (sun, sky, Tarzan or Jane) with the predicament about them - that is why we call such verbs copulas.
Well, Russian, or Hebrew, or ape-men like Tarzan don't use copulas, they simply say "I - Tarzan. You - Jane".
One can think that is primitive, but this is how they do.
When translating a predicative sentence, if the final language DOES use copulas, you should use copulas. Otherwise your English will sound just as from an ape-man.
I got the answer right, but what exactly does the dash mean? The one right after Том.
It stands for the present form of the verb "to be" although it is generally not translated into anything, unless it is necessary for the sentence to make sense.
Can someone explain? It should be "Tom - my cat." not "Tom is my cat" example: Ok, so here is my second pet, Tom - my cat
- 348
Why can't "это" exist where the dash is? Or can it and we're learning it's often omitted?
I don't got the difference between кошка and Кот. When should I use one and other?
