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Questions & Answers about Хтось допомагає мені.
What does хтось mean in English?
Хтось translates to someone or somebody, referring to an unspecified person.
Why is мені in the dative case instead of the accusative?
In Ukrainian, the verb допомагати (to help) takes its object in the dative case to indicate the person receiving the help. That’s why мені—meaning to me—is used rather than an accusative form.
What is the role of допомагає in this sentence?
Допомагає is the present tense, third person singular form of допомагати. It acts as the main verb, expressing the action performed by the subject хтось.
Is хтось considered singular or plural?
Although хтось refers to an unknown person, it is grammatically singular. This is why the verb form допомагає is conjugated in the singular.
How does the word order in Хтось допомагає мені compare to English?
The sentence follows a natural Subject-Verb-Object (or more precisely, Subject-Verb-dative) order similar to English. However, Ukrainian’s rich case system allows for more flexibility in word order without losing meaning.
How would you express "Nobody helps me" in Ukrainian?
To say "Nobody helps me", you would say Ніхто не допомагає мені. Here, ніхто replaces хтось and не is placed before the verb to create the negative form.