Learn Hardcore Russian: У меня есть привычка читать газету утром. - I have a habit of reading the newspaper in the morning.

In Russian, possession is normally expressed with the construction у + genitive plus (optionally) the verb есть. Literally У меня есть книга means “At me is a book.” The verb иметь (“to have”) exists but is rarely used in everyday Russian for simple possession.

Can we omit есть in this sentence? If so, does the meaning change?

Yes. In present tense you can drop есть and still say У меня привычка читать газету утром. The meaning remains the same. Including есть simply adds a bit more emphasis on the fact that the habit exists.

What case is меня, and why must we use it?

Меня is the genitive form of я. After the preposition у, the possessor always takes the genitive case: у + genitive.

What role does привычка play, and why is it in the nominative case?

Привычка (“habit”) is the noun you “have.” As the subject of the possession construction, it stands in the nominative case.

Why is читать used in the infinitive form here instead of a conjugated verb?

When describing a habit, Russian uses the infinitive to specify the repeated action: a habit to read the newspaper is привычка читать газету. The infinitive names the activity itself.

Which case is газету, and why?

Газету is the accusative singular of газета. The infinitive читать (“to read”) requires a direct object in the accusative case.

What case is утром, and why is it used here?

Утром is the instrumental (adverbial) form of утро (“morning”). Russian uses the instrumental case for expressions of time (“in the morning,” “in the evening,” etc.).

Can we rearrange the words to say У меня есть привычка утром читать газету? Would that change the meaning?

Yes, you can move утром before читать without changing the core meaning. Russian word order is flexible; shifting утром can simply put slight emphasis on the time (“it’s in the morning that I have this habit”).