Learn Hardcore Ukrainian: Тату, одягни шапку і підніми капюшон — на вулиці мороз. - Dad, put on a hat and raise the hood

Ukrainian has a vocative case used when you address someone directly. The nominative is тато (dad), but when calling to him you use the vocative: тату. Similar patterns:

мама → мамо
Олег → Олеже
друг → друже It’s capitalized here simply because it starts the sentence. Mid‑sentence it would normally be lowercase: тату.

What’s the comma after Тату for?

It marks direct address. In Ukrainian, names and address forms (vocatives) are set off with commas: Тату, …; Мамо, …; Олеже, …

How would I say this politely using formal Ви?

Use the plural/Polite imperative:

Тату, будь ласка, одягніть шапку і підніміть капюшон — на вулиці мороз. You can place будь ласка right after the vocative or at the end: both are fine.

What is одягни exactly?

It’s the 2nd‑person singular imperative of the perfective verb одягнути/одягти “to put on (clothing).” Imperative perfective is the normal choice for a one‑time action: одягни (шапку) = “put (your hat) on now.”
Compare:

одягай (imperfective) = “keep putting on” / “put on (as a habit)”

Should it be одягни, вдягни, or надягни?

All three are used today:

одягни шапку — the most common and fully standard in modern Ukrainian.
надягни шапку — also correct; some style guides prefer it specifically for “put on an item.”
вдягни шапку — very common colloquially (especially regionally). Some editors avoid it, but you’ll hear it a lot.
In everyday speech, одягни шапку is perfectly natural.

Why does шапка become шапку?

It’s the accusative singular of a feminine noun in ‑а/‑я, which typically takes ‑у/‑ю in the accusative when it’s a direct object: шапка → шапку, книга → книгу, машина → машину.
By contrast, masculine inanimate nouns like капюшон don’t change in the accusative: капюшон → капюшон.

Why підніми and not підійми?

Both are correct variants of the same verb (“to raise, lift up”): підніми and підійми. You’ll hear підніми more often in casual speech. The polite forms are підніміть / підійміть.

Could I say Одягни капюшон instead of Підніми капюшон?

You can, and people will understand you, but the most idiomatic way to say “pull your hood up” is підніми капюшон (also common: натягни капюшон). Одягни капюшон/надягни капюшон is possible but sounds a bit less natural for a hood specifically.

What exactly is капюшон? Any synonyms?

Капюшон is “hood” (on a jacket/coat). It’s masculine, inanimate; stress is on the last syllable: капюшо́н. A native Ukrainian synonym you’ll hear, especially regionally or stylistically, is каптур: підніми каптур.

Why is there an em dash before на вулиці мороз?

The dash introduces an explanation/reason: “Put on your hat and pull up your hood — it’s freezing outside.” You could also write it with бо/тому що:

…, бо на вулиці мороз.
Note that на вулиці мороз is a normal Ukrainian nominal sentence (no present‑tense “to be” is needed).

Why на вулиці and not у вулиці?

With places like “street,” Ukrainian typically uses на to mean “out on / at” the location, and the phrase на вулиці idiomatically means “outside/outdoors.” У вулиці would sound like “inside the street” and isn’t used this way.
Also, вулиці is the locative case (місцевий відмінок) of вулиця after the preposition на.

How else can I say “outside”?

Common options:

надворі (very common and natural)
на вулиці
Both mean “outside” in general weather talk. Example: Надворі мороз. / На вулиці мороз.

Where did “your” go in “put on (your) hat, pull up (your) hood”?

Ukrainian often omits possessive pronouns when the owner is obvious from context. Here you’re addressing Dad about items he’s wearing, so шапку and капюшон don’t need твою/ваш.

How do I stress and pronounce this sentence?

Stresses: Та́ту, одягни́ ша́пку і підніми́ капюшо́н — на ву́лиці моро́з.
Pronunciation tips:

г is a voiced “h” (not hard “g”): одя[ɦ]ни́.
ш is “sh.”
ю in капюшон is like “yu.”

Can the word order change?

Yes, Ukrainian word order is flexible. For example:

Тату, підніми капюшон і одягни шапку — на вулиці мороз.
Мороз на вулиці. / На вулиці мороз. Shifting parts usually changes emphasis, not basic meaning.

Why are the imperatives perfective here?

Commands for single, completed actions typically use the perfective: одягни, підніми.
Imperfective imperatives (одягай, піднімай) suggest duration or repetition: Завжди одягай шапку = “Always put your hat on.”

Does мороз just mean “it’s cold”?

Мороз means “frost/freezing conditions,” typically below 0°C (32°F). It’s stronger than холодно (“cold”).

На вулиці мороз ≈ “It’s freezing outside.”
На вулиці холодно ≈ “It’s cold outside.”

Why і here? Could I use й or та?

All three mean “and,” but euphony rules guide the choice:

і is neutral and works everywhere.
й is often used between vowels to avoid a hiatus (e.g., мама й, а не мама і онук); it’s less common at the start of a sentence.
та also means “and” (though in some contexts it can mean “but”).
Here і before a word starting with a consonant (підніми) is the most natural.