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Я закончил работу.

Я закончил работу.
I finished work.
FromLesson 10inHardcore Russian
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Breakdown of Я закончил работу.

я
I
работа
the work
закончить
to finish
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Questions & Answers about Я закончил работу.

What does each word in Я закончил работу mean?

• Я – “I,” the first‑person singular pronoun in the nominative case
• закончил – “finished” or “have finished,” past tense of the perfective verb закончить
• работу – “work” or “job,” feminine noun in the accusative case serving as the direct object

Why is работу in the accusative case?
In Russian, the direct object of a verb takes the accusative case. Работа is an inanimate feminine noun of the first declension, so its accusative singular form changes -а to -у, giving работу.
What is the aspect of закончить, and why is the perfective used here?
Закончить is a perfective verb. Perfective verbs describe completed actions. By using закончил, the speaker emphasizes that the work is fully finished, not ongoing or habitual.
How do you form the past tense in Russian, and what does закончил tell us about the subject?

To form the past tense, you take the verb stem and add gender/number endings: – Masculine singular: -л
– Feminine singular: -ла
– Neuter singular: -ло
– Plural: -ли
Here, закончил ends in -л, so it’s masculine singular. The speaker is a man.

How would a female speaker say “I finished the work”?

She would use the feminine past ending -ла:
Я закончила работу.

How do you pronounce Я закончил работу, and where are the stresses?

In standard Russian pronunciation:
[jə zɐˈkonʲt͡ɕɪl rɐˈbotu]
Stresses: закончил работу. You can also write it with stress marks as я зако́нчил рабо́ту.

How do you ask “Did you finish the work?” in Russian?

Informal singular: Ты зако́нчил рабо́ту?
Formal or plural: Вы зако́нчили рабо́ту?
Use rising intonation to turn it into a question.