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Questions & Answers about Годинник стоїть на столі.
Why is there no article like the or a before годинник?
Ukrainian doesn’t have definite or indefinite articles. You simply say годинник, and context tells you whether it’s the clock or a clock. If needed, you can add words like цей = this or той = that to specify.
Why is the verb стоїть used here instead of the simple copula is?
In Ukrainian, to describe how something is positioned upright on a surface, you use стояти – to stand. Here годинник стоїть literally means the clock stands, conveying that the clock is standing in place. You wouldn’t use лежати – to lie – because the clock is not lying down.
What case is столі in, and why does it end with -і?
столі is the Locative singular form of стіл. After prepositions like на, when indicating a static location, you use the Locative. The ending -і marks the Locative for many masculine nouns.
Why is the preposition на used here, and how does it affect the case of the noun?
на = on when something is on top of a surface. In this static sense, на requires the Locative case. So на столі = on the table. If you wanted to say in a place, you would use в or у + Locative, for example в кімнаті = in the room.
Can I change the word order and say На столі стоїть годинник, and would the meaning be different?
Ukrainian word order is flexible because of its case endings. На столі стоїть годинник expresses the same basic idea as Годинник стоїть на столі. Placing На столі first highlights the location; placing Годинник first highlights the object.
How would I ask Where is the clock? in Ukrainian using this vocabulary?
You say Де стоїть годинник? (де = where, стоїть = stands). You can also shorten it to Де годинник? and native speakers will understand the question.
Where is the stress in годинник and стіл, and are there any pronunciation tips?
Годинник is stressed on the second syllable: ho-DIN-nyk. Стіл is one syllable, pronounced stil (similar to steel with an i vowel). The Ukrainian г is a hard h sound, like the h in hat.
How do you make this sentence negative, i.e. say The clock is not on the table?
Simply add не before the verb: Годинник не стоїть на столі. The particle не negates the action.
How would I ask What is on the table? in Ukrainian?
Start with the question word що = what, then use the verb стоїть + на столі: Що стоїть на столі? It literally means what stands on the table. If you expect objects lying flat, you could say Що лежить на столі? using лежить = lies.