Questions & Answers about Мне нужен точный ответ на этот вопрос.
Why does the sentence start with мне and not я?
Because Russian often expresses need with a dative construction:
- мне = to me / for me
- нужен = is needed
So Мне нужен точный ответ literally means something like To me, an exact answer is needed.
This is a very common Russian pattern:
- Мне нужен совет. = I need advice.
- Ей нужна помощь. = She needs help.
- Нам нужно время. = We need time.
So even though English uses I need..., Russian often uses to me is needed... instead.
What exactly is нужен here?
Нужен is the short-form adjective of нужный, meaning needed / necessary.
In this sentence, it works as the predicate:
- ответ = answer
- нужен = needed
So the grammar is not based on a normal verb like need in English. Instead, Russian is saying that the answer is needed.
The full idea is:
- Мне нужен ответ. = I need an answer.
- literally: An answer is needed for me.
Why is it нужен, not нужно?