Я годую собаку.

Because собаку is in the accusative case.

In this sentence, собака is the thing receiving the action of feeding, so it is the direct object. In Ukrainian, direct objects often take the accusative.

• Nominative: собака = a dog / the dog
• Accusative: собаку = a dog / the dog as the object

Since собака is a feminine noun, its accusative singular ending changes from -а to -у.

So:

• собака = dog as the subject
• собаку = dog as the object

Годую is the 1st person singular present-tense form of the verb годувати, meaning to feed.

So годую means:

• I feed
• I am feeding

The ending -ю shows that the subject is I.

Related forms:

• я годую = I feed / I am feeding
• ти годуєш = you feed
• він/вона годує = he/she feeds

Not always.

Ukrainian often drops subject pronouns when they are already clear from the verb ending. Since годую already means I feed, you can simply say:

• Годую собаку.

That is completely natural.

Including Я can make the subject clearer or more emphatic:

• Я годую собаку. = I’m feeding the dog.

So:

• Я годую собаку. = neutral or slightly emphatic
• Годую собаку. = also normal, often more natural in context

Yes.

In Ukrainian, the present tense of an imperfective verb often covers both:

• a general/habitual meaning: I feed the dog
• a right now meaning: I am feeding the dog

So Я годую собаку could mean either one, depending on context.

For example:

• If someone asks what you do every morning: Я годую собаку.
• If someone asks what you are doing right now: Я годую собаку.

Context usually makes it clear.

Я is in the nominative case because it is the subject of the sentence.

So the sentence structure is:

• Я = subject, nominative
• годую = verb
• собаку = direct object, accusative

This is a very common Ukrainian sentence pattern.

A rough pronunciation is:

ya ho-DOO-yu so-BA-ku

A few useful points:

• Я sounds like ya
• Ukrainian г usually sounds more like an English h than a hard g
• ю in годую sounds like yu
• собаку has the stress on ба: so-BA-ku

So the whole sentence sounds approximately like:

ya ho-DOO-yu so-BA-ku

Because in standard Ukrainian, г is usually pronounced like a voiced h sound, not like the hard English g.

So годую begins with something closer to:

• h/gh
  • o

not a hard g.

Ukrainian has a separate letter, ґ, for the hard g sound.

So:

• г = usually a soft, throaty h-like sound
• ґ = hard g

This is one of the classic pronunciation differences learners notice.

Yes.

Because Ukrainian marks grammatical roles with case endings, the word order is more flexible than in English.

The most neutral order here is:

• Я годую собаку.

But you could also say:

• Собаку я годую.
• Годую я собаку.

These versions change the emphasis, not the basic meaning.

For example:

• Собаку я годую. may emphasize the dog
• Я годую собаку. is the most straightforward, neutral version

So word order in Ukrainian is often about focus and style, not just grammar.

You usually know from context.

Ukrainian has no articles, so there is no direct equivalent of English a and the.

That means собаку can mean:

• a dog
• the dog

depending on the situation.

For example:

• If you are talking about your pet, it likely means the dog
• If you are speaking more generally, it could mean a dog

This is completely normal in Ukrainian.

No. Another very common verb is кормити.

Both can often be translated as to feed, and in many situations they overlap.

So you may also hear:

• Я кормлю собаку.

This also means I feed / I am feeding the dog.

For a learner, the important thing is:

• Я годую собаку is correct and natural
• Я кормлю собаку is also common

Over time, you will get a better feel for usage from exposure.

You add не before the verb:

• Я не годую собаку. = I do not feed / I am not feeding the dog.

This is the normal way to negate a verb in Ukrainian.

So:

• Я годую собаку. = I feed the dog
• Я не годую собаку. = I do not feed the dog

Often, you can make it a question just by using question intonation:

• Я годую собаку? = Am I feeding the dog? / I feed the dog?

You can also use чи for a clearer yes/no question:

• Чи я годую собаку?

In everyday speech, intonation alone is very common.

So the sentence form may stay the same, and your voice tells the listener it is a question.