Learn Hardcore Russian: Моя подруга купила модную куртку.

In Russian, past-tense verbs agree with the subject’s gender and number. Since подруга is feminine singular, the verb takes the ending -ла. (Masculine would be -л, neuter -ло, plural -ли.)

Why is the noun куртка changed to куртку?

Куртка is the direct object of купила, so it appears in the accusative case. Feminine nouns ending in -а drop the -а and add -у in the singular accusative, giving куртку.

Why does the adjective модная become модную here?

Adjectives must agree with the noun’s gender, number, and case. Модная (feminine nominative) changes to модную (feminine accusative singular) to match куртку.

How does the possessive pronoun моя work in this sentence?

Моя is the feminine nominative singular form of мой (my), agreeing with подруга. Russian possessive pronouns decline by gender, number, and case (for example, accusative feminine is мою, genitive feminine is моей, etc.).

Why is подруга used instead of друг?

Подруга means “female friend,” while друг refers to a “male friend.” Russian nouns often have separate forms for male and female persons.

Why are there no articles like “a” or “the” in this sentence?

Russian does not have articles. Definiteness or indefiniteness is inferred from context, word order, or additional words rather than separate “a” or “the.”

What’s the difference between купила and покупала?

Купила is perfective past, implying the purchase was completed at a specific moment. Покупала is imperfective past, implying an ongoing, repeated, or habitual action (“She was buying” or “She used to buy”).

Is the word order fixed in Russian? Could I say “Моя подруга куртку купила модную”?

Word order in Russian is flexible because of case endings. The default is Subject-Verb-Object (SVO), as in Моя подруга купила модную куртку. You can move elements for emphasis, but “Моя подруга куртку купила модную” sounds awkward—adjectives usually stay next to their nouns.