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Questions & Answers about У мене є собака.
What is the literal word-for-word translation of У мене є собака?
It literally translates as “At me is dog”. In natural English, however, it conveys the meaning “I have a dog”. This word order reflects the Ukrainian way of expressing possession using an existential construction rather than a direct equivalent of the verb to have.
What is the role of the word є in this sentence?
Є is the third person singular form of the verb to be. In У мене є собака, it serves as an existential marker that links the possessor (У мене) with what is possessed (собака). Without є, the sentence would lack the necessary verb to indicate that the dog exists in the speaker’s possession.
Why is the possessor expressed as У мене instead of using a subject pronoun like я?
In Ukrainian, possession is typically expressed with the structure У [possessor] є [possessed]. The phrase У мене literally means “at me” and implies ownership. Unlike English, where the subject I is explicitly stated in I have a dog, Ukrainian embeds the idea of possession within the prepositional phrase, so the subject pronoun я is not directly used.
Why is the form мене used here, and what case does it represent?
The form мене is used because the preposition У requires a specific form of the pronoun. In this idiomatic construction—mirroring similar structures in other Slavic languages—мене (analogous to Russian меня) is the set form that follows У to indicate possession. This form is fixed in the expression even if it doesn’t neatly match the typical nominative, accusative, or dative forms you might expect elsewhere.
Why doesn't the sentence include an article like a as in I have a dog?
Ukrainian does not use articles (definite or indefinite). The absence of an equivalent to the English a means that nouns in Ukrainian are understood without a preceding article. The context, along with the sentence structure, conveys whether the noun is intended in a general or specific sense.