Я решил купить телефон.

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Breakdown of Я решил купить телефон.

• купить: to buy
• телефон: the phone
• решить: to decide

Questions & Answers about Я решил купить телефон.

Why is the verb решил in the past tense, and how would the sentence change if the speaker is female?

Решил is the masculine singular past tense form of решить (to decide). In Russian, past-tense verbs agree in gender and number with the subject. For a female speaker you would say Я решила купить телефон.

Why is купить in the infinitive rather than a conjugated form?

After verbs of decision or intention like решить, Russian uses the infinitive to indicate what was decided. So you say решил купить (decided to buy) rather than решу куплю or another conjugated form.

What case is телефон in, and why?

Телефон is in the accusative case as the direct object of купить. For inanimate masculine nouns, the accusative form is identical to the nominative.

Why isn’t there a conjunction such as что or чтобы before купить?

Russian allows a bare infinitive after verbs like решить. If you introduce что, you must use a finite clause: Я решил, что куплю телефон (I decided that I will buy a phone). Using чтобы would require a different construction expressing purpose.

What is the aspect of , and why use it instead of ?