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Questions & Answers about Я хочу помыть машину.
What case is машину, and why is it used here?
машину is in the accusative case, which marks the direct object of a transitive verb. Since помыть (“to wash,” perfective) directly acts on the car, машина (nominative) changes to машину (accusative singular feminine).
Why is the perfective verb помыть used instead of the imperfective мыть?
Russian verbs have aspects. The perfective помыть indicates you intend to complete the action (“wash it entirely”). The imperfective мыть stresses the process or a habitual action (“to be washing” or “wash regularly”), which doesn’t fit the idea of wanting to finish washing once.
Can I say Я хочу мыть машину, and if so, what’s the difference?
You could, but it sounds odd. Я хочу мыть машину implies you want to be in the process of washing or do it repeatedly, not necessarily finish it. For a single, completed wash, use Я хочу помыть машину.
Is the pronoun я necessary before хочу, or can it be omitted?
It can be omitted because хочу (want) is conjugated for the first person singular. Хочу помыть машину is perfectly grammatical. Including я adds clarity or emphasis.
How do I say “my car” here? Would Я хочу помыть мою машину be correct?
Yes. The possessive моя машина declines to мою машину in the accusative. Native speakers often prefer свою машину (“my own car”): Я хочу помыть свою машину.
Where is the stress in помыть?
The stress falls on the second syllable: по-мы́ть.
Could the word order be different, for example Машину хочу помыть?
Yes, Russian word order is flexible. Машину хочу помыть puts extra emphasis on машину, but the neutral order is Я хочу помыть машину.
If the speaker is female, do I need to change помыть or хочу to match gender?
No. In the construction хотеть + infinitive, there is no gender agreement. Gender only appears in past-tense forms: Я помыла машину (female) vs. Я помыл машину (male).
What pattern does хочу помыть follow, and can it be used with other verbs?
This follows the хотеть + infinitive pattern to express desire (“to want to do something”). You can replace помыть with any other infinitive: Я хочу читать, Я хочу учить русский, Я хочу поехать в Москву, etc.