Breakdown of Я умываюсь. Где моё мыло и новое полотенце?
и
and
где
where / wherever
я
I
новый
new
мой
my / mine
умываться
to wash one's face
мыло
soap
полотенце
towel
Questions & Answers about Я умываюсь. Где моё мыло и новое полотенце?
Why does умываюсь end in -сь instead of -ся?
The reflexive ending has two forms: -ся and -сь. You use -сь after a vowel and -ся after a consonant. Since the "I" form of the verb ends in the vowel ю (умываю), you add -сь to get умываюсь.
The translation says "I am washing my face", but where is the word for "face"?
The verb умываться literally means "to wash oneself," but it is specifically used in Russian for washing your face and hands. The reflexive ending -сь shows that you are doing the action to yourself, so you don't need a separate word for "face" here.
Why is it моё мыло instead of мой or моя?
Мыло (soap) ends in -о, which means it is a neuter noun. Because of this, you must use the neuter form of the word "my", which is моё.
Is полотенце also a neuter noun?
In English we say "Where ARE my soap and towel", but Russian just says Где. Does Где change for plural subjects?
No, the question word где (where) never changes! Because Russian skips the verbs "is" and "are" in the present tense, you just use Где whether you are looking for one thing or many things.
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