Мой дом выглядит уютным.

My house looks cozy.

Breakdown of Мой дом выглядит уютным.

• дом: the house
• мой: my
• уютный: cozy
• выглядеть: to look

Questions & Answers about Мой дом выглядит уютным.

What does the sentence “Мой дом выглядит уютным” mean in English?

It translates to “My house looks cozy.” Confirming the translation helps ensure that you understand both the vocabulary and overall structure.

Why is the adjective уютным in the instrumental case instead of the nominative?

In Russian, when you use verbs like выглядеть (“to look” or “to appear”) to describe a state or quality, the predicate adjective is required to be in the instrumental case. Thus, уютным is the instrumental form of уютный, which matches the grammatical rules of such constructions.

What is the role of Мой дом in the sentence, and why is Мой used in this form?

Мой дом serves as the subject of the sentence. Here, Мой is the masculine singular nominative form of the possessive adjective, matching the noun дом (“house”), which is also in the nominative case as the subject of the sentence.

Why doesn’t the sentence include a verb equivalent to “is” as in “My house is cozy”?

Russian typically omits the copula (the equivalent of “is”) in the present tense. In this sentence, выглядит acts as the linking verb that connects the subject with its descriptive adjective, eliminating the need for a separate “is.”

Could another verb, such as кажется, be used instead of выглядит, and how would that change the sentence?

Yes, you could say “Мой дом кажется уютным” to mean “My house seems cozy.” Both выглядеть and казаться describe appearance, but выглядеть tends to emphasize visual or observable traits, while казаться might convey a more subjective impression. The structure remains the same, keeping the adjective in the instrumental case.

How does the word order in “Мой дом выглядит уютным” compare to typical English word order, and is it flexible in Russian?

The sentence follows a natural Subject-Verb-Predicate structure—“Мой дом” (subject), “выглядит” (verb), “уютным” (predicate adjective)—which is similar to English. Although Russian word order is relatively flexible due to its case system, using this order often maintains clarity and ease of understanding.