Breakdown of Скажи, действует ли гарантия на мой телефон?
Questions & Answers about Скажи, действует ли гарантия на мой телефон?
Why does the sentence start with Скажи, and why is there a comma after it?
Is Скажи formal or informal? What would I say to a stranger?
Скажи is informal (to a friend, someone you address as ты). For polite/formal speech, use:
- Скажите, действует ли гарантия на мой телефон? (to вы) You can also add пожалуйста: Скажите, пожалуйста, …
What does ли do here, and why is it placed after действует?
ли turns the clause into a yes/no question, similar to English whether/if in an embedded-question style. It typically comes right after the word being “questioned” or focused—here the verb:
- действует ли гарантия… = is the warranty valid/does it apply…? Placing ли after действует is the most neutral, standard pattern.
Can I move ли somewhere else in the sentence?
Sometimes yes, but it changes emphasis and can sound less natural depending on placement. Neutral:
- Действует ли гарантия на мой телефон? Possible with different emphasis:
- Гарантия ли действует на мой телефон? (odd/rare; sounds like you’re contrasting “warranty” with something else) In most everyday cases, keep ли after the verb: действует ли.
Why is it действует and not another verb like работает?
For a warranty, Russian commonly uses действовать meaning to be valid / to be in effect / to apply:
- гарантия действует = the warranty is valid Работает is usually for devices, systems, or services “working” physically/operationally, not for legal validity.
What is the subject here? Is it гарантия or телефон?
The grammatical subject is гарантия (nominative singular feminine). The verb agrees with it:
- гарантия (she/it) → действует телефон is part of a prepositional phrase (на мой телефон) describing what the warranty applies to.
Why is it на мой телефон—what case is телефон in?
After на in the meaning for / covering / applying to, Russian uses the accusative case:
- на телефон (accusative) For inanimate masculine nouns like телефон, accusative looks the same as nominative, so телефон doesn’t change form. The pronoun does show accusative:
- мой (nom) → мой (acc masc inanimate; same form)
Could I also say гарантия на телефон without мой?
Yes. на телефон is fine if context already makes it clear whose phone. Adding мой makes it explicit: on my phone / for my phone. In a shop or service center, both are common:
- …на телефон? (more general)
- …на мой телефон? (more specific)
Is the word order fixed? Could I say Скажи, гарантия действует ли на мой телефон?
That word order is generally awkward. The most natural patterns are:
- Скажи, действует ли гарантия на мой телефон?
- Скажи, на мой телефон действует ли гарантия? (possible but marked; emphasizes на мой телефон) Most of the time, stick with действует ли гарантия… as the neutral order.
Can I ask the same thing without Скажи?
Yes. You can ask directly:
- Действует ли гарантия на мой телефон? Or even more conversationally:
- Гарантия на мой телефон ещё действует? (intonation question; no ли)
What’s the difference between Действует ли гарантия…? and Гарантия … действует? (without ли)?
With ли, it’s a clear yes/no question regardless of intonation:
- Действует ли гарантия…? (very explicit) Without ли, Russian relies more on rising intonation and context:
- Гарантия на мой телефон действует? (more conversational; can sound like “It’s still under warranty, right?”)
How would I say “Is the warranty still valid?” (adding “still”)?
Add ещё:
- Скажи, действует ли ещё гарантия на мой телефон? Commonly ещё goes near the verb, but several positions work:
- …ещё действует гарантия…
- …гарантия ещё действует…
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