Breakdown of Возьми кружку поменьше, пожалуйста.
пожалуйста
please
взять
to take
кружка
the mug
поменьше
smaller
Questions & Answers about Возьми кружку поменьше, пожалуйста.
Why is it возьми and not бери?
Both can mean take, but they are different in aspect.
- возьми is the perfective imperative of взять. It suggests a single, complete action: take one.
- бери is the imperfective imperative of брать. It can sound more like go ahead and take, take it, or take regularly / in general, depending on context.
In Возьми кружку поменьше, пожалуйста, the speaker usually means one concrete action: Please take a smaller mug. That is why возьми is very natural here.
Why does кружка become кружку?
Because it is the direct object of the verb возьми.
The noun кружка is feminine, and feminine nouns ending in -а usually change to -у in the accusative singular:
- nominative: кружка
- accusative: кружку
So:
- Это кружка. = This is a mug.
- Возьми кружку. = Take a mug.
What exactly does поменьше mean here?