Вчера у моей дочери была высокая температура.

my

Breakdown of Вчера у моей дочери была высокая температура.

• вчера: yesterday
• быть: to be
• высокий: high

Questions & Answers about Вчера у моей дочери была высокая температура.

Why is there no separate word for “had” in this sentence?

Russian usually does not use a direct verb meaning “to have” for possession in everyday speech.

Instead, it uses the structure:

• у + [person in genitive case] + быть (to be)

So:

• У моей дочери была высокая температура.
  Literally: “By/at my daughter there was a high temperature.”
  → Meaning: “My daughter had a high temperature.”

The verb быть here appears as была (past tense, feminine) and carries the idea of “had” in English.

---

Why do we use у моей дочери to mean “my daughter had”?

The preposition у with the genitive case is the standard way to express possession in Russian:

• у кого? – at/with whom? (genitive)

So:

• у моей дочери = “at my daughter’s / with my daughter”
• Combined with была высокая температура → “there was a high temperature at my daughter’s”
  → idiomatic English: “my daughter had a high temperature.”

This у + genitive construction is extremely common:

• У меня есть машина. – I have a car.
• У него была проблема. – He had a problem.
• У неё болит голова. – She has a headache.

---

Why is it , not ?