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Questions & Answers about Мой друг прислал письмо.
What does Мой mean, and why is it in the masculine form?
Мой translates to "my" in English. It is in the masculine form because it modifies друг (friend), which is a masculine noun in Russian. Adjectives in Russian must agree in gender, number, and case with the nouns they describe.
What is the role of the verb прислал in this sentence?
Прислал is the past tense, perfective form of the verb прислать, and it means "sent" or "forwarded". It indicates that the action of sending has already been completed. The masculine form of the verb agrees with the masculine subject друг.
Why does the noun письмо remain unchanged in form as the direct object?
Письмо means "letter"; it is a neuter noun. In Russian, many neuter nouns (especially inanimate ones) have identical forms in the nominative and accusative cases. Therefore, even though письмо is the direct object in this sentence, its appearance does not change.
How does the sentence structure of Мой друг прислал письмо compare to the English word order?
The sentence follows the common Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) order, which is similar to English (i.e., "My friend sent a letter"). Although Russian word order is generally more flexible due to its case system, this basic SVO structure helps learners see a familiar pattern when starting out.
In what way does the past tense verb form agree with its subject in this sentence?
In Russian, past tense verbs are conjugated to agree with the gender (and number) of the subject since they do not carry distinct person endings. Since друг is a masculine noun, the past tense verb is in the masculine form прислал. If the subject were feminine, for example, the verb would have been прислала instead.