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Questions & Answers about Моя машина дорога.
Why is there no linking verb (like is) in the sentence Моя машина дорога.?
In Ukrainian, the present tense often omits the linking verb є (to be). This means that statements like Моя машина дорога. are complete sentences, with дорога directly describing машина, conveying “My car is expensive” without needing an explicit “is.”
What role does дорога play in this sentence?
Дорога functions as an adjective modifying машина. It describes the car’s quality (being expensive or dear) and is inflected to agree with машина in gender (feminine), number (singular), and case.
How can I tell that дорога is used as an adjective here rather than the noun meaning road?
Context and grammatical agreement clarify its role. Although дорога as a noun means road, in this sentence it follows a possessive structure (Моя машина…) and is inflected to agree with a feminine noun. Therefore, it serves as an adjective meaning “expensive” (or “dear”) rather than referring to a road.
How does adjective-noun agreement work in this example?
In Ukrainian, adjectives must match the noun’s gender, number, and case. In Моя машина дорога, both моя (my) and дорога (expensive) are in the feminine singular form to agree with машина (car), which is a feminine singular noun. This agreement is essential for grammatical correctness.
Is Моя машина дорога. considered a complete sentence in Ukrainian?
Yes, it is. Even though English requires a linking verb (as in “My car is expensive”), Ukrainian often omits the present tense form of the verb to be. The sentence is complete and grammatically correct as is, fully conveying the intended meaning.