Жизнь короткая, но интересная.

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Breakdown of Жизнь короткая, но интересная.

• но: but
• короткий: short
• жизнь: the life

Questions & Answers about Жизнь короткая, но интересная.

What case and gender are жизнь, and how can I tell?

Жизнь is a feminine noun in the nominative case. You can tell it’s feminine because many Russian nouns ending in a soft sign (ь) and denoting abstract concepts are feminine. The nominative case is used here because the noun is the subject of the sentence.

Why isn’t there a verb like есть (to be) in “Жизнь короткая, но интересная”?

In Russian, the present‐tense copula (“to be”) is usually omitted. So instead of saying Жизнь есть короткая, we simply say Жизнь короткая. The verb есть only appears if you need emphasis or in the past/future tense.

Why do both adjectives короткая and интересная end in –ая?

Because adjectives in Russian must agree with the noun they modify in gender, number, and case. Here, you have a singular feminine noun in the nominative case, so both adjectives take the feminine nominative singular ending –ая.

Could I place the adjectives before the noun (e.g., короткая жизнь, но интересная)?

Yes. Russian has relatively free word order. Putting короткая before жизнь sounds natural and emphasizes the shortness of life. Жизнь короткая and короткая жизнь both mean “short life,” but the first is more neutral, while the second can feel more poetic or emphatic.