A customer is looking for a shirt and a sweater in a clothes shop, with help from a shop assistant. A fitting-room conversation is the perfect place to watch Ukrainian adjectives agree with their nouns — a colour is not a fixed word but changes shape to match what it describes (си́ня соро́чка but си́ній светр). On top of that you get sizes, the verb примі́ряти ('try on'), the dative-loving verb пасу́є ('suits you'), comparatives like бі́льший ('bigger'), and the everyday demonstratives цей / той ('this' / 'that').
The dialogue
Продаве́ць: До́брий день! Вам допомогти́, чи ви про́сто диви́теся? Good afternoon! Can I help you, or are you just looking?
Покупе́ць: До́брий день! Я шука́ю соро́чку. Оту́ си́ню, на вітри́ні — вона́ є в моє́му розмі́рі? Good afternoon! I'm looking for a shirt. That blue one in the window — do you have it in my size?
Продаве́ць: Яки́й у вас розмі́р? What's your size?
Покупе́ць: Здає́ться, M. Хоча́ ця, мабу́ть, замала́. I think M. Although this one's probably too small.
Продаве́ць: Ось бі́льша. Мо́жете примі́ряти — приміро́чна там, право́руч. Here's a bigger one. You can try it on — the fitting room is over there, on the right.
Покупе́ць: Дя́кую… Ну от, ця підхо́дить. А крава́тка до не́ї пасу́є? Thanks… There we go, this one fits. And does the tie go with it?
Продаве́ць: Пасу́є чудо́во. Си́ній ко́лір вам ду́же ли́чить. It suits it perfectly. Blue really becomes you.
Покупе́ць: А ще шука́ю те́плий светр. Цей сі́рий скі́льки ко́штує? And I'm also looking for a warm sweater. How much is this grey one?
Продаве́ць: Цей — вісімсо́т, а той, на по́лиці, деше́вший, але́ то́нший. This one's eight hundred, and that one on the shelf is cheaper, but thinner.
Покупе́ць: Візьму́ цей. І соро́чку. Мо́жна розраху́ватися ка́рткою? I'll take this one. And the shirt. Can I pay by card?
Продаве́ць: Звича́йно. Прикладі́ть ка́ртку, будь ла́ска. Of course. Tap your card, please.
Line-by-line grammar
"Can I help you?" — the dative Вам
The assistant opens with Вам допомогти́? — literally 'to-you to-help?'. The verb допомага́ти / допомогти́ ('help') governs the dative, so the person helped is in the dative (Вам, the polite 'you'), never the accusative. This is one of the highest-frequency dative verbs in service Ukrainian.
Вам допомогти́, чи ви про́сто диви́теся?
'Can I help you, or are you just looking?' — допомогти́ governs the dative, so 'you' is Вам (dative); чи links the two questions; диви́теся is the reflexive 'are looking'.
The demonstrative оту́ + colour agreement
The customer points at оту́ си́ню соро́чку — 'that blue one'. Three things agree: соро́чку is feminine accusative singular, so the demonstrative becomes оту́ (emphatic 'that one there') and the colour becomes си́ню. A Ukrainian colour is an adjective, not a label, so it copies the gender, number and case of its noun.
Я шука́ю оту́ си́ню соро́чку, на вітри́ні.
'I'm looking for that blue shirt in the window.' — соро́чку is feminine accusative; the demonstrative (оту́) and the colour adjective (си́ню) agree with it; на + locative вітри́ні = 'in the window'.
See demonstratives and adjective agreement.
Sizes — у моє́му розмі́рі and Яки́й у вас розмі́р?
'In my size' is у моє́му розмі́рі (у + locative). To ask someone's size, Ukrainian uses Яки́й у вас розмі́р? ('what size do you have?') with possessive у + genitive rather than the verb 'to have'. The answer is simply the Latin letter or number: M, со́рок дру́гий etc.
Вона́ є в моє́му розмі́рі?
'Do you have it in my size?' — є means 'there is / is available'; в + locative розмі́рі ('in my size'), with the possessive adjective моє́му agreeing in the locative.
Яки́й у вас розмі́р?
'What's your size?' — the question adjective Яки́й agrees with masculine розмі́р; possession is у + genitive (у вас), not the verb 'to have'.
"Too small / bigger" — замала́ and бі́льша
The prefix за- glued to an adjective means 'too…': замали́й / замала́ ('too small'), завели́кий ('too big'). Then the assistant offers a comparative: бі́льша ('bigger', from вели́кий → бі́льший), which still agrees in gender — feminine here, to match the implied соро́чка.
Ця, мабу́ть, замала́.
'This one's probably too small.' — за- + adjective means 'too…': замала́ = 'too small', feminine to agree with the implied соро́чка; мабу́ть = 'probably'.
Ось бі́льша, мо́жете примі́ряти.
'Here's a bigger one, you can try it on.' — бі́льша is the comparative of вели́кий, feminine; примі́ряти is the perfective 'try on' (one act), after мо́жете.
See comparatives.
Trying on — примі́ряти, and підхо́дить / пасу́є
Two near-synonyms do different work. Примі́ряти is 'to try on' (physically put on to test). Once it's on, підхо́дить says it 'fits / is right', and пасува́ти до + genitive says one thing 'goes with' another. Note пасу́є also takes a dative for the person: воно́ вам пасу́є ('it suits you').
Ну от, ця підхо́дить.
'There we go, this one fits.' — the particles ну от mark a small 'there!' of satisfaction; підхо́дить = 'fits / is right' for the implied соро́чка.
А крава́тка до не́ї пасу́є?
'And does the tie go with it?' — пасу́є до + genitive (до не́ї, 'with it') means one thing matches another; н- is added to не́ї after the preposition.
"Blue becomes you" — ли́чить + dative
The compliment Си́ній ко́лір вам ли́чить uses ли́чити, another dative-experiencer verb meaning 'to suit / become (a person)'. The colour is the subject (ко́лір, nominative), and the person flattered is in the dative (вам). Here си́ній agrees with masculine ко́лір — the same colour word that was си́ню for the shirt.
Си́ній ко́лір вам ду́же ли́чить.
'Blue really becomes you.' — ли́чити takes the dative of the person (вам); ко́лір is the nominative subject; си́ній agrees with masculine ко́лір (compare си́ню соро́чку).
цей vs той — this one here vs that one there
The closing turns hinge on the demonstrative contrast. Цей (this) points to what's near or in hand; той (that) points further off — 'that one on the shelf'. Both decline: Цей светр (masc.), ця соро́чка (fem.), це пла́ття (neut.). The comparatives деше́вший ('cheaper') and то́нший ('thinner') agree with masculine светр.
Цей — вісімсо́т, а той, на по́лиці, деше́вший.
'This one's eight hundred, and that one on the shelf is cheaper.' — цей = 'this one (near)', той = 'that one (further)'; на + locative по́лиці; деше́вший is the comparative of деше́вий.
Візьму́ цей. Мо́жна розраху́ватися ка́рткою?
'I'll take this one. Can I pay by card?' — Візьму́ is perfective future ('I'll take', one act); розраху́ватися ка́рткою uses the instrumental ка́рткою for the means of payment.
How this differs from English
In English a colour is an unchanging word: a blue shirt, a blue sweater, blue suits you — 'blue' never moves. In Ukrainian the colour is a full adjective and must agree with whatever it describes, so the same colour surfaces in different shapes within one conversation: си́ню соро́чку (feminine accusative), си́ній ко́лір (masculine nominative), у си́ньому светрі (masculine locative). Learners who treat си́ній as a fixed label produce си́ній соро́чка and instantly sound foreign. The fix is to think of a colour the way you think of any adjective — it is glued to its noun's gender, number and case.
The second English trap is the verb 'suit'. English uses one verb with a direct object: 'blue suits you', 'the tie goes with it'. Ukrainian splits this across dative-loving verbs: ли́чити and пасува́ти put the person in the dative (вам ли́чить), and 'go with' uses пасу́є до + genitive for the other item. There is no accusative direct object here at all — the construction feels backwards to English speakers, who reach for ли́чить вас by analogy with 'suits you'. Memorise these as dative verbs and the compliments fall into place.
Common Mistakes
❌ Я шука́ю си́ній соро́чку.
Incorrect — the colour must agree with feminine accusative соро́чку.
✅ Я шука́ю си́ню соро́чку.
Correct — си́ню agrees with feminine accusative соро́чку.
❌ Цей ко́лір ли́чить вас.
Incorrect — ли́чити takes the dative of the person, not the accusative.
✅ Цей ко́лір вам ли́чить.
Correct — the person is in the dative: вам ли́чить.
❌ Мо́жна примі́ряти цей соро́чку?
Incorrect — соро́чка is feminine, so the demonstrative must be цю.
✅ Мо́жна примі́ряти цю соро́чку?
Correct — feminine accusative цю соро́чку.
❌ Я заплачу́ ка́ртку.
Incorrect — the means of payment is the instrumental, not the accusative.
✅ Я заплачу́ ка́рткою.
Correct — instrumental ка́рткою marks 'by card'.
Phrases to reuse
- Я шука́ю… — "I'm looking for…" (+ accusative)
- Яки́й у вас розмі́р? — "What's your size?"
- Мо́жна примі́ряти? — "Can I try it on?"
- Цей вам ду́же ли́чить. — "This really suits you."
- Скі́льки ко́штує цей…? — "How much is this…?"
- Мо́жна розраху́ватися ка́рткою? — "Can I pay by card?"
Now practice Ukrainian
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Start learning Ukrainian→Related Topics
- Adjectives: Agreement and the Two Stem TypesA1 — Ukrainian adjectives AGREE with their noun in gender, number, and case — the same word changes ending depending on what it describes. The dictionary form is masculine nominative singular (нови́й, си́ній); each adjective then has feminine, neuter, and plural forms and runs through all seven cases. Every adjective belongs to one of two stem types — HARD (нови́й / нова́ / нове́ / нові́) or SOFT (си́ній / си́ня / си́нє / си́ні) — and the stem type drives every ending.
- Agreement: Subject–Verb, Adjective–NounA2 — How Ukrainian forces words to match: present/future verbs agree with the subject in person and number, but PAST verbs agree in gender and number (not person); and everything modifying a noun — adjectives, possessives, demonstratives — agrees in gender, number, AND case at once.
- Demonstrative Pronouns (Цей, Той)A1 — Ukrainian points with two demonstratives — цей/ця/це/ці 'this' (near) and той/та/те/ті 'that' (far) — and both AGREE with their noun and DECLINE like adjectives (цей → цьо́го, цьо́му, цим; той → того́, тому́, тим). The neuter це does double duty: 'this' as a pointer (це мі́сто 'this city') and the copula-less 'this is / it is' (Це мій друг 'this is my friend'), so Ukrainian has no separate word for 'it is' — just це plus a noun.
- The Comparative DegreeA2 — How to say 'newer, taller, better' in Ukrainian. The default is SYNTHETIC: add -ший/-іший to the stem (нові́ший, добрі́ший), often with a consonant mutation (доро́жчий, ви́щий, ни́жчий). A few adjectives are SUPPLETIVE (кра́щий 'better', гі́рший 'worse', бі́льший 'bigger', ме́нший 'smaller'). Longer/borrowed adjectives take the ANALYTIC більш + adjective. And 'than' has THREE renderings: за + accusative, ніж + nominative, від + genitive.
- Verbs with a Dative ExperiencerB1 — A cluster of verbs and predicatives put the EXPERIENCER in the dative, with either an impersonal verb or a nominative thing as grammatical subject: Мені́ подо́бається фільм 'I like the film', Мені́ вдало́ся 'I managed', Мені́ хо́четься 'I feel like', Мені́ браку́є ча́су 'I'm short of time', Мені́ сни́ться сон 'I'm dreaming', Мені́ тре́ба йти 'I have to go'. The English subject 'I' becomes мені́, and the verb agrees with the thing or stays impersonal.
- Accusative: Uses Beyond the Direct ObjectB1 — The accusative does more than mark the object — with в/у, на, за, під, через it marks motion TOWARD a target (іду в школу), it expresses bare-preposition duration (чекав годину 'waited an hour'), and it stands in a pivotal contrast with the locative: the same prepositions в/у and на take the accusative for direction (куди? в школу) but the locative for static location (де? в школі).