Questions & Answers about Раз уж мы уже в мебельном магазине, давай измерим длину и ширину стола.
What does раз уж mean here?
Раз уж is a conversational expression meaning something like:
- since
- seeing that
- given that
- if we’re already...
In this sentence, Раз уж мы уже в мебельном магазине... means roughly:
Since we’re already in the furniture store...
It often introduces an idea like: because this situation is already true, we might as well do something useful related to it.
Why are there both раз уж and уже? Don’t they both mean already?
They are different.
- раз уж = since / given that / seeing that
- уже = already
So:
- Раз уж sets up the reason or situation.
- уже says that the situation is already true.
Literally, the beginning is close to:
Since we are already in a furniture store...
Using both is completely natural in Russian.
Why is it в мебельном магазине and not в мебельный магазин?
Because here the meaning is location, not movement.
- в + accusative = into a place, motion toward it
- в + prepositional = in / inside a place, location
Compare:
- Мы идём в мебельный магазин. = We are going to / into the furniture store.
- Мы в мебельном магазине. = We are in the furniture store.
So магазине is in the prepositional case.
Why does мебельный become мебельном?
Because adjectives must agree with the noun they describe in:
- gender
- number
- case
The noun магазин becomes магазине in the prepositional case after в (location), so the adjective must match it:
- nominative: мебельный магазин
- prepositional: в мебельном магазине
This is standard adjective-noun agreement.
What does давай измерим mean literally, and why is it used to mean let’s measure?
This is a very common Russian way to make a suggestion.
- давай literally comes from давать (to give), but in conversation it often means come on, let’s, or how about we...
- измерим is we will measure in form, but after давай it functions like let’s measure
So:
- Давай измерим... = Let’s measure...
A similar pattern:
- Давай посмотрим. = Let’s look.
- Давай подождём. = Let’s wait.
Why is it измерим and not something like измерять or измеряем?
Измерим is the 1st person plural future form of the perfective verb измерить.
That is used because the sentence suggests doing one complete action:
- измерить = to measure, to measure completely / get the measurement
- измерять = to be measuring / to measure habitually / imperfective
After давай, Russian often uses:
- давай + perfective future for a single completed action
- Давай измерим = Let’s measure
- sometimes давай + infinitive also appears in colloquial speech, but давай измерим is very standard
So измерим fits the idea of let’s go ahead and measure it.
Why are длину and ширину in this form?
They are in the accusative case because they are the direct objects of измерим:
- измерить что? = measure what?
- длину
- ширину
Their dictionary forms are:
- длина = length
- ширина = width
In the accusative singular, these feminine nouns become:
- длина → длину
- ширина → ширину
Why is it стола? Why is table in the genitive?
Because Russian often expresses things like the length of the table and the width of the table using the genitive case.
So:
- длина стола = the length of the table
- ширина стола = the width of the table
Here, стола is the genitive singular of стол.
The full structure is:
- измерим [длину и ширину] [стола]
- literally: let’s measure the length and width of the table
This is very natural in Russian.
Does стола belong to both длину and ширину, or only to ширину?
It belongs to both.
Russian often avoids repeating the same noun when it clearly applies to both items in a pair.
So:
- длину и ширину стола
means - the length and width of the table
It is understood as:
- длину стола и ширину стола
but repeating стола would sound unnecessarily heavy.
Why is the word order like this? Could it be different?
Yes, Russian word order is flexible.
The given sentence is natural and neutral:
Раз уж мы уже в мебельном магазине, давай измерим длину и ширину стола.
But other orders are possible depending on emphasis:
- Давай, раз уж мы уже в мебельном магазине, измерим длину и ширину стола.
- Раз уж мы уже в мебельном магазине, давай длину и ширину стола измерим.
This is possible, but less neutral and more marked.
Russian word order often changes for:
- emphasis
- rhythm
- topic/focus
So learners should usually treat the given order as the safest default.
Is раз уж formal or informal?
It is mostly conversational or neutral spoken style. It is very common in everyday Russian.
It is not slang, but it is less formal than some alternatives such as:
- поскольку = since, because
- так как = because
Compare:
- Раз уж мы уже здесь, давай начнём. = Since we’re already here, let’s begin.
- Поскольку мы уже здесь, давайте начнём. = Since we are already here, let us begin.
This sounds more formal.
So in this sentence, раз уж fits a natural spoken tone.
Why is it давай and not давайте?
Because давай is used when speaking to:
- one person informally, or
- sometimes in a very casual inclusive way
давайте is used for:
- plural you
- polite singular you
- or a more formal tone
So:
- Давай измерим... = Let’s measure...
(informal) - Давайте измерим... = Let’s measure...
(polite or plural)
The sentence sounds like one person speaking casually to another.
Is мебельный магазин exactly the same as furniture store?
Yes, that is the normal meaning.
- мебель = furniture
- мебельный = furniture-related / furniture
- магазин = store, shop
So мебельный магазин is the standard way to say furniture store or furniture shop.
Could измерить стол be used instead of измерить длину и ширину стола?
Sometimes yes, but the meaning would be less specific.
- измерить стол = measure the table
This could mean measure its overall dimensions, depending on context. - измерить длину и ширину стола = measure the table’s length and width
This is precise.
Russian often prefers the more explicit version when exact dimensions matter.
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