Breakdown of Мама приглашает нас на обед и готовит вкусный борщ.
и
and
на
for
вкусный
delicious
обед
the lunch
мама
the mom
борщ
the borscht
нас
us
готовить
to cook
приглашать
to invite
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Questions & Answers about Мама приглашает нас на обед и готовит вкусный борщ.
What tense and aspect is приглашает in?
приглашает is the present tense of the imperfective verb приглашать. The imperfective aspect indicates an ongoing or habitual action (e.g., “is inviting” or “invites regularly”), not a one-time, completed event.
What case is нас, and why is it used here?
нас is the accusative case of the pronoun мы (“we”). In Russian, the direct object of a verb (the one who gets invited) takes the accusative case.
Why do we say приглашает нас на обед instead of omitting на?
The preposition на plus the accusative case is used with приглашать when talking about inviting someone to an event or occasion (in this case, обед, “lunch”). Without на, the phrase would sound incomplete.
Can обед mean any meal, or does it refer specifically to lunch?
In Russian, обед specifically means the midday meal—what we call “lunch.” Breakfast is завтрак, and dinner (evening meal) is ужин.
Why are there two verbs, приглашает and готовит, joined by и?
They describe two simultaneous or closely related actions by the same subject (мама). The coordinating conjunction и simply links “invites us to lunch” and “prepares tasty borscht” as part of one narrative.
What is the aspect difference between готовит and приготовит?
готовит is imperfective, focusing on the process (“is cooking” or “cooks regularly”). приготовит is the perfective form, emphasizing completion (“will cook” or “will have cooked” once done).
Why is вкусный борщ in that form (вкусный + борщ)?
Both words are in the masculine singular nominative case: борщ (noun) + вкусный (adjective) agree in gender, number, and case. It means “tasty borscht” as the subject or object in the sentence.
Why aren’t there any articles (like “the” or “a”) before борщ?
Russian does not use definite or indefinite articles the way English does. Noun meaning and specificity are inferred from context, word order, and grammar, not articles.
Is the word order flexible? Could you say Нас мама приглашает на обед…?
Yes, Russian word order is relatively flexible. You could say Нас мама приглашает на обед or На обед мама приглашает нас, but placing мама first is the most neutral and common ordering.