Я записал слова учителя.

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Breakdown of Я записал слова учителя.

• учитель: the teacher
• слово: the word
• записать: to write down

Questions & Answers about Я записал слова учителя.

What case is слова in, and why does it look the same as the nominative plural?

слова here is accusative plural—it’s the direct object of записал (“I wrote down”). For inanimate neuter nouns like слово, the accusative plural form is identical to the nominative plural, so you see слова in both cases.

Why is учителя in the genitive case? Isn’t учитель the base form?

To express “the teacher’s words,” Russian uses the genitive to show possession: “words of the teacher.” The singular genitive of учитель is учителя. Although учителя also matches the nominative plural form, here context tells us it’s genitive singular (one teacher’s words).

How can I tell apart genitive singular учителя from nominative plural учителя?

Context and agreement are key. If it were multiple teachers, you’d say слова учителей (plural genitive). Also, as a direct object, слова (plural) is followed by a genitive to show “of whom,” not a subject-verb relationship.

How would a female speaker say this sentence?

In the past tense, Russian verbs agree with the speaker’s gender. A woman would say:
Я записала слова учителя.

What’s the difference between and ?