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Questions & Answers about Я мию посуд у раковині.
What case is раковині, and why is it used here?
It’s the Locative singular of раковина. After the preposition у/в meaning “in/at” for a static location, Ukrainian uses the Locative: у раковині = “in the sink.” If there were movement into the sink, you’d use the Accusative: в раковину.
Why is it у and not в here? Are both correct?
Both mean the same (“in/at”). Ukrainian alternates в/у for euphony. After a word ending in a consonant and before a word starting with a consonant, у is usually smoother. Since посуд ends with a consonant and раковині begins with one, посуд у раковині sounds better than посуд в раковині. Using в wouldn’t be wrong, just less euphonious.
Is посуд plural? Why doesn’t it change after the verb?
- Посуд is a mass/collective noun meaning “dishes/tableware.” It’s grammatically masculine singular and typically uncountable.
- In the Accusative, inanimate masculine nouns look like the Nominative, so мию посуд shows no ending change.
- If you name specific items, the endings change:
- singular: тарілку (a plate), чашку (a cup)
- plural: тарілки, чашки
What’s the difference between мити, помити, and вимити?
- мити (imperfective): ongoing/repeated process. Я мию посуд = I’m washing/I wash (habitually).
- помити (perfective): a single, completed act. Я помию посуд = I’ll wash the dishes (and finish).
- вимити (perfective with ви-): emphasizes washing something clean/“out.” Я вимив посуд = I washed them clean.
How do I talk about movement into the sink vs location in the sink?
- Location (static) uses Locative: посуд у раковині = in the sink.
- Movement (into) uses Accusative: кладу тарілку в раковину = I’m putting a plate into the sink.
Can I change the word order?
Yes. Ukrainian word order is flexible and used for emphasis:
- Neutral: Я мию посуд у раковині.
- Emphasizing place: У раковині я мию посуд.
- Emphasizing the object: Посуд я мию у раковині. All are grammatical; context decides what sounds most natural.
When do I use the reflexive митися?
Use митися for washing oneself: Я миюся = I’m washing myself.
Use мити + object for washing things: Я мию посуд, Я мию підлогу (the floor), etc. Don’t say посуд миється unless you mean “the dishes wash themselves” (or in a passive/impersonal style).
How do I say this in the future?
Two common ways:
- Imperfective future (process/habit): Я буду мити посуд.
- Perfective future (single completed act): Я помию посуд.
Why isn’t there an article (“the/a”)?
Ukrainian has no articles. Definiteness/indefiniteness comes from context or can be added with demonstratives:
- у цій раковині = in this sink
- у тій раковині = in that sink
Is раковина always “sink”? Are there other words?
- раковина can mean a bathroom sink or a shell. It’s widely understood for “sink.”
- In kitchens, people often say мийка (kitchen sink).
- For a bathroom washbasin, you’ll also hear умивальник.
Your sentence is fine in general contexts; in a kitchen-specific context, у мийці is very natural.
What are the genders and cases of the key nouns here?
- посуд: masculine, mass noun; Accusative = Nominative (inanimate).
- раковина: feminine; Locative singular is раковині after у/в for location.
Do I need to capitalize я?
No. The pronoun я is lowercase in Ukrainian, except at the start of a sentence (where any word would be capitalized). So sentence-internally it’s я, not capitalized like English “I.”
How should I pronounce or romanize this?
A simple romanization is: Ya myiu posud u rakovyni.
Tips:
- ю in мию sounds like English “yu.”
- у is like “oo” in “boot.”
- Every vowel is pronounced; stress and rhythm are fairly even compared to English.