Breakdown of Нам пора бы закончить этот рисунок до прихода гостей.
гость
the guest
этот
this
до
before
закончить
to finish
Questions & Answers about Нам пора бы закончить этот рисунок до прихода гостей.
Why is it нам, not мы?
Because пора uses the dative case for the person who is affected.
So Russian structures this idea as something like:
- Нам пора закончить... = It is time for us to finish...
- Мне пора идти. = It’s time for me to go.
- Тебе пора спать. = It’s time for you to sleep.
So нам is not the subject in the English sense. It is more like to us.
Is there a missing verb here? Why is there no form of to be?
There is no missing verb in modern Russian. Пора can act as the predicate by itself.
Russian often omits the present-tense form of to be, and with words like пора, that is completely normal:
- Мне пора. = It’s time for me to go / I have to go now.
- Нам пора закончить. = It’s time for us to finish.
So this is a complete sentence as it stands.
What exactly does пора mean here?