Роздай карти.

Роздай is the singular informal imperative form of the verb роздати.

So it is the form you use when telling one person to do something:

• Роздай карти. = command to one person

If you are speaking to:

• several people, or
• one person politely

you would say:

• Роздайте карти.

The prefix роз- adds the idea of distributing something to different people.

So:

• дай = give
• роздай = give out / hand out / deal

With cards, роздай is the natural choice because you are not just giving one card once; you are distributing cards around the table.

Here карти is in the accusative plural, because it is the direct object of the verb.

The basic noun is:

• карта = card / map

Its plural is:

• карти

For inanimate nouns like this, the accusative plural looks the same as the nominative plural. So:

• nominative plural: карти
• accusative plural: карти

In this sentence, it is accusative because the cards are what is being dealt.

Yes. Карта can mean:

• map
• card

The plural карти can therefore mean either maps or cards.

The context tells you which meaning is intended. With the verb роздай, the natural meaning is cards, especially playing cards.

Роздай comes from the perfective verb роздати. Perfective verbs focus on a completed action.

That fits this kind of command well: the speaker wants the person to deal out the cards as one complete action.

Compare:

• Роздай карти. = deal the cards; get the dealing done
• Роздавай карти. = deal out cards / keep dealing cards / be dealing cards

So the imperfective роздавай sounds more ongoing, repeated, or process-focused, while роздай sounds like a straightforward command to complete the action.

Use the imperative ending -йте:

• Роздайте карти.

This can mean:

• speaking to more than one person
• speaking to one person politely

This is very common in Ukrainian imperatives:

• читай → читайте
• дай → дайте
• роздай → роздайте

No, Ukrainian word order is fairly flexible.

Роздай карти is the most neutral order.

You could also say:

• Карти роздай.

That version puts more emphasis on карти, as if you are highlighting what should be dealt.

So:

• Роздай карти. = neutral
• Карти роздай. = more emphasis on the cards

Ukrainian has no articles like English a/an/the.

So карти can mean:

• cards
• the cards

The exact sense comes from context.

That is why Ukrainian can say simply:

• Роздай карти.

where English usually needs something like Deal the cards.

A good approximate pronunciation is:

• roz-DAI KAR-ty

Stress:

• роздáй
• кáрти

A few notes:

• й in роздай helps form the -dai sound at the end.
• и in карти is not English ee. It is shorter and more central.
• The r in Ukrainian is typically trilled or tapped more than in English.

Yes, if the context is obvious.

For example, in a card game, everyone may already know what is to be dealt, so Роздай can be enough.

But Роздай карти is clearer and fully explicit. It is especially useful for learners because it shows the verb plus its object clearly.