Questions & Answers about Ми чекаємо одинадцять хвилин.
What does each word do grammatically in Ми чекаємо одинадцять хвилин?
- Ми = we. It is the subject, in the nominative plural.
- чекаємо = we wait / we are waiting. This is the 1st person plural present-tense form of чекати.
- одинадцять = eleven.
- хвилин = minutes, in the genitive plural form of хвилина.
So the structure is basically:
we + are waiting + eleven minutes
In natural English, this often corresponds to We have been waiting for eleven minutes.
Why is there no word for for before одинадцять хвилин?
Because Ukrainian often expresses duration without a preposition.
So:
- чекати одинадцять хвилин = to wait for eleven minutes
- працювати три години = to work for three hours
- жити тут два роки = to live here for two years
English usually needs for in this kind of sentence, but Ukrainian usually does not.
Why is it хвилин, not хвилини or хвилина?