Questions & Answers about Сегодня мы не хотим плавать.
Why is the verb хотим and not something like 'хочем'?
The verb хотеть (to want) is highly irregular. In the singular forms (I, you, he/she/it), the stem uses a 'ч' and type-1 endings, like он хочет (he wants). But in the plural forms (we, you, they), the consonant changes to 'т' and it switches to type-2 endings: мы хотим, вы хотите, они хотят.
Why is the second verb плавать left in its dictionary form?
Just like in English ('we want to swim'), when you use a modal verb like хотеть (to want) or мочь (to be able to), only the first verb is conjugated to match the subject. The second verb, плавать, must stay in the infinitive.
Does the negative word не have to go right before хотим?
Yes. To negate an action in Russian, you place не immediately before the verb you are negating. You cannot separate не and the verb with other words.
Why is сегодня pronounced with a 'v' sound instead of a 'g'?
In Russian, the letter г is pronounced as a 'v' in the grammatical endings -его and -ого. The word сегодня literally comes from joining the old words сего (of this) and дня (day), so it strictly follows this pronunciation rule.