Я шукаю сумку і навушники.

I am looking for the bag and the headphones.

Breakdown of Я шукаю сумку і навушники.

• я: I
• і: and
• сумка: the bag
• навушник: the headphone
• шукати: to look for

Questions & Answers about Я шукаю сумку і навушники.

What tense and person is шукаю? Does it mean “I look for” or “I am looking for”?

Шукаю is present tense, 1st person singular of шукати “to look for.” Ukrainian present tense covers both English simple and continuous, so it can mean both “I look for” and “I am looking for.” Context or adverbs add nuance (e.g., Я зараз шукаю… “I’m looking right now”).

Why is it сумку and not сумка?

Because it’s a direct object and must be in the accusative case. Feminine nouns ending in -а/-я change to -у/-ю in the accusative singular:

• сумка → сумку
• книга → книгу
• мрія → мрію

Why doesn’t навушники change after шукаю?

For inanimate plural nouns, the accusative plural is identical to the nominative plural. Навушники (headphones) is inanimate, so nominative plural = accusative plural: навушники. If the noun were animate, the accusative plural would match the genitive plural (e.g., студенти → бачу студентів).

What are the genders and numbers here? Are навушники always plural?

• сумка is feminine singular.
• навушники is plural. The singular навушник exists but means one earpiece/earmuff. For a pair of headphones, Ukrainian normally uses the plural and even uses the plural form of “one”: одні навушники (“one pair of headphones”).

Do I need a word for “a/the”? Why doesn’t Ukrainian use articles here?

Ukrainian has no articles. Я шукаю сумку і навушники can mean “I’m looking for a bag and (some) headphones” or “the bag and the headphones,” depending on context.

Do I need the subject pronoun Я? Can I drop it?

You can drop it. The verb ending shows the person:

• Шукаю сумку і навушники. = “(I) am looking for a bag and headphones.” Use я for emphasis or clarity.

Can I change the word order?

Yes, Ukrainian word order is flexible for emphasis:

• Neutral: Я шукаю сумку і навушники.
• Focus on the objects: Сумку і навушники шукаю.
• Different object order: Я шукаю навушники і сумку. All are grammatical; choose based on what you want to highlight.

Do I need a preposition like “for” with шукати?

No. Шукати takes a direct object without a preposition: шукати щось/когось. You use prepositions only to express purpose, recipient, etc., e.g., сумку для подорожей (“a bag for travel”).

How do I pronounce the sentence? Where is the stress?

Stress:

• Я шука́ю су́мку і наву́шники. Tips:
• ш = sh.
• я = ya; ю = yu.
• і sounds like English “ee”; и is a different vowel, like a relaxed “i” (IPA [ɪ]).
• Syllables: ya shu-KA-yu SUM-ku i na-VU-shny-ky.

Which “and” should I use: і, й, or та?

• і is the neutral default.
• й is a variant of і, often used between vowels for euphony: … сумку й навушники (also correct).
• та also means “and,” slightly more formal/literary or used to avoid repeating і. In some contexts та can mean “but,” but not here.

How is шукати conjugated?

• Present: я шукаю, ти шукаєш, він/вона/воно шукає, ми шукаємо, ви шукаєте, вони шукають
• Past: шукав (m.), шукала (f.), шукало (n.), шукали (pl.)
• Future (imperfective): either analytic я буду шукати or synthetic я шукатиму
• Related perfectives: пошукати (“to look for a bit/try”), знайти (“to find” result).

How do I say “my bag and my headphones”?

Add possessives that agree in gender/number/case:

• Я шукаю мою сумку і мої навушники. Notes:
• мою = feminine accusative singular (for сумка).
• мої = plural (for навушники) and stays мої in the accusative with inanimate nouns.

How could I say this politely in a store?

• Підкажіть, будь ласка, я шукаю сумку та навушники.
• Чи є у вас сумки і навушники?
• Мені потрібні сумка і навушники. These are natural ways to address a clerk.

What’s the difference between шукати, знайти/знаходити, and пошукати?

• шукати: to look/search (process), imperfective. Я шукаю ключі.
• знайти: to find (result), perfective. Я знайшов/знайшла ключі.
• знаходити: to find (imperfective, habitual or ongoing). Часто знаходжу цікаві речі.
• пошукати: perfective “to look for for a while/try looking.” Я пошукаю завтра.

Any common spelling pitfalls here?

• Ukrainian навушники (with в) is correct; Russian наушники (without в) is a different language.
• Don’t confuse і and и: they are different letters and sounds.
• Accusative of сумка is сумку (with у), not “сумка.”

How can I specify types of bag or headphones?

• Bags: сумка (bag/handbag), рюкзак (backpack), валіза (suitcase), клатч (clutch).
• Headphones: дротові/бездротові навушники (wired/wireless), вкладиші (earbuds), накладні (on‑ear), повнорозмірні (over‑ear), гарнітура (headset).

Do I ever put a comma before і in this kind of sentence?

No comma is used before і when simply joining two items: сумку і навушники. In longer lists, you separate items with commas, but there’s no “Oxford comma” before і in standard Ukrainian.

How do I ask “What are you looking for?” and “Who are you looking for?” with шукати?

• Informal: Що ти шукаєш? / Кого ти шукаєш?
• Polite/plural: Що ви шукаєте? / Кого ви шукаєте? Use що for things (inanimate), кого for people (animate).

How do I make it negative?

Add не: Я не шукаю сумку і навушники. If you mean “neither … nor …,” use ні … ні …:

• Я не шукаю ні сумку, ні навушники. Case marking stays the same: сумку (feminine accusative), навушники (plural inanimate).