Breakdown of Я не люблю мясо без приправ, но обожаю сыр.
я
I
не
not
но
but
без
without
любить
to like
мясо
the meat
сыр
the cheese
приправа
the spice
обожать
to adore
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Questions & Answers about Я не люблю мясо без приправ, но обожаю сыр.
Why is there no article (a/the) before мясо or сыр?
Russian doesn’t have articles like “a” or “the.” You simply use the noun by itself. Context (and word order, intonation, etc.) tells you whether something is general, specific, or indefinite.
Why is мясо in this form? Is it nominative or accusative?
Here мясо is the direct object of люблю, so grammatically it’s accusative. However, neuter inanimate nouns like мясо have the same form in nominative and accusative, so you don’t see a different ending.
Why is сыр also uninflected? Shouldn’t it be in the accusative case after обожаю?
сыр is a masculine inanimate noun. In Russian, masculine inanimates take the same form in nominative and accusative. You know it’s accusative here because the verb обожаю (“I adore”) requires a direct object.
Why is без приправ in the genitive plural?
The preposition без (“without”) always takes the genitive case. Using the plural приправ (“seasonings, spices”) expresses “without any seasonings” in a general sense.
Could I say без приправы instead of без приправ?
Yes, but без приправы would imply “without the (or a specific) seasoning.” The plural без приправ sounds more general—“without any seasonings.”
Could I use специи instead of приправы? Would anything change?
Absolutely. специи (“spices”) is a synonym of приправы. After без, you’d use без специй (genitive plural), with the same overall meaning.
What does но mean, and when would I use а instead of но?
но means “but” and introduces a strong contrast. а can also mean “and” or “but,” but it’s a softer or more neutral contrast, or sometimes just shifts the topic. In your sentence, но emphasizes the opposite preference.
Why is я omitted in но обожаю сыр?
Russian often drops subject pronouns when the verb ending already tells you who’s doing the action. обожаю ends in -ю, which clearly marks the 1st person singular (“I”).
What’s the difference between любить and обожать?
любить means “to love” or “to like” in a general sense. обожать is stronger: “to adore,” “to be crazy about,” showing a more intense feeling.
Could I say мне не нравится мясо без приправ instead of я не люблю мясо без приправ?
Yes. With мне не нравится, the structure is “it doesn’t please me”—so мне is dative, and мясо stays nominative. It means essentially the same (“I don’t like meat without seasonings”), but the grammar is different and a bit more impersonal.