Questions & Answers about Кто сейчас звонит?
Why does the verb end in -ит instead of -ет?
The dictionary form of this verb is звонить (to call). Because it ends in -ить, it follows the second conjugation pattern. This means its present tense endings use и instead of е. Since the question word кто acts like "he" or "she", we drop the -ить and add -ит, giving us звонит.
We don't know who is calling, so why is звонит in the "he/she" form?
In Russian, the question word кто (who) is always treated as grammatically singular, just like он (he) or она (she). Even if you expect a group of people to be calling, you must still use the 3rd-person singular form of the verb.
Does звонит mean calling out a person's name, or calling on the phone?
It specifically means calling on the telephone, or ringing a bell. If you wanted to say "call" as in shouting out to someone, or telling someone your name, Russian uses completely different verbs.
Where is the stress in the word звонит?
The stress falls on the final syllable: звони́т. You might sometimes hear native Russian speakers put the stress on the first syllable, but the strictly correct dictionary pronunciation that learners should use is звони́т.
When I listen to people say сейчас, it does not sound like it is spelled. Why?
In everyday, fast speech, Russians often blend and shorten сейчас so it sounds like "shchas" or even "shas". It is always spelled сейчас in writing, but do not be surprised when it sounds much shorter in real conversation.
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