У мене є новий телефон.

to have

Breakdown of У мене є новий телефон.

• новий: new
• телефон: the phone

Questions & Answers about У мене є новий телефон.

What does У мене mean in this sentence?

It literally translates to "at me" and is used to indicate possession. Instead of a verb like "to have," Ukrainian employs this prepositional construction to show that something exists in one’s possession.

What role does є play in the sentence?

Є is an existential verb meaning "exists" or "there is." In this context, it connects the possessor phrase with the item possessed, effectively conveying that "a new phone exists with me" or, more naturally, "I have a new phone."

How do the adjective новий and the noun телефон work grammatically together?

The adjective новий (meaning "new") directly modifies the noun телефон (meaning "phone"). They agree in gender (masculine) and number (singular), following standard adjective–noun agreement rules in Ukrainian.

Why doesn’t Ukrainian use a direct equivalent of the English verb "to have" in this construction?

Ukrainian typically expresses possession by using a construction that indicates location—here, У мене—combined with the existential verb є. This structure means that something "exists with" or "is at" the possessor, rather than employing a standalone verb for possession as in English.