Я купил новый шампунь.

I bought a new shampoo.

Breakdown of Я купил новый шампунь.

• я: I
• купить: to buy
• новый: new
• шампунь: the shampoo

Questions & Answers about Я купил новый шампунь.

Why is there no article before новый шампунь like “a” or “the”?

Russian does not use articles. Context, word order, or extra words (e.g. какой-то шампунь for “some shampoo”) convey definiteness or indefiniteness, instead of “a” or “the.”

What exactly does купил mean, and why this form?

купил is the past tense (1st person singular) of the perfective verb купить (“to buy”). The perfective aspect indicates a completed action (“I bought”). If you wanted to stress an ongoing or habitual action, you’d use the imperfective покупал (“I was buying” / “I used to buy”).

Why is новый in that form? Doesn’t its ending change for case?

Adjectives in Russian agree with their nouns in gender, number, and case. Here шампунь is:
• masculine
• singular
• a direct object (accusative case)
Since шампунь is inanimate, its accusative form equals its nominative. Therefore новый stays in the masculine nominative form новый (hard-stem adjective ending -ый).

Why does шампунь end with a soft sign (ь), and how is it declined?

The final ь marks шампунь as a soft-stem masculine noun. Its singular declension is:
• Nominative (subject): шампунь
• Accusative (direct object): шампунь
• Genitive (possession): шампуня
• Dative (indirect object): шампуню
• Instrumental (with/by): шампунем
• Prepositional (about): шампуне

Why is шампунь in the accusative case here?

Because it’s the direct object of the verb “bought.” In Russian, objects of transitive verbs usually take the accusative. For inanimate masculine nouns like шампунь, accusative = nominative, so it remains шампунь.

Can you drop the pronoun Я, or is it always required?

You can omit Я because the verb ending -л in купил already tells you it’s 1st person singular past. Saying just Купил новый шампунь is perfectly natural when context makes the subject clear.

Where is the stress in шампунь, and are there any pronunciation tips?

The stress falls on the second syllable: шамˈпунь. Note that:
• The first а is reduced: [ʃɐmˈpunʲ].
• The final нь is palatalized [nʲ]—soften your tongue against the roof of your mouth.

What’s the difference between купить and покупать?

These verbs differ in aspect:
• купить (perfective): focuses on the completion of buying (“to buy once,” “to get”).
• покупать (imperfective): focuses on the process or habitual action (“to be buying,” “to buy regularly”).
Past tense: купил vs. покупал.