Learn Russian: Где секретарь? Секретаря сегодня нет. - Where is the secretary? The secretary is not here today.

Где секретарь? Секретаря сегодня нет.

Where is the secretary? The secretary is not here today.

Breakdown of Где секретарь? Секретаря сегодня нет.

где

where / wherever

нет

there is no / is not present

Questions & Answers about Где секретарь? Секретаря сегодня нет.

Why does секретарь change to секретаря in the second sentence?

Because of the word нет! When you use нет to say someone or something is not here (or doesn't exist), the noun must be in the Genitive case.

Since секретарь ends in a soft sign (-ь), how do we know it takes the masculine Genitive ending (-я) instead of the feminine one (-и)?

Nouns ending in a soft sign can be tricky because they can be masculine or feminine, and you usually have to memorize them. However, words for professions that end in -арь (like секретарь) are always masculine. Therefore, it follows the masculine rule and drops the -ь to add -я.

Why does нет mean 'is not here' instead of just 'no'?

The word нет actually serves two purposes in Russian. It is the opposite of 'yes', but it is also used as a verb-like word meaning 'there is no' or 'is not present'. When it is used to mean 'is not present', it always forces the noun into the Genitive case.

I noticed the 'г' in сегодня is pronounced like a 'v'. Is this a rule?

Yes! The word сегодня (today) historically comes from two words meaning 'of this day' (сего дня). In Russian, the Genitive endings -ого and -его are always pronounced with a 'v' sound instead of a 'g'.