Questions & Answers about В каюте две койки.
Why is there no word for are in this sentence?
In Russian, the verb to be is usually omitted in the present tense.
So:
- В каюте две койки. = There are two bunks in the cabin.
- Literally: In the cabin two bunks.
Russian does this very often:
- Он врач. = He is a doctor.
- Здесь ресторан. = There is a restaurant here.
You can sometimes see есть in similar sentences, as in В каюте есть две койки, but in many simple statements it is left out.
Why is каюта written as каюте here?
Because after в when it means in / inside, Russian usually uses the prepositional case.
The base form is:
- каюта = cabin
After в for location:
- в каюте = in the cabin
So this is:
- каюта → nominative singular
- каюте → prepositional singular
Compare:
- в доме = in the house
- в комнате = in the room
- в каюте = in the cabin