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Questions & Answers about Річка широка.
What is the literal translation of Річка широка.?
The sentence translates to The river is wide. Річка means river and широка means wide.
Why is there no verb (such as є for “is”) in this sentence?
In Ukrainian, the present tense of the verb to be (i.e., є) is commonly omitted. Therefore, Річка широка. naturally conveys the meaning “The river is wide” without explicitly including a verb.
How do noun and adjective agreements work in this sentence?
The noun Річка is a feminine singular noun, and the adjective широка is in the feminine singular form as well. In Ukrainian, adjectives must agree with the noun they modify in gender, number, and case, ensuring grammatical consistency.
What is the function of the adjective широка in this sentence?
The adjective широка functions as a predicate adjective. It describes the subject Річка by attributing the quality of being wide, thereby completing the sentence’s predicative structure even without an explicit linking verb.
Why does the adjective appear after the noun instead of before, as is common in English?
Ukrainian word order is more flexible than English. In predicate constructions like this one, the adjective often follows the noun to express a state or quality. Although English typically uses a linking verb between the subject and adjective, Ukrainian omits the verb and places the adjective after the noun for a complete statement.
Can the adjective широка have other forms in different contexts?
Yes, adjectives in Ukrainian change according to gender, number, and case. For example, if describing a masculine noun, the adjective would change to широкий. Additionally, the adjective can form comparatives (ширша) and superlatives (найширша) to express degrees of the quality “wide.”