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Questions & Answers about Їжа смачна.
What does each word in Їжа смачна mean in English?
Їжа translates to food and смачна translates to tasty (or delicious). So the sentence means "The food is tasty."
Why is there no word for "is" in the sentence Їжа смачна?
In Ukrainian, the verb to be is usually omitted in the present tense. The relationship between the noun and the adjective is understood without an explicit copula.
How do adjectives agree with nouns in this sentence?
Ukrainian adjectives must agree with the noun they describe in gender, number, and case. Since їжа is a feminine singular noun, the adjective смачна is correctly in its feminine singular form.
Is it possible to change the word order, for example, to Смачна їжа, and would it affect the meaning?
Yes, Ukrainian word order is flexible. Although Їжа смачна is common, Смачна їжа is also acceptable. Changing the order can subtly shift the emphasis—for instance, placing the adjective first might stress the quality of the food—but the basic meaning remains the same.
How is the special character ї pronounced in їжа, and why is it important?
The letter ї is pronounced roughly like "yi". In їжа, it helps create a distinct vowel sound that differentiates it from other similar vowels in Ukrainian. Correct pronunciation of ї is important to accurately convey the meaning and sound of the word.