"Чьи это столы?"

Translation: Whose tables are these?

[tdinovich]

Why not чьи эти столы?

[diogogomez]

Although this question is one year old, I'll leave an answer for the sake of new students:
The verb "to be" is implied in это, that's why this kind of sentence always use это in Russian, otherwise the sentence would end up with no verb.

[hanryhu]

It's like Это столы чьи like "these are tables, whose?"

[-HystErica-]

Same question! Why это and not эти?

[MillamaariaS]

Wondering the same.. because already the translation says it, "whose are THESE tables", not "these ARE tables, whose?". Even the word это is located in the middle so it doesn't make any sense.

[JuggaloC]

Ч-ч-ч чья!

[s_tata]

эти столы = these tables; also These tables ans not another tables
это столы= There are tables (and not chairs or something Else)

[Sagie]

This is exactly why I feel the question should be with эти столы, as the subject are these specific tables whose owners aren't known

[Klaudialk]

Can this mean "whose are the tables?" or would that be "Чьи столы"?

[Gulpepper]

Кто = who [are]

Чьи = whose (plural)

[Caleb590529]

All these questions sound like a KGB interogattion. :)

[winxperror]

¿ч has gets no vowel? How can we pronucate a consonant without a vowel?

[not_a_thing]

It is possible. Pretend you're going to say чай, for example, but stop before reaching а.

[riq88]

"и" is the vowel in "Чьи".

[Domcje]

If I was in school and in the hallway are a lot of tables, would the teacher say that phrase, too? Can you say "чьи", too, although they don't really have an owner, but it's more important to which classroom they belong.?

[Mihausspb]

Чьи эти столы более правильный перевод