Questions & Answers about Ты любишь овощи?
What is the singular form of овощи, and why does the plural end in -и?
The singular is овощ (vegetable), which is a masculine noun. Usually, masculine nouns add -ы to form the plural. However, because овощ ends with the hushing letter щ, a strict Russian spelling rule requires us to add -и instead.
Since vegetables are the direct object being liked, shouldn't овощи change its ending for the accusative case?
It is actually in the accusative case! For inanimate nouns (things that are not alive, like vegetables), the accusative plural is exactly the same as the nominative plural. So the form овощи does double duty here.
I thought любишь means "love". Why is it translated as "like" here?
The verb любить covers both "to love" and "to like". When talking about food, hobbies, or general preferences, it is the standard way to say that you like something.
How do we form a question like this without a word like "do"?
Russian does not use helper words like "do" or "does" for questions. The word order is identical to the statement Ты любишь овощи (You like vegetables). You make it a question simply by raising your pitch on the key word when speaking, or adding a question mark in writing.
Learn Ты любишь овощи and more in Russian
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free