Breakdown of Не забывай зонтик, когда выходишь из дома.
дом
the house
не
not
когда
when
из
from
забывать
to forget
зонтик
the umbrella
выходить
to leave
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Russian grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about Не забывай зонтик, когда выходишь из дома.
Why is the imperative form Не забывай used here instead of Не забудь?
Не забывай is the imperfective imperative, which stresses a habitual or repeated action (“don’t keep forgetting”). Не забудь is the perfective imperative, signaling a one-off instruction (“make sure you don’t forget this time”). In this sentence, the speaker warns the listener every time they leave, so the imperfective не забывай is more natural.
Why is зонтик in the accusative case?
In Russian, direct objects without prepositions take the accusative. Since you’re telling someone not to forget what—the umbrella—зонтик must be in the accusative singular (which for masculine inanimate nouns looks like the nominative form).
Why do we say из дома and use the genitive case for дом?
The preposition из (“out of”) always governs the genitive case. So дом (nominative) becomes дома (genitive) after из, literally “out of the house.”
Why is the personal pronoun ты omitted?
Russian often drops subject pronouns because the verb ending already tells you who is acting. Here выходишь clearly indicates “you” (singular informal), so ты is unnecessary and sounds more natural without it.
Why is the verb выходишь in the present tense instead of a future form?
In Russian, when you talk about something that will happen in the future but introduce it with когда (“when”), you use the present tense in the subordinate clause. So когда выходишь literally means “when you leave,” even if the leaving is in the future.
Why is there a comma before когда?
The comma separates the main clause (Не забывай зонтик) from the subordinate time clause (когда выходишь из дома). In Russian, any conjunction like когда that introduces a dependent clause is preceded by a comma.
What is the aspect of the verbs забывать and выходить here?
Both are imperfective verbs. Забывать emphasizes the ongoing possibility of forgetting, and выходить focuses on the process of going out rather than the completion. Imperfective aspect suits habitual warnings and simultaneous actions.
Can we reorder the clauses and say Когда выходишь из дома, не забывай зонтик?
Yes. Starting with Когда выходишь из дома is perfectly acceptable. You still need the comma, and the meaning stays the same. The slight shift is just in emphasis—leading with the condition rather than the reminder.