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Questions & Answers about Я пью только воду.
Why is вода in the sentence Я пью только воду changed to воду?
In Russian, the direct object of a transitive verb like пить (“to drink”) takes the accusative case. The feminine noun вода (nominative) becomes воду in the accusative, marked by the ending –у.
What does только mean here, and which word does it modify?
только means “only” or “just.” In Я пью только воду, it modifies воду, indicating that water is the sole thing you drink (and nothing else).
Why is только placed before воду? Could I say Я пью воду только?
Adverbs like только usually appear directly before the element they modify. Placing только after воду (as in Я пью воду только) sounds unnatural and ambiguous. The standard word order is пью только воду to clearly mark воду as the restricted element.
Can I move только elsewhere for emphasis? For example, Только воду я пью?
Yes. Russian word order is flexible. Только воду я пью front-focuses “only water,” emphasizing contrast (“I drink only water, not tea or juice”). The neutral statement is Я пью только воду, with no special emphasis.
Why is there no article (“a” or “the”) before воду?
Russian does not have articles like English “a” or “the.” Context alone tells you whether you mean “water” in general or “the water” in particular.
What is the stress and pronunciation of пью?
пью is pronounced [pʲju], with a soft п’ (palatalized “p”) and stress on the single syllable (the sound “ю”). It rhymes roughly with English “pew” but with a softer initial consonant.
Why is the verb пью (present tense) used instead of some other form?
пью is the first-person singular present tense of пить. It literally means “I drink” or “I am drinking.” If you wanted past tense (“I drank”), you would say Я пил воду (masculine) or Я пила воду (feminine).
Could you replace только with another word to express “only water” differently?
Yes, for a more informal or emphatic style you might hear лишь or исключительно:
- Я пью лишь воду (slightly bookish).
- Я пью исключительно воду (very formal). But только is the most common everyday choice.