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Questions & Answers about Свежее яйцо лежит на столе.
Why is the adjective свежее in the neuter form?
The adjective свежее agrees with the noun яйцо (egg), which is neuter. In Russian, adjectives change their endings to match the gender, number, and case of the noun they modify. Since яйцо is a neuter singular noun in the nominative case, the neuter form свежее is used.
Why aren’t there any articles like “a” or “the” in this sentence?
Russian does not use articles. Unlike English, where words like “a” and “the” are essential to convey definiteness, Russian relies on context and its case system. Therefore, even if the meaning is similar to “The fresh egg lies on the table,” no article is required in Russian.
What does the prepositional phrase на столе indicate?
The phrase на столе translates as “on the table.” Here, the preposition на shows location, and столе is the form of стол (table) in the prepositional case. This case is typically used with prepositions that denote place, indicating where the egg is located.
What is the role of the verb лежит in this sentence?
The verb лежит is the third-person singular form of лежать, meaning “to lie” in the sense of being positioned or resting somewhere. It tells us the state of the egg, indicating that it is lying (or positioned) on the table.
How flexible is word order in Russian compared to English in a sentence like this?
Russian word order is more flexible than English because the case endings clarify the grammatical roles of the words. Although Свежее яйцо лежит на столе follows a typical Subject-Verb-Location order—which corresponds neatly to English—the sentence could be rearranged to emphasize different elements without losing clarity, thanks to the distinct case endings attached to the nouns and adjectives.