Я відкриваю рахунок у банку.

I open an account at the bank.

Breakdown of Я відкриваю рахунок у банку.

• я: I
• відкривати: to open
• у: at
• рахунок: the account
• банк: the bank

Questions & Answers about Я відкриваю рахунок у банку.

Why is рахунок in the accusative case?

Because it’s the direct object of the verb відкривати, which requires the accusative for inanimate nouns. Here рахунок (singular masculine) stays the same as the nominative: рахунок.

Why do we say у банку instead of в банку, and what case is it?

У банку uses the locative (prepositional) case to show location (“in the bank”). We use у (not в) before words beginning with consonant clusters (here б + а), so it’s у банку.

Why is the verb відкриваю in the present tense? How would you say “I will open an account”?

Відкриваю is the imperfective present, describing an ongoing or habitual action (“I am opening” or “I open”). To talk about a completed action in the future (“I will open an account”), switch to the perfective: Я відкрию рахунок у банку.

What’s the difference between the imperfective відкривати and the perfective відкрити?

They’re the two aspects of the same verb. Imperfective (відкривати) describes ongoing, habitual, or repeated actions. Perfective (відкрити) describes a single, completed action or one-time event.

Is the pronoun Я necessary in Ukrainian? Can I drop it?

You can drop Я because the verb ending -ю already marks first person singular. Using Я adds emphasis or clarity, but Відкриваю рахунок у банку is perfectly correct.

Where is the stress in рахунок and банку?

In рахунок the stress falls on the second syllable: ра-хУ́-нок. In банку it’s on the first syllable: БА́-нку.

Why are there no articles like “a” or “the” in this sentence?

Ukrainian has no indefinite or definite articles. Context tells you whether you mean “a bank account” or “the bank account,” so no extra words are needed.

Could I use a different preposition, like до банку or на банк?

No. To express “in/at a bank” you must use у (or в) with the locative case (у банку). На or до would change the meaning (to, onto, toward) and aren’t used for being inside a place.