Breakdown of Кто врач? Женщина — врач, а друг — студент.
кто
who / whoever
а
and (contrastive)
студент
student (m)
врач
doctor
женщина
woman
друг
friend
Questions & Answers about Кто врач? Женщина — врач, а друг — студент.
Why is it just Кто врач without a word for 'is'?
In Russian, the present tense of the verb 'to be' is skipped. This rule applies to questions too! So Кто врач? literally translates to 'Who doctor?'.
Could I use Что instead of Кто to ask this?
No. Кто means 'who' and is used for living beings, like people and animals. Что means 'what' and is used for non-living things. Since a doctor is a person, you must use Кто.
Why are there dashes in Женщина — врач and друг — студент?
When you drop the verb 'is' in a sentence where both the subject and the description are nouns, Russian uses an em dash (—) to separate them. It acts as a visual substitute for 'is'.
Why is the word а used for 'and' instead of и?
The word и simply adds things together. The word а is used to show a slight contrast or a shift in focus, often translated as 'and' or 'but'. Here, it shifts the focus to contrast the woman's profession with the friend's profession.
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