Breakdown of Нельзя шуметь, когда ребёнок спит.
Questions & Answers about Нельзя шуметь, когда ребёнок спит.
Нельзя is an impersonal predicative word (a “category of state” word) meaning it’s not allowed / it’s forbidden / one must not. It doesn’t change for person, number, or gender, and it often forms sentences with no explicit subject: Нельзя + infinitive.
Russian commonly uses impersonal constructions for rules and prohibitions. Нельзя шуметь is understood as “Nobody should make noise / You mustn’t make noise,” without naming who exactly. If you add ты/вы, it becomes more direct and personal, e.g. Тебе нельзя шуметь = “You are not allowed to make noise.”
After нельзя, Russian typically uses the infinitive to name the action that’s prohibited:
- Нельзя курить = “No smoking.”
- Нельзя шуметь = “No making noise.” This is the standard pattern for general prohibitions.
They differ in tone and grammar:
- Нельзя шуметь: general rule/prohibition; more neutral/impersonal.