Breakdown of Анна отправляет письмо подруге.
письмо
letter
Анна
Anna
отправлять
to send
подруга
female friend
Questions & Answers about Анна отправляет письмо подруге.
Why is the word for friend spelled подруге instead of подруга?
Подруга (female friend) is the indirect object here—the person receiving the letter. In Russian, we use the Dative case for this. For most feminine nouns ending in -а, the ending changes to -е in the Dative case, making it подруге.
The English translation says 'to a friend'. Why is there no Russian word for 'to' in this sentence?
In English, we use 'to' to show who is receiving something. In Russian, the Dative case ending itself (the -е in подруге) does this job. You do not need a separate preposition when simply showing the receiver of an action.
If письмо (letter) is the object being sent, why hasn't its ending changed?
The letter is the direct object (the thing being acted upon), so it takes the Accusative case. However, письмо is a neuter noun because it ends in -о. Neuter nouns do not change their spelling in the Accusative case, so it looks exactly the same as its dictionary form.
Could I change the word order to Анна отправляет подруге письмо?
Yes! Russian word order is very flexible because the word endings tell you who is doing what. Both sentences mean the same thing, though putting письмо at the very end places slightly more emphasis on the fact that she is sending a letter, rather than something else.
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