Learn Hardcore Russian: Я потерял телефон.

The sentence consists of a subject (Я – "I"), a past tense verb (потерял – "lost"), and a direct object (телефон – "phone"). Here, the noun "телефон" is in the accusative case, though for inanimate masculine nouns it looks identical to the nominative.

Why isn’t a possessive pronoun used before "телефон" even though in English we say "I lost my phone"?

In Russian, possessive pronouns are often omitted when context clearly indicates ownership. Since the subject is "Я" (I), it’s understood that the phone in question belongs to the speaker, making an explicit possessive unnecessary.

How would the sentence change if the speaker were female?

Russian past-tense verbs agree with the gender of the subject. For a female speaker, "потерял" would change to "потеряла." Thus, a woman would say, "Я потеряла телефон."

Why does "телефон" remain unchanged in form, even though Russian has declensions?

"Телефон" is a masculine inanimate noun. In Russian, for masculine inanimate nouns, the accusative case is usually identical to the nominative case, so no visible change occurs in this sentence.

What aspect does the verb "потерял" convey and why is it used here?

"Потерял" is in the perfective aspect, which implies that the action of losing the phone is complete. This is the appropriate choice when referring to a specific, finished event.