Questions & Answers about Добавь одну ложку мёда в чай.
Why is Добавь used here, and what form is it?
Добавь is the informal singular imperative of the verb добавить.
So it means add! when speaking to one person you address with ты.
- добавить = to add
- Добавь! = add!
If you were speaking more formally or to several people, you would say Добавьте.
This sentence uses the perfective verb добавить, which is very natural for a single complete action: add one spoonful.
Why is it одну, not одна?
Because одна changes to одну in the accusative case.
The noun ложка is feminine, and in this sentence one spoonful is the direct object of the verb add, so both the numeral and the noun go into the accusative:
- nominative: одна ложка
- accusative: одну ложку
This is a very common pattern with feminine nouns.
Why is it ложку, not ложка?
For the same reason: ложка is the direct object, so it takes the accusative singular form.
- nominative: ложка = a spoon
- accusative: