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Questions & Answers about Береги здоровье.
What grammatical form and person is the verb береги?
Береги is the 2nd person singular imperative of the imperfective verb беречь meaning to take care of or protect. It addresses one person directly.
Why is there no subject pronoun like ты?
In Russian imperatives the subject pronoun is usually omitted because the verb ending already indicates person and number.
What case is здоровье in, and why?
Здоровье is a neuter noun whose nominative and accusative forms are identical. Here it’s the direct object of беречь, so it’s in the accusative case, but it looks like the nominative.
Why isn’t there a preposition before здоровье?
The verb беречь is transitive and takes a direct object, so no preposition is needed.
Can we say Берегите здоровье instead, and what does that change?
Yes. Берегите is the 2nd person plural or formal imperative of беречь, so it addresses multiple people or serves as a polite form.
Why use the imperfective form беречь here instead of the perfective сберечь?
The imperfective беречь emphasizes ongoing or habitual care – continuously taking care of your health. The perfective сберечь would imply a single completed action.
Is Береги здоровье itself a proverb?
It’s a shortened form of the proverb Береги платье снову, а здоровье смолоду, meaning protect your clothes while they’re new and your health from youth.
Could I say Береги своё здоровье to specify it’s your health?
Yes. Своё clarifies that it’s your health. In casual speech the possessive is often dropped if the meaning is clear.
How can this command be softened or made more polite in Russian?
You can add пожалуйста – Береги здоровье, пожалуйста – or use a suggestion form like Постарайся беречь здоровье (Try to take care of your health).